Archive for the ‘Poker Pop Culture’ Category

Face the Ace Debuts with Low Ratings

Posted By : CarbonPoker August 10th, 2009

face-the-aceIn an already saturated market of poker shows, Face the Ace officially threw its hat into the ring at the beginning of August.  Unfortunately, Face the Ace has failed to gather a significant amount of viewers during its first two weeks on NBC.

Face the Ace is an hour-long show that runs from 9:00 to 10:00 pm ET on Saturday night.  Its debut aired on August 3rd and was met with less than desirable ratings in comparison with other network shows in the same time slot.  Out of the 4 major networks (ABC, FOX, NBC, and CBS), Face the Ace finished with the lowest ratings at .04 which equates to 1.59 million viewers.  FOX took top honors here with an episode of America’s Most Wanted which had a 1.5 rating, or 4.43 million viewers.

The second week was even worse for Face the Ace ratings-wise since it managed just a 0.3 rating, or 1.46 million viewers.  With its 0.3 rating, the show was last among all shows that ran on Saturday night, and it even finished behind reruns of Finding Nemo and 48 Hours Mystery.

As part of a pre-determined plan by NBC, Face the Ace will be moved to a different time slot, and possibly a different network.  Program guides indicate that some upcoming episodes will be shown on CNBC while other episodes may run on Saturday afternoons on NBC.

Face the Ace is a reality poker show which sees a contestant attempt to survive 3 rounds of heads-up play against professional poker players.  Winning the first rounds pays a contestant $40,000, winning the second round pays out $200,000, and a third round win will pay out $1 million.  At the end of round 1 and round 2, contestants can quit the game and walk away with their winnings.

  • Share/Bookmark

Moneymaker Appears on New ESPN.com Poker Show

Posted By : CarbonPoker August 7th, 2009

espnA new poker show called the Inside Deal had its first episode Tuesday on ESPN.com.  The 30 minute show is hosted by ESPN the Magazine writer Laura Lane and poker personality Bernard Lee and it takes a look inside the world of poker.  Inside Deal is also held in the same Bristol, Connecticut studio as SportsCenter and is broadcast in similar fashion to the hit sports show.

The first episode of Inside Deal centered on a preview of the 2009 WSOP Main Event final table.  2003 WSOP Main Event champion Chris Moneymaker joined both Lane and Lee to talk about the final table as well.  Phil Ivey’s legacy and Jeff Shulman’s disdain for WSOP gold bracelets were two of the main topics discussed during this segment.

Another topic of heavy interest that was touched upon was the Day 1D sellout where over 500 players were denied entry into the Main Event.  While the obvious explanation for this incident was that WSOP officials wanted to keep a cap on each segment of the first day, Bernard Lee also offered the explanation that, “Poker players are known procrastinators.”  The trio ended the Day 1D segment by discussing possible solutions for how this problem could be avoided in the future.

Much of the show’s focus switched towards Moneymaker in the second half of the show as the co-hosts talked about Moneymaker’s Omaha success.  Moneymaker also made it clear that he’s all but done with Texas Hold’em as he stated, “It’s hard to find myself playing Hold’em anymore.”  The show ended with Moneymaker answering a quick series of questions and talking about how he had lost his WSOP Main Event bracelet at one point before finding it.

Those who are interested in catching the Inside Deal can do so by checking out ESPN.com’s poker section every Tuesday.

  • Share/Bookmark

ESPN Will Begin Airing 2009 WSOP on July 28th

Posted By : CarbonPoker July 22nd, 2009

espnThose who are tired of seeing reruns of the 2008 World Series of Poker on ESPN will be relieved to hear that the World Wide Leader has plans to start airing footage from the 2009 WSOP on July 28th.  And ESPN will be showing much more of the Main Event through this footage since so many people have requested it.  In fact, there will even be a 24 hour period of time where ESPN will only be airing the 2009 Main Event.

The only catch to this increased coverage of the WSOP Main Event is that ESPN will show just one other bracelet event.  Last year, the network showed 3 other bracelet events in addition to the Main Event.  The lone other bracelet event they will show is the $40,000 40th Anniversary No-Limit Hold’em tournament that was held to commemorate 40 years of the WSOP.

