Audiences have not been able to stop talking about Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness since its premiere on Netflix last month. The docu-series focuses on Joe Exotic, a zoo owner from Oklahoma who got himself involved in a couple of scandals over the years and is now in jail.
While the series consists of seven episodes, there was a lot more information about Joe and other individuals featured that didn't make it into the documentary. We did a little bit of digging and found ten things left out of the Netflix hit that we just had to share with Tiger King lovers everywhere:
Joe Sold Tiger Bones
Joe Exotic has certainly done a lot. He's made country music videos and had a crazy internet show; he also ran for both president of the United States and governor of Oklahoma. And of course, we know that he owned his own zoo and got caught up in a few scandals involving tigers including cub petting, a tiger bite, and shooting five of his sick tigers.
One thing that the show did not go into is what happened to some of Joe's tigers after they passed away. Joe sold the bones to a skeleton museum in Oklahoma City, and many of them are currently on display. We're unsure of how often he did this, but we're guessing it was more than once.
John Finlay Got New Teeth (And They Weren't Messed Up From Meth)
You may remember John Finlay as one of Joe's ex-husbands who was interviewed throughout the documentary. He was the one with no shirt, lots of tattoos, and a few missing teeth. Something that the camera failed to show (even though it was filmed) is that John got a brand new set of teeth! Now he has some beautiful pearly whites and a handsome smile.
He has also stated that while many people assume his teeth rotted due to doing meth, that is not actually true. John says that his teeth were in bad shape before he even started doing meth due to a genetic condition, and he has been clean from the drug for eleven years. Good job, John!
The Documentary Mis-Gendered Saff
You may remember Saff, the zookeeper from Joe's zoo who got bit by a tiger. While the show refers to Saff as a woman and uses "she/her" pronouns, it has since come out that Saff is a man who goes by "he/him" pronouns.
You can hear at the beginning of the second episode when someone is calling 911, and they correctly refer to Saff, saying, "He's hurt, bad," but throughout other mentions of Saff, people seem to use "she." Saff has also said that he does not like being called "Kelci," his birth name that the show used, but prefers to only go by Saff.
Joe's Magic Shows Scared His Animals
It was mentioned on Tiger King that Joe was involved in some magic shows early in his career. He used to bring animals to be included in the act, and he was shown with a rabbit and several baby tigers. Unfortunately, the animals were not always happy to be doing the magic shows. One trick involved making a tiger appear in a cage on stage, and some loud noises and other effects were used to distract the audience.
However, this scared the tiger, and the audiences could tell that the animal was in distress. Joe's brilliant solution was to paint a sheep black and orange to take the place of the scared tiger, but audiences caught on.
Dillon Was not Aware Of That There Would Be Cameras On Their First Date
The filming for Tiger King took place over the course of several years, and we saw a lot happen in that time. We were able to see the very beginning of Joe's current relationship with a young man named Dillon, including footage of their first date.
The two went to a parade together that Joe was scheduled to be in, and it looked like they had a great time! Dillon has since said that he was completely caught off guard by the cameras, as Joe gave him no warning that they would be there. He casually brushed them off, saying, "This is just something I'm filming." Luckily, Dillon was a good sport!
John Reinke's Accident Was Worse Than He Mentioned
John Reinke was the manager at Joe's zoo for many years, and he was interviewed several times throughout the documentary. One noticeable detail is that John has some awesome prosthetic legs, but the show didn't go into how bad his accident was.
According to this 2010 article, John was helping a friend test a bungee jumping ride of sorts when a pulley malfunctioned, causing him to fall. While John made it seem like he landed on the ground, he actually landed on a six-inch metal stake that punctured his stomach and colon. He used a wheelchair for a while and had over twenty surgeries to his legs and feet before getting them amputated around fifteen years after the accident.
Several Celebrities Have A Connection To Doc Antle
Doc Antle has a large wildlife preserve in South Carolina that was featured in Tiger King, and because of it, he has been asked to help in the production of dozens of animal movies. He has been connected to several celebrities due to his work as well.
You may remember the iconic Britney Spears performance in 2001, where she had a large yellow snake draped over her shoulders. That snake belonged to Doc, and he, as well as a tiger, also appeared on stage! (He's in the top left corner.) Doc was also on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Other celebs who have seen his animals include Beyonce and Kevin Gates.
Carole's Ex-Boyfriend Filed A Restraining Order
We all know that Joe and several other people think that Carol had something to do with her husband Don's disappearance, and there were some strange circumstances surrounding it. Don had previously tried to file for a restraining order, saying that Carole threatened him, but it turns out that something similar happened again before she married Howard.
She dated a man named Jay who also filed a restraining order, fearing for his life. Another detail is that when he asked her what she would do if her husband came back, supposedly, she said, "Dead bodies can't talk."
The Tiger That Bit Saff Was Not Put Down
We mentioned earlier that Saff got bit by a tiger in the second episode of Tiger King. He stuck his hand in the cage against protocol and ended up suffering a bite to the arm. Saff chose to have the damaged part amputated, and he was back to work five days later.
While oftentimes large animals who bite humans get put down shortly after, this did not happen to the tiger that bit Saff. Saff said the tiger did not act aggressively, and Joe agreed that it was not the tiger's fault. Instead, the animal was just moved off of display at the zoo.
Joe's Animals Were Involved In Some Risque Photoshoots
Joe is known for having people come to his zoo for cub pettings where people can meet a baby tiger and get their picture taken with it. One dirty detail is that some of the animals were also involved in some shoots that weren't so family-friendly.
Adult entertainer Rachel Starr visited the zoo to pose with some tigers while she modeled a couple of bikinis. She even "highly recommended" Joe's condoms that he sold in his gift shop and online. A different day, a couple of bombshells from Pin Up Dames came to hang out with some snakes, and one of them even posed nude with a tiger!