Television Tiger King (Netflix Documentary)

Stick

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People like fictional anti-heroes. People don't like mob bosses or mass murderers in real life. I get liking something because of their entertainment value but seriously believing that he doesn't deserve to be in prison is delusion.

Then there's this on top of it all:
The thing is we only have Carole's take on how she met her husband because he isnt here anymore. Also she hardly plays herself in a bad light at any stage in the doc. Whilst I no doubt dont doubt that Lewis was a bogey character, she comes across as bogey too. Then there is the situation with the will and the wording where it says if he disappeared then she gets the estate. It's all a bit too convenient. She kind of reminded me of that fella Michael in the staircase (the owl killed my wife) doc.
 

Snow

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Carole being involved in his death is a theory thought to be possible by many people, including those close to the situation and even Don’s family.

Don Lewis being a textbook rapist is a theory you’ve seemingly pulled of our your ass.

I know which is the bigger stretch.
Not at all, I'm just echoing expert opinion here aside from the fact that an old rich guy picked up a 19 year old blonde off the street that was crying. It doesn't take an expert to work out what was happening there.
 

Snow

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The thing is we only have Carole's take on how she met her husband because he isnt here anymore. Also she hardly plays herself in a bad light at any stage in the doc. Whilst I no doubt dont doubt that Lewis was a bogey character, she comes across as bogey too. Then there is the situation with the will and the wording where it says if he disappeared then she gets the estate. It's all a bit too convenient. She kind of reminded me of that fella Michael in the staircase (the owl killed my wife) doc.
Lewis was a serial cheater who also cheated at business. Sounds like a stand-up guy.

How he disappeared is anyone's guess as there's literally zero evidence. Baskin had motive, his shady business partners had motive (he had been moving equity and other finances to Costa Rica on the sly). The pilot who frequently flew to Costa Rica on his own, who's car was found at his airport hangar, could have flied away on his own and crashed. That's also a possibility and more likely than Carole Baskin getting away with murder with zero evidence. It's not easy to commit murder knowing you'd be the main suspect if it were treated as such without leaving anything for the investigators to go by.

Maybe, just maybe, the crazy Joe got to people in the doc?
 

Ludens the Red

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Yeah I watch that stuff as well but at no point do I root for those people. I can understand what's behind Joe's behavior somewhat and it's sad because he started out with good intentions but he evolved into a scumbag

Carole was 19 year old blonde in distress walking the streets when this old rich guy picked her up when he was just "driving around". Sounds like a textbook rapist to me, at least only a highly dubious personality would do something like that.


She came off as weird and eccentric. She had the characteristics of a woman who'd gone through abuse who coped with nervous laughter.


She came after the owner of the zoo. It's not her fault that Joe was a cnut that ruined his own mother.


You think she was not victim of the abuse but you belive that she murdered her husband just for the money? Which of the two is the bigger stretch here in this scenario?

People don't like her because she was a weird woman. Rooting for Joe and parroting "Carole Baskin is a bitch" is just typical sexism that you see all the time online from pathetic losers.
Rapist? Where on earth have you got that from? He gave her a gun to put on him ffs. Now I’m not a rapist but I’d assume a big no no of being a rapist is giving a loaded gun to your intended victim.

She was abused in her childhood which yes explains some of her behaviour but there are no indications he abused her And surely she would have said, she did mention the abuse she had as a child and from her ex partner so why would she not mention it with Lewis?

You think money is not a big motivator and sometimes the only motivator in killing somebody? feck me, watch any real life crime series/drama and pretty much every murder is money motivated.

Also how many old rich guys are with young pretty women? Are you suggesting this set up is purely beneficial for the guy?

It’s ironic you talk about ‘biggest stretch’ everything you said is a stretch and that last line “typical sexist, pathetic losers” . You’re bordering on agenda posting.
 

Snow

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Has she even said that she was abused by the disappeared husband?
Just read from several body language experts and psychologists that work with sexual abuse victims that she has a lot of the behaviroal signs of someone that has been abused. They didn't say outright that he did it but I don't consider it a bigger leap of faith than her murdering him and feeding him to the tigers.
 