In fact, the 40th Anniversary event will kick-off ESPN’s coverage of the 2009 WSOP as it begins at 8pm ET on July 28th.  This will last two hours while ESPN will have two more events following this one in the WSOP Champions Invitational and the Ante Up for Africa charity tourney; both of these tournaments will be shown for two hours as well.  The Ante Up for Africa tournament is especially interesting since many celebrities took part in it including Ben Affleck, Brad Garrett, Charles Barkley, Matt Damon, Ray Romano, Adam Sandler, and Don Cheadle.

On August 18th, ESPN will begin showing two hour episodes of the WSOP Main Event with each day being shown for two hours.  So Day 1A, 1B, 1C, and 1D will all have their own separate episodes, and ESPN will continue like this until Day 8 is shown on November 3rd.  The final table of the 2009 Main Event begins on November 7th and will conclude on November 10th.

  • Share/Bookmark

Thanks, Rounders. (For Making People Think They’re Good at Poker)

Posted By : CarbonPoker July 10th, 2009

KGB Rounders

How Rounders Can Help You Win Money Off Your Friends: A lesson in movie induced dude-itude.

People give Rounders a lot of credit for a lot of things. It’s popularity in 1998 (probably? I’m too lazy to look it up) helped out with the poker boom and taught a lot of people the basic rules of No Limit Hold’em.

As a reader of this blog, I guarantee you’ve seen that movie at least a few times. It makes poker looks cool. It makes seedy Russian gangsters look cool. It even makes Matt Damon look cool.

If you’re sitting around with a few of your buddies and Rounders comes on cable, you’re going to wind up playing a card game that night. The closer to the credits that you play, the better your friends are going to be think they are at cards. It’s pretty much a lock that you’ll take their money.

Idiots get influenced by movies all the time and don’t even know it (stops to smoke cigarette, drive Audi, drink Pepsi and play hand of poker).

Seriously – when you’re a little bit light before heading out to the bar, invite your friends over early. What? Rounders was playing in my DVD player? Huh. May as well keep it on…What? You know, that’s right…That IS my chip set. Let’s have a game.

The trick is not to stare directly at the movie as Ed Norton and Matty D might just make you think you’re awesome, too. I just stare at the CM Coolidge painting to the right of my TV or the nekkid lady cards I got at the gas station, because I’m classy like that.

You’re Welcome.

  • Share/Bookmark

The WSOP Would Be Better if They Awarded Championship Belts Instead of Bracelets

Posted By : CarbonPoker July 8th, 2009
ultimate warrior

This is tougher than a bracelet

OK – I’ll probably take some flack for this in the comments, but I’ve never really been a fan of the WSOP bracelets. Until this year, bracelets weren’t even awarded at a ceremony. They were handed out at about 3am in front of some bleary eyed players around the final tables.

I OBVIOUSLY understand the prestige of winning a WSOP event. But a bracelet? Poker badass/curmudgeon, Doyle Brunson didn’t even bother to pick up a few of the ones that he won.

Seriously. Can you imagine many guys that would want to wear the bracelet if it didn’t hold the connotation of a WSOP winner? I wouldn’t. That’s for sure. If you’re wearing long sleeves, you can’t even guarantee people will see it.

That’s why I’m proposing this simple solution: award WWE-style championship belts in lieu of gold bracelets. Don’t tell me that wouldn’t rule, because it would.

Fact: I can’t think of anything better for poker than walking into the Rio with a belt around my waist and one slung across my shoulder.

  • Share/Bookmark

The Worst Poker Movie Ever?

Posted By : CarbonPoker June 17th, 2009

I’m usually pretty up to date, but this poker movie slipped by me, luckily. Deal was a 2008 bomb that should have folded before the flop.

This is more of a public service announcement than a blog post.

Starring Bret Harrison and Burt Reynold’s moustache, Deal looks like a pretty watered down high stakes poker movie. Expect it to be complete with card-playing montages, a successful build up, inevitable crash and then redemption. Spoiler alert, right?

The movie features a poker babe (Shannon Elizabeth) and all of the poker/Vegas clichés you could hope for. WHOA! A fly over shot of Vegas? The fountain in front of the Bellagio? All-in metaphors? You bet you’re a$$, kids.

This steaming pile gets a whopping 3% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes…ouch.

Here’s the trailer, which is essentially the entire movie. You’re welcome; I just saved you two hours. Can you think of a worse poker film?

