Vince Van Patten Talks About His New Gambling Movie
December 29, 2015 5:34 pmHaving worked as co-anchor for the long running World Poker Tour for fourteen seasons, there is not much Vincent Van Patten does not know about the world of gambling. At just 14 years of age, he was taught how to play poker by his actor father Dick Van Patten, who was also famous for hosting home poker games frequented by his fellow actors, as well as some of gambling and poker’s most legendary figures.
Once old enough to take part in the action, Van Patten was subsequently dubbed the “King of the Hollywood Home Game”, and in addition to cash games, he has also enjoyed two six figure scores in tournament poker. These include finishing the 2010 WSOP Main Event in 481st for $27,519, and more recently finishing the 2015 Choctaw Main Event in 14th for $40,532.
Vince Van Patten even has a Las Vegas poker novel to his name, The Picasso Flop, which he co-authored with Robert J Randisi, and currently the 58 year-old is also working on a movie project about the gambling scene in Los Angeles. Citing the Cincinnati Kid, and Rounders as examples of what a good poker movie should look like, in a recent interview with cardplayer.com Van Patten lamented the disappointing poker movies that have been made of late. According to Van Patten, the biggest mistake they make is concentrating too much on the action, and not enough on the characters involved.
By focusing more on the colorful characters that populate the gambling scene, Van Patten is hoping that the comedy movie he wrote will prove a big splash with its target audience, as well as more mainstream viewers. Furthermore, the project includes an impressive production team, including executive producer Gary Marshall (Pretty Woman, Frankie and Johnny), and David T. Friendly (Little Miss Sunshine), with casting for the movie expected to take place soon. As Van Patten explains:
“It’s a fantastic new project for me. It’s based on true events and it’s focused on the high roller gamblers in L.A. and the crazy bets they make. The characters are these bigger-than-life people, which you see all the time in the gambling world. A lot of good poker players are going to be in it.”