gambling history

Roll the Bones Audiobook available

I am very excited to announce that the audio version of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling is now available. For the second time, I collaborated with Eric Martin, who narrated and produced the audio version. The audio version has some unique content–an interview where Eric and I talk a little about the writing […]

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Nevada’s first governor on gambling

Nevada’s first governor, Henry Bladsel, wasn’t a fan of gambling. He called it “an intolerable and inexcusable vice” after taking office in 1864, and he convinced the legislature to strengthen penalties against gambling.

That didn’t stop Nevadans from gambling, and in 1869 the legislature passed a law legalizing gambling. Over Bladsel’s veto. The rest is quite literally history.

You can read the entire story of Nevada gambling in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling

Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.

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fromthebook

South Africa and the Strip

The Sun City resort, which Sol Kerzner opened in Bophuthatswana in 1979,  featured many of the amenities that would characterize Las Vegas Strip “mega-resorts” in the 1990s, and Steve Wynn credited Kerzner’s resort as an influence on The Mirage, which itself sparked the boom on the Strip.

Learn more about casinos in South Africa and everywhere else in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling

Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.

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fromthebook

Nick the Greek in Vegas

Nick “the Greek” Dandolos was one of the most legendary gamblers in Las Vegas history. He claimed to have had more than $500 million pass through his hands as wins and losses during his gambling career. But he didn’t live lavishly; for years he lived in a $10-a-night hotel room.

There’s lots more about famous and infamous gamblers  in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling

Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.

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fromthebook

Casinos in Canada

Casinos evolved quite differently in Canada from the United States, following a mix of the European statist model and the U.S. free enterprise one. Most casinos in Canada are owned by either a provincial government or run for charitable organizations.

Most of the charitable casinos are in Western Canada. The first provincially-owned casino in Eastern Canada, Quebec’s Casino de Montreal, opened in 1993, followed the following year by Ontario’s Casino Windsor, right across the border from downtown Detroit.

There is much more interesting material about casinos in Canada and everywhere else in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling

Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.

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From the book: The first poker machine

Lots of people have heard of San Francisco mechanic Charles Fey’s Liberty Bell, which was the first auto-pay reel slot to gain popularity. He unveiled it in 1899.

Fewer people know that the first coin-operated slot machine, a device that flipped through five decks of cards, with winners paid off in kind (not in cash) for “winning” hands.

It was an early, analog video poker machine. And it was invented in 1891, 8 years before Fey’s Liberty Bell, in Brooklyn, New York.

That’s just one of the many fascinating things you’ll read about in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.

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fromthebook, Roll the Bones

Great event at SNCCC last night

As I mentioned a few days ago, last night I was scheduled to give a talk at the meeting of the Southern Nevada Casino Collectibles Club

I had a great time talking to the collectors. Usually when I speak to groups, I  give a straight talk about casino history. But knowing how savvy collectors are about casino history (I learn something just about every time I talk to one), I skipped that and instead we had a great Q&A where I pointed them to some sources for their own historical research and shared some of my finds.

It was fun because it was a chance to talk about the behind-the-scenes aspects of my job (and my research/writing) that I don’t usually get to.

I also brought a few copies of the new book and sold (and signed) them all, making this my first book signing event for Roll the Bones (Casino Edition)

All of which made me think I should do this more often. If you’ve got a group in Southern Nevada and are looking for a speaker, I’d be happy to give a brief talk about what I do and what I’ve written. It’d be nice if I could bring a few books to sell as well.

And if you’re coming to town for a convention or are an event planned, I also do convention speaking. I’ve got two main talks that I give.

The first is Seven Things You Should Know About Casinos, which explains some of the tricks of the casino trade to novice audiences and is a perfect fit for the first day’s lunch speaker. It’s humorous, and people get a good overview of the odds of different games, casino history, the mob, counting cards, and casino etiquette. 

The second is How Bugsy Blew It: Leadership Lessons from a Las Vegas Legend. This one is a good fit as a management/leadership/motivational talk. I share the real story of how Bugsy Siegel took control over the Flamingo project and nearly ran it into the ground before getting murdered by an unknown assailant in 1947, but with a hook: what can leaders learn from his mistakes? It’s a different spin on the usual motivational talk, but one that has some good lessons for everyone.

If you’re interested in having me speak to your group, whether it’s a social group of Las Vegas locals or a visiting convention group, contact me

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Roll the Bones: Casino Edition on the Kindle

Since I started working on the new edition of Roll the Bones in earnest last year, the question I got most was, “will it be available as an ebook?” My answer was always, “yes.” Today that became a reality, with the release of Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling (Casino Edition) on Kindle. Yes,

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writing

Roll the Bones: Casino Edition launches: How and why

I have some news to share on the book front: it’s been a long time coming, and there’s more work to be done, but you can get a copy of Roll the Bones: Casino Edition through lulu.com before the official launch. So far, lulu.com is the only place you can buy the book, and it’s

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writing