Baccarat and James Bond
Do you know that baccarat is James Bond's favorite casino game? 007 was seen playing the French version of baccarat called Chemin de Fer in several of his movies and novels. More than being the enigmatic secret service agent and consummate womanizer, Bond is an inveterate gambler at heart.
The latest James Bond movie, Casino Royale, is actually the very first novel of the James Bond series written by Sir Ian Fleming. In the novel, James Bond is tasked to defeat the SMERSH agent Monsieur Le Chiffre at baccarat so that the latter's gambling debts will increase and the SMERSH will kill him.
In the latest Bond film, instead of baccarat, James Bond plays Texas Hold'em poker against Le Chiffre to prevent the latter from using the money to fund terrorist activities. Casino Royale is the 21st Bond movie and the lead character will be played for the first time by British actor Daniel Craig. Try watching the movie and see how the plot differs from the novel.
If you want to know the history of baccarat, you should look at the original game, which is European baccarat. Baccarat was thought to have originated from Italy and was introduced to France in the 1400s. The word baccarat came from the Italian "baccara" which means "zero."
The game was later introduced to the United States. At present, there are three major versions of baccarat: European baccarat, American baccarat which differs slightly from the original version, and Chemin de Fer which is the French version of baccarat.
The objective of the game is to bet on which hand is better - the player's or the banker's. in American baccarat, the casino dealer acts as the banker while in Chemin de Fer, players are pitted against each other, with one player acting as the player and another the banker.
Baccarat is a popular game among the wealthy and affluent, which is probably the reason why Ian Fleming chose baccarat for Bond. In many casinos all over the world, you can hardly see any casually-dressed gamblers around the baccarat tables.
However, you don't have to look like James Bond or get a license to kill in order to play baccarat. Neither do you have to be rich and famous. You can now play baccarat in most online casinos on the Internet without having to worry about your attire or your wallet. This is an excellent way to lay this classic high-end game without mingling with the wealthy socialites.