Gabriel W. "Gabe" Kaplan (born March 31, 1945) is an American comedian, actor, poker commentator, and professional poker player.Kaplan was born in Brooklyn, New York. He is best known for his role as Gabe Kotter in the 1970s sitcom, Welcome Back, Kotter. More recently he has become known as a poker player, and as co-host and joint commentator for the series High Stakes Poker on GSN.