Crown Melbourne

This guide to Crown Melbourne opens on the casino's opening night in May 1997, when actress Rachel Griffiths stepped out of a limousine topless and uninvited, borrowing a page from Lady Godiva to protest what she saw the city being sold. From there it follows the complex's next quarter century on the Yarra, including a formal inquiry led by judge Ray Finkelstein into how the casino was really run, with investigators describing patrons gambling for ninety-six hours straight. Look up at the fountains, timed to music, as you listen.