Carnival Resorts & Casinos, a Miami company founded by Sherwood Weiser and Donald Lefton, has agreed to be purchased by Jackpot Enterprises of Las Vegas.

The transaction calls for Jackpot to issue 6.485 million shares for Carnival, worth roughly $71 million at Thursday's closing price of $11 a share.

Carnival Resorts' main assets are a floating casino in Baton Rouge, La., which it also manages, as well as the management of a Chippewa casino in Canada. It also has been selected to develop a casino for an Indian tribe in Washington state. Jackpot has two small casinos in Nevada, and operates gaming machines at retail stores, bars and other outlets.

Carnival Resorts & Casinos is the successor company to Carnival Hotels & Casinos. That company sold its major hotel properties last year, including the swank Grand Bay in Coconut Grove, to Patriot American of Dallas for $485 million.

Weiser will be co-chairman of the merged company, along with Jackpot's
present chairman, Allan Tessler.