Stick

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Lewis was a serial cheater who also cheated at business. Sounds like a stand-up guy.

How he disappeared is anyone's guess as there's literally zero evidence. Baskin had motive, his shady business partners had motive (he had been moving equity and other finances to Costa Rica on the sly). The pilot who frequently flew to Costa Rica on his own, who's car was found at his airport hangar, could have flied away on his own and crashed. That's also a possibility and more likely than Carole Baskin getting away with murder with zero evidence. It's not easy to commit murder knowing you'd be the main suspect if it were treated as such without leaving anything for the investigators to go by.

Maybe, just maybe, the crazy Joe got to people in the doc?
Yes Lewis kind of reminded me of the character Tom Cruise played that was flying in drugs from south america to the states. He amassed wealth in excess of 10m that his lawyer didnt seem to know about. His character was of serial cheater and always made money which he randomly buried. Seemed very odd and I dont doubt he could have just vanished. Then there is the restraining order against CB, CB's brother being in some way close to the investigation and the will change and the statements that folk made saying he was finished with CB and was going to cut her off completely. There are lots of possibilities here. Joe convinced me he was a nutter but that's about it :)
 

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Just read from several body language experts and psychologists that work with sexual abuse victims that she has a lot of the behaviroal signs of someone that has been abused. They didn't say outright that he did it but I don't consider it a bigger leap of faith than her murdering him and feeding him to the tigers.
She says in the doc that her first husband was the abuser. How do you know this didnt happen in that relationship and she has had them since? Have you watched the doc? Nowhere does anyone mention that Lewis sexually assaulted anyone. We have CBs account of how they met and that's grand but again it's not balanced at all.
 
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Classical Mechanic

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Just read from several body language experts and psychologists that work with sexual abuse victims that she has a lot of the behaviroal signs of someone that has been abused. They didn't say outright that he did it but I don't consider it a bigger leap of faith than her murdering him and feeding him to the tigers.
Got a link?

She did say she was abused though but not by the disappeared husband. All she said was something like ‘he was difficult to live with and we had our moments like all couples’. She actually describes him as ‘her best friend’ which is why the accusations hurt.

She came across weird but that wouldn’t be my suspicion regarding her missing husband, that would more be the fact he was going to leave her, the restraining order he tried to file against her, the altered will and the fact that she made sure she inherited 90% of his multi million dollar estate.

Murdering someone in ‘bumfeck Oklahoma’ would be a lot easier than in many other places as well, especially with a brother on the inside of an inept police force. If he crashed into the sea then surely there would be a missing plane which would help prove that theory?

John Reike seems to claim that there’s another missing husband in her past too, not sure how true that is but Ill be watching this new series they’re going to do on her....
 

Snow

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Rapist? Where on earth have you got that from? He gave her a gun to put on him ffs. Now I’m not a rapist but I’d assume a big no no of being a rapist is giving a loaded gun to your intended victim.

She was abused in her childhood which yes explains some of her behaviour but there are no indications he abused her And surely she would have said, she did mention the abuse she had as a child and from her ex partner so why would she not mention it with Lewis?

You think money is not a big motivator and sometimes the only motivator in killing somebody? feck me, watch any real life crime series/drama and pretty much every murder is money motivated.

Also how many old rich guys are with young pretty women? Are you suggesting this set up is purely beneficial for the guy?

It’s ironic you talk about ‘biggest stretch’ everything you said is a stretch and that last line “typical sexist, pathetic losers” . You’re bordering on agenda posting.
Money is a big motivator for sure and she'd automatically be the nr. 1 suspect if there were any indication of Lewis having been murdered.

A lot of old guys are with young pretty women. Doesn't make it less creepy or rapey. The position of power is clear here. Him giving her a gun is like a paedo giving kid a candy to make them feel better for a while. The dude was a serial cheater and a manipulater in business as well as the cops have pointed out.

