May 26, 1887
- Racetrack betting became legal in New York state.
1894 -
Charles August Fey invented, manufactured slot machines in shop
at 406 Market Street, San Francisco; pioneered many innovations
of coin operated gaming devices; 1899 - introduced
original three-reel bell slot machine, named Liberty Bell (three
spring-loaded reels bearing strips of symbols-bells, horseshoes,
stars, card suits); installed machines in bars, taverns, stores
on "revenue sharing" basis; first modern style slot machine
(design still used in mechanical gaming devices).
January 17, 1905
- Charles A. Brewer, Clinton G. Scannell of Chicago, IL,
received a patent for a "Vending Device"; punchboard; never
before available in neat, portable form; invention of board
stuffing machines, ticket folding, plaiting machines in late
1910s probably allowed punchboard industry to flourish.
May 15, 1905 -
San Pedro, Los
Angeles and Salt Lake Railroad Co.
auctioned 110 acres of land,
created a town site, calling it "Las Vegas."
March
19, 1931 -
Nevada legalized
gambling in attempt to lift state out of hard times of Great
Depression, stem population flight.
November 29, 1932
- Laurens Hammond of Chicago, IL received a patent for a "Card
Table with Automatic Dealing Mechanism"; first card game table
with an automatic dealing device; deal took about one minute.
1934
- J Arthur Rank (Lord Rank), son of Joseph Rank, scion of flour
milling family, entered motion picture industry; 1935
- with Charles Boot and British & Dominions Film Corporation
established Pinewood Studios; 1941 - acquires
control of Odeon Theatre Group, Gaumont British Picture
Corporation; 1955 - Odeon Theatre Group changed
name to The Rank Organisation; 1956 - joined
forces with Haloid Corporation of America (later re-named Xerox
Corporation) to manufacture copying equipment; 1969
- Rank Xerox established as joint-venture company;
December 22, 1995 - Rank Group Plc established as public
limited company; 1997 - sold part of remaining interest in Rank
Xerox (total proceeds from 1995, 1997 sale of about £1.5bn);
2000 - sold Odeon Cinemas for £280m; sold Pinewood
Studios for £62m; 2001 - launched Rank.com to
exploit opportunities in on-line gaming; 2006 -
agreed to sell Hard Rock Cafes to Seminole Tribe of Florida for
$965million.
J Arthur Rank
(Lord Rank) - Rank Group Plc (http://www.dapple.plus.com/002693.jpg)
June 20, 1947
- Benjamin ''Bugsy'' Siegel was shot dead in Beverly Hills, CA,
at the order of mob associates angered over the soaring costs of
his pet project, the Flamingo resort in Las Vegas; 1945 - Siegel
had a brilliant idea Las Vegas, NV had nothing going for it
except for a compliant local government and legal gambling.
Siegel decided to build the Flamingo Hotel in the middle of the
desert with $6,000,000, a chunk of which came from the New York
syndicate. Flamingo wasn't immediately profitable and Siegel
ended up in an argument with Lucky Luciano over paying back the
money used to build it. Around the same time that Siegel was
killed in Beverly Hills, Luciano's men walked into the Flamingo
and announced that they were now in charge.
May 1, 1961
- Betting shops legal in Britain.
April 27, 1965
- Tan Sri Lim Goh Tong, former employee of hydro-electric power
project, and Tan Sri Haji Mohammed Noah bin Omar established
Genting Highlands Berhad; July 30, 1968 -
incorporated Genting Highlands Hotel Sdn Bhd, under Companies
Act 1965, to operate hotel and casino, develop integrated
tourist complex in Genting Highlands, Malaysia; 1965-1970
- obtained approval, from Pahang and Selangor State Governments
for clearing of 12,000 acres, 2,800 acres respectively;
March 31, 1969 - YTM Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysia’s
first Prime Ministerm, graced official laying of foundation
stone for company’s pioneer hotel, Highlands Hotel, marked
completion of access road to Genting Highlands Resort;
July 24, 1970 - went public, changed name to Genting
Highlands Hotel Berhad; 1971 - first hotel at
Genting Highlands successfully completed, opened; June 9,
1978 - changed name to name of Genting Berhad,
investment holding and management company of Genting Group; one
of largest listed companies in Malaysia.
Tan Sri Lim Goh
Tong (right) - Genting Group
(http://www.genting.com/images/history1.jpg)
April 8, 1971
- First legal off-track betting system begins (OTB-New York).
June 2, 1977
- New Jersey allows casino gambling in Atlantic City;
May 26, 1978
- The first legal casino in the eastern United States opened in
Atlantic City, NJ.
