From the 1930s, Las Vegas casinos on the Strip and Downtown were racially segregated. In 1955, the Moulin Rouge opened on Bonanza Road, as the first major Las Vegas casino to welcome patrons of all races.
You can learn more about the Moulin Rouge in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
For the first half of the 20th century, Edward Riley Bradley’s Beach Club, located in Palm Beach, was the finest illegal gambling establishment in Florida and, some would argue, the entire country.
You can read more about illegal casinos (and legal ones too) in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
The French Chamber of Deputies passed an edict on June 1, 1836 that would ban gambling in France, effective December 31, 1837.
You can read the story of how gambling returned to France 80 years later, and much more, in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
In the 1930s, North Shore Lake Tahoe’s Cal-Neva Lodge, owned by James McKay and William Graham, was notorious for reportedly hosting gangsters like Baby Face Nelson and Pretty Boy Floyd.
Learn more about the Cal-Neva, which was later owned by Frank Sinatra, in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
The earliest federal recognition of tribes’ right to offer gambling on their reservations dates from 1924, but gambling geared towards non-Indians didn’t really get started for another 50 years.
You can learn more about Indian gaming in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
The 1980 MGM Grand fire is perhaps the most famous casino disaster in history, but the August 13, 1785 blaze that destroyed a wing of Spa’s Redoute casino was just as catastrophic in its day, particularly since burning playing cards blown by a strong wind landed on the roofs of nearby houses, spreading the fire. But the Redoute recovered.
You can learn more about Spa 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.
Florestan, the first of his name, prince of Monaco (but not the Andals or the First Men) issued an edict on April 26, 1856, that permitted a pair of developers to begin constructing a “bathing establishment” in his principality. That establishment would eventually become the Monte Carlo casino.
There’s plenty more about Monte Carlo in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
Among Stanley Ho’s possessions in Macau (in addition to his many casinos) is the Macau Tower Convention and Entertainment Center, which at the time of its construction was the tenth-highest tower in the world.
You can learn more about Stanley Ho’s career in Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling.
Go here to read an excerpt from the book, or learn where to buy your copy.
A form of lotto was played in China as early as the tenth century AD, over 500 years before it appeared in Italy.
You can learn much more about the history of Chinese 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.
One of the most important figures in 1940s Las Vegas gambling got his start on the right side of the law, crossed over to the wrong side, and then came back. Guy McAfee was a vice squad commander in the Los Angeles Police Department, who, it was discovered, had ownership interests in several illegal casinos. Resigning rather than facing corruption charges, he moved to Las Vegas, where he was involved with several legal casinos. He’s best known as the founder of the Golden Nugget.
There’s lots more about the early figures of Las Vegas 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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