Tiger King - General Discussion

[xaxat]

Hey, it's a start.

‘Tiger King’ Star Doc Antle Indicted on Wildlife Trafficking Charges

[merylinkid]

That's two of the three Big Cat owners featured in the show who were indicted, Joe Exotic was convicted.   That leaves only Carole Baskin.   She might regret being so high profile.

[Nicmar]

On 10/9/2020 at 6:05 PM, xaxat said:

Hey, it's a start.

‘Tiger King’ Star Doc Antle Indicted on Wildlife Trafficking Charges

I didn't watch this documentary! I didnt want to watch because its just glorifying these fuckers for abusing these beautiful animals. I was just hoping karma would come for  them and it did! not the karma that i was hoping 

[Bruinsfan]

I don't think the series is glorifying anyone. The only facility they showed that actually treats the animals properly is run by a crazy cat lady who may have buried her murdered husband somewhere on site. There were about four named people on the show that seemed like decent folks, and none of them were owners.

[RealHousewife]

Is there anything close to proof Carole murdered her husband?

[merylinkid]

19 hours ago, Bruinsfan said:

I don't think the series is glorifying anyone. The only facility they showed that actually treats the animals properly is run by a crazy cat lady who may have buried her murdered husband somewhere on site. There were about four named people on the show that seemed like decent folks, and none of them were owners.

She didn't bury him on the site, she fed him to the big cats.   Make sure you get your salacious rumor right.   

15 hours ago, RealHousewife said:

Is there anything close to proof Carole murdered her husband?

Direct evidence?   No.   Circumstantial -- yes.    He went missing supposedly on a trip that no one can prove he ever even left on.   He was supposedly talking about divorce, which Carole denies adamantly.   She had him declared dead realllllllly quick after he went missing so she could probate the Will.   Which mysteriously left everything to her and nothing to his kids from his previous marriage.    He did have a good relationship with those kids and a previous Will had provided for them.   

[RealHousewife]

9 hours ago, merylinkid said:

She didn't bury him on the site, she fed him to the big cats.   Make sure you get your salacious rumor right.   

Direct evidence?   No.   Circumstantial -- yes.    He went missing supposedly on a trip that no one can prove he ever even left on.   He was supposedly talking about divorce, which Carole denies adamantly.   She had him declared dead realllllllly quick after he went missing so she could probate the Will.   Which mysteriously left everything to her and nothing to his kids from his previous marriage.    He did have a good relationship with those kids and a previous Will had provided for them.   

Thank you. I watched Tiger King and get that it's all very suspicious. I don't think she should have been on DWTS. But I still wonder if he faked his death or had any enemies. 

[Bruinsfan]

The apparently faked will, the relative stepping in to the investigation of Don's disappearance, and the handyman who implicated himself while threatening his wife are the compelling signs of foul play to me. Absent those I'd find it just as likely that Don Baskin is somewhere in South America partying it up with his friends from the drug cartels.

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Carole Baskin comes out as bisexual

[Cowgirl]

So, if anyone is jonesing for more Tiger King craziness, check out the episode of Ghost Hunters where they investigate Joe's home.  The state of that house is much more frightening than any ghostly activity!  Apparently horses have access to the house and have helped trash it.  The weirdest shot is a horse, standing solidly, legs apart, in the living room, peeing a great volume. There are still full prescription bottles belonging to Joe, his satin embroidered jackets are still there, and Zak Bagens, the host, finds a penis pump in a drawer.  Jeff and Lauren are featured, as are Erik (who is still his awesome honest self) and Alan the hitman.  There is a funny scene where Jeff is supposed to have left his home so the investigators could do their thing but, when they come in, he scares them half to death by moving under a tiger-patterned comforter.  Good times. If you can't find it on your t.v. schedule, it's streaming for free on the Travel Channel website.

Edited November 3, 2020 by Cowgirl
Had the wrong name for the hitman. Don't want him to come get me!

[Cheezwiz]

4 hours ago, Cowgirl said:

So, if anyone is jonesing for more Tiger King craziness, check out the episode of Ghost Hunters where they investigate Joe's home.  The state of that house is much more frightening than any ghostly activity!

I have no interest in re-visiting the show, or any of the people from it, but I do remember how awful his home looked when he lived in there! It looked like something straight out of an episode of Hoarders.

I'm thinking no self-respecting ghost would want to haunt that place!

[Bruinsfan]

I definitely think any apparitions people might have seen in that home would have more to do with Joe's stashes of drugs than anything paranormal.

