Blackjack game history

Our Turkish friends did not bother to study the new market. According to the glorious Eastern tradition, they thought that the more glitter and gold there is in the interior, the more pious and obedient the staff, the higher the chance of winning the recognition of the Moscow audience. And as they say, what you fight for, you get. The reaction to the appearance of players with a large cash reserve in the establishment was unambiguous: if rich people come, then we did everything right. People like our service (let's be honest, Turkish service could and can satisfy any, even the most demanding requirements), they like our interior, decorated with elements of Eastern luxury, they are satisfied with our rules. And if so, then there is no reason to worry, the money will come, and will come in an amount that you could not even count on. You just need to notice and surround their owners with extra care and attention, not skimp on treats and pleasant little things, giving them the opportunity to feel like they are in an oriental fairy tale, whose whim (at their expense) is perceived not as a whim, but as a completely legitimate requirement. This served as the main principle in their work, favorably distinguishing them from the same Yugoslavs who shook for every glass of alcohol, pack of cigarettes or portion of cheap store-bought pies. Let's say someone comes to them and sits down at the blackjack table. Laid back in a soft chair, he throws a wad of hundred-dollar bills on the table. Then, out of nowhere, a helpful pit boss appears and takes them to the cashier - not their owner himself should go there and wait until the meticulous cashier checks all the bills for authenticity. A man starts the game and demands that he be brought 100 grams of Hennessy XO. A fast waiter with a tray in his hand flies like a fly and fulfills the wish of the dear guest. And while the matter is at hand, the Turkish manager in broken Russian tries to get acquainted and inquire what else the guest would like. But the client is nervous, the cards are not going well, and he is forced to "get another money cutlet out of his wide trousers" and, according to the now absolutely normal tradition, demands that the dealer be replaced right here and now. What wouldn't you do for such a client! Of course, you don't want to change a successful croupier who has already earned 10,000 dollars for the casino and its owners, but nothing can be done, the client may get offended and leave, and the worst thing is not to return, and, swallowing his own song, the manager makes a strong-willed decision to allow an unscheduled change. But even with the new dealer the guest is not doing well, there is another demand for a change, another pack of money flies onto the table, and the waiter brings a bottle of expensive cognac that is already half empty. Having lost 30,000, the guest drinks the rest, takes a couple of packs of cigarettes with him and unsteadily heads for the exit. The deed is done! All that had to be sacrificed for the sake of victory was a liter of expensive drink, several packs of cigarettes and a change of working staff at the guest's request. Here it is - the key to success! Not so much compared to the amount lost. After all, the sucker left satisfied and happy: he was indulged in everything, his whims were agreed with and immediately fulfilled. So, Russian Vasya will come again and leave another thirty. And in the meantime, we will prepare for his arrival: we will buy more booze and cigarettes at the wholesale market - everything an idiot needs for complete happiness. The next time this visitor, already with an unsteady gait and smelling of fumes, crosses the threshold of the casino, the whole gang of workers of different levels rushes to greet him as if he were their own father, and the manager gets the "sweetest" - a kiss. But isn't a "friendly" handshake and a feeling of disgust when his unshaven face touches the lapel of your expensive jacket worth enduring and then wooing him again, bringing another portion of money to the piggy bank? Stepping aside and wincing, putting himself in order after long hugs and kisses, the manager returns to the dear guest, and everything starts all over again: cigarettes, cognac flowing like a river, demands to change the dealer. Both sides strictly adhere to the established rules: the Turks provide service and tolerate alternating quirks and whims along with kisses and joyful pats on various parts of the body, in case of short-term success. The guest once again confirms their guess that the Russians are hopeless drunks, starting and ending their day with alcohol, but somehow possessing what the owners of gambling establishments dream of - huge amounts of money. And the task of management is to organize their redistribution by honest withdrawal as a result of the game. And if so, then you can tolerate excessive displays of emotion. However, surprisingly, the drunken pig does not want to lose: a second bottle has already appeared on the table, and the game is going with varying success. But then a new deal of cards begins, and the guest takes out another pack of money. Finally, the water goes into the hut! Making some ridiculous doubles and splits (additional bets possible under certain circumstances), the guest hesitates in front of the last box and calls the manager. When the latter runs up and sees chips on the table for about $7,000–8,000, he catches his breath: this is the finished result of a day’s work! The outcome of the entire confrontation depends on this hand! And the drunk animal, comfortably seated in a chair with a cigarette in one hand and a glass in the other, asks, blowing clouds of smoke flavored with the smell of alcohol into the manager’s bright face: “What would you do in my place, friend Ali? Would you draw a card to the last box or “let it go”?” Having assessed the situation, the manager is forced to diplomatically wriggle out of it, saying that very serious money is at stake, that he cannot guarantee that his advice will be correct, and that only dear Russian Ivan can decide whether to take the card or not. — Well, but still? Would you pull? Understanding that it is not so easy to get rid of a drunk guest, the manager laconically answers: “yes” or “no”. The further development of events is connected with whether the guest’s “opinion” coincides with the manager’s advice. If it does, the player tells the dealer: “Card!” Regardless of what came, the player waits for the end