It’s ironic you talk about ‘biggest stretch’ everything you said is a stretch and that last line “typical sexist, pathetic losers” . You’re bordering on agenda posting.
What do you mean? What's the irony? The stretch of reading comments from pathetic sexist losers online? I see it every day. It's quite obvious if you're not blind to it. You see it in this thread even. Carole Baskin is the one getting online abuse after this series. Not Joe and not Doc Antle who's disgusting. Dude changed his name to God, breed tigers, manipulates women in his cult. But no, Carole fecking Baskin that bitch. She was weird and is actively trying to save tigers from the abuse they're getting in the US. The issue I have with her is that she took advantage of using volunteers (how American of her), could have focused more on helping the animals as much of her funding was spent against Joe (which tbf is just human nature to respond like that to someone that actively wants to kill you).
 

Snow

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Got a link?

She did say she was abused though but not by the disappeared husband. All she said was something like ‘he was difficult to live with and we had our moments like all couples’. She actually describes him as ‘her best friend’ which is why the accusations hurt.

She came across weird but that wouldn’t be my suspicion regarding her missing husband, that would more be the fact he was going to leave her, the restraining order he tried to file against her, the altered will and the fact that she made sure she inherited 90% of his multi million dollar estate.

Murdering someone in ‘bumfeck Oklahoma’ would be a lot easier than in many other places as well, especially with a brother on the inside of an inept police force. If he crashed into the sea then surely there would be a missing plane which would help prove that theory?

John Reike seems to claim that there’s another missing husband in her past too, not sure how true that is but Ill be watching this new series they’re going to do on her....
She isn't in bumfeck Oklahoma. She's in Tampa, Florida.

I'm saying that it's less of a stretch that this guy she married was abusive than her murdering him. I can believe both. Something's off about her, everyone can see that.

I don't mean to sound like I'm defending Carole Baskin specifically, I was mostly pointing out how it's typical that she's getting most of the hate after all this despite having no evidence on her of doing anything illegal or wrong. Compared to Joe and Doc Antle she's a saint.
 

Classical Mechanic

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It’s not weird, he’s the Standard anti hero.
Louis Theroux said after spending time with him that it was hard not to like him. Many of the workers from the park are still loyal to him and care about him too, notably Saff.

This is a good AMA


He claims that Joe’s relationship with his husbands was the most misrepresented thing on the show. He says Joe was the sub in the relationships and that they used him for drugs and money just as much as he used them.

Interesting thing about the editing too was the director asked John to go shirtless in his interviews and he says that they had loads of interview footage with his teeth fixed but used none. I guess they wanted him to look like a deadbeat redneck as much as possible. He’s actually a welder so actually classed as a skilled worker.

Also says that you could earn good money working for him, up to $1000 a week but that some never got above the $150 starting wage because they had many psychological issues and were of little use.
 

Classical Mechanic

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She isn't in bumfeck Oklahoma. She's in Tampa, Florida.

I'm saying that it's less of a stretch that this guy she married was abusive than her murdering him. I can believe both. Something's off about her, everyone can see that.

I don't mean to sound like I'm defending Carole Baskin specifically, I was mostly pointing out how it's typical that she's getting most of the hate after all this despite having no evidence on her of doing anything illegal or wrong. Compared to Joe and Doc Antle she's a saint.
Florida is a great place to murder someone, so many lakes and gator filled swamps near where she is. Without any concrete lead it would be like finding a needle in a haystack.
 

Ludens the Red

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Money is a big motivator for sure and she'd automatically be the nr. 1 suspect if there were any indication of Lewis having been murdered.

A lot of old guys are with young pretty women. Doesn't make it less creepy or rapey. The position of power is clear here. Him giving her a gun is like a paedo giving kid a candy to make them feel better for a while. The dude was a serial cheater and a manipulater in business as well as the cops have pointed out.


