Joker (playing card)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (February 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
The Joker is a special card found in most modern decks of playing cards, or a Mahjong tile in some Mahjong game sets..
Contents |
[edit] Appearance
The Joker is often depicted as a court jester. There are usually two Jokers per deck, and both cards often have noticeable differences between each other. For instance, Bicycle Playing Cards prints their company's guarantee claim on only one. More common traits are the appearance of colored and black/noncolored Jokers. At times, the Jokers will each be colored to match the basic colors for each suit there be a red Joker, and a black Joker. In other cases, a company may substitute the basic red for a Joker in full color. In games where the jokers may need to be compared, the fully colored joker usually outranks the black-and-white one. With the red/black jokers, the red one is counted as a heart/diamond and the black is used to substitute clubs/spades.
The Joker sometimes bears an S superimposed over a U, wrongly believed to be the original dollar sign.
In Australia, the Joker in the Queen's Slipper brand of playing cards depicts a Kookaburra, a bird native to Australia with a call which resembles human laughter.
[edit] Use of the Joker in card games
The Joker's use is greatly varied. Many card games omit the card from use entirely; others, such as a 25-card variant of Euchre, make it one of the most important in the game. Often, the card is a wild, and thereby allowed to represent other existing cards. The term "Joker's Wild" originates from this practice, as does the game show of the same name.
The Joker can be an extremely beneficial, or an extremely harmful, card. In Euchre it is often used to represent Benny, the highest trump. In poker, it is wild. However, in the children's game Old Maid, a solitary joker represents the Maid, a card that is to be avoided.
[edit] Specific ranks
- Euchre, 500, Spades: As the highest trump, "Benny" or top bower.
- Canasta: The joker, like the deuce, is a wild card. However, the joker is worth 50 points in melding, as opposed to 20 for the deuce.
- Gin Rummy The joker is a wild card.
- Hearts: The joker does not appear in standard hearts, but in some custom variants is a penalty card with special properties.
- Poker (1): A wild card. Some poker variants restrict the capabilities of the joker, only allowing it to be used as an ace, or to complete a flush or straight (when it is called a bug). Unrestricted jokers can be very powerful; they guarantee a pair, promote an existing pair to three of a kind, and promote two-pair to a full house. In some forms, the joker may be used to promote a four-of-a-kind hand into a five-of-a-kind. Five-of-a-kind are considered the highest among all hands, even royal flushes.
- Poker (2): Alternatively, the joker is sometimes used as a buck or button (poker) to indicate which player is dealer.
- Chase the Joker: An alternative version of Old Maid where the Joker card is used instead of the Ace.
- War: Beats all other cards.
- Pitch: A point card in some variations. They rank between the Jack and the 10 (trumps only), and are marked as "High" and "Low", one outranking the other.
- Mighty: Second most-powerful card in the game, though it cannot be legally played on the first or last trick.
[edit] Name
It is believed that the term Joker comes from Jucker, the Alsatian name for Euchre, since the card was originally introduced for games of that family. Alternatively, it may represent a combination of Jucker and Poker, as these were originally the games in which it was most commonly featured.[citation needed]
[edit] Tarot
The Joker is often compared to "the Fool" in the Trumps of the French Tarot deck. They share many similarities both in appearance and play function; the Fool is often the highest trump.
[edit] References in popular culture fiction
- The Batman's enemy, the Joker, was originally based on the playing card in appearance. Modern versions of the character often use razor sharp playing cards, especially Jokers, as weapons and calling cards.
- The N64 Game Fighter's Destiny contains an unlockable character with the name Joker. He is one of the best fighters in the game.
- There is a Joker on the Queen album Innuendo,
- The Joker is a character, a descriptive term for people (unusual and rare) and a card to be collected in the Jostein Gaarder book The Solitaire Mystery
- In the anime Shugo Chara!, Amu is the Joker position, which is the trump card.
- The Insane Clown Posse released a series of cds known as "the six joker's cards"
