Two Months, Two Million, a summer to remember. from Ansky. 31 July 2009, 8:08.

For the first time this morning in over two months, I woke up in my own bed in New York. It has been bizarre over the last seven days to not have a mic pack on my belt anymore. I feel a sense of withdrawal at the lack of cameras following me around all day around my house and around Vegas. This summer, my three friends and I truly entered another world for two months. We made a reality TV show.

We wrapped filming for our show last week, and since have been doing various press events and only managed to get home last night. This summer began when I got in a cab to JFK with Krantz in May, and it ended last night in our cab ride back from the airport. Jay already posted a heartfelt glimpse into our summer, so while I desire to do the same I'll do my best to not step on his style.

I became a part of the “Two Months, Two Million” reality show about 6-8 months ago, when Ariel (Foxwoodsfiend) decided he no longer wanted to be a part of it. To say I didn't know what I was getting into at first, would be the understatement of my life. I had no idea what it meant to be a part of a reality show, and I had no idea of the scale of the production I was to be a part of. I thought there would be a camera guy or two, and a few random production assistants around. I didn't know that there would be a woman designated as our "talent coordinator (hey Jill!)." I didn't know that our sound guy Eduardo would mic me up the moment I woke every morning. I didn't know that our house would be a 12k square foot, 3 acre mansion. I didn't know our entire guest house would turn into a production office. I didn't know that at 3 in the morning some nights, a production assistant would walk through our living room with a ladder and say goodnight. I didn't know the degree to which this show was going to be g4's marquee. And probably most importantly this summer, I didn't know how god damn amazing it was going to be.

Every now and then I have to remind myself that some TV executives thought it made sense to make a TV show about my life, along with three of my best friends. This is not normal Dani, remember that it is NOT normal. I recall vividly my first moment on the show. The morning after my 4th place in the 40k WSOP event, running on about 30 minutes of sleep, Jay shook me awake from our Bellagio room, and dragged me downstairs to get picked up by production.
We arrived at the house for Jay to give us a tour, and right as we arrive, our producer Paul is blasting away orders on the walkie. "Camera A get a wide from the yard!" "Camera B get tights on Jay and Brian," "Camera C stay behind Dani while he goes into his room."

Yesterday I met the president of G4. He thanked me for being a part of the show. I felt like a winner of the lottery being thanked for winning the jackpot. Why was he thanking me? He just put me through the greatest experience of my life.

That experience began with the shock of seeing producer Paul in action barking away orders in the opening scene, and ended with the four of us totally having embraced and become accustomed to being a part of TV. What happened along the way and in between was something I'll never forget, and something which I am sure will make for amazing television.

I am not going to lie, the first week or so was actually quite miserable for me. I was so overwhelmed by the entire experience, that I initially rejected it and hated the notion of rearranging my life for a TV crew. Wake up at noon? Everyone in the world know how much I lost today? This camera is seriously two inches from my face and I just lost a 20k pot on a 2 outer? It all was a bit much to handle, and the turning point for me luckily did arrive. I’d love to vividly describe what it was, but unfortunately it reveals too much plot. From that point where I realized that I simply had to embrace the experience, and live it up as much as I could, I had the best time of my life.

I am supremely confident in the product we created this summer, because it focused on all the right things. This was a show about poker players, not about poker. It was about lifestyle, friendship, and Vegas. I was blown away on a regular basis by the degree of dedication and passion that the production had for our show. I remember one day, during a scene in the war room (the office), while playing an online session I took off my watch and placed it down next to me on my desk. Mark the camera man, moved my watch a few inches towards him. I was a bit puzzled, “why did you do that?” I asked. “Oh sorry man,” he responded, “ I’m just grabbing the reflection of your face off the watch, cool?” The guy had been standing there for an hour while I was alone in a room staring at a computer screen, and was so focused the entire time he immediately had the creative impulse.

I literally think about the premiere of the show every 15 minutes. I can’t wait and I hope you all tune in and check us out. August 16th at 9:00 on G4, mark your calenders.
-Dani Stern