July 6, 1986
- Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation opened original high-stakes
bingo parlor in Ledyard, CT; generated $13 million in gross sales,
$2.6 million in profits; 1988 - President Reagan
signed Indian Gaming Regulatory Act; 1991 -
Genting Group (owned by Lim Goh Tong, Malaysian casino king with
Genting Highlands casino resort in mountains 25 miles northeast
of Kuala Lampur), extended $58 million construction loan ($175
million line of credit in 1993); February 15, 1992
- Foxwoods Resort Casino opened with table games (founded by
Richard "Skip" Hayward,
leader of the
Mashantucket Pequot Indians);
1993 - added slot machines; agreed to pay 25% of
slot revenue to state of Connecticut (almost $200 million each
year) for exclusive state rights to slot-machine operations;
2007 - Foxwoods comprises six casinos (collectively
offer more than 7,000 slot machines, 400 tables for 17 different
types of table games, high-tech Race Book, world's largest Bingo
Hall); largest casino in the world, with 340,000 square feet of
gaming space in complex that covers 4.7 million square feet;
more than 40,000 guests visit Foxwoods each day.
October 17, 1988
- President Ronald Reagan signed Indian Gaming Regulatory Act
into law; jurisdictional framework regulated Indian gaming;
enacted in response to several lawsuits by Indian tribes seeking
to operate gaming activities on tribal lands in face of
opposition by states; only federally recognized tribes can
operate casinos, conduct other gaming activities under IGRA (562
federally recognized Indian tribes in United States);
2001 - 201 tribes
operated class II or class III gaming enterprises (total of 290
in 29 states), generated over $12.7 billion in annual revenues
(less than 10% of total revenues generated by U.S. gaming
industry).
April 15, 1989
- Then largest lottery in North America ($69M) drawn in
Illinois.
November 21, 2004
- Donald Trump's casino empire filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
May 6, 2008
- Gambling revenue (down about 4% for January, February; 58% of
revenue for Las Vegas Strip resorts in 1990, 41% of revenue in
2007 - source: Deutsche Bank), hotel occupancy down (down 1.5%
for January, February); resorts are slashing room rates (average
daily room rates 3.8% below 2007), offering coupons or free
nights, casino operators are firing hundreds of workers, stock
prices have plummeted since October; credit is drying up
for hotel, condominium projects planned before slowdown
arrived; people are spending less in Las Vegas; huge inventory
of new casinos, hotels due for completion in next few years
(40,000 new rooms planned by 2012); foreigners = 13% of
visitors; 2007 - average foreign visitor spent $1,200 for
purposes other than gambling (up from $1,159 in 2006) vs.
average spending of $701 for all visitors in 2007, down from
$750 in 2006 (source: Las Vegas Convention and Visitors
Authority).
(http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2008/05/06/
business/20080506_VEGAS_GRAPHIC.jpg)
(500 Club), Jonathan Van Meter (2003).
The Last Good Time: Skinny D'Amato, the Notorious 500 Club, and
the Rise and Fall of Atlantic City. (New York, NY: Crown
Publishers, 296 p.). D'Amato, Skinny, d. 1984; Atlantic City
(N.J.)--History--20th century; Atlantic City (N.J.)--Social life
and customs--20th century.
(Bally Manufacturing Corporation), Christian
Marfels (2001).
Bally: The World's Game Maker. (Las Vegas, NV: UNLV
International Gaming Institute, 177 p.). Bally Manufacturing
Corporation--History; International business enterprises--United
States--History; Gambling--Equipment and supplies--History; Slot
machines--History; Pinball machines--History; Electronic games
industry--History; Bingo--History.
(Betfair), Colin Cameron (2009).
You Bet: The Betfair Story and How Two Men Changed the World of
Gambling. (London, UK: HarperCollins, 320 p.). BBC
broadcaster. The Sporting Exchange Limited; Betfair; betting;
betting exchange; internet--betting. How Internet betting
exchange spawned huge international business success story, created
legions of new gamblers, revolutionised worlds of gambling,
sport for ever.
(Circus Circus Enterprises), Gary Provost
(1994).
High Stakes: Inside the New Las Vegas. (New York, NY:
Dutton, 326 p.). Circus Circus Enterprises; Casinos--Nevada--Las
Vegas--Case studies; Gambling--Nevada--Las Vegas. Las Vegas is
adding theme hotels to gambling (Orlando with gambling).
(Foxwoods), Jeff Benedict (2000).
Without Reservation: The Making of America's Most Powerful
Indian Tribe and Foxwoods, the World's Largest Casino.