[MaggieG]

On 11/3/2020 at 11:15 AM, Cowgirl said:

So, if anyone is jonesing for more Tiger King craziness, check out the episode of Ghost Hunters where they investigate Joe's home.  The state of that house is much more frightening than any ghostly activity!  Apparently horses have access to the house and have helped trash it.  The weirdest shot is a horse, standing solidly, legs apart, in the living room, peeing a great volume. There are still full prescription bottles belonging to Joe, his satin embroidered jackets are still there, and Zak Bagens, the host, finds a penis pump in a drawer.  Jeff and Lauren are featured, as are Erik (who is still his awesome honest self) and Alan the hitman.  There is a funny scene where Jeff is supposed to have left his home so the investigators could do their thing but, when they come in, he scares them half to death by moving under a tiger-patterned comforter.  Good times. If you can't find it on your t.v. schedule, it's streaming for free on the Travel Channel website.

Of course I watched this. The penis pump and Alan stirring under the covers cracked me up. They were convinced Travis was haunting the place. 

[merylinkid]

They should go to Big Cat Rescue and try to contact the ghost of Carole's last husband.

[Bruinsfan]

I know their policy is to minimize contact between humans and the animals, and they never have people go into an enclosure that has an unsedated cat running loose, but could they make an exception for Zak just this one time? Pretty please?

[Growsonwalls]

Carole Baskin's volunteer almost had an arm ripped off by a Tiger.

[merylinkid]

Sounds like Big Cat already has the PR machine geared up to avoid a lawsuit on this one.   Untrained people working with big cats is always going to lead to a disaster, no matter how long they "volunteer."

 

Although at the end it noted there is legislative coming up for a vote that would ban the sale of big cats.   I do support that.   Just not Carole Baskin (or quite frankly any of these yahoos)

[ElectricBoogaloo]

Producers Guild of America nomination!

Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television

“60 Minutes” (CBS) – Season 53
Producer: Bill Owens

“The Last Dance” (ESPN) – Season 1
Producers: eligibility determination pending

“Laurel Canyon” (EPIX)
Producers: eligibility determination pending

“McMillion$” (HBO) – Season 1
Producers: eligibility determination pending

“Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness” (Netflix)
Producers: eligibility determination pending

[merylinkid]

One year anniversary of the premier so the local news radio station did a "Where Are They Now" piece:

https://wtop.com/entertainment/2021/03/where-are-they-now-catching-up-with-tiger-king-cast-a-year-later/

Cardi B started a go fund me for Joe Exotic's release?     I am no fan of Carole Baskin's (she exploits the Big Cats for attention as much as anyone, not to mention that little detail of her "missing" husband) but I do believe he tried to have her killed.   Joe Exotic is crazy and he hated Carole.   

[Cheezwiz]

11 hours ago, merylinkid said:

One year anniversary of the premier so the local news radio station did a "Where Are They Now" piece:

https://wtop.com/entertainment/2021/03/where-are-they-now-catching-up-with-tiger-king-cast-a-year-later/

 

I never imagined when I was watching that batshit saga last year, that it would be the most normal thing to happen in 2020!

[Enero]

On 3/19/2021 at 7:26 AM, merylinkid said:

One year anniversary of the premier so the local news radio station did a "Where Are They Now" piece:

https://wtop.com/entertainment/2021/03/where-are-they-now-catching-up-with-tiger-king-cast-a-year-later/

Cardi B started a go fund me for Joe Exotic's release?     I am no fan of Carole Baskin's (she exploits the Big Cats for attention as much as anyone, not to mention that little detail of her "missing" husband) but I do believe he tried to have her killed.   Joe Exotic is crazy and he hated Carole.   

Based on this article it sounds like nearly everyone’s lives went down hill after the series was aired on Netflix. Fame doesn’t always equate to fortune.

I had a good laugh hearing about Joe Exotic supposedly having his team waiting outside the prison where he’s serving time with a limo, makeup artist and hair stylist in preparation for his pardon by Trump. I would’ve love to have been a fly on the wall when the last hour came and went for him to be pardoned and no pardon being received. I wonder what made him so sure he’d get out? I’m glad it did not go the way he expected. He’s right where he belongs. In prison. 

[ElectricBoogaloo]

NBC's Tiger King Show Casts Tony award winning actor John Cameron Mitchell as Joe Exotic

Quote

“I’m thrilled to take on the role of this modern folk antihero,” Mitchell said in a statement. “Joe and I are the same age and like him, I grew up queer in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas so I feel like I know a little bit about this guy and his desperate attempt to conquer an inhospitable world.” It was previously confirmed that the series, using the working title "Joe Exotic" for the time being, will air on NBC, USA Network, and even the streaming service Peacock.

The new series isn't based on Netflix's version of the story but rather the Wondery Podcast series named for the bizarre zookeeper turned convicted felon (Wondery's podcast actually debuted two weeks prior to the Netflix series).

 

[lynxfx]

Seriously, he is describing him as an antihero?

