CBS has given a two-season commitment to the Ultimate Blackjack Tour on weekend afternoons beginning in September.
The network will broadcast the first of ten episodes on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 2 p.m. ET, and has committed to a second season beginning in Spring 2007.
Like many of the poker events that have been so successful on television, the Ultimate Blackjack Tour features a format that gives regular people a chance to compete with the pros, but in an elimination-style format that organizers hope will make it an attractive television property.
While the 10 events for this season were shot at CBS Television City in Los Angeles after an initial competition in Las Vegas featuring some of the top pro card players, the second season will follow a defined tour schedule and will be open to the public.
The Ultimate Blackjack Tour is produced by Blackjack Entertainment, which is headed by executive producers Houston Curtis of Big Vision Entertainment and entertainment attorney Jon Moonves. Red 23 Entertainment’s Sam Korkis and Mark Ganshirt are also executive producers.
GSN currently airs the World Series of Blackjack, an unrelated event.
