Las Vegas is not the only city in the world know for its gambling. Here is a list of five sites throughout the world that are home to casinos:
Macau, China - Home to the largest casino in the world, The Venetian.
Monte Carlo, Monaco - Elegance and class, casinos are filled with men in tuxedos and women in full-length dresses.
Lyon, Nice, and Paris, France - France is the home of Roulette.
Venice, Italy - The site of the western world’s first known gaming house.
Baden-Baden, Germany - Is known for its thermal baths and therapeutic healing powers, but is also home to a casino.
(PRWEB) March 25, 2008 — In the April issue of Men’s Vogue, Michael Kaplan visits the 12th annual Blackjack Ball in Las Vegas, where the world’s most skilled blackjack players very discreetly convene to imbibe and talk shop, leaving Las Vegas’s gaming tables unmolested for an evening. All told, they have taken north of $100 million out of the casinos across town by implementing techniques like card counting, hole carding, and shuffle tracking. Kaplan spends some time with John Chang and Mike Aponte, two major players from the MIT blackjack team made famous by the book Bringing Down the House, now adapted into the film 21 (with Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne and Kate Bosworth) in theaters March 28.
Chang’s wife, Laurie, on his careless record-keeping:
Some years ago when she was helping John pack for a move, she found more than $100,000 in random chips scattered around his house inside glass jars and old storage boxes. When she voiced incredulity at the high-stakes loose change, John simply told her, with a shrug, “I thought I was a little short.”
Chang has taken so much money from casinos that he’s occasionally resorted to dressing up as a woman to hide his identity:
“Cross-dressing worked in the Bahamas and in Illinois,” says Chang, who has a wrinkle-free baby face…”But at Taj Mahal, in Atlantic City, they were looking at my hands. An Asian host came over and whispered in my ear, ‘We know who you are’….I had to run around the casino in high heels and make sure they weren’t following me.”
Chang, on why he doesn’t simply abandon gambling for a straight career:
“In MIT and in the corporate world, being Asian is viewed as a slight negative,” he says. “You’re viewed as a nerd. There’s a social stigma. You’re not likely to be the CEO of a company. In blackjack, it’s the opposite.” Because casinos stereotype Asians as compulsive gamblers and because the mostly Caucasian surveillance personnel have a hard time distinguishing one Asian from another—Chang’s nationality has brought him longevity. It’s given him what those in the game call “positive EV” (expected value) and turned the art of beating casinos into his life’s work. “My teammates used to tell me that I was so lucky, that I could get away with so much more than they could. My act is not particularly good, but this past weekend I watched some Asian players who weren’t counting or anything—and they looked more suspicious than I did.”
Aponte would love to sit back down at the tables again but he’s just too well-known:
Aponte was recently counting cards in a St. Maarten casino. He was a few hands in before he spotted a familiar face in the pit. “This guy made eye contact and I immediately recognized him as one of the floor people from the $250,000 trip to Puerto Rico. Following a quick run up to surveillance, he came back down and told me that I wouldn’t be able to play blackjack there. Then he took me to lunch and asked me to sign Bringing Down the House for him.”
The April issue of Men’s Vogue is available on newsstands now. For more from this article go to www.mensvogue.com.
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LAS VEGAS, Oct. 31 /PRNewswire/ — Robert Earl, co-chairman of the Planet Hollywood Resort and Casino, announced an all-star line up for the property’s Grand Opening Celebration to be held November 15th thru 17th. The weekend will feature headliners performing in the Mezz Theatre on Thursday and Friday and the Planet Hollywood Theatre on Saturday. There will also be intimate performances in the Grand Ballroom throughout the weekend.
“We are throwing the biggest party Las Vegas has ever seen and we are excited about our entertainment line-up,” said Earl. “With the headliners and intimate performances throughout the weekend our guests will be treated to an entertainment experience they will never forget.”
The festivities kick off on the evening of Thursday, November 15 when comedian Katt Williams debuts his new film, KATT WILLIAMS AMERICAN HUSTLE: THE MOVIE, in the Mezz Theatre. Williams will be on hand to introduce the screening to his fans.
On Friday night invited guests will be treated to a private performance by Jon Stewart in the Mezz Theatre and, after his show, the party continues in the ballroom with Bruce Willis and the Bruce Willis Blues Band, celebrity DJ DMC (Darryl McDaniels), and Big Bad Voodoo Daddy as well as other surprise guests.
