summaries

· Gambling: the act of risking money (or equivalent) on an uncertain chance of winning a larger amount of money (or some other good).

· Gambling may involve some element of skill (e.g., poker, horse track bets, stock market) or be determined by pure chance (e.g., slot machines, lotteries)

· In nearly all cases, the long-term expected result for the player is a loss.

· The percentage taken from various games ranges from around 1% of each bet for some popular table games to about 50% for a typical lottery.

History

· Gambling has existed in most cultures & in prehistory.

· Religion, law and play intermingled.

· Lots were used to determine the will of the gods.

· Lots were cast to determine guilt or innocence

· Lots were used for entertainment

· Dice have been recovered from Egyptian tombs

· The Chinese, Japanese, Greeks & Romans all were known to play games of skill & chance for amusement as early as 2300 B.C.

· Native Americans developed games & language describing gambling & believed that their gods determined fate & chance.

· In 1643, explorer Roger Williams wrote about the games of chance developed by the Narragansett Indians of Rhode Island

· Evidence that gambling was a problem for some existed but there does not appear to be much social commentary on it.

· There are myths about heavy losses among the gods (Ancient India).

· Ancient Egyptians outlawed gambling among the masses (slavery in the salt mines was a penalty for violation).

· Nero & Caligula were notorious cheats & loaded dice were found in Pompeii.

· Mandan Indians of the upper Missouri River, the Yurok of Northern California, the Bella Coola of BC you could become the property of someone else after losing

· Problems among family members and loss of children to slavery also occurred.

· A case of suicide after gambling losses documented among the Iroquois in 1639.

· British colonization of America was partly financed through lottery proceeds, beginning in the early 17th century.

· Because lotteries were viewed as a popular form of voluntary taxation in England during the Georgian era, they also became popular in America as European settlers arrived here.

· In the Colonies & United States…

· A half-dozen lotteries sponsored by prominent individuals such as Ben Franklin, John Hancock & George Washington operated in each of the 13 colonies to raise funds for building projects.

· Between 1765 & 1806, Massachusetts authorized lotteries to help build dormitories & supply equipment for Harvard College

· Many other institutions of higher learning, including Dartmouth, Yale & Columbia, also were financed through lotteries.

· A lottery even was approved to finance the American Revolution.

· 1931 Nevada legalizes casino gaming

· 1947 The Flamingo, operated by mobster Bugsy Siegel, opens in Las Vegas

· 1957 Gamblers Anonymous Founded in Los Angeles

· 1958 The Stardust Hotel opens, breaking the mold of the traditional “star headliner” entertainment act by debuting a stage spectacular as its main entertainment feature.

· 1966-1970 Howard Hughes purchases numerous casino properties in Nevada. Signals that the Nevada casino industry presents legitimate investment opportunities

· 1972 VA Brecksville Addictions model along with GA

· 1972 National Council on Problem Gambling founded by Monsignor Joseph A. Dunne and Dr. Robert Custer.

· 1973 Harrah’s Entertainment becomes the first “pure casino” company to be traded on the New York Stock Exchange

· 1976 New Jersey becomes the second state to legalize casino gaming

· 1978 The first casino opens in Atlantic City, N.J.

· 1979 Connecticut Gambling Treatment

· 1989 The Mirage Hotel & Casino Resort opens in Las Vegas, ushering in the era of the destination casino resort

· 1989 South Dakota & Iowa legalize gaming, kicking off a five-year period of the largest expansion of gaming into new jurisdictions in U.S. history

· 1992 The first racetrack casino (racino) opens in Rhode Island &. Two years later, four additional states — Delaware, Iowa, Louisiana, & West Virginia — legalize racinos

· 1995 The commercial casino industry creates the American Gaming Association (AGA)