Shares of Wynn Resorts tumbled on January 12 when it came out that a Wynn director and major shareholder had filed a lawsuit against the casino company. Turns out Kazuo Okada, one of Steve Wynn’s original partners, is claiming the company made a questionable $135 million donation to the University of Macau and hasn’t been sharing its financial information with him. Reuters has a nice write-up here.

The veiled implication is Wynn’s sizable donation might have been less than philanthropic – bordering on a ”pay to play” ante to retain favor in the world’s most lucrative gaming destination. (The competing Las Vegas Sands’ Macau operation is currently under DOJ and SEC scrutiny for possible infringement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, as referenced here in a Wall Street Journal blog.)

Wynn claims Okada’s lawsuit is just a smoke screen to mask the fact that Okada had been working behind Wynn’s back to develop a casino in the Philippines. You can read all the tawdry details in A Partners’ Fight Erupts at Wynn.

How will it end? Perhaps better than Steve Wynn’s marriage. After all, Wynn recently told the press, “I love Kazuo Okada as much as any man that I’ve met in my life.”

Wynn shares have since recovered from the drama at the start of January, but still have a ways to go in 2012 before reaching 2011 highs.

Forbes associate editor Nathan Vardi published an article this morning entitled “How Casino Mogul Steve Wynn Went All In On Online Poker and PokerStars”, which despite the lame-o “All In!” header, is a compelling high-seas tale of how PokerStars founder Isai Scheinberg wooed and won the reticent Steve Wynn based on Vardi’s interview with the casino titan.

Because where else could billionaires come to grips with their future together but on a fabulous yacht in exotic locations and make the deal (surprisingly) even-steven 50-50?

I couldn’t help but think of Vardi’s post as if told in a novella….

When Scheinberg Met Steve

Chapter 1: The First Meeting

Nearly two years ago billionaire Las Vegas casino mogul Steve Wynn met Isai Scheinberg, the founder of PokerStars, the world’s biggest online gaming firm, for the first time. Scheinberg generally avoids traveling to the U.S., but the meeting took place on Wynn’s boat while it was anchored in the Mediterranean Sea. Over a three-hour lunch, Scheinberg tried to convince Wynn that the two of them should work together to regulate online poker in the U.S. with an eye toward setting up a joint venture.

More…

This week we cover another step toward online gambling regulation in the United States, as the announcement came that Poker Stars and Wynn Resorts have reached an agreement to work together! Also, updates on the upcoming iGaming Super Show and the latest from eCOGRA.

The Internet Gambling Regulation Consumer Protection and Enforcement Act of 2009 (aka Leave No Pot Behind) is gearing up for its Congressional push … I’ll be honest, few sources I’ve spoken to give this legislation much chance — at least not until Sen Harry Reid (D-NV) gets on board, and a little Obama-attended fundraiser hosted by Harrah’s at the Caesar’s Palace Poker Room is hardly enough to guarantee that.* However, thanks in part to publicity brought on by the crackdown on online payment processors, the bill seems to be gaining more momentum than anyone expected.

Four more congresspeople signed on as co-sponsors Friday, bringing the total number to 30:

Rep. Steve Dreihaus (D-OH)
Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY)
Rep. Raul Grijalva (D-AZ)
Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO)

Now before my Libertarian and Conservative friends get on my case about this bill more Democratic socialism, just know that Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) is a big backer of HR 2267, so if Dr. No can say yes, then so can I — regardless of my poker bias.

The bill was also sent on Friday to the House Judiciary subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security. Good thing — since one of the first arguments against it is that online poker funds terrorism, when we know full well that even if that were true, it’s all the more reason to regulate it. To follow the progress of HR 2267 as it moves through Congress, click here.

* MGM/Mirage is reportedly neutral on the bill, and Steve Wynn supposedly strongly against.