What do you mean? What's the irony? The stretch of reading comments from pathetic sexist losers online? I see it every day. It's quite obvious if you're not blind to it. You see it in this thread even. Carole Baskin is the one getting online abuse after this series. Not Joe and not Doc Antle who's disgusting. Dude changed his name to God, breed tigers, manipulates women in his cult. But no, Carole fecking Baskin that bitch. She was weird and is actively trying to save tigers from the abuse they're getting in the US. The issue I have with her is that she took advantage of using volunteers (how American of her), could have focused more on helping the animals as much of her funding was spent against Joe (which tbf is just human nature to respond like that to someone that actively wants to kill you).
Money on a very regular basis is the ONLY motivation for murdering somebody. History tells us that.
He’s been missing for over twenty years and you dont think that’s an indication he was murdered? Regardless of no forensics.

It’s funny you talk about textbook rapists and pedos But this is a textbook case of wife killing husband for financial gain. To the husband trying to change his will, to the husband openly telling people he fears for his life. And then he disappears and his will disappears. I mean how much more textbook do you need something to be?

She was 19 years old not 12. And I’m sorry but the benefit of these relationships is equal for both men and women, that is why it is so prevalent . They both have the same agenda and motive when they enter that relationship.

Again a stretch there, how does being a serial cheater and manipulator in business make you a rapist? This is textbook rich narcissistic man behaviour, it doesn’t mean they’re rapey.

I don’t know about online abuse she’s received, I’ve not looked into it and I don’t use twitter and in general I find people who abuse people online detestable so if that’s happening, yes those people are cnuts and pathetic losers, that I won’t disagree with.
This is a forum though, people are allowed to give their opinion on her in here without being labelled sexist.

I was simply explaining why someone like Carol would not be seen as an anti hero or liked in something like this. It’s got nothing to do with her being a woman.
She presents as a noble hero and her response to anything questioning her behaviour was to condescendingly roll her eyes and suggest any criticism or questions asked of her were ‘crazy’ . People loathe this sort of behaviour and then of course the hypocrisy of her which you yourself touched on.
She also didn’t really have the over the top outlandish charisma that a few of the others had which again people can be drawn to.
 

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She isn't in bumfeck Oklahoma. She's in Tampa, Florida.

I'm saying that it's less of a stretch that this guy she married was abusive than her murdering him. I can believe both. Something's off about her, everyone can see that.

I don't mean to sound like I'm defending Carole Baskin specifically, I was mostly pointing out how it's typical that she's getting most of the hate after all this despite having no evidence on her of doing anything illegal or wrong. Compared to Joe and Doc Antle she's a saint.
Sorry if I came across as defending any of these individuals. I think they were all batsh*t crazy and they were all effectively doing the same thing and each one was a paranoid delusional nutjob but for some reason I watched it all. I have no sympathy for how it turned out or for Joe but I would like to see the exotic animals treated better.
 

Ludens the Red

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Louis Theroux said after spending time with him that it was hard not to like him. Many of the workers from the park are still loyal to him and care about him too, notably Saff.

This is a good AMA


He claims that Joe’s relationship with his husbands was the most misrepresented thing on the show. He says Joe was the sub in the relationships and that they used him for drugs and money just as much as he used them.

Interesting thing about the editing too was the director asked John to go shirtless in his interviews and he says that they had loads of interview footage with his teeth fixed but used none. I guess they wanted him to look like a deadbeat redneck as much as possible. He’s actually a welder so actually classed as a skilled worker.

Also says that you could earn good money working for him, up to $1000 a week but that some never got above the $150 starting wage because they had many psychological issues and were of little use.
Good read, I did think that about his relationship with the two blokes. Touches on to what I’ve been saying to snow about how those relationships are beneficial for both parties.
They were young blokes who basically got to shoot guns, drive around a zoo, do drugs, barely work and sleep with a load of women, presumably also pretended to be gay.
And lol@ the director wanting him shirtless. I did think it was weird.
 

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My girlfriend actually had this t-shirt made a few years ago as a joke after 2016 election. She dug it out recently in light of this documentary. :lol:

 

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Only watched episodes 1 & 2 so far. My jaw already dropped several times. How much nuttier does it get?
Surprisingly it does manage to stay consistently nutty. Even when you think they have surely run out of mental things. :lol:
 

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3 episodes in...yep, this is wild shit. America, you outdid yourself again. :lol:
 

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Louis Theroux said after spending time with him that it was hard not to like him. Many of the workers from the park are still loyal to him and care about him too, notably Saff.

