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The MIT blackjack team is world renowned for their series of successful blackjack games in Las Vegas casinos. The special technique of card counting in blackjack is what has ensured their outstanding results in the game. Even those people who are far from blackjack and gambling in general may know about these players from the MIT blackjack team movie released under the "21" title. Torn to shreds by critics, this film still proved to be quite entertaining for the public, so that the world box office was about $ 160 million.
Of course, filmmakers always strive to improve the existing story, add drama and action to make the film more interesting to watch than just telling dry facts. So, the "21" film is just another attempt to glamorize the real MIT blackjack team by presenting a story about them in a convenient format for large screens. So, we will try to reconstruct the real facts about the whiz kids who invented the almost perfect card counting technique - read on to find out the true story of the MIT blackjack team.
Important Inconsistencies
While the real MIT blackjack team's tumultuous activity dates back to the 1980s, the film shows the main characters using smartphones and playing at Las Vegas Red Rock and Planet Hollywood, which - as known - were opened in the 2000s. In addition, the real MIT blackjack team has nothing to do with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as many of its members were brought in from other sources. For example, Bill Kaplan himself, the creator of the blackjack team, is a graduate of Harvard Business School. Although, according to the film, each member of the team was an outstanding person with exceptional mathematical ability, in fact, many of them were ordinary people with a certain interest in gambling. Having created similar blackjack groups in the past, Kaplan formed the MIT blackjack team from inexperienced players without a criminal background who soon became famous.
Who was on the MIT Blackjack Team?
Ben Campbell, the main character in the film, is a math genius seeking to attend Harvard, but lack of money is a major obstacle. Jeff Ma, the prototype of Ben Campbell, came from a wealthy family. So, his immersion in blackjack is not due to lack of money for studies, but to his addiction to gambling. It is noteworthy that the lion's share of the criticism that fell on "21" film concerns the character of Ben Campbell, since his real-life counterpart is a man with Asian roots.
According to the book about the MIT blackjack team, JP Massar, a simple gambling enthusiast, was the first to join Kaplan. JP Massar and Kaplan led the team throughout the 1980s. Later, in 1982, they were joined by John Chang, an MIT graduate. It is noteworthy that Chang continues to play using the MIT blackjack team strategy, however, he was blacklisted by most casinos.
According to the plot of the film - which could not do without a love story - Jill Taylor, another member of the MIT group, invites Ben, and a romantic relationship is shown between them, shown on the big screens. However, the real Jill Taylor joined the team with her boyfriend, so she was not the love interest of Jeff Ma (Ben's prototype).
Ben began to miss one weekend Las Vegas trip after another, and his participation in the team was in question. A little later, he went to the casino alone and lost about 200 thousand dollars. According to John Chang, this could not have happened, since each member of the MIT blackjack team was a very responsible and disciplined player.
MIT Blackjack Team Earnings
Blackjack team members firmly state that real gambling is not at all as glamorous as it seems. Tough discipline, the constant risk of being caught by security personnel, all of this is a source of stress. Overall, however, their engagement was very fruitful, as - according to the MIT blackjack team documentary - they made about $ 60 million in total.
Where are They Now?
Bill Kaplan, founder of the MIT blackjack team, realized that he could make more money by running his own business. So, he is the owner of a real estate company and FreshAddress, an email-based business.
Jeff Ma, a blackjack player whose story formed the basis of the plot of the feature film, also excelled in business. He is especially known as the co-founder of Citizen Sports, a website acquired by Yahoo! in 2010.
Jane Willis, a Harvard graduate and another former member of the MIT blackjack team, is today a successful attorney for a major Boston law firm.
Johnny Chang is still a professional blackjack player. However, due to suspicions that he uses the MIT blackjack team card counting technique, he is denied access to many casinos.
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