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This is a $500 denomination crest and seal chip from the Balinese Room, an illegal casino in Galveston, Texas, in the 1940s - 1950s. The chip is in excellent condition and measures 1-1/2 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch thick. This chip ranks in the top 10 of Galveston chips and is a must for any Texas collection. The infamous Balinese Room was perhaps the most exotic of all 1940-1950s casinos on the Gulf Coast. Galveston Island's "B-Room" was the jewel in the crown of the Maceo syndicate's illegal gambling empire. Like the Sui Jen before her, the B-room sat on a pier at 21st and Seawall Blvd. in the Gulf of Mexico.
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| These quality, superbly-crafted crest and seal chips from our collection are featured on the front cover of Gaming Times magazine, November issue. They were present on the gaming tables of the casino when such famous headliners such as Sophie Tucker, Burns and Allen, Bob Hope, Frank Sinatra, Phil Harris, Gene Autry, Joe E. Lewis, and Jack Benny played the B-Room. The length of the long breezeway that led to the club out on the pier was known as "Ranger Run." During a raid, the buzzer sounded in the gaming room out above the gulf waves, and chips, cards, dice, and slot machines were stowed away in a walk-in safe in less than two minutes before the fastest running Rangers could reach the gaming room. Often the band struck up the University of Texas alma mater, "The Eyes of Texas," and patriotic Texas casino guests rose to their feet in the restaurant while Rangers attempted to force their way through the crowd. According to one former Maceo employee, the B-Room was raided on 64 consecutive nights without a single bust. |
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