Tiger King : Mayhem, Murder and Madness is the latest Netflix docuseries to grip the world.
The standout star of the seven-part documentary is Joe Maldonado-Passage, the self-proclaimed Tiger King.
The series delves feel into his outrageous lifestyle and the running of his Greater Wynnewood Exotic Animal Park, also known as the G.W Zoo.
It also documents his feud with animal rights activist Carole Baskin.
Maldonado-Passage, also known as Joe Exotic, is currently service 22 years in prison after he was convicted of a murder-for-hire plot and animal abuse.
Throughout his life, Joe Exotic has had multiple occupations, from zoo owner, to country music singer to politician.
Joe Exotic is the main star of Netflix’s new docu-series Tiger King (Image: NetFlix)
But the Tiger King’s net worth has undoubtedly plummeted since the time he was a successful zoo owner. Here we take a closer look.
Tiger King net worth:
Having owned “1,200 lions, tigers and bears”, Joe Exotic had at his zoo, it’s easy to think he would be swimming in cash.
But he undoubtedly went through financial hardship during points of