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Monaco's Beloved Prince Rainier Mourned

Prince Rainier III, who twice put Monaco on the map, died at 81 on April 6, 2005, from heart, kidney and breathing complications. During his 56-year reign, Europe's longest reigning monarch twice put Monaco on the map through his introduction of roulette at the Place du Casino and his marriage to American film star and Academy Award winner, Grace Kelly.

The Roulette wheels at the famed Monte Carlo Casino came to a screeching halt as its doors closed for a day in honor of the monarch. Rainier worked tirelessly throughout his reign to transform Monaco's image as ''a sunny place for shady people.'' The task now falls to Rainier's only son, Prince Albert, 47, as the reign passes to him.

At its heyday during the mid-20th century, gambling revenues, driven by roulette, accounted for 45% of Monaco's government revenue; today, casino revenues contribute approximately 4%.

Wired Shoe Redux

Who says the good die young? Even when ideas fade from the spotlight, you can bet they'll be back in a new and improved version if you wait long enough. An updated version of the shoe computer surfaced as part of Hungarian gambler, Laszlo Kovacs' gambling ensemble. Kovacs was arrested in an Australian casino when authorities discovered him wearing a computer shoe attached to a headpiece.

The shoe/wireless earpiece combination appears to be based on the late 1970's version, developed by the enterprising young UCSC students known as the Eudaemons. The shoe reads data such as speed from the wheel and transmits the data to the earpiece. Authorities estimate that Kovacs won $200,000 Australian dollars with the device before he was discovered.

True or False? Only the Shadow Knows!

Thirty-nine year old Jade Coal, a Spanish engineer had long dreamed of winning his fortune at the roulette wheel in Las Vegas. Saving $225,000 in four years, he decided to pursue his dream. His dream was to bet the ranch on just one spin of the roulette wheel.

He couldn't find a casino that would accept all of his savings on one bet at first, so he negotiated with the casinos until he found one who would agree to take his wager. After several refusals, he approached the legendary Binion's Horseshoe Club. The Horseshoe not only agreed to allow him to exceed their $100,000 limit, but they agreed to modify the wheel by blocking the double zero, thus increasing Coal's odds significantly.

He placed his entire wager of $220,000 on the red 7. He won the spin, placed his entire winnings in the cage, and walked away a winner, vowing that he would never gamble again.

Virtual Roulette Takes On Britain
Surveys show that the national lottery has lost a bit of its luster since the virtual roulette craze hit Britain. Britons have spent '290 million on the new craze, three times what they spend on the lottery. Machines dot most major streets throughout the country, and each machine accepts up to '500 from a credit card for a single spin of the wheel. It is estimated that these virtual roulette machines have already created a turnover of '15 billion.