  • Share/Bookmark

Casino in Atlantic City Fined Over Beer Fraud

Posted By : CarbonPoker June 17th, 2009

beerThere are a few things that you just don’t mess with: mucked poker hands, somebody’s sister (when they’re around), and beer.

A casino in Atlantic City was just hit with a $5K fine for running the same beer into “Miller Lite” and “Miller Genuine Draft” kegs. For shame, Resorts Atlantic City. For shame.

This isn’t the first time that the casino did this either. Back in August, they had similar complaints over a Coors and Coors Lite.

Really? I don’t even understand how this could benefit the casino. Is it a scheme to get more carbs into their players? I’m a little lost here. Furthermore, how did anyone even catch this? As far as I’m concerned, the difference between Piss and Piss Lite is pretty negligible.

  • Share/Bookmark

New Leonardo DiCaprio Online Poker Film in Development

Posted By : CarbonPoker June 16th, 2009

leonardo-di-caprioI hope this happens.  Mega-star, Leonardo DiCaprio is set to star in a new film based on the world of online gambling.

The yet-to-be-titled project will be set in Costa Rica, but the rest of the details are a little tough to find right now.

What we do know is that Brian Koppelman and David Levien (writers of Ocean’s Thirteen & Rounders) are attached to write the script. If their previous work is any indication, I expect it to make gambling and online poker look awesome – which it is.

We’re all interested in seeing the portrayal of how this is going to look.

Let me know what you think it’s going to be like. We’re making a lot of guesses around the office.

We’ll keep you posted on any new developments

  • Share/Bookmark

Simpsons Producer bringing his Wild Poker Games to Playboy TV

Posted By : CarbonPoker June 11th, 2009

simpsons-pokerIt’s well noted in many Hollywood circles that The Simpsons producer Sam Simon holds some of the wildest poker games known to man.  Simon’s games are always filled with celebrities, lots of foul language, humor, and hot women.  Simon’s poker games have become so interesting that he’s decided to take them to Playboy TV.

The show will be called Sam’s Game and will be held at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas in a swanky lounge setting complete with Playboy Bunny waitresses.  In addition to the cool setting and model waitresses, Sam’s Game will also feature many of Simon’s celebrity friends including Artie Lange, David Attell, Jeff Ross, Norm McDonald, Brande Roderick, and Jennifer Tilly.

The addition of Tilly is very interesting because she is Sam Simon’s former wife which should create some extra fireworks on the show.  But this definitely makes sense from a poker perspective since Jennifer Tilly has become a professional player in her own right, and has cashed for well over $350k in her career.  In addition to Tilly, her husband Phil Laak and Jennifer “Jennicide” Leigh will also make appearances on the show in an effort to provide some real poker skill.

Besides the professionals, Simon admits that his games won’t be the best from a playing perspective since he said, “The stakes aren’t the biggest, the players aren’t the best, but the game is definitely the funniest.”

The idea for Sam’s Game came about when Playboy TV caught wind of how entertaining and funny Simon’s games.  And Simon was more than happy to oblige to their offer as he stated, “I’ve spent years in development to try to get shows on the air.  When a network calls and says, ‘We want to shoot this’.”  Simon finished the quite by saying a resounding “Yes”.

Sam’s Game will not edit the language and the comedy is sure to be edgy at the least.

  • Share/Bookmark

The Roots Of Online Poker – Great Video

Posted By : CarbonPoker June 4th, 2009

What a noble beginning online poker had. This Intellivision gem: Las Vegas Blackjack and Poker (great name, right?) is a real slice of early 80’s gaming. In fact, this was a release game with the Intellivision system (thanks, Wikipedia!).

Intellivision is awesome. Sure, there’s no ultra-realistic graphics, dancing girls or whatever…but did you see the raw emotion on the dealer’s face? Seriously, I’m going to pick one of these up for the Carbon office on ebay.

The dude reviewing the game is way too calm for all the excitement that LVBJ&P has to offer. What’s his deal? I’m not sure where the clip is from, but anyone sitting at home while videotaping their TV of old video games definitely isn’t late for a party, if you know what I mean. Now if you’ll excuse me…I’ve got some really important things to attend to.

Just watch the video, ok?

  • Share/Bookmark