The Change Mariner

Card Playing the hottest game on television

CNN:

Card playing -- an activity that filled the evening hours before television was invented -- has improbably become one of TV's hottest programming trends.

After less than a year, the "World Poker Tour" is already the Travel Channel's most popular series ever, a status NBC Sports took note of last week in announcing it would air a poker game on Super Bowl Sunday.

Bravo, probably the most trend-conscious cable channel, beat World Poker Tour operators to the punch by putting together the "Celebrity Poker Showdown." The new series premieres December 2.

... Steve Lipscomb, a lawyer turned television producer, thought it would make exciting television. But even he admitted that most previous attempts to film card games were so boring they were nearly impossible to watch.

Seeking investment possibilities, he was laughed out of television executive offices.

... One unusual draw is that virtually anyone can participate, making the poker matches a version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," Lipscomb said.

The big matches have entrance fees of thousands of dollars. But for only $30, an amateur can enter qualifying tournaments with the prize being a seat at the table for a major tournament.

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