Barbra Streisand will appear at a private party on Saturday night at the Planet Hollywood Theatre in front of celebrities, local dignitaries and other invited guests. Later in the evening, Earth Wind & Fire and Sugar Ray will keep the celebration in full swing as they play for party goers in the Grand Ballroom.
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino will host a wide range of celebrities from all walks of the entertainment industry throughout the weekend who, in addition to attending the performances, will also enjoy the resort’s amenities including new restaurants, nightclubs, a transformed and expanded gaming floor and remodeled rooms. On Saturday night, the front of the resort, which has already changed the look of the Las Vegas Strip with its high tech facade, will play host to a celebrity-filled red carpet celebration that is open to the public.
ABOUT PLANET HOLLYWOOD RESORT & CASINO
Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino is a joint venture partnership involving Robert Earl, Founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood International Inc, Bay Harbour Management LLC, and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc and is a member of the Starwood Preferred Guest program. For more information log onto www.planethollywood.com.
LAS VEGAS, Oct. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. announced today that the 39th annual World Series of Poker Presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light will be staged at the Rio(TM) All-Suite Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas from May 30 through July 17, 2008.
“The team is still hard at work on the schedule of events for next year, but we’ve received so many requests for the dates that we decided to announce them now,” said Jeffrey Pollack, WSOP Commissioner.
“We’ll actually open the WSOP tournament room the week of May 26th for two special events,” said Geno Iafrate, vice president and assistant general manager of the Rio. “This ’soft opening’ will give players a chance to register early and avoid the lines we had last year during opening weekend — our busiest time.”
More WSOP information is available at http://www.worldseriesofpoker.com.
The WSOP brand is owned by Harrah’s License Company, LLC an affiliate of Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc., the world’s largest provider of branded casino entertainment through its operating subsidiaries. Since its beginning in Reno, Nevada, nearly 70 years ago, Harrah’s has grown through development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions, and now owns or manages casinos on four continents. The company’s properties operate primarily under the Harrah’s®, Caesars® and Horseshoe® brand names; Harrah’s also owns the London Clubs International family of casinos. Harrah’s Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value with its customers through a unique combination of great service, excellent products, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology leadership.
More information about Harrah’s is available at http://www.harrahs.com.
LAS VEGAS, NV–(Marketwire - August 1, 2007) - The World Poker Store, a Nevada corporation with corporate offices in St. Paul, MN, recently opened offices in Fort Myers, Florida. These offices will support The Bar Poker League as well as gaming partner efforts in the Southeast. The company will also launch the league in Wisconsin this September as they expand tournament services and The Bar Poker League across the country. As part of the company’s growth initiatives, offices in Minnesota, The Netherlands and now Florida will serve as headquarters for operations in their respective regions both domestic and overseas. “With brick and mortar retail stores, online sales, The Bar Poker League and Corporate Event and Fundraiser Tournament services offered in each market, we felt a need to open offices to support the multiple business models in each area. The expansion of the league to Wisconsin is a prime example of how our Minnesota offices will allow us to open throughout the Midwest and we expect similar impact in Europe and the Southeast region of the US,” said Greg Needham, VP of Marketing and Business Development for The World Poker Store. “We are excited to launch the league in Wisconsin and look forward to adding more venues to The Bar Poker League tournament family,” he added.
With successful operations in Minnesota, Florida and coming soon to Wisconsin and 23 other Bar Poker legal states in the union, The World Poker Store’s Bar Poker League continues to add new player members and open new venues for Free No-limit Texas hold ‘em. Currently running over 100 tournaments per week, The Bar Poker League offers a live, face to face, poker experience to all walks of life at bars and restaurants where legal around the country and hosts a community of members at www.thebarpokerleague.com. With a focus on “bringing poker to the masses” and supporting non-profit organizations, The World Poker Store also partners with local charities and corporate groups to host professional Texas Hold ‘em tournaments with the proceeds benefiting a variety of causes. Most notably, The Trent Tucker Celebrity Poker Tournament hosted annually in Minnesota at Canterbury Park with attendees from both the NBA and the Poker elite featuring Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Johnny Chan, Phil Hellmuth, Marcel Luske, Patrik Antonius and Hoyt Corkins to name a few with all proceeds going to benefit The Trent Tucker Youth Program. The World Poker Store Inc. also currently operates 2 retail locations in Minnesota at Southdale Center, Rosedale Center. The World Poker Store is the only brick and mortar retail outlet of its kind entirely devoted to poker, offering everything from Texas Hold ‘em tables, Casino Quality Chips, DVDs, Books, Apparel and Tour Pro Collectibles. All products are also available online at www.theworldpokerstore.com.
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