History of gambling in Britain: 1700 to 1830 – rich and reckless gambling
Gambling during the Georgian era was commonplace in the upper class. Card games like piquet, faro, ving-et-un, whist and baccarat were the most popular choices of the rich. Vingt-et-un ultimately became what we know as blackjack while faro eventually disappeared because it was so easy to cheat in.
Gambling in gentlemen’s clubs became commonplace. The famous London gentlemen’s club, Whites, had a betting book that had records of all members’ bets, including a record of a bet between two young men on the number of cats to walk on opposite sides of a street.
Meanwhile, the Crockford gambling club was the haunt of the aristocratic. It was started in 1793 and grew to become the most infamous gambling club in Europe until its closure in 1845.
In the 1800’s the Fourth Earl of Sandwich, John Montagu, in order to continue gambling without having to stop for a meal break, asked his servant to bring him a slice of meat enclosed by two pieces of bread – this was how the sandwich was created.
Beau Brummel was a notorious gambler and trendsetter who accumulated so much debt that he had to flee across the sea to France.
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Strip poker on display in New York art gallery window
If you’re looking for even more excitement in your live poker games you’ve just missed out on a great opportunity!
A game of strip poker ran throughout November last year in the shop window of the Art in General Gallery in Manhatten. There was no cash on the table but there were plenty of clothes in this installation piece by Zefrey Throwel who is well known for pushing nudity in his art that sometimes result in arrests.
In August 2011 he also got a group of about 50 people to dress up as office workers in a piece called Ocularpation: Wall Street. The ‘office workers’ then stripped down to nothing, giving morning commuters something different to look at.
The strip-poker installation was apparently a comment on capitalism – what exactly it was trying to say is beyond us though. Throwel did say that he was “trying to illuminate a dark cranny in the financial world.”
Throwel invited people without stimpulating any dress requirements so many arrived with 10 extra layers while some just wore jeans and t-shirts so that they could get down to the ‘bare essentials’ sooner.
Whether you enjoy playing poker with or without clothes you can do so at PokerTime or play our video poker games at Platinum Play.
Kenny Roger’s “The Gambler”
“On a warm summer’s evening, on a train bound for nowhere…”
“You got to know when to hold’em, know when to fold ‘em,
Know when to walk away and know when to run.
You never count your money when you’re sittin’ at the table.
There’ll be time enough for countin’ when the dealin’s done.”
The rise of The Gambler
Arguably the most well known poker themed song, “The Gambler”, seemed to solidify Kenny Roger’s status as a music legend. While he was a country music star in his own right before, with over 15 albums recorded and several hits on the country charts prior to 1978, it was “The Gambler” that made him into the American popular music icon that he is today.
The song was about a young man who shared a train journey with an old gambler and the wisdom the old gambler shared with the young man. The song also highlights how poker can be a, slightly smaller, mirror of life. The song became a massive hit and its effects rippled into a series of ‘made for TV’ films with Rogers starring.
While the song became Roger’s signature with him even being referred to as “the gambler” after it became a hit, Rogers was not the creator of the song. The man responsible for creating and writing the song was Don Schlitz, who was surprisingly in his early twenties when he wrote it.
Schlitz came up with the concept in 1976 and then went on to write it. His mentor, Jim Rushing, heard the first few verses and strongly urged Schlitz to finish. Once it was complete Schlitz used his connections at Capitol Records to record the song which was then released as a single in early 1978. The song made it to #65 on the country charts making it a moderate success.
“The Gambler” was then taken to Larry Butler, a famous country music producer who had produced Rogers in the past and was at the time producing Johnny Cash’s new album Good Girl. Butler wanted Cash to use “The Gambler” on Good Girl. So Cash and Rogers recorded their own versions of the song, on consecutive days, with Rogers being released a month before Cash’s.
The song itself
The song itself was a surprising hit. Firstly it was about an old man’s wisdom but was written by a man in his twenties who had never even been on a train. It also defied the standards for hit songs back then; it was too long, it took forever to get to the chorus and there was no love interest.
Rogers brought an older ‘persona’ to the song that Schlitz just wasn’t able to do when he released his version 1978. The song was written from the perspective of a young man but with Rogers singing in his gruff baritone it seemed like it was from the perspective of the younger man who was now a wise old man himself.
The men behind “The Gambler”
Rogers won a Grammy for “The Gambler” in 1979 in the category of Best Male Country Vocal Performance. Schlitz also received a CMA Grammy for “The Gambler” in the category of Song of the Year. Schlitz went on to have a successful song writing career with over 24 number 1 country singles. He was indicted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 1993.
So it seems both these artists managed to do more than break even.
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Beginners can win at poker too
You don’t have to be a poker pro to win at Texas Hold’Em. While practice and experience are good, if you follow some simple rules you might find yourself pleasantly surprised at how far you actually get.
It is important to learn the basics of the game; the rules and the card values. After you’ve done this it will help your game considerably if you start doing the following:
• Learn the values of your starting hands. These cards determine whether you should bet, play or fold.
• Take note of where you are seated because this will influence how you should play. A late position is good for seeing what other players are doing so that you can determine how to play your game.
• Learn how to fold. Do not stay in the game unnecessarily – if your hand looks bad in the beginning, throw it in.
Platinum Play is part of the Fortune Lounge group that also has an online poker room called PokerTime online poker room where you can get the best poker play and tuition online.