This is a good AMA


He claims that Joe’s relationship with his husbands was the most misrepresented thing on the show. He says Joe was the sub in the relationships and that they used him for drugs and money just as much as he used them.

Interesting thing about the editing too was the director asked John to go shirtless in his interviews and he says that they had loads of interview footage with his teeth fixed but used none. I guess they wanted him to look like a deadbeat redneck as much as possible. He’s actually a welder so actually classed as a skilled worker.

Also says that you could earn good money working for him, up to $1000 a week but that some never got above the $150 starting wage because they had many psychological issues and were of little use.
I was wondering how the park manager guy was driving around in such an expensive car. Turns out he was getting paid a grand a week. That'll explain it.
 

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Is she feck. She just moves tigers from one cage to another and then profits massively from it while making her staff work for free. After spending her earlier life breeding them for sale herself.
Also, as they mentioned. There is not a scenario where Carole ends up with no tigers. She just needs others to breed them so she can “rescue them”. She is one rich read husband away from still being the breeder she was. Now she has a faux image to maintain.
 

NotworkSte

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Not at all, I'm just echoing expert opinion here aside from the fact that an old rich guy picked up a 19 year old blonde off the street that was crying. It doesn't take an expert to work out what was happening there.
I live less than 1/2 mile away from where she got picked up. There is no way you’re just out walking on Nebraska Ave at night. Even now, years later its not any better. The only people walking there at night at on the job, pimps or eating crap food at 3 coins diner.
 

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Really interesting watch, of what has to be some of the craziest people around. It still baffles me how there are more tigers in cages in the USA, than actually in the wild.

I was really disappointing in the end that only Joe has ended up in prison, was really hoping that they all collapsed and ended up in jail, including Carole.

All the owners of these private zoos are doing illegal things, and should have been put away, as well as just joe.

The hitman for hire, somehow doesn't end up in jail despite taking the money to kill her, despite the fact that him paying him is the reason Joe was taken down.

Carole seems to be the biggest hypocrite of them all. The others while scum at least were exactly what they said they were. She on the other hand tried to claim she was some sort of holy savior for the big cats, despite breeding them herself, then exploiting others breeding, by taking in cats after they get to big for people and putting them on display in cages, not paying her staff. Plus the whole dodgy way she got her wealth and screwed the husbands family out of their share.

I'd really like to see a few more episodes where it all collapse for the rest of the cast.
 

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Carole was fecking terrible but I think the murder stuff is a bit of a leap, spending a whole episode speculating was not proportionate to the evidence in my opinion. She does seem to condemn herself as greedy, selfish and sociopathic but it seems unlikely that she could dispose of her husband so cleanly.

Joe is very likeable and has great charisma but he has clearly done a lot of ugly things and caused much suffering in his zoos.

The whole thing is very sensationalist though, which is much of the fun. The framing is very evident throughout. The guy with no legs and Saff seemed the only people with any grounding in reality and self awareness.

All the same I thought it was a great series, very enjoyable.
 

Ivor Ballokov

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Is she feck. She just moves tigers from one cage to another and then profits massively from it while making her staff work for free. After spending her earlier life breeding them for sale herself.
Does she? I've asked this a few times without getting an answer.

They claim to be a non-profit, also it seems that they do pay some staff, having a mix of volunteer and salaried staff is not uncommon for non-profit/charities.

 

Classical Mechanic

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Does she? I've asked this a few times without getting an answer.

They claim to be a non-profit, also it seems that they do pay some staff, having a mix of volunteer and salaried staff is not uncommon for non-profit/charities.

My question to that is why can’t her cats go to that place in Colorado or similar? 1200 square feet with occasional holidays in 1-2 acres is terrible no matter how you look at it.

https://www.wildanimalsanctuary.org/