Silver Strike! The Slot Machine That Hands out a Prize [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe] Oct26

Silver Strike! The Slot Machine That Hands out a Prize [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe]...

When most people sit down at a slot machine, they are hoping to cash in on that big jackpot. Technology has changed the way we play the slots, but there is still one unique machine that hands out silver tokens and has collectors jumping.  Once these coins numbered in the thousands, now the historic Silver Strike slot machine is a dying breed with only a few left to play. Silver Strike slot machines were introduced by International Game Technology (IGT) in Reno, Nevada in 1992. At the time, slot machines were still in the early days of becoming computerized. After the introduction of Wheel of Fortune slots, which allowed players to spin the famous Wheel for bonus credits by landing on a certain symbol, bonus round machines took off with players, and the Silver Strike machine was not far behind. While the bonus round for most slot offers players a chance to rack up big credits, Silver Strike machine delivers a silver coin as a prize. During normal play you can bet the max of three credits, the third reel landing on the special Silver Strike logo activates the bonus round. The center chassis on the front of the machine will begin to spin and when it stops, one of a multiple varieties of silver clad slot tokens is dispensed. A special door opens with a fanfare and the coin is presented to the player. Each casino is responsible for the design and denomination of each Silver Strike token. When the machines were first installed, the coins were .999 silver, now many are silver and copper clad, but still have value. Each strike token is designed as a large silver casino chip, featuring customized artworks specifically designed for each casino. The player decides whether to keep the coin...

10 Fun Games to Spice Up the Next Summer Olympics [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe] Aug17

10 Fun Games to Spice Up the Next Summer Olympics [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe]...

Another summer Olympics has come and gone. The world was united for two weeks watching the best athletes trying to rack up the most medals for their country. While NBC tape delayed the best events in prime time, I have 10 games that could really add some humor and excitement to the next summer games in South America! 10. PLINKO Have Drew Carey wheel out this Price is Right pricing game.  The country that wins the most points, gets the gold! 9. LEMON ZESTING WITH GIADA DE LAURENTIIS No one can beat Giada when she’s zesting lemons on The Food Network! 8. CELEBRITY SKEE BALL The person with the most tickets wins gold – and a lobster harmonica! 7. THE AGGRO CRAG FROM NICKELODEON GUTS Do – do – do – Do You Have It? 6. MEGA MILLIONS DRAWING With special guest – Yoloaaaaaanda Vega! 5. MODELS & BUCKETS Late Night with Jimmy Fallon’s comedy gold! Here’s part 2 4. WHEEL OF SCHNAPPS That’s right… spin a wheel and whoever downs the most shots of various flavors of Schnapps walks away a winner!  Actually, they probably won’t be walking at all! 3. YARS REVENGE PLAY-A-THON Watch out for the flying rectangles! 2. HONEYMOON SLOTS TOURNAMENT 1. AMERICAN GLADIATORS – ASSAULT BY TENNIS BALL GUN Contenders ready!  Gladiators ready! THE 411 Next Summer Olympics: August 5 -21, 2016 Host City: Rio de Janeiro,  Brazil Number of Events: 304 in 28 sports JERSEY JOE RECOMMENDS OK, I’m not being completely serious with these. However, I’m sure there’s a tournament for most of these already in existence, somewhere! What are your thoughts for some good games or events? Image credits: SouthEastern Star, Nico Paix, ebertek, Stepan...

The Great Pennsylvania Casino Tour [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe] Sep16

The Great Pennsylvania Casino Tour [Kicking Back with Jersey Joe]

Pennsylvania legalized casino gambling in 2006, but the state’s casinos are about to pass Atlantic City in revenue to become the United State’s second gambling mecca, right on the heels of Nevada.  So, how did my home state turn into a gamblers paradise after years of shooting it down?  Some friends and I took a road trip to find out. The area where I live near New York City is littered with billboards and commercials for tons of casino action.  Take a simple ride on the subway, or a drive through the Holland Tunnel, and you will find ads for the glittering Indian casinos of Connecticut, New York’s Yonkers’ Raceway, several of Pennsylvania’s offerings, and Atlantic City – the giant who used to dominate the ads. Yonkers Raceway, just north of Manhattan, has recently dropped a ton of cash to overwhelm the local advertising, pushing their new craps games. PA’s casinos are right behind.  Emeril Lagasse’s face, touting his Sands’ restaurants and hotel tower, are plastered all over the PATH trains. The mascot squirrel on the craps table for Mt. Airy ads is all over the F train.  Some casinos are even sponsoring the weather on local TV stations, just to get attention. The New York area is definitely being targeted by the several Pennsylvania gaming halls that are just a short drive away.  We went for it, plotted our trip and decided that the best route was to explore the gambling halls in Eastern PA. After departing North Jersey, we went West on I-80 headed for the Poconos.  Our first stop was Pennsylvania’s first casino, Mohegan Sun at Pocono Downs. MOHEGAN SUN AT POCONO DOWNS Total Number of Slots: 2,232 Total Number of Table Games: 82 Just a few minutes off of I-81 and the Pennsylvania...