Eilers & Krejcik Gaming announced that Station Casinos’’ Thomas Mikulich and the late William “Si” Redd are being inducted into the EKG Slot Awards Hall of Fame (HOF) Class of 2024. Mikulich and Redd will be honored at the 2024 EKG Slot Awards in Las Vegas on February 29.
Mikulich, senior vice president of innovation and slots at Station Casinos, has been a leader in the gaming industry for more than 37 years, excelling in multiple roles and overseeing gaming development and property operations. He joined Station in 2017. Prior to Station, Mikulich was senior vice president of business development for MGM Resort International, overseeing not only development, but the M life loyalty program and direct marketing programs.
Prior to that, he was senior vice president at IGT, president and chief operating officer at Treasure Island Hotel & Casino, senior vice president of gaming at The Mirage and vice president of slot marketing and operations at the Beau Rivage and Golden Nugget. He started his gaming career at the Dunes Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Mikulich is well recognized in the gaming industry for his pioneering approach and expertise that led to the introduction and development of several innovative gaming technologies.
Redd is widely credited as the primary developer of the game of video poker. He perfected video poker while working for the former Bally Distributing in the 1970s, but when Bally passed on the invention, he started his own company, Sircoma. In 1981, he incorporated that company as International Game Technology, and launched the Fortune 1 video draw poker machine. By the end of the 1980s, IGT also was producing video slots, to be followed by groundbreaking stepper slots in the 1990s, by which time IGT had surpassed Bally a the leader of the slot market, after which the company dominated the market for decades. At its peak, IGT commanded around 70 percent of the worldwide slot market.
Redd sold his controlling interest in IGT in 1986, and remained as chairman of the board until 1991. He died in 2003.
