A casino is a gambling establishment where people can play a variety of games of chance, and in some cases, skill. Many casinos offer free drinks and stage shows to entice patrons, and the interior designs are designed around noise, light and excitement.
Casinos make money by charging a small percentage of each bet, which is known as the house edge. This profit is usually no more than two percent, but it adds up over the millions of bets placed each day by casino patrons. This profit gives casinos enough cash to build elaborate hotels, fountains, towers and replicas of famous landmarks.
As casino gambling expanded in the United States in the 1950s, legitimate businessmen were hesitant to invest because of the seamy reputation of casinos. Organized crime figures, on the other hand, had plenty of money from their illegal rackets and were ready to take advantage of Nevada’s new opportunity. They supplied the initial capital for many of the Vegas strip casinos, and some even took sole or partial ownership of some.
Modern casinos are heavily guarded. Security begins on the floor, where dealers are trained to spot blatant cheating, such as palming, marking or switching cards or dice. The surveillance systems are also a vital component of a casino’s security. The high-tech eye-in-the-sky systems monitor each table, window and doorway, and can be adjusted by security workers in a room filled with banks of security monitors.
The most common games of chance found in American casinos are blackjack, roulette and poker. Other popular games include baccarat and video poker. Some casinos also feature traditional Far Eastern games such as sic bo (which spread to several European and American casinos during the 1990s), fan-tan, and pai-gow.
