Pauly’s pleasant perspective perpetually pleases.
Paul Messell, known among South Florida fans simply as “Pauly,” hosts casino programs at Magic City Casino in Miami and The Casino @ Dania Beach. Messell’s latest endeavor, the alliterative “Pauly’s Pigskin Prediction Palooza,” made its debut at Dania on Sunday.
“At Magic City, we call Pauly ‘the director of fun,’” Dania CEO Scott Savin said. (The two casinos have the same owners.) “He’s your everyday guy and he knows sports inside and out, whether it’s about the 1960 World Series, who won the latest race at Gulfstream or 2017 Super Bowl futures bets. He’s that guy.”
Messell, whose specialty is horse handicapping, became friends with radio host Jeff DeForrest in 1981 when he was a jockey agent at Gulfstream Park and DeForrest hosted a results show. DeForrest, currently on WINZ-940 AM, and Messell hosted a sports radio quiz show for years, known for its freewheeling conversation.
“People would ask how much we’d prepare for the show, and I’d tell them if the show started at 8 a.m., Jeff would come in at five minutes before and say, ‘What do you guys want to talk about?” Messell said.
Now Messell hosts “Doggy Dinner Theater” at 6 p.m. Thursdays Magic City. Diners receive Pick 4 tickets for the greyhound racing, and prizes are awarded even to those who did correctly predict all four races. He also hosts “Pauly’s Pop Quiz Show” at 4, 5 and 6 p.m. Saturdays at Dania.
“It’s called an impossible quiz show because the questions are so difficult, but the options are always 50-50,” he says. “The answer is ‘either A or B’ or ‘True or False.’”
Now with the “Palooza” at Dania on Sundays, patrons pick the winners of the 1 p.m. games. The winner gets $100 in free slot play. The season-long winner receives a Chevy Suburban or $15,000 cash. The contest is held in the casino’s upstairs sports lounge, which also offers $3 beers and chicken wings, chicken fingers, burgers and other items on Sundays.
Messel said he hopes fantasy football fans eventually gather at Dania, which has 25 TVs in its sports lounge and nearby simulcast action. There also is a $45 buy-in poker tournament at 1 p.m. for those who like to multi-task.
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