Las Vegas has come to the heartland.

The glitter and glitz that is Vegas is being recreated on a smaller scale in communities in no fewer than 26 states, including Missouri and Illinois.

And, the biggest dice throw in the industry's history -- moving inland with gaming -- appears to be a winner.

Americans like to gamble.

Casino gambling attracted 125 million visitors to tables and slots in the United States last year, according to a survey conducted by Harrah's Casinos.

Although the majority of gamblers are 50 or older, according to one gambling survey, the ages have spread.

More than 20 million of those visitors boarded gambling riverboats in Illinois. Many millions also went into riverboat casinos in the Tunica, Miss., area, about 30 miles south of Memphis, Tenn.

Riverboat casinos and American Indian gambling halls have resulted in increases in attendance and casino revenues, which hit $16.5 billion in 1994, up almost 100 percent from the $8.3 billion registered in 1990, the survey said.

In Illinois, which has 10 operating riverboats, casinos won more than a billion dollars during the past 12 months.

Missouri casinos reported winnings of $303 million during its first full fiscal year of riverboat gambling. Although the totals cover the year, July 1, 1994, through June 30, only four of the state's six casinos were open the entire year. Harrah's North Star in Kansas City opened in September, and Aztar at Caruthersville opened in April.

Two of the current Missouri casinos are in the St. Louis area -- Casino St. Charles, which has two facilities at St. Charles and the Admiral in downtown St. Louis on the Mississippi River.

Two of the Illinois riverboats are in the St. Louis area, Alton Belle at Alton, and the Casino Queen at East St. Louis.

Two riverboat casinos are closer to Southeast Missouri, Players International at Metropolis, Ill., and the Aztar at Caruthersville.

Two additional casinos have been proposed for Southeast Missouri -- Boyd Gaming Corp. at Cape Girardeau and Lady Luck Gaming Corp. at Scott City.

Although Americans like to gamble, they don't necessarily like the idea of gambling casinos in "their own back yard."

It took two votes in Missouri and that many in Cape Girardeau to approve casino gambling.

In Arizona, a poll by Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and a local television station, indicated that 73 percent of the state's residents has gambled -- lottery, horse racing, casinos -- but that only 37 percent felt gambling should be legalized in the state.

Many gamblers felt the same way about attaching their real name to stories of gambling, which range from "get rich quick" slot machine hits to gambling addiction.

"Marilon" is one of the former.

Marilon, who fits in the 50s crowd, is a businesswoman and says she will never become addicted to the habit of stuffing slots into computer machines.

But, she visits casinos on a regular basis -- two or three times a week, she says, adding that it is a form of entertainment.

Marilon can play with casino money for a while. The first time she played, she was a $10,000 winner on the slots.

For Bruce, the story is a sad one. He started his brief gambling career on video poker, then got so hooked on the games that he started playing every day, eventually leading him to the "Council on Compulsive Gambling" hotline for help.

The gambling hotline has increased from 11,0000 calls a year in 1990 to more than 40,000 calls in 1994.

Meanwhile, gamblers continue to visit casinos, which can now be found in 26 states. In some areas, weekend gamblers outnumber the citizens.

The 125 million visits in 1994 was up 33 percent from 1993 figures. At least one member of 32 percent of all U.S. households visited a casino last year.

Even if casino slot machines are not, the nation's attitudes about gambling are loosening up: The survey said 92 percent of those polled called casino gambling acceptable, up from 86 percent a year ago.

The third annual Harrah's Survey of Casino Entertainment was conducted by the NPD Group Inc., Yankelovich Partners Inc. and Research International New York.

The riverboat casinos, referred to as "money dredges" by one casino observer, aren't greedy. According to the survey, they take between 7 and 10 percent of the action on any given day. Slot machines are mechanically set to return most of the customers' money, and the natural odds of the roulette, blackjack and crap games go to the house as matter of course.

The majority of people who visit gambling casinos play the slot machines, which accept various coin tokens, ranging from a nickel to $100 tokens.

There is no skill to the slots -- the coin goes in, the wheels spin and a winner or loser results. Payouts vary from machine to machine. The payout schedule is posted on the machine to determine how much you might win. Slots are set to pay out from 85 to 95 percent of the coins put in them.

In most areas, two-thirds of the reported gambling income is from slots.

The electronic machines are much different than the old mechanical machines, both in payout amounts and consistency. The older slots had to pay out once they filled up. Not so with the electronic models, which can pay back-to-back jackpots, or spin the wheels for long periods of times without a significant hit.

Blackjack is the biggest table game income producer in Illinois, accounting for 53 percent of table game income.

And, there's one thing you learn quickly when playing blackjack on riverboats -- you don't touch the cards. In most cases, blackjack is played with six decks, dealt from a box called a "shoe."

The goal of the game is simple, to get closer to 21 than the dealer does without going over. Up to five or six people play against the dealer. Each receives two cards, face up. The dealer also gets two cards, one face up, one face down.

Again, do not touch the cards. Point to them to ask for a hit (another card) or hold your hand with palm down to stop.

Blackjack and all table games are conducted under the watchful "never-seems-to-blink" surveillance of pits bosses.

In roulette, a white ball spins on a turning wheel before settling into a slot. Players can bet on single numbers, on red or black, even or odd. There are more complex bets, which split a bet between as many as four numbers. Exact placement of chips determines your bet.

Craps is the most complicated of table games. In craps, a dice game, two dice are thrown. A 7 or 11 on the "first" throw is a winner. Snake eyes (2) or boxcars (12) are losers on the first throw.

If your first throw is any of the other eight numbers, you have to make that "point" before coming up with a 7. Spectators can bet with or against the shooters, or on "numbers." Bets are taken on every throw of the dice.

Craps provide about 30 percent of table game income in most casinos.

Of course, on many area boats -- Metropolis, Caruthersville, St. Louis, East St. Louis -- players must pay to take a chance on losing your money. Fees are not excessive, from $2 to $8, depending on the day and time you go aboard.

A visit to Tunica, site of no less than seven -- soon to be eight -- casinos is like a Las Vegas preview. Most casinos in Tunica County are still in their first year. The actual casinos range in size from 27,000 square feet to the 96,000 square feet of Sam's Town.

Tunica County, which is a sparsely populated county, has more than 400,000 square feet of casino space and has more slot machines (10,300) than people (8,295).

The only poker games available in local casinos is that of "Caribbean" poker, a complicated game (to some), which is basically a "showdown" game.

Regular poker is played in many of the Mississippi casinos. Where regular poker is played, the house cuts a percentage out of every pot. It's not unusual to see games being played 24 hours a day with bets sometimes topping several thousand dollars.

The average casino visitor, however, generally plays quarter and dollar slots and walks away leaving the casino $45 richer.

GAMBLING FACTS

The present boom in the gambling casino craze started in 1988, when South Dakota voters approved a referendum for limited-stakes casinos, and Congress passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, allowing gambling on Indian reservations.

The boom in state lotteries go back three decades, to 1964 when New Hampshire passed a state lottery bill.

Gambling facts:

Lotteries: Lottery sales are increasing. More than $30 billion a year are spent on lotteries in 36 states and the District of Columbia.

Horse racing: Thirty-eight states allow parimutuel betting. Dog racing bets are permitted in only a few states, including Arkansas.

Bingo: Forty-five states and the District of Columbia permit charitable bingo.

Casino gambling: Casino gambling currently operates in 23 states, and has been approved in a total of 26 states.

Only Hawaii and Utah prohibit all forms of gambling.