(New York, NY: HarperCollins, 376 p.). Pequot Indians--Gambling;
Gambling on Indian reservations--Connecticut;
Casinos--Connecticut; Pequot Indians--Government relations;
Pequot Indians--Economic conditions.
Richard (Skip) Hayward
(left) - Foxwoods
(http://www.theresident.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/mpmrc-b1.jpg)
(Foxwoods), Kim Issac Eisler (2001).
Revenge of the Pequots: How a Tiny American Tribe Created the
Most Profitable Casino in the World. (New York, NY:
Simon & Schuster, 267 p.). Pequot Indians--Gambling; Pequot
Indians--History; Pequot Indians--Government relations; Gambling
on Indian reservations--Connecticut--Ledyard;
Casinos--Government policy--Connecticut--Ledyard; Ledyard
(Conn.)--Economic conditions; Ledyard (Conn.)--Social
conditions.
(Foxwoods), Brett Duval Fromson (2003).
Hitting the Jackpot: The Inside Story of the Richest Indian
Tribe in History. (New York, NY: Atlantic Monthly Press,
244 p.). Former Reporter (Washington Post). Mashantucket Pequot
Tribal Nation; Pequot Indians--Gambling; Pequot
Indians--History; Pequot Indians--Social conditions; Gambling on
Indian reservations--Connecticut--Ledyard; Casinos--Government
policy--Connecticut--Ledyard; Ledyard (Conn.)--Economic
conditions. True story of
how Mashantucket Pequots of Connecticut became richest
Indian tribe in history.
(Golden Nugget), Tom Breitling with Cal
Fussman (2008).
Double or Nothing: How Two Friends Risked It All To Buy One of
Las Vegas’ Legendary Casinos. (New York, NY: Collins,
256 p.). President of Breitling Ventures. Golden Nugget (Las
Vegas, Nev.); Casinos--Nevada--Las Vegas. 2003 - College friends
Tom Breitling and Tim Poster sold dot.com company for $105
million, bought legendary, past-its-prime Golden Nugget Hotel &
Casino for $215 million; upped the odds, raised limits to give
gamblers best game in town; taken to brink of financial disaster
by Mr. Royalty, on one of hottest winning streaks in history.
(Genting Group), Lim Goh Tong (2004).
My Story. (Selangor, Malaysia: Pelanduk Pubns Sdn Bhd,
188 p.). Lim Goh Tong; Genting Bhd.; Gambling--Economic
aspects--Malaysia.
(Harrah's Entertainment), Leon Mandel (1982).
William Fisk Harrah: The Life and Times of a Gambling Magnate.
(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 223 p.). Harrah, William;
Gamblers--United States--Biography.
Bill
Harrah (http://gaming.unlv.edu/hof/images/1989_harrah_04T.jpg)
(Harrah's Entertainment), From Oral History
Interviews by Dwayne Kling; edited by R.T. King (1999).
Every Light Was On: Bill Harrah and His Clubs Remembered.
(Reno, NV: University of Nevada, Oral History Program, 453 p.).
Harrah, William; Harrah, William--Friends and
associates--Interviews; Harrah, William--Employees--Interviews;
Casinos--Nevada--Employees--Biography; Casinos--Nevada--History;
Oral history.
(Harrah's), Robert L. Shook (2002).
Jackpot: Harrah's Winning Secrets for Customer Loyalty.
(New York, NY: Wiley, p.). Harrah's Casinos (Memphis, Tenn.);
Casinos--United States--Marketing; Customer loyalty--United
States.
(Mirage Resorts), John L. Smith (1995).
Running Scared: The Life and Treacherous Times of Las Vegas
Casino King Steve Wynn. (New York, NY: Barricade Books,
352 p.). Reporter (Nevada's Largest Newspaper). Wynn, Steve;
Casinos--Nevada--Las Vegas; Organized crime--Nevada--Las Vegas;
Gambling and crime--Nevada--Las Vegas.
Steve Wynn
- Mirage
(http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Steve_Wynn_Portrait.jpg)
(Resorts International), Gigi Mahon (1980).
The Company That Bought the Boardwalk: A Reporter's Story of How
Resorts International Came to Atlantic City. (New York,
NY: Random House, 262 p.). Resorts International; Gambling--New
Jersey--Atlantic City.
(Resorts International), Robert S. Morrison
(1994).
High Stakes to High Risk: The Strange Story of Resorts
International and the Taj Mahal. (Ashtabula, OH: Lake
Erie Press, 378 p.). Resorts International; Casinos--New
Jersey--Atlantic City--Case studies.
Mike Atherton (2006).
Gambling: A Story of Triumph and Disaster. (London, UK:
Hodder & Stoughton Ltd., 320 p.). Gambling; Gambling--History.
