did u know some TV poker audiences are fake?

[jjnidguy]

Maybe Im just a moron for not realizing this but it came as a suprise to me.

But many of the poker audiences you see on TV at final tables and such are staged actors getting paid!

I was at the Taj for the USPC and you could go be part of the audience for the "feature" table. Anyone could go and sit on the two side sections. I sat down there but after a while the TV prod guy asked me to sit in the main front section.

And I didnt think anything of it for a while. But after a while I noticed that everyone in the section knew eachother from the way we were talking. And it was totally weird since they were so racially eclectic and aged variant. I was thinking "how the hell am I the only one here who doesnt know everyone else?!"

I got even more curious when they announced howard lederer coming in and some guy was like "Howard Letterman, thats Patti Dukes brother or something"

heh, I was confused why someone who doesnt know who howard lederer would be into poker enough to sit there for hours under the hot lights, watching people fold and once in ten hands see someones hole cards at a showdown.

anyways later a lady tells me that they are all actors getting paid by the hour. I was like "damn holy crap, how many poker audiences are actors" She says most times the main section you see on TV are actors.

anyways I have no thoughts or feelings on it, Im just bored at work and thought Id post an intersting fact