Sorry but Joe Exotic is anything but.

[merylinkid]

Apparently there was a "pet" tiger roaming around in Houston the other day.   While the deputy was trying to figure out what to do, someone showed up in a SUV, grabbed the tiger's collar and drove off with it.   Since then the person who drove off has been arrested -- turns out he is a murder suspect (quelle surprise I know), but the tiger is MISSING.   So who is everyone and their great aunt interviewing about the tiger?   Not zookeepers, not wildlife experts, nope, the one, the only, where is your husband Carole Baskin.

https://www.kiiitv.com/article/news/local/big-cat-rescue-founder-tiger-king-carole-baskin-tiger-found-roaming-houston-neighborhood/285-70edbf3c-3a94-4144-b148-fcecc1e58a0d

[Bruinsfan]

Dude had that tiger well-enough trained that it returned home to wait in the yard after getting out, let him put it in an SUV by himself, and apparently didn't maul him during a high-stress chase situation. If he gets off the murder charge Baskin needs to hire him to work with her big cats!

[Zella]

43 minutes ago, Bruinsfan said:

Dude had that tiger well-enough trained that it returned home to wait in the yard after getting out, let him put it in an SUV by himself, and apparently didn't maul him during a high-stress chase situation. If he gets off the murder charge Baskin needs to hire him to work with her big cats!

He probably would have been useful at Joe's zoo too. LOL 

[HunterHunted]

On 5/12/2021 at 11:19 PM, Zella said:

He probably would have been useful at Joe's zoo too. LOL 

Running it? Because yes, this tiger would have done a vastly better job running that zoo than Joe did.

[BetterButter]

Court orders shorter sentence for ‘Tiger King’ Joe Exotic

[merylinkid]

I like how they are treating this like he is going to get out quickly.   The guidelines are STILL 17 - 22 years.   A judge is not reducing the sentence that much.  He was too public about his threats.   

[Zella]

2 hours ago, merylinkid said:

I like how they are treating this like he is going to get out quickly.   The guidelines are STILL 17 - 22 years.   A judge is not reducing the sentence that much.  He was too public about his threats.   

Same. Even if they lower it to the lowest recommended time (and factor in the fact he's already built a couple of years), he will still be well into his 70s before he is released in the 2030s. 

[druzy]

A zookeeper from the Netflix series "Tiger King" was found dead inside an apartment in Brooklyn.

[Zella]

4 minutes ago, druzy said:

A zookeeper from the Netflix series "Tiger King" was found dead inside an apartment in Brooklyn.

I'm sorry to hear that. I'd found Eric to easily be one of the most likable people on the whole show. 

[sainte-chapelle]

6 minutes ago, druzy said:

A zookeeper from the Netflix series "Tiger King" was found dead inside an apartment in Brooklyn.

I was sorry to hear this. I liked Erik. I think he did love the animals and was one of the least shitty people on the show.

[BetterButter]

‘Tiger King 2’ to Stream on Netflix Later This Year

[merylinkid]

oh I know it won't be as good as the first one.   But considering the characters involved, it will probably be as batshit crazy.

[Mr. Sparkle]

Honestly, I'll wait for reviews before I think about watching this. I'm pretty sure they used up all the good material on the first season. 

[Bruinsfan]

Considering the show featured a grand total of ONE person I consider entirely sane (Barbara Fisher, for the record), I have every confidence in their collective ability to generate new drama in the interim. Plus, I'd like to see how John Reinke, Saff, and John Finlay have been doing since the series hit.

[SlovakPrincess]

On 4/22/2021 at 4:37 AM, lynxfx said:

Seriously, he is describing him as an antihero?

Sorry but Joe Exotic is anything but.

Yeah, I'm extremely late to the party on this one, since I only just binge-watched the series this month, but ... antihero??   The best you can say about the guy is that early on in his career he might have had some good intentions toward his animals and trying to hire down-on-their-luck individuals, but he clearly lost his mind and became hateful somewhere along the way.  I think he wasn't the only one who deserved prison time in all that mess, but still.  

By the end it was just like, buddy you brought this on yourself!  "Oh, boo hoo, I have all these legal bills and damages to pay after I clearly did trademark infringement just to fuck with my enemy and oh, Carole's lawyers are vicious for going after my family when I clearly tried to hide assets under their names to avoid paying the damages I owe ... now I'm mad and want her dead some more!   And I'm going to record hundreds of videos talking about killing her in vile ways -- wait, what, attempted murder?  Me??"  

I have no idea what happened with Carole's first husband, and for all the speculation I don't know if there's much there.  Her second husband seems nice, so for his sake I hope she had no involvement, lol.    

At the end I mostly only felt bad for the cats ... and the employees.  They were barely being paid that much to begin with and it's unclear where they'll go now.   

