Blackjack in Popular Culture
In my previous post, I outlined the different depictions of casino in popular culture and how they differ from each other, which was a post that I had an absolute blast writing! And judging by how many views it got, it seems like you guys had a blast reading it too, so… Let’s keep going into the world of popular culture, shall we? This time I’m not going to be nearly as detailed, firstly because I don’t really want to write another monstrous post, and second because I want to focus on one particular casino game – namely, blackjack! We all love blackjack, right? If you say you don’t like blackjack, you’re either lying or have never tried it, and I’m pretty positive of this when I say this! I often like to look up the casinos featuring the highest table limits and just compare them, not because I’m a super rich high roller or anything, but because I like the fantasy of being a high-profile blackjack player that sits down at a (virtual) table, bets a few grand and then expertly counts the cards and leaves richer than ever. It’s a very appealing fantasy that speaks to us on a fundamental level. We want to see smart, talented, charming and daring people take huge risks and be rewarded for it. Hell, practically all of our modern heroes, from James Bond to Tony Stark, are gamblers (often times literally). So is it any wonder we keep seeing blackjack pop up over and over again in our entertainment?
Probably the most famous example is the 2008 movie “21”, starring Jim Sturgess and Kevin “I’m going to be famous again in a few years, you guys” Spacey. This movie basically singlehandedly caused a resurgence in blackjack and card counting for a while, and with good reason – it’s pretty good, even if it’s somewhat clichéd. Based on the novel “Bringing Down The House”, which in itself is based on a supposedly real story (if a heavily dramatized one), the movie tells the story of a young MIT student named Ben who, alongside some of his classmates, decides to infiltrate the world of Vegas and use his card counting skills to make it big on the blackjack table. Like I said, the idea of a smart and talented guy making it big on the blackjack table isn’t new at all – in fact, it can be observed quite clearly in the 1988 movie “Rain Man”, in which the main character, played by Dustin Hoffman, suffers from autism, which obviously makes him a master at card counting, no prior knowledge required! This movie basically created the stereotype that all autistic people are secretly savants, which is the second most outrageous claim since the one stating that vaccine cause autism. But I digress. The scene in which Raymond manages to make it big in the casino despite the fact that he’d never set foot there was parodied in the 2009 movie “The Hangover”, where a group of guys celebrating a bachelor party in Vegas need to get out of some money trouble by basically speed-reading through a book on card counting and then hitting the casino floor.
But the blackjack fever has hit numerous fronts, not just movies. One of the most surprising one is anime, or Japanese animation. Not many have heard of Osamu Tezuka, but most have undoubtedly seen his style and creations in some form or another. Often cited the Father of Manga, Tezuka pretty much invented the modern anime style as we know it today. And, wouldn’t you know it, one of his most famous characters is known as Black Jack. Admittedly, Black Jack isn’t a gambler – he’s a doctor who works for money. But the manga, as well as the various anime adaptations Black Jack has appeared in, have made quite good use of the symbolism of his name (as you can see in the opening of his newest series, where playing cards are prominently featured), with one of his series even being named “Black Jack 21”. Additionally, plenty of books have been written about blackjack, and I’m not talking about card counting ones. Probably the most famous example is “Sucker Bet” by James Swain, in which the main character, ex-cop Tony Valentine (gotta love that name) is working security for a casino and discovers something rather peculiar about the blackjack table. In any case, I believe it’s fair to say that the game of blackjack has infiltrated any and all aspects of our popular culture, and it’s not hard to see why! It’s iconic, it’s timeless, it’s recognizable, and it allows us to see one of our favorite stories – of the intelligent hero persevering against all odds.