Casino
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2008-07-16T09:31:45Z
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{{otheruses1|casinos for gaming}}
[[Image:Las Vegas Strip.png|thumb||The [[Las Vegas Strip]] is renowned for its high concentration of casino resort hotels]]
A '''casino''' is, in the modern sense of the word, a facility that houses and accommodates certain types of [[gambling]] activities. Casinos are most commonly built near or combined with [[hotel]]s, [[restaurants]], retail [[shopping]], [[cruise ship]]s and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are known for hosting live entertainment events, such as [[stand-up comedy]], [[concert]]s, and sporting events. Today, there are more than 4000 casinos worldwide.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.americangaming.org/Industry/factsheets/general_info_detail.cfv?id=12|title=American Gaming Association : Fact Sheets : General Info|publisher=www.americangaming.org|accessdate=2008-06-23}}</ref>
==History of the term casino ==
[[Image:Casino da Póvoa.jpg|thumb|[[Casino da Póvoa]], a Portuguese casino that opened in early 1930s]]
The term "Casino" originally meant a small [[villa]], [[Summerhouse (building)|summerhouse]] or [[pavilion (structure)|pavilion]] built for pleasure, usually on the grounds of a larger [[Italy|Italian]] villa or [[palazzo]]. There are examples of such casinos at [[Villa Giulia]] and [[Villa Farnese]]. In modern day Italian, this term designates a [[bordello]] (also called "casa chiusa", literally "closed house"), while the gambling house is spelled ''casinò'' with an accent.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://dictionary.oed.com/cgi/entry/50034083?single=1&query_type=word&queryword=casino&first=1&max_to_show=10 |title=Casino }}</ref>
One of the first known casinos was established in Venice around 1638.<ref name="venezia">{{cite web
| title = Casinò di Venezia
| url =http://www.casinovenezia.it/en/casino_storia.jsp
| accessdate = 2008-05-06}}</ref> During the 19th century, the term "casino" came to include other public buildings where pleasurable activities, including gambling, and sports took place. An example of this type of building is the [[Newport Casino]] in [[Newport, Rhode Island]].
Not all casinos were used for gaming. The [[Copenhagen Casino]] was a [[theatre]], known for the use made of its hall for mass public meetings during the [[1848 Revolution]] which made Denmark a [[constitutional monarchy]]. Until 1937 it was a well-known Danish theatre.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.kb.dk/en/nb/samling/dra/dra-specialkataloger.html|title=Special catalogues in the Drama Collection |accessdate=2007-07-09 |work=The Royal Library }}</ref> The Hanko Casino located in [[Hanko]], [[Finland]] - one of that town's most conspicuous landmarks - was never used for gambling. Rather, it was a banquet hall for the [[Russian nobility]] which frequented this [[destination spa|spa]] [[resort]] in the late 1800s, and is presently used as a restaurant.
==History of casinos==
[[Image:Crown Entertainment1.jpg|left|thumb|The Atrium at the [[Crown Casino]], [[Melbourne]]]]
The precise origin of gambling is unknown The [[Chinese]] recorded the first official account of the practice in 2300 B.C., but it is generally believed that activity of gambling, in some way or another, has been seen in almost every society in history. From the Ancient [[Greeks]] and Romans to Napoleon's [[France]] and Elizabethan [[England]], much of history is filled with stories of entertainment based on the games of chance.<ref>[http://www.jobmonkey.com/casino/html/brief_history.html History of Casinos & Casino Jobs - Job Monkey.com<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
In American history, early casinos were originally known as [[saloons]]. The creation and importance of saloons was greatly influenced by four major cities; [[New Orleans]], [[St. Louis]], [[Chicago]] and [[San Francisco]]. It was in the saloons that travelers could find people to talk to, drink with, and often gamble with. During the early 20th century in America, gambling became outlawed and banned by state legislation and social reformers of the time. However, in 1931, gambling was legalized throughout the state of [[Nevada]], and [[Las Vegas, Nevada|Las Vegas]], presently known as "Sin City", spawned America's first official casinos. Soon after, in the state of [[New Jersey]], [[Atlantic City]] joined the Casino industry in 1978 to become America's second largest gambling city.
==Gambling in casinos==
[[Image:casino6933.JPG|thumb|Baccarat casino, [[Edmonton]], [[Alberta]]]]
In most jurisdictions worldwide, gambling is limited to persons over the [[age of license]] (18 or 21 years of age in most of the [[United States]] and 16 to 21 in most other countries where casinos are permitted).<ref>{{cite web |url=http://rose.casinocitytimes.com/articles/966.html |title=Minimum Legal Age to Place a Bet |accessdate=2008-04-07 |last=Rose |first=Nelson |coauthors= |date=2000-06-15 |work= Gaming Guru|publisher=Casino City Times}}</ref>
Customers gamble by playing [[slot machine]]s or other games of chance (e.g., [[craps]], [[roulette]], [[baccarat]]) and some skill (e.g., [[blackjack]], [[poker]]) (for more see [[casino game]]s). Games usually have mathematically-determined odds that ensure the house has at all times an advantage over the players. This can be expressed more precisely by the notion of [[expected value]], which is uniformly negative (from the player's perspective). This advantage is called the ''house edge''. In games such as poker where players play against each other, the house takes a commission called the [[Rake (poker)|rake]]. Casinos often give out free items, known as [[comps (casino)|comps]] to people who are gambling. Often, in most casinos, the more money a player uses the more benefits or comps the player get.
''Payout'' is the percentage won by players.
''Playing with house money'' refers to the situation where a winning player is placing bets with money that has been won from the casino.
==Security==
[[Image:noidnoentry.jpg|left|thumb|Security is tight at the [[Thousand Islands Charity Casino|Thousand Islands Casino]]]]
Casinos focus greatly on security, considering that this is a 30 billion dollar industry. Large amounts of currency move through a casino, tempting people to cheat the system. Security today consists of cameras located throughout the property operated by highly trained individuals who attempt to locate cheating and stealing by both players and employees.
Modern casino security is usually divided between a physical security force, which patrols the casino floor and responds to calls for assistance and reports of criminal and/or suspicious activities, and a specialized surveillance department, that operates the casino's [[closed circuit television]] (known in the industry as [[Eye in the sky (camera)|eye in the sky]]) system in an effort to detect any misconduct by both guests and employees alike. Both of these specialized casino security departments work very closely with each other to ensure the safety of both guests and the casino's assets{{Fact|date=July 2008}}.
When it opened in 1989, [[The Mirage]] was the first casino to use [[cameras]] full time on all table games.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Knightly |first= Arnold M. |year=2007 |month=February |title=Blink and you'll miss him |journal=[[Las Vegas Review-Journal]]|pages=1E |url=http://www.accessmylibrary.com/coms2/summary_0286-29780604_ITM |accessdate= 2007-07-09 }}</ref>
==See also==
[[Image:Casino slots2.jpg|right|thumb|[[Slot machine]]s are commonplace in casinos]]
* [[List of casinos]]
* [[Casino game]]
* [[Casino token]]
* [[Locals casino]]
* [[Online casino]]
* [[American Gaming Association]]
* [[Global Gaming Expo]]
* [[Gaming Control Board]]s
* [[Gaming law]]
* [[Native American gambling enterprises|Native American gaming]]
* [[EUROMAT|European Gaming & Amusement Federation]]
==Notes==
<references/>
==External links==
{{commons|Casino|Casino}}
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{{Dmoz|Games/Gambling/Casinos/By_Location|Worldwide Casino Listings}}
[[Category:Casinos| ]]
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