Friday Timewaster

If you've ever watched a Western movie, you've probably heard references to a card game called Faro. There's a particularly famous scene in the 1993 movie Tombstone involving a scuffle between Kurt Russell and Billy Bob Thorton which takes place at a Faro table. But what do you know about the game? Well, probably nothing.

Wildly popular in the 19th century, Faro gradually fell out of favor in the early 20th century and had disappeared entirely by the 1950s. I suspect that was probably because it provides better odds to the players than most games of chance, and the big casinos wanted no part of any such game. While the many saloons of the Old West competed to entice customers in their doors, once gambling was centralized to a few locations and the mafia took control of it, anything which didn't strongly favor the house was put to the knife. Mobsters aren't interested in free market competition, after all. The Indians likewise don't need to entice anyone, as the reservations are so few and far between and the tables are always full. They aren't going to do anything which might compromise their primary source of income.

A shame really, because it's quite a unique and fun game. Kind of a cross between roulette and stud poker with a little blackjack mixed in. Click here to learn the rules. Click on the table below to play.




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