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Netflix released a new after-show hosted by comedian Joel McHale to follow up on the documentary series that everyone is talking about amid their coronavirus self-quarantine, “Tiger King.”
The streaming service previously announced on Twitter that an eighth installment in the seven-part series would drop on April 12 titled “The Tiger King and I.” McHale video chatted with key players in the enigmatic story of Oklahoma Zookeeper Joseph Maldonado-Passage (better known as Joe Exotic), including Jeff and Lauren Lowe, Erik Cowie, John Finlay, John Reinke, Rick Kirkham and Kelci “Saff” Saffery.
While the original documentary did a good job of giving viewers a glimpse inside the complicated world of Joe Exotic and his affinity for keeping large cats at his zoo, the after-show shed some new light on key details that many weren’t aware of just from watching “Tiger King.” To help fans keep track of this sprawling and ongoing story, below is a rundown of the top things viewers learned from “The Tiger King and I.”
Joe Exotic was allegedly afraid of big cats
Rick Kirkham alleged that Joe Exotic was frightened of big cats. (Netflix)
Despite being billed as “The Tiger King,” one person who spent a lot of time with Joe Exotic says he was far from the brave animal handler he’s portrayed as in the series.
Rick Kirkham, a former reporter for “Inside Edition” who went on to film countless hours of Joe Exotic’s life for a failed TV series, confessed to McHale that when it came to handling tigers and lions, Joe himself was a bit of a fraidy cat.
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“The one thing that wasn’t pointed out in the docuseries that’s really important to know too, Joe was terrified of big cats,” Kirkham alleged. “He was scared to death of lions and tigers. In the shots you see in there where he’s in with the two tigers, the white one and the other one, the white one is blind and the other one is on tranquilizers.”
He added: “It’s idiotic to think how he’s become famous as ‘the tiger king’ when he’s so terrified of big cats.”
Jeff Lowe and Dillon Passage came to blows
Jeff Lowe and Dillon Passage reportedly fought one day at the zoo. (Netflix)
The former manager of Joe Exotic’s zoo, John Reinke, worked with the big cats for several years before finally calling it quits to become a mechanic instead. When asked if Jeff Lowe taking over the zoo had anything to do with his departure, Reinke confessed that he got along with Lowe, but things turned sour between the new owner and almost everyone at the zoo, prompting him to get out to avoid the drama.
Reinke confessed that the last straw was seeing Lowe and Exotic’s husband, Dillon Passage, trade hands in the parking lot for a surprising amount of time.
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“He thought I was talking to Joe while Joe was incarcerated,” Reinke explained. “I quit the same day Joe quit because Jeff and Dillon got into a fistfight in the back parking lot and they rolled around for 15 minutes. That’s when I made my decision to leave the same day.”
McHale sounded surprised by the revelation, not just about two key figures in Joe Exotic’s life getting into a fistfight, but also by how long the fight lasted.
“That’s a very long fistfight, 15 minutes,” the host deadpanned. “That sounds like two of the worst fist fighters I’ve ever heard of.”
The stars want fans to maintain social distancing
Stars of the Netflix documentary 'Tiger King' are having trouble with being recognized amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Netflix)
Both Reinke and Saff noted that they’ve been recognized on the street by fans who have watched the documentary series on Netflix. While they say it’s a fun and surreal experience to go from quiet zookeepers to worldwide celebrities, they explained that some fans are a little too eager to see them out and about amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Reinke, who McHale noted is easiest to spot in public thanks to his painted prosthetic legs, said that he has to deal with being recognized every time he goes out the door.
“It’s a lot different. You’re waiting on somebody to come up to you. They don’t care about the COVID, they want to shake your hand, get a picture with you. It’s pretty crazy,” he explained.
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Saff echoed those sentiments noting that he can’t even make a trip to Walmart without being stopped, which can be uncomfortable as people fear the effects of not social distancing.
“I don’t have any anonymity. I have been recognized in public places, which is new to me,” he said. “I was walking through Walmart on a late-night run, it should have only taken 10 minutes, but I was stopped three times during a pandemic in Walmart.”
So, if fans encounter a “Tiger King” star on the street, it seems they’d appreciate it if they express their fandom from a distance.
They didn’t all do meth
'Tiger King' stars took time to explain that they don't do meth after the documentary's premiere. (Netflix)
The documentary series implies that drugs like meth ran rampant throughout the staff of Joe Exotic’s zoo. However, three people that appeared on “The Tiger King and I” explained that’s a mischaracterization.
Exotic’s ex-husband John Finlay appeared shirtless with few teeth during his talking-head segments of the series. However, he’s since gotten new teeth and is very upset with the way he was portrayed by the producers, who he believes implied he was an active drug addict.
“I was portrayed as a drugged-out hillbilly,” Finlay told McHale. “At that time, I was four to five years clean.”
Joe Exotic’s former campaign manager Joshua Dial also took time out of his interview to clear up the misconception on the Internet that he was a meth user while living on Joe Exotic’s zoo.
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“I don’t do drugs. I’ve had a lot of people be mean to me like saying I do meth and stuff I guess because I’m associated with Joe Exotic,” Dial explained. “I’ve never touched the stuff a day in my life and that’s really what hurts, I want to clear that up.”
However, the person who pulled the fewest punches in explaining that he’s not a drug user was head zookeeper Erik Cowie, who spoke right to his online haters.
“No matter what anybody else says, OK yeah, how my teeth are jacked up, I’m sorry. I’m old, man. It’s what happens. It’s what’s going to happen to you too,” Cowie said. “And no, I don’t do meth, I never have. I like sleeping too much. I used to have a drinking problem and now I do not. So, yeah f--- all you all, man.”
Finlay’s tattoo doesn’t look that bad
John Finlay said doesn't like the way he was portrayed in the 'Tiger King' documentary series. (Netflix)
Among the many critiques John Finlay faced for his appearance on “Tiger King” was the emotional sequence in which he covered a tattoo that his ex-husband previously paid for above his groin that read “Property of Joe Exotic.” In the documentary series, he gets it partially covered up with a tattoo of a bull. However, viewers were quick to note that the new ink barely erased his old one, leaving many parts of the text still visible.
Finlay explained to McHale that the tattoo wasn’t yet finished at the time of filming and only one sitting was portrayed in the series. He especially seemed to take issue with people insulting the tattoo artist.
“You know, it is completely finished it’s still kind of in the healing process but a lot of people are dissing the tattoo artist,” he said. “Oh yes, they are dissing my tattoo artist hardcore.”
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He added: “In the documentary, they showed it not finished. I’ve actually had it completely finished since then. It looks 100 times better than what it did and it will be revealed but I don’t know when.”
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