The list of seminal poker programming on American television is quite extensive. “High Stakes Poker” brought the thrills of professional poker’s greatest names battling it out in a cash game; “Celebrity Poker Showdown” saw luminaries from television, film and music battle it out for charity; the “PokerStars Big Game” put the “Average Joe” up against celebrities and poker pros for big cash. Of course, the World Poker Tour and the World Series of Poker have been the longest running poker programming on television in the United States.
Since “Black Friday,” however, the plethora of poker programming has dwindled to just the WPT, the WSOP, the National Heads Up Poker Championships (back this year after a one year hiatus) and the Heartland Poker Tour. That will change in 2014 with the development and production of “Poker Night in America.”
“Poker Night in America” is promising to be a “one of a kind” poker program in that it will feature several aspects of the game of poker that should entertain all. “One week you might see a celebrity-filled poker game from a Hollywood mansion, the next week could feature a high stakes cash game and the next a big tournament from a U. S. casino,” Todd Anderson, the creator of “Poker Night in America” stated. “We’re looking to film the biggest and best poker events and bring them to the viewer in a fresh approach to televised poker. We think the world is ready to watch poker in a whole new way.”
Anderson is a man who knows a little about the production of quality television poker programming. The co-creator of the HPT, Anderson has brought tournaments from across the United States to television as a part of the tour’s syndicated television schedule. The HPT is broadcast to over 100 million U. S. homes each week and, because of its syndication, an episode of the HPT can be seen somewhere in the U. S. every day throughout the year.
The first event to be taped for “Poker Night in America” is set for the Turning Stone Casino in Verona, NY. During the Empire State Poker Classic Main Event beginning on August 10, the “Poker Night in America” cameras will be rolling through Anderson and his partners with Rush Street Productions. The $1650 buy in tournament has a guaranteed prize pool of $500,000 and has been the site of a previous first in televised poker history.
In 2004, the Turning Stone Casino was the host of a $10,000 buy in tournament, the American Poker Championship, which broadcast the final table of a three-day event live on Fox Sports Network. Featuring such players as Erik Seidel, Bill Gazes, Paul Phillips, Robert Williamson III and John Juanda at the final table, the tournament was eventually won (following a twelve hour fight) by Phil Ivey, who defeated John D’Agostino in heads up play.
“We are looking forward to hosting the first “Poker Night in America,” the director of Poker Operations for the Turning Stone, Jason DiBenedetto, stated. “It’s a great opportunity to go beyond the walls of our casino and promote our property to a television audience.”
According to the “Poker Night in America” website, there will be at least three other events taped this year for broadcast in 2014. Although further details on those locations haven’t been released yet or on potential sites in 2014, there are some interesting appetizers on the website for fans to whet their appetite to before the show premieres next year.
Videos from 2013 World Series of Poker bracelet winners Eli Elezra and Jeff Madsen highlight their video section alongside some recollections from 2011 WSOP $50K Poker Players’ Championship winner Brian Rast and former Player of the Year Eric Baldwin. Potential viewers will also get a sneak look (the “sizzle” reel) at what “Poker Night in America” will be bringing to viewers next year.
It’s been some time since the poker community in the United States could get excited about new poker programming and, with “Poker Night in America,” there could be another wave of interest in the game.
