25 Facts About Gabe Kaplan

Gabriel Weston Kaplan was born on March 31,1945 and is an American actor, comedian, and professional poker player.

Gabe Kaplan played the eponymous teacher in the 1970s sitcom Welcome Back, Kotter.

Gabe Kaplan later became a professional poker player and a commentator for the series High Stakes Poker on PokerGO.

Gabe Kaplan was born in Brooklyn, New York City, to a Jewish family.

Gabe Kaplan was a student at New Utrecht High School but did not graduate.

Gabe Kaplan began working as a bellman at a hotel in Lakewood, New Jersey.

Gabe Kaplan honed his standup routine in 1964 in places such as the Cafe Tel Aviv at 250 West 72nd Street, New York City.

Gabe Kaplan's comedy was successful, and he toured the country with his act based on his childhood experiences in Brooklyn.

Gabe Kaplan appeared five times on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson from May 1973 to December 1974.

The series ran from 1975 to 1979, and Gabe Kaplan bought a home in Palm Springs, California with his earnings.

From 1976 to 1978 and again in 1981, Gabe Kaplan participated in the ABC celebrity athletic competition Battle of the Network Stars.

Gabe Kaplan, who was 31 at the time, passed Conrad, then 40, with a strong sprint to the finish line, giving ABC television network the win with 175 points.

Gabe Kaplan became involved in financial markets and poker during his acting career.

Gabe Kaplan made his first appearance at the World Series of Poker in 1978.

In July 2004, Gabe Kaplan finished third in a World Poker Tour no-limit Texas hold 'em event, earning more than $250,000.

Gabe Kaplan finished second in the 2005 World Series of Poker $5,000 Limit Hold 'Em event, winning $222,515.

Gabe Kaplan was joint TV commentator for the 1997 and 2002 WSOP events.

In 2007, Gabe Kaplan won on NBC's Poker After Dark in the episode "Queens and Kings" after defeating Kristy Gazes heads-up and outlasting Howard Lederer, Ali Nejad, Vanessa Rousso and Annie Duke in a $20,000 buy-in, six-person No-Limit Texas Hold-Em winner-take-all Sit-and-Go.

Gabe Kaplan won again on Poker After Dark during "Cowboys" week that first aired in February 2008 against Chris Ferguson, Andy Bloch, Chau Giang, Hoyt Corkins and Doyle Brunson.

Gabe Kaplan retired from his position after the first episode of Season 10, with Nick Schulman replacing him.

Gabe Kaplan resumed performing stand-up comedy and worked on adaptations of Welcome Back, Kotter.

Gabe Kaplan still plays poker frequently and became a commentator for poker events and televised poker shows, including the National Heads-Up Poker Championship on NBC, High Stakes Poker on GSN, and the Intercontinental Poker Championship on CBS.

Also in 2007, Gabe Kaplan published a book titled Kotter's Back: E-mails from a Faded Celebrity to a Bewildered World.

The first episode of the new season aired on January 24,2023, and during the episode, Gabe Kaplan hinted at retirement.

On January 25,2023, Gabe Kaplan officially retired as the High Stakes Poker commentator with a replacement to be named on the next episode.