| According to Richard Epstein (Theory of | | | | its name, however, has long since |
| Gambling and Statistical Logic, Academic | | | | disappeared. There may be some casino |
| Press, 1977), blackjack became popular during | | | | somewhere that pays a small bonus if a player |
| World War I, and was called "black-jack" from | | | | is dealt a natural 21 which includes a jack |
| the practice of paying a bonus to a player | | | | of spades or clubs, but that is no longer a |
| who held an ace of spades with a jack of | | | | normal rule of the game. Today, a blackjack |
| spades or clubs. John Scarne, (New Complete | | | | is simply any initial two cards that consist |
| Guide to Gambling, 1961, Simon & Schuster), | | | | of an ace and any ten-valued card. |
| puts the year when this curious rule first | | | | |
| appeared at 1912, when twenty-one tables | | | | That's when Ed Thorp dropped another |
| appeared in horse-betting parlors in | | | | bombshell. Under the auspices of their |
| Evanston, Illinois. According to Scarne, by | | | | Vintage Paperback division, Random House |
| 1919a Chicago gambling equipment distributor | | | | published a revised and expanded edition of |
| was selling felt table layouts embla¬zoned | | | | Beat the Dealer. And the most important |
| with the announcement: "Blackjack Pays Odds | | | | addition was Harvey Dubner's Hi-Lo counting |
| of 3 to 2." I believe Epstein's information | | | | system, which Thorp called the Complete Point |
| is taken from Scarne, and Scarne states that | | | | Count, with a computer-optimized strategy |
| he discovered the origins of blackjackin | | | | devised by Julian Braun. To the casinos' |
| America as a result of his private | | | | frustration, this was a system that could |
| discussions with old-time gamblers, not from | | | | more easily be applied to multiple-deck |
| any published texts that can be looked up | | | | games. |
| today. | | | | |
| | | | Thorp was keeping the casinos on the run. |
| I am skeptical of much of what Scarne has | | | | |
| written about blackjack, so I'll quote from | | | | Still, the casinos' fears were mostly |
| Mickey MacDougall's MacDougall on Dice and | | | | unfounded. The Complete Point Count was |
| Cards (Coward-McCann, 1944, NY), which was | | | | easier to use than the ten-count, but it was |
| published prior to any of Scarne's books: | | | | not a lot easier. It required players to keep |
| "Many professionals dress up the game by | | | | two separate counts. In addition to the |
| giving prizes for certain hands. A favorite | | | | running count of the cards' point total, the |
| stunt is to offer ten times the size of the | | | | player had to keep a count of the exact |
| wager to anyone holding a natural twenty-one | | | | number of cards remaining to be played. And |
| with a black jack. This adds interest to the | | | | in order to play his hand, he had to memorize |
| game, but it also tempts a player to increase | | | | a chart of 158 different strategy changes to |
| his stakes." | | | | be made according to the count. |
| | | | |
| In an honestly dealt single-deck game, this | | | | Thorp also included a Simple Point Count in |
| gimmick bonus would give the player a | | | | this new edition of his book, but at the time |
| substantial edge over the house, assuming the | | | | that strategy seemed way too simple to most |
| player knew basic strategy (an unlikely | | | | players to gain much of an edge, or to be |
| assumption). I would also assume that a | | | | taken seriously by players who wanted to beat |
| gambling house that offered this bonus would | | | | the game. Later, the power of Thorp's simpler |
| be using any number of illegitimate methods | | | | method of adjusting the running count, |
| to assure the house a healthy edge. | | | | without keeping a separate count of the exact |
| | | | number of cards played, would be shown. |
| That curious bonus payout that gave blackjack | | | | |