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Spiderman plays. So does The Aviator. So does Angelina Jolie’s beau, Brad you-know-who. But you gotta shell out big bucks if you fancy yourself being invited to a home game in Hollywood where the stars hold ‘em and fold ‘em. For example, should you crash Tobey Maguire’s home game in the Hollywood Hills, be prepared to brush aside a few cobwebs and face Ben Affleck, Mimi Rogers (she was Tom’s before Nicole and Katie came along), tough guy James Woods (catch a rerun of “Casino”), Gabe Kaplan from “Welcome Back, Kotter,” (more reruns with a young John Travolta) and an occasional pro like former World Poker Champ Phil Hellmuth. What will it cost you to play? Tobey expects you to push $2,000 his way and he’ll give you an equal amount in chips. As you’re learning how to riffle stacks of chips together (looks easier than it really is), you may realize you’re the only one at the table that night who is worth less than $10 mil. Shuffle up and deal. Better bring your best game because the stars have been tutored by the best. All-time female money winner has coached Affleck and Phil Hellmuth has coached Maguire. High stakes poker has been a tradition in Hollywood. Ira and Lee Gershwin held a regular game that went on for 25 years. Edward G. Robinson, who would star with Steve McQueen in one of the best known poker movies, The Cincinnati Kid, sat in every week. Angie Dickinson played while on the set of the original “Oceans Eleven,” The movie stars don’t always just schmooze with the movie stars. Whoopi Goldberg invites her plumber into games at her place in Vermont. Director Paul Mazursky (“Down and Out in Beverly Hills”), his regulars include a guy who owns a car wash business and another who sells mobile homes. Mazursky keeps the game friendly, with an even-we-can-afford-it initial buy in of just 50 bucks. Hustler’s Larry Flynt is a high-stakes poker player, playing in the biggest tournaments around the world. In public places his two bodyguards keep a close watch on him and are prepared to replenish his stake as needed. When the well runs dry his bodyguards appear with a suitcase full of dough to keep him in the game. He runs a mean home game and has opened up full casino Hustler clubs in Los Angeles and Vegas. Poker is big here, of course. There’s no sign of Hef playing (he is busy with his three bunnies) but he hosts the stars of the screen and the poker table as well at his pad in Los Angeles. Poker pro Antonio Esfandiari tells of a Halloween/poker party at the mansion where Antonio, also known as “The Magician” - was dressed as a pimp. The pros and the movie stars sat down together (when they had time – Antonio reports five gals to every guy) for some high stakes poker. The pros salivate at these games because the movie people are happy, they’ve had a few drinks, the money doesn’t matter to them, and the poker pros just become vacuum cleaners. Slurp, slurp, slurp. And, of course, Bravo TV’s “Celebrity Poker Showdown,” has corralled a slew of celebrities and brought them to the poker tables at the toney Palm Hotel in Vegas to play for charity. If it looks like some of them just learned the game that night, you’re right. Some of them did just learn it. Host Phil Gordon (to be replaced by host Phil Hellmuth) would give No Limit Texas Hold ‘em lessons a few hours before air time. For some it was the first time they had ever played. Shannon Elizabeth is one who graduated from “Celebrity Poker Showdown “to take down a $55,000 first prize (over 83 others) at the opening of Caesars Palace poker room on New Year’s Eve 2005. And finally, Shannon’s ex, Joe Reitman, who now dates top poker pro Annie Duke, bagged an online first place prize of $266,000. The movie stars aren’t finished with poker yet. Eric Bana (“Munich”) and Hollywood legend, Robert Duvall, are starring in a new poker movie, “Lucky You,” with lots of poker stars playing themselves. It is scheduled for release in the summer of 2006. (c) 2006 Murphy James
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