A Brief History of Rummy and Kalooki;
Rummy is a family of games
that share a similar structure. All these games include a similar game play
pattern that consists of drawing and discarding a card during each turn. This
is done in order to help players meld the cards in their hands into sets and
runs. A set is a three or four cards meld of the same rank. A Run is a three or
more consecutive cards of the same suit.
The origins of the Rummy games go over a couple of centuries back. There are
several versions that outline the development and beginning of the Rummy games.
Some of them trace the origins of the Rummy phenomena back to the late 19th
century, at New York. Other versions trace the origins of the game to the
Orient. The Chinese Mahjong game is based on the same element of drawing and
discarding cards as well as many other Chinese card games that go back to the
18th century.
Another version attributes the origins of Rummy games to Spanish comminutes who
immigrated west. The Spanish card game bearing the name of Conquian strikes a
great resemblance to the Gin Rummy game and is considered to be the ancestor of
all the modern Rummy games. Gin Rummy itself is said to be invented at New York
during the first decade of 20th century. The common assumption regarding the
origin of the name for Gin Rummy is concerned with the alcoholic drink. The Gin
Rummy game was quickly adopted by the Hollywood elite during the 30s and become
most popular ever since.
Among the Rummy games one can find the following:
kalooki (Kaluki, Kalookie), Gin Rummy, Rummy 500, Oklahoma Gin, Hollywood Gin,
Shanghai Rummy, Michigan rummy, Liverpool Rummy, Carioca Rummy, Crazy Rummy,
Progressive Rummy, Contract Rummy, Rummicube, Ultimate Rummy, Russian Rummy.
Krazy Bee 15 Rummy, Hungarian Rummy, Rummy O, Continental Rummy, Conquian,
Frustration rummy, 12-Step Rummy, Tripoley Rummy, Construction Rummy, Bonanza
Rummy, Robbers' Rummy, Rumino, Rummy Omar, Dummy Rummy and many more