[Bruinsfan]

On that front, if they can get clean from the cornucopia of illegal drugs that Joe appeared to use as a recruiting tool, the current job market is pretty favorable for people used to abject poverty.

John Finlay seems to have his life together now, and based on the show I'd have expected him to be running a still in the backwoods and ordering lost canoers to squeal like pigs.

[BetterButter]

 

[LaylaGirl]

If anyone would like the story of what happened to many of the tigers after they were sent to a real rescue, The Wild Animal Sanctuary in Colorado is having a live stream event on November 4th at 6pm Mountain Time. Here is the link https://www.tigerkingrescue.org/

The sanctuary is the oldest and largest in the United States. It was started in 1980 and now encompasses more than 10,000 acres. They rescue mostly large carnivores - lions and tigers and bears. The animals are housed in large acreage enclosures, about as close to the wild as they can get. While people can visit the sanctuary, it is run for the animals - not visitors. https://www.wildanimalsanctuary.org/

 

[merylinkid]

Carole Baskin is suing over Tiger King 2.   

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/carole-baskin-trying-stop-release-tiger-king-2-n1282926

She is CLAIMING she never signed a release for a second series.       Unless they are using NEW footage of her, she better check the release she signed for the first go around.   I am betting that it says that any stuff already shot "can be used for any purpose whatsoever."   Which means they can keep using it forever.    

Baskin may have a lot of lawyers but I sincerely doubt that Netflix greenlighted this project without having THEIR stable full of lawyers go over it very carefully.

She doesn't want it to go forward because it ruins her image as this quirky lover of big cats.   It shows she is just as much an attention strumpet as the rest who are in it for the money and attention, not actual care for the cats.   Joe Exotic's former animals have more room to roam than her "rescued" cats.  

[Zella]

TMZ s confirming it's all old footage.

https://www.tmz.com/2021/11/01/carole-baskin-sues-netflix-tiger-king-2-footage/

This actually answers a question I'd had about the sequel. I didn't understand why many of them would have agreed to appear in it after they'd been so unhappy with their depiction in the first one. Carole was the most vocal but wasn't the only one, and of course, Joe is in jail now. I assumed money motivated them to change their minds, but now I'm thinking the bulk of the series, if not all of it, will be old unused footage. 

[Mr. Sparkle]

13 minutes ago, Zella said:

TMZ s confirming it's all old footage.

And this is confirming to me that Part 2 is going to be crap. I'll wait for the reviews (from my friends) before I consider watching it. 

[Zella]

1 minute ago, Superclam said:

And this is confirming to me that Part 2 is going to be crap. I'll wait for the reviews (from my friends) before I consider watching it. 

Yeah I was undeniably nosy about it, but this significantly lessens my interest.

[merylinkid]

I think it is some new footage because they have stuff about Joe's attempt at a pardon.   Which happened AFTER the original aired.   So Joe might have agreed to new stuff -- because he is willing to whine to anyone he's the true victim of this.   But the rest will be all the stuff that was cut because there is only so much bonkers you can put in one series.  

Why yes, yes I will be checking it out.   Just for the bonkers.  

[Zella]

3 minutes ago, merylinkid said:

I think it is some new footage because they have stuff about Joe's attempt at a pardon. 

Oh I didn't know it had stuff about the pardon. Damn, now I will have to watch. I don't think I've ever laughed so hard at a news story as I have about them renting that limo, certain he was getting out that day. 

[Bruinsfan]

I hope they get more current interviews with Saff, John Reinke, and John Finlay to check up how they're doing these days. And Tim Stark, though that's more to verify that he and his furry minions are still safely several states away from me, as I have a very good idea of how he's doing (Narrator: Not well).

I'd also like to hear how the various investigations and legal situations of Doc Antle, James Garretson, and the Lowes have progressed. No need for actual new footage of them, just having summaries of court documents read out would do fine.

[Zella]

1 minute ago, Bruinsfan said:

And Tim Stark, though that's more to verify that he and his furry minions are still safely several states away from me,

Word. One of my coworkers told me she was pretty sure he was would be the starting point for the next plague. 

[Zella]

https://deadline.com/2021/11/tiger-king-lawsuit-netflix-carole-baskin-sequel-joe-exotic-1234866025/

The court has already turned down her request to block the new season's release before it ever happens. But her case will still be moving through the courts. Would love to have one of our lawyers here parse the language, but I found this statement from the judge really interesting. “While the Court understands the Baskins’ frustration, it does not appear that inclusion of Defendants’ footage of the Baskins will cause any immediate harm that cannot be compensated with monetary damages.” But the impression I got is of the "not saying you don't have a case to sue, but you don't have enough of a case to stop anything" variety. 

Edited November 3, 2021 by Zella