One online poker pundit first thought it was an early April Fools joke. But it's no February joke: one-time comic Norm Macdonald will replace Gabe Kaplan on the seventh season of GSN's High Stakes Poker, debuting February 26. Gabe must have gotten too pricey or muttered something nasty under his breath about GSN president David Goldhill.
This really looks like the swan song for the show, which I've always liked. Except GSN desperately needs some non-geriatric viewers, and High Stakes Poker is one of the network's few offerings which skew slightly younger than ancient. So maybe GSN honchos actually hope Macdonald can keep the series alive for awhile.
Or things could be as they appear: GSN is preparing a burial. Getting rid of Kaplan would just be the final nail in the felt-covered coffin. Not to mention that many top pros like Tom Dwan and Phil Ivey will miss the new season because of some asinine dispute between two web sites. Oh well, High Stakes Poker was nice while it lasted.
UPDATE: Sometimes it seems like GSN wants to become Comedy Central. At least our little game show network wouldn't mind the younger demos of its comedic rival. Anyway, Comedy Central is also bringing back Norm Macdonald for some kind of sports comedy effort. Maybe they'll show baseball bloopers.
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