It’s the 1st Annual Deadwood Poker Tournament Party!

Guest Totals:
For 20-80 guests: at least 7 males and at least 8 females.
For 15-20 guests: 7-9 males, 8-10 females, 0-1 gender neutral.
For 10-15 guests: 5-7 males, 5-7 females, 0-1 gender neutral.
For 8-12 guests: 4-6 males, 4-5 females, 0-1 gender neutral.

Harry High-Stakes: Owner of the Deadwood Saloon. As the organizer of this grand event, Harry has a lot at stake if it is not successful!

Henrietta  High-Stakes: Wife to Harry High-Stakes. Although she has been spending less and less time at the saloon lately, could she be into something or someone else?

Gambling Jack: Gambler. Jack is known as the best hand in poker either side of the Mississippi and has not lost a major tournament in the last 5 years. Until now.

Anna Belle: Wife to Gambling Jack. Some say Anna Belle is the reason Gambling Jack always wins.

Mitch Maverick: Business man from the East. As the winner of the tournament, many question how a businessman could have such great card skills. Is he the next poker phenomenon?

Holly Hickok: Gambler. Holly is a real southern belle with a flare for poker. What is a girl like this doing in the Wild West?

Clay Coldwell: Local resident of Deadwood and once-known poker great. Although Clay has never met
Mitch Maverick, the two of them seem awful close after only knowing each other only a week.

Sheriff Sam: Sheriff of Deadwood. Although Sam is considered the law enforcement of this town, it has been said the only way to get anything ‘enforced’ is by offering him a bribe.

Montgomery Money: An investor from the East. Montgomery is in Deadwood on a business trip and rumor has it that he has his eye on purchasing the saloon. Montgomery just arrived last night for the party.

Elizabeth Money: Wife of Montgomery Money. Elizabeth has been here all week scouting out the land that her husband hopes to develop. Elizabeth is still not used to such rough and rugged ways.

Minnie Money: Debutante. As the sheltered daughter of Montgomery and Elizabeth Money, this is her first experience out West. Minnie’s trip   has taught her a lot about the wild ways of life and the men it breeds.

Banker Bob: Bank of Deadwood owner. After Bob’s bank was robbed this week, Bob suspects the culprit is someone in need of ante money for the poker tournament. Will Bob take justice into his own hands to punish the bandit?

Banker Bonnie: Wife to Banker Bob. Bonnie is desperate for Bob’s attention and will do anything to get it.

Poker Alice: Poker dealer and the ex-wife of Jesse Wales. Alice now works for Harry dealing poker and serving drinks.

Marshal Dalton: Federal Marshal. Assigned to Deadwood to insure that there is no unlawful activity at the poker tournament. With outlaw rule becoming the way of the west these days, it is time the federal government put some order into place.

Sally Starr: Saloon girl. Sally has a great allegiance to both Harry and Henrietta High-Stakes and wants to see the saloon thrive at all costs.

Taffy Garrett: Saloon girl. Taffy is the eyes and ears of the saloon, someone who might know a little too much about what is about to go down.

Billy-the-Bartender: The saloon bartender and bookkeeper. Billy knows the saloon life from every side of the coin. Literally.

Jesse Wales: An outlaw and old comrade of Harry’s. Is Jesse here to meet up with old acquaintances or is this purely a business trip?

Black Barbara: Outlaw. Barbara’s been in town all week and no one knows quite why.

"...ortly after the party started, the employees and their spouses and dates were actively sleuthing, scheming and enjoying themselves. Besides the creativity, the best feature of the Night of Mystery series is the templates for the invitations, nametags, etc. which allowed us to send everyone home with a memory frame f..."
~ Posted on message board

"...HI, We had a great time hosting the Deadwood Saloon Murder mystery at our house. I was very impressed with the costumes people came up with and how excited people were. What a great idea for a party. Professional, Polished, and FUN!..."
~ Posted on message board

"... so easy to pull together! All I had to do was print and send out the information to my guests. They were impressed by how professional it was, and we all had fun trying to figure out who the murderer was. The clues really built upon one another, encouraging a lot of interaction. I recommend this party to any group..."
~ Posted on message board

