Joker

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Originally, Euchre did not use Jokers; the Right Bower served as the commanding card. The Joker was added to 32-card packs in the 1850s and first appeared in printed rules in 1868 as a blank specimen card ranked above all others. Samuel Hart is credited with printing the first illustrated 'Best Bower' card in 1863. The term likely derives from Juckerspiel, the German name for Euchre.

In Their Own Story

By the late 1860s, cards labeled 'Joker' began appearing, sometimes depicting clowns or jesters like Elizabethan jester Richard Tarlton. In the game of Poker, introduced around 1875, it was initially called the Mistigris and functioned as a wild card.

Reader's Guide

In many games, the Joker acts as a wild card representing other cards, though this is not required for a card to be wild. It can also serve as the top trump, a skip card forcing a player to miss a turn, the lowest-ranking card, or a high-value card. In the children's game Old Maid, a solitary Joker represents the card to be avoided.

Did You Know?

• The Joker originated in the United States during the Civil War specifically as a trump card for Euchre.
• Samuel Hart printed the first illustrated 'Best Bower' card in 1863, predating the term 'Joker' on cards by several years.
• In Poland, the third Joker is always blue because the KZWP monopoly printed them that way during the Polish People's Republic.
• The game Zwicker uses packs with six Jokers, where they function as high-value matching and scoring cards rather than wild cards.
• Italians refer to Jokers as 'Jolly' because many early cards were labeled 'Jolly Joker'.

Gameplay Mechanics

Standard US and British decks usually contain two Jokers, while German packs typically include three. Some games omit them entirely. In variations of Euchre with 25 cards, the Joker serves as the highest trump. The term 'Joker's wild' originates from its use as a wild card.

Joker System Strategy

Packs often contain two noticeably different Jokers; for example, the United States Playing Card Company (USPCC) prints one in monochrome and the other in color. In games requiring comparison, the red or full-color Joker usually outranks the black or monochrome version. Some decks label them 'Jolly'.

Progression and Endgame

In Canasta, two or three Jokers became the norm during the late 1940s. Since the 1950s, German and Austrian packs have included three Jokers for German Rummy. In Poland, the third Joker is known as the blue Joker due to printing by the KZWP monopoly.

Development and Critical Reception

Collecting unusual Jokers has emerged as a hobby with the advent of the Internet. Guinness World Records recognizes Italian magician Denoto de Santis as holding the world's largest collection of Jokers.