From Greek mythology and
ancient role of lots, dice and cards, to explosion of gambling
in 17th century, to high profile thrown cricket and football
matches of today.
H. Lee Barnes; foreword by John L. Smith
(2002).
Dummy Up and Deal: Inside the Culture of Casino Dealing.
(Reno, NV: University of Nevada Press, 140 p.). Casinos;
Casinos--Employees; Gamblers; Gambling; Swindlers and swindling.
Contents: Breaking in; Mattress politics; Georges, stiffs,
freaks; You're fired, have a nice day; Cheating; Coping;
Gambling; One dealer's story.
Randy Bobbitt (2007).
Lottery Wars: Case Studies in Bible Belt Politics, 1986-2005.
(Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 218 p.). Lotteries--United State;
Lotteries--United States--Case studies; Gambling--Government
policy--Southern States; Southern States--Politics and
government--1951-; Southern States--Politics and
government--1951---Case studies. History of state lotteries,
persuasive strategies used to debate them.
Christina Binkley (2008).
Winner Takes All: Steve Wynn, Kirk Kerkorian, Gary Loveman, and
the Race to Own. (New York, NY: Hyperion, 320 p.).
Columnist (Wall Street Journal). Las Vegas (Nev.)--Biography;
Kerkorian, Kirk; Loveman, Gary; Wynn, Steve.
From tacky family vacation spot
to luster and glamour; three competing tycoons bet big on
Las Vegas - billions of dollars, unparalleled drive for power.
Henry Chafetz (1960).
Play the Devil; A History of Gambling in the United States from
1492 to 1955. (New York, NY: C.N. Potter, 475 p.).
Gambling --United States.
Charles T. Clotfelter and Philip J. Cook
(1989).
Selling Hope: State Lotteries in America (Cambridge, MA:
Harvard University Press, 323 p.). Lotteries--United
States--States; Lotteries--Government policy--United
States--States.
Sally Denton and Roger Morris (2001).
The Money and the Power: The Making of Las Vegas and Its Hold on
America, 1947-2000 (New York, NY: Knopf, 479 p.).
Celebrities--Nevada--Las Vegas--History--20th century;
Politicians--Nevada--Las Vegas--History--20th century; Organized
crime--Nevada--Las Vegas--History--20th century; Political
corruption--United States--History--20th century; Las Vegas
(Nev.)--Civilization--20th century; Las Vegas (Nev.)--Economic
conditions--20th century; Las Vegas (Nev.)--Biography.
Pete Earley (2000).
Super Casino: Inside the "New" Las Vegas. (New York, NY:
Bantam Books, 386 p.). Gambling--Nevada--Las Vegas;
Casinos--Nevada--Las Vegas; Las Vegas (Nev.)--Description and
travel; Las Vegas (Nev.)--History--20th century.
John Samuel Ezell (1960). Fortune's Merry
Wheel, The Lottery in America. (Cambridge, MA: Harvard
University Press, 331 p.). Lotteries--United States.
William L. Fox (2005).
In the Desert of Desire: Las Vegas and the Culture of Spectacle.
(Reno, NV: University of Nevada Press, 186 p.). Popular
culture--Nevada--Las Vegas; Arts--Nevada--Las Vegas; Art
museums--Nevada--Las Vegas; Zoos--Nevada--Las Vegas; Dance
companies--Nevada--Las Vegas; Las Vegas (Nev.)--Cultural policy;
Las Vegas (Nev.)--Civilization. City’s most important collections
of art, exotic fauna presented in context of casino
entertainment - future of arts in America?
Thomas M. Kavanagh (2005).
Dice, Cards, Wheels: A Different History of French Culture.
(Philadelphia, PA: University of Pennsylvania Press, 251 p.).
Gambling--France--History; Gambling in literature.
Dwayne Kling; foreword by Rollan Melton
(2000).
The Rise of the Biggest Little City: An Encyclopedic History of
Reno Gaming, 1931-1981. (Reno, NV: University of Nevada
Press, 226 p.). Gambling--Nevada--Reno--History;
Gambling--Economic aspects--Nevada--Reno;
Casinos--Nevada--Reno--History.
Oscar Lewis (1953).
Sagebrush Casinos; The Story of Legal Gambling in Nevada.
(Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 256 p.). Gambling--Nevada.
Stephen Longstreet (1977).
Win or Lose: A Social History of Gambling in America.
(Indianapolis, IN: Bobbs-Merrill, 268 p.). Gambling--United
States--History; Gamblers--United States--History;
Gamblers--Psychology.
Timothy L. O'Brien (1998).
