Rick Kirkham, seen here in a scene from the Netflix series Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, has more to say about the strange world of Joe Exotic.
Netflix
Rick Kirkham was one of the friendliest figures on Netflix Tiger King: murder, chaos and madness. The former Inside Edition reporter was doing his own show on Joe Exotic and his crazy team, and lost his footage in this mysterious fire discussed in the Netflix series. But Kirkham had more to say about Joe Exotic in a two hour live chat aired April 11. The saved livestream can still be viewed online, if you’re willing to pay $ 3.99 to $ 4.99 in the United States, and depending on the country.
Kirkham married a Norwegian woman and now lives in Norway, and Norwegian television host Per Sundnes joined Kirkham in Oslo to discuss his experiences with Tiger King and answer questions submitted by readers on Twitter or via video. I watched the whole two hours and more and thought Kirkham was pretty much the same person that viewers had seen in the Netflix series – a downward reporter who spotted a good story and was impatient to make it a reality show.
Kirkham briefly explained that long-awaited new Netflix episode which fell on Sunday, which is called The Tiger King and I, and which is hosted by actor and comedian Joel McHale.
Kirkham said Netflix interviewed him for the new episode about “my feelings about the documentary” and also “what my life has been like since” the series was released. He was far from alone in being interviewed – Jeff Lowe, who bought the Joe Exotic Animal Park, said he had been interviewed for it, and other members of the Joe Exotic universe will also share their reflections.
But how did Netflix get new interviews when most Americans are on coronavirus lockdown?
“(Netflix) sent iPads to everyone,” said Kirkham during the live broadcast, noting that he had his own TV studio in his house in Norway and was able to film himself. And Kirkham noted that Joe’s rival Carole Baskin, big cat trainer Doc Antle, and of course, jailed Joe himself did not participate in Sunday’s episode.
Ironically, Kirkham thinks that Joe’s new notoriety could really help the animals he once caged, by raising awareness of the conditions of small roadside zoos.
“Joe, by going to jail, may have actually helped the wild animals,” he said.
Kirkham livestream is not for everyone. He recounts numerous cases of animal cruelty in which he says he saw Joe Exotic participate, and shows bloody images of Kelci “Saff” Saffery’s damaged arm and hand after a tiger attack. But some of the topics in the feed are lighter, such as discussions about Joe’s mullet, political campaigns and his career attempts in country music, although he did not do any singing himself.
As for Kirkham himself, he says he focuses on finishing a thesis. The Joe Exotic years “will occupy another half of my book,” he said. He says he sought therapy to recover from the Joe years. “It was cult, very cult,” he said of the atmosphere.
And he is not always proud of his past.
“I sold my soul to the devil in this zoo,” he said. “In my case, I have to live with what I did.”