"...ers! It was easy to follow and the Host's Guide made it very easy for me to prepare all of the necessary items for the event. Everyone is still talkin about the fun they had! I have hosted two other Mystery Dinner Parties in a different format (where you must read from a script) and I much preferred this format! It was..."
~ Posted on message board

"...stery Party was "Murder at Deadwood Saloon" and it turned out to be a fantastic night. Everything went to plan apart from one minor mishap which was a funny part to the night. The victim "@%#5$*@(*" was aware that they were to 'fall down dead' when the lights went out which they did as soon as they ..."
~ Posted on message board

"... the Marshall (in hopes of keeping everything moving and directing nearly 90 participants) and had a great time watching all of the kids in character and having fun for nearly three hours. We had the XM satellite radio (remember, we�re in the boondocks) Bluegrass station going all night providing perfect saloon musi..."
~ Posted on message board

"...s were in character from the moment they arrived to the moment they left. There was hollerin', yellin', backstabbin', gamblin', and blackmailin' ... all in good fun of course. We were so hapy to see those who figured out the mystery and those who didn't sure wanted another chance. We will definitley be purchasing more ..."
~ Posted on message board

"...Hello, We purchased your Deadwood Saloon for a new years eve party and it was a blast. I am attaching a picture of everyone in their costumes. ..."
~ Posted on message board

"... We just finished up hosting "Murder at the Deadwood Saloon" for our church youth group. It went over very well! Thanks for making it easy to host a fun evening. Recipes, instructions, extras...all were great!..."
~ Posted on message board

"...ogether every year on New Year's Day evening for a mystery party, and this year's was the best! We all can't wait until next year! It's a great way to spend a fun, DIFFERENT, night with friends. ..."
~ Posted on message board

BBQ- The most popular type of food for any western themed party. Whether you feast on chicken, hot dogs, hamburgers, or steak, make sure that you cover the food in rich and tasty barbecue sauces.   On The Trail-- Chili, stew, cornbread and baked beans. (Check out the chuckwagon recipes below.) Salsa Bar-- serve up a variety of salsas, chips and other dips. Cowboy Showcase-- Check out this complete western recipe resource. Chuckwagon Recipes-- The Old West's cooking at it's finest.

• Place real hay bales outside the entrance. • Hang "wanted" posters all over the walls with the host/hostesses pictures. • Make lassos from thick rope and hang as garland. • Use bandanas as napkins. You can even use metal sheriff's badges as napkin rings (pin one in the middle of each napkin). • Get some red gingham fabric from a fabric store to use as an affordable table cloth. • Use a real cowboy hat, turned upside down and line with a check napkin to hold chips.You can place bowls inside the hats, too, if you are hesitant about napkins. • Place a small bowl in the top of a cowboy boot and fill it with salsa. Use boots of different sizes to give your salsa bar depth and variety. • Arrange bunches of wheat, daisies, sunflowers or wildflowers in cowboy boots, metal coffee pots or tin pitchers. • Bring in camping or storm equipment such as oil lamps, lanterns and cooking pots to add to the theme. • Soak the labels off beer bottles and use bottles as candle holders. • Construct a hitching rail outside the venue and (if at all possible) a horse trough or tin bath equivalent will almost certainly result in someone getting a dunking before the saloon closes. • For a fantastic finishing touch, stick rapid-fire bullet holes on your wall, your fridge, your windows, and anywhere else they'll stick. • Dip your invites, name tags and other papers into cold coffee to make them look old, then burn the edges • Use potted cactii for your table centerpieces.

Saloon Music-- Find some authentic tunes from the old west to play at your party. Find it here Cowboy Music-- Play real cowboy music by the original western sweethearts Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. Find it here. Other classic country artists-- Patsy Cline, Johnny Cash, Loretta Lynn, George Jones, June Carter Cash, Willie Nelson and Waylon Jennings are a few suggestions. For Free Music-- Visit your local library for a number of compilations from the time.   Provide an assortment of accessories to help your guests "get into character" including: cowboy hats, fake mustaches, feather boas, bandanas, pistols, etc.