1957-1962

Perhaps it was a bird-brained idea; perhaps not.

In 1957, Dick Graves, the owner of the Nugget, in Sparks, Nevada, commissioned a handcrafted, solid gold rooster for display in one of his hotel-casino restaurants, the Golden Rooster Chicken House, then under construction.

The final product was 9 inches tall and embodied about $40,000 worth of 18-carat gold, a $339,000 value today.

After a year or so of the gold bird drawing attention in its burglar-proof coop, Graves found himself in legal trouble … over the fowl.

United States law prohibited citizens from owning more than 50 ounces of any precious metal unless it was a piece of art. Graves’ rooster weighed a whopping 255 ounces. The government, deeming the bird an advertising gimmick rather than an objet d’art, seized it in 1960 and sued its owner for violating the 1934 Gold Reserve Act.

Up To A Jury

During a trial two years later, jurors were tasked with deciding whether Graves had been using the rooster for artistic purposes or not. Three experts gave divergent testimony on that issue.

Graves’ attorney Paul Laxalt said he was “an innocent businessman caught in the web of complicated and confused government” (Reno Evening Gazette, March 29, 1962). “The holding of Dick Graves of this little rooster is not going to upset the international gold balance. It would be a terrific shame to have the rooster melted down.”

After struggling to decide, the jury ultimately ruled in Graves’ favor, concluding his rooster was exempt from the federal rule. The government returned the precious metal poultry to Graves, who promptly returned it to its casino roost. The prosecutor, though, filed an appeal.  

One and a half months later, the U.S. government abandoned the case for good. As for the rooster, it paraded its shiny plumage at the Nugget until July 2014, when it was sold for $234,000 at the Coeur d’Alene Art Auction. 

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The Big Bertha introduced in the 1960s wasn’t a circus lady or a German howitzer; it was a made-in-Nevada slot machine that became iconic.

Named for its size, the three-reel device stood 5 to 6 feet tall and weighed about 700 pounds. Along with its ample dimensions, the potential $1,000 (about $7,800 today) jackpot attracted players. One pull of the jumbo lever cost $1 ($8 today).

“[The oversized slots] have a carnival quality. They draw people,” William “Si” Redd told the Nevada State Journal (July 8, 1973).

The chances of hitting a jackpot on Big Bertha were terrible, estimated at 1 in 15 billion. But some players did win.

Beating The Odds

Here are five such cases reported by various newspapers, from oldest to most recent:

1) $26,566 (1975, January): James and Brenda Harrington, San Pablo, California residents, got married on December 31, 1974. The following day, at the Eldorado Hotel Casino in Reno, Nevada, Brenda put $1 in a Big Bertha offering a progressive jackpot. Four red sevens came up, and the couple won $26,566.

2) $180,886 (1977, April): Rodolfo Jose Salak of San Francisco, California spent $60, in increments of $5, on the double progressive Big Bertha slot machine at Harolds Club in Reno. Four Harolds Club or Bust covered wagons filled the row, and he hit the $180,886 jackpot.

3) $10,000 (1977, December): Raymond and Karen Weber of Sparks, Nevada were leaving the Plantation Casino (now Rail City Casino) in their hometown when Raymond deposited three silver dollars into Big Bertha. Four sevens appeared; the payout was $10,000.

4) $314,741 (1980, August): Clark Petrochilos and Bill Ragland from Fresno, California took turns playing Big Bertha with $5 tokens, also at Reno’s Harolds Club. After five hours and $5,000, they hit four wagons and $314,741.

5) $473,645 (1981, August): Norman and Barbara Mabie “decided to play the slot machine Wednesday after rejecting two other alternatives for the day, shopping and sunbathing,” reported the Orange County Register (Aug. 6, 1981). At Harolds Club in Reno, Barbara inserted the dollars into Big Bertha, and Norman pulled the handle. Eighty-four dollars later, the two won $473,645.

Redd: Bigger Is Better

By 1972, more than 85 Big Berthas were in operation throughout The Silver State. These devices originally were designed and made by Currency Gaming Devices Inc. (later Bally Distributing Company), the enterprise of Dick Graves (of Sparks Nugget Lodge fame). Subsequently, the company SIRCOMA, which stood for Si Redd’s Coin Machines, Redd being the owner, spent $100,000 to $150,000 (roughly $586,000 to $880,000 today) on developing an even larger Big Bertha, which he dubbed Super Bertha.

Super Bertha

At 6 feet tall, 10 feet wide and 5 feet deep, Super Bertha was recorded in the 1973 Guinness World Records book as the largest slot machine. It contained eight reels and a 5-horsepower motor.

This device required $10 ($55) minimum for the potential $1 million ($5.5 million today) jackpot. However, it accommodated bets as low as $1 for lower payoffs. Odds for winning the million were an estimated 1 in 25 billion.

Super Bertha first appeared in 1973 in Caesars Palace and the Four Queens Casino — both in Las Vegas, Nevada.

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