Video Vault: The Best of Gloria Balding
Yes, you read the title right. Somewhere in a shadowy conference room, the bigwigs at Bluff Magazine nominated me for the Bluff Readers Choice Award Best Poker Hostess. I was really surprised. I am the only nominee not on a TV show, so I’m pretty much the black sheep in the whole thing. However, to celebrate the nomination, in this Video Vault I have put together some of my favorite videos from my time at PokerNews. And rather than wax poetically about myself, I got some friends to do it for me.
Full Tilt Spoof
I guess this video has turned into a campaign ad, which it was never intended for. At the 2010 World Series of Poker Europe, I mentioned to PokerNews Editor-in-Chief Matthew Parvis that we should spoof a Full Tilt commercial, and he ended up starring in it. He came back and said why not spoof the Tom Dwan commercial, and the rest is history.
In a Bikini
"I'm not sure how we could cope with the craziness of the poker traveling circus without Gloria. I'd rather not think about it. In addition to be a funny, ironic and utterly professionnal TV host who knows her s**t about poker, Gloria can heal the wounds of a player who just suffered the pain of busting out like it's nobody's business. I've seen and done many things in this industry, but being interviewed by Gloria during the one EPT I played remains the most amazing moment of my career. I'll never forget those three minutes of pure ecstasy. Ask them and they will tell you Gloria is a Mother Theresa to many a poker player. I would ask her to marry me if she wasn't already married to her job. But still, Gloria, please marry me." Benjo Gallen - Frenchman and occasional poker journalist
Me and Ivey
"Why is Gloria Balding great as a poker hostess? Is it because she has 365 different dresses, and that she made most of them herself? Is it because she is smart, witty, and has great timing? Is it because she always finds new interesting angles for videos? Is it because she's the only one to pull a few words from Ivey himself ? Well, personally, I don't know. I just know that she makes me feel comfortable doing interviews with her. Gloria makes everybody comfortable. And that's called talent." - Arnaud Mattern - Team PokerStars Pro
Behind the Camera
"I've worked with Gloria for close to 2 years. She's incredibly smart and talented. She works as hard as anyone in the industry. She's the model of professionalism, and - let's be honest - she's stunningly beautiful. All great qualities in a poker hostess." - Dave "F-Train" Behr -Poker Blogger
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