of the deal and upon its completion, in case of victory, states: — Ali, comrade! You are my dear friend! What would I do without you! You brought me money! Here! Take it! And with these words, he tries to put a couple of $100 chips in the pocket of the manager’s jacket, and the poor manager, not believing his eyes that the animal really followed his advice and made a negative difference of $15,000–$16,000 for the casino, turns pale, blushes and quickly retreats away from the drunk madman. If the opinions on whether to take the card or not differ, then, having acted in his own way, the guest asks: - Why did you decide to "smear" me, friend Ali? What a bug you are! You can't fool us so easily! And in such a turn of events, the manager must leave, so as not to become an object of ridicule and mockery. The esteemed public will ask: what will happen in case of losing the bet? The answer is simple: its probability is extremely small, since "all moves are recorded", the cards are counted. But even if suddenly, by an unfortunate coincidence, the dealer scores a winning number of points, then the guest, having washed down the bitterness of defeat, squeezes out of himself: - Go to hell, Ali! You are not lucky! And take your clumsy dealer! And don't send him here anymore and don't come here yourself! As you can see, the manager has no alternative in any turn of events. This is exactly what the player wants to achieve, to continue calculating the balance of the cards that have been played and those that remain in the game in a calm environment. As a rule, the result of the second visit covers the previous loss. If the advice given to the player turns out to be “correct”, the manager is held responsible for the loss. But in any case, the drunken behavior of the guest indicates that fools and drunkards are lucky, the Turks are well aware of this. On the third visit, the guest is already “in the black”, forcing the casino management to think about the reasons for the luck. But the first bright victory prevents you from looking at what is happening from the right angle: everything is again attributed to drunken luck. This continues further, the player miraculously stopped losing and is already “bending” the casino over in full. When the amount of his total winnings goes beyond all acceptable values, the management decides to “close” the lucky one, fortunately, there are plenty of reasons for this: indecent behavior in the hall, foul language addressed to the staff: sent the manager, interferes with other visitors with his behavior. Therefore, the next time this client comes, they stop him at the reception desk, where he starts to rage, demanding "to bring Lyapkin-Tyapkin here", but the great Turkish vizier no longer cares about him, he, "getting into character", orders to throw the peasant out, without explaining the reasons, showing his true face, greedy for power and money. And so the Russian Vanya leaves, disenfranchised, offended and insulted ... but with a lot of Turkish money. And the next day Petya appears, and the show begins again. It is impossible to count exactly how many such performances were staged for our Turkish friends. We told you about the show put on by VIP-level players. And how many small predators there were, content with a smaller piece, but with the same joy biting off a tasty and fatty Turkish carcass! The casino headed by Turkish entrepreneurs did not last long. But during this period it managed to satiate all those who rummage through the vast expanses of the gambling business in search of profit, singing their hearts out for life cultivating general managers who are used to doing business the old-fashioned way and do not attach importance to the emergence of new trends. But even a theoretical acquaintance with them can protect the brainchild entrusted to them from ruin and bankruptcy and not allow the scales to tip in favor of the player in the game with the casino.

Variations with Blackjack No matter how much the Russian-speaking workers kept telling him that blackjack was not what it used to be, that people had not only learned to play it, but even knew how to beat the casino, Frank could not believe his ears, because all his previous many years of experience, measured in several decades, testified to the opposite. But still, something stirred in the soul of the foreigner, and he, deciding to play it safe, ordered, on top of that, shuffle machines for blackjack. What kind of machines were they! They were radically different from Max Popovich's machines, capable of giving you the cards that were dealt in the previous hand, in their appearance resembling large "buckets" into which, after the cut card came out, the dealer moved all six decks so that the machine would thoroughly mix them. The dealer does the same, but Frank trusted the machine more, excluding the human factor that could affect the game. As you understand, this innovation did not scare off the "counters", in whose existence neither the Italians, nor Charlie, nor Frank himself believed. Working according to the scenario described in detail in the previous chapter, they drove the blackjack results beyond Mozhaisk, from where it was already impossible to get out. A live queue of those wishing to play formed, people literally fought for a place in the game! And what people they were! Arkady and I have not seen such a crowd of people with a mathematical mindset per square meter for a long time! The "registration" for a free place was conducted from the evening of the previous day, the players tried to make the most of the advantageous situation, realizing that the shop would be closed any day now. To all the detailed stories about the reasons for such increased popularity, the team of managers only grinned, waiting for a "turning point" in the game. It got to the point that when the pit boss gave the working information that a roulette player with $200 in his hands had $3,000, one of the Italians answered him: - Watch him more closely! He counted the roulette! Disbelief and unwillingness to reconsider their outdated views or listen to the advice of "younger comrades" led to the fact that in the first three weeks of operation the casino was in the red by about $300,000 with no chance of getting it back. This could not help but worry the owners and founders, who, after holding a joint meeting, decided to "entrust" their brainchild to more flexible and adequate people who know and understand the peculiarities of the Moscow gambling business.