Life is a Cabaret

After I was out of the tournaments in Italy, I had a bit of free time on my hands. I wasn't going to be able to play in the European Poker Tour finals, as I had to get back to Vegas to film a Poker After Dark episode. Many poker players were still hanging around, since it wouldn't make sense to go all the way home, only to have to return to Monte Carlo in less than a week for the tournament. (Monte Carlo is only about a two-hour drive from San Remo.) Hence, I had plenty of company during my last few days in Europe.

My friend Max Pescatori took me to a private game that seemed great. A driver picked us up and took us to a nice villa. There was a chef and beautiful cocktail waitress there to serve us. "Wow, this is great," I thought, until I got into my first big pot. The dealer raked €60 for that one hand! That's almost $95! Wow, what the heck did Max bring me to? I realize that all of these people weren't working for free, but jeez.

I got even with Max later when I flopped a king-high flush in hold'em and bet the pot on all streets. That'll teach his pirate a-- to take me to a rake-o-rama game! After that, I just played as tight as possible to avoid the juice. I'll never complain about the costs of the Larry Flynt game again.

The next night was spent out on the town. To protect the reputations of the innocent (as well as the not so innocent), I'll just skip that whole evening. I was still in bed recovering at around 6 or 7 in the evening when I got a call from Daniel McVicar. In case you don't know who he is, I'll let Wikipedia tell you: Daniel McVicar (born June 17, 1958, in Independence, Missouri) is an actor, director, and writer. He is known for his role as Clarke Garrison on The Bold and the Beautiful, a role he has played on and off since the show's premiere in 1987. He is also well-known from his recurring appearances on The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson, where he is Craig's nemesis at CBS Television City. He is also involved in new media with his site LateNiteMash.com and The McVlog. He played Rock Hudson in Liz: The Elizabeth Taylor Story. A member of Mensa, he has learned dialogue in Russian and Italian for films.

Daniel invited me to go to see Liza Minnelli's rehearsal for a show that she was doing later that night. I still had a hangover, so I told him I'd have to pass. He said he'd check in with me afterward when they went to dinner, and when he called, I thought, "Did I come all the way to Italy to sulk in bed?"

I met up with them as they were eating dessert, and we had a nice time catching up. I met his beautiful fiancé, who is a dentist in Italy. They told me that Liza was great, and I was sorry I missed her. When I went to the restroom a few minutes later, I noticed that the whole staff was crowded around a small TV watching something intently.

I went for a closer look, and it was Liza. Her show, which was going on about a mile away, was being broadcast all over Italy and much of Europe. When I finished my business and went back to the table, I told everyone about the broadcast, and we all went back to the TV to catch Liza's final number.

She finished, and we paid our bill, ready to move on to a party going on a few blocks away. The phone in the restaurant rang, and after a brief exchange, I heard the manager give some excited instructions in Italian. Daniel quickly suggested that we should have one more drink before moving on, as Liza had just phoned the resaurant with her (and her entourage's) order.

They arrived a few minutes later, and I must say that she looked marvelous. She had just finished a great show and was in great spirits. Daniel began a conversation with her agent, with whom he was friendly. He asked why Daniel was there, and when Daniel answered that he was there for a poker tournament, the agent quickly looked at me and said that he knew he had recognized me from somewhere.

He was obviously a poker fan, and he tore Liza away from her conversation with someone to introduce me. She said that she didn't know any poker players but was very impressed with what we did, and that she'd always wanted to watch a big game but knew that it wasn't allowed. When I told her I could arrange it, she was very happy, and not only got one of my cards, but got another one for her manager, instructing him to call when they got back to the West Coast.

I got a few photos with Liza, and we moved on to our party and then went back to the casino for a nightcap. All in all, it was a wonderful ending to a magnificent trip. Life really is a cabaret!