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Breaking Vegas facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Breaking Vegas is a television series that first appeared on The History Channel in the United States in 2004. The show explores the clever and sometimes tricky ways people have tried to win money from casinos. It looks at both legal strategies and methods that were not allowed.

Many episodes feature people who tried to gain an advantage using special tricks or tools. These might include sleight-of-hand (quick hand movements) or special gizmos. Some examples of these methods shown are pastposting (changing a bet after the outcome is known) and card marking (secretly marking cards). Other episodes highlight famous examples of legal ways to win, such as card counting. The series also covers legal strategies like winning at the craps table by throwing dice in a specific way, or finding a worn-out ball bearing in a roulette wheel that makes it slightly tilted.

The idea for Breaking Vegas came from a two-hour movie on The History Channel called Breaking Vegas: The True Story of the MIT Blackjack Team. This movie was written and directed by Bruce David Klein and produced by Atlas Media Corp..

Exploring Clever Casino Strategies

The episode "Professor Blackjack" tells the story of MIT professor Edward O. Thorp (played by Jonathan Dickson). He used computer research to develop a strategy called the Kelly criterion. This strategy was then used in real Vegas casinos to help with card-counting plans, and it worked very well! A person named Manny Kimmell (played by Peter Salzer) helped provide the money needed for Dr. Thorp's real-life experiment, and his part in the story is also shared in this episode.

Episodes from the Series

The Breaking Vegas series featured many interesting stories. Each episode focused on different ways people tried to beat the casino, whether through skill, clever tricks, or sometimes by finding weaknesses in the games.

  • "Breaking Vegas"
  • "Blackjack Man" — This episode tells the story of Ken Uston.
  • "Card Count King" – This story is about Tommy Hyland.
  • "The Gadget Gambler" – This episode features the story of Keith Taft.
  • "The Roulette Assault"
  • "Dice Dominator"
  • "Counterfeit King"
  • "Slot Scoundrel" – This story is about Tommy Carmichael.
  • "The Ultimate Cheat"
  • "Vegas Vixen"
  • "Beat The Wheel"
  • "Slot Buster"
  • "Professor Blackjack"
  • "Prince of Poker"
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