There’s something mesmerizing and romantic about a Roulette wheel as it spins, a small ivory (or sometimes plastic) ball gliding around its circumference, then clattering over its 36 or 37 alternately black and red (and one or two green) numbered pockets and finally coming to rest in one as players gathered around the table shout in victory or groan in disappointment. Few casino games combine more glamour and excitement.

Some say Roulette, French for “little wheel,” began long ago in China and was later carried home to Europe by missionaries. Others attribute it to the 17th-century French mathematician, physicist, and philosopher Blaise Pascal. French brothers Louis and Francois Blanc developed the first modern game, featuring pockets numbered 1 through 36 plus a single 0, in 1842. Following the California Gold Rush of 1849, Roulette caught on in Wild West gambling halls, which favored an older 38-pocket version of the wheel that included a “00.” Depending on where you play, you can still find Roulette played with both the so-called French or English Wheel and the American Wheel.