Bad Bet: The Inside Story of the Glamour, Glitz and Danger of
America's Gambling Industry. (New York, NY: Times Books,
339 p.). Gambling; Compulsive gambling.
William Poundstone (2005).
Fortune's Formula: The Untold Story of the Scientific Betting
System That Beat the Casinos and Wall Street. (New York,
NY: Hill & Wang, 400 p.). Shannon, Claude Elwood, 1916- ;
Gambling; Gambling--History; Gambling--Mathematical models.
Mathematics applied to
gambling, trading.
David G. Schwartz (2006).
Roll the Bones: The History of Gambling. (New York, NY:
Gotham Books, 592 p.). Professor of History, Coordinator of
Gaming Studies Research Center (University of Nevada-Las Vegas).
Gambling--History. Global
history of gambling - how it has evolved with-and
influenced-civilizations around world, from earliest
cultures to modern day; how major games such as poker,
craps, roulette developed.
John L. Smith (2005).
Sharks in the Desert: The Founding Fathers and Current Kings of
Las Vegas. (Fort Lee, NJ: Barricade Books, 320 p.).
Gambling--Nevada--Las Vegas; Casinos--Nevada--Las Vegas;
Organized crime--Nevada--Las Vegas; Businessmen--Nevada--Las
Vegas; Central business districts--Nevada--Las Vegas; City
planning--Nevada--Las Vegas. Profiles of casino owners,
gambling empire builders.
Matthew Sweeney (2008).
The Lottery Wars: Long Odds, Fast Money, and the Battle Over an
American Institution. (New York, NY: Bloomsbury, 304
p.). Lotteries --United States --History. Forty-two states,
nation’s capital encourage lottery gambling in name of school
kids, senior citizens; how has game persisted, even flourished,
against many obstacles?; history of American lottery, with
bizarre, sometimes tragic, stories.
Eds. Brian J. Tyrrell, Israel Posner (2009).
Casino Gaming in Atlantic City: A Thirty Year Retrospective.
(Margate, NJ ComteQ Pub., p.). Associate Professor,
Hospitality and Tourism Management (Richard Stockton College);
Executive Director of the Stockton Institute for Gaming
Management (Richard Stockton College). Casinos--New
Jersey--History; Gambling--New Jersey--history. How Atlantic
City casino industry has evolved over three decades, its
contribution to region’s economic development; 1976 - New Jersey
referendum legalized casino gambling (rejected in 1974); May
26, 1978 - Resorts International opened as first casino in
Atlantic City; gaming industry created tens of thousands of
jobs, spurred billions of dollars in investment, huge source of
tax revenue benefited entire state.
University of Nevada Las Vegas, International
Gaming Institute, (1996).
The Gaming Industry: Introduction and Perspectives (New
York, NY: Wiley, 270 p.). Casinos--United States--Management;
Gambling--United States.
Ed. Denise von Herrmann (2006).
Resorting to Casinos: The Mississippi Gambling Industry.
(Jackson, MS: University Press of Mississippi, 182 p.).
Associate Professor of Political Science (University of Southern
Mississippi). Casinos--Mississippi. Effects of growth of resort
casino industry on the politics, culture, people of Mississippi.
Douglas M. Walker (2007).
The Economics of Casino Gambling. (New York, NY:
Springer, 207 p.). Casinos--Economic aspects--United States;
Gambling--Economic aspects--United States. Social and economic costs,
benefits of legalized gambling: possible source of additional
tax revenue; purported to spur economic growth; does casino
expansion "cannibalize" other industries, having no net effect?
_____________________________________________________________
Business History Links
Center for Gaming Research
http://gaming.unlv.edu
Hub for the scholarly analysis of gambling and gaming issues.
The Gaming Collection is the repository of record for the
commercial casino industry; we preserve and make accessible
company documents, state publications, and other important
resources.
Gaming: Selected Internet Resources
http://library.nevada.edu/subjects/gaming_internet.html
A directory of general resources on gambling plus links to
national, state, and local commissions, boards, and lotteries;
Indian gaming; organizations, including some that address
gambling addiction; historical and legal sites; corporations
that operate casinos or manufacture gaming equipment; academic
and scholarly sites; and periodicals. From the University of
Nevada Las Vegas Libraries. Subjects: Gambling.
UNLV International
Gaming Institute
http://www.unlv.edu/Research_Centers/International_Gaming_Institute/
Created in 1993 in response to the need for increased
educational programs and research initiated by the incredible
growth of the gaming industry. Gaming education has been an
integral part of the hospitality curriculum at UNLV since the
creation of the college in 1967. The IGI provides a focal point
for the study of gaming and industry research and the success of
the college has been enhanced by the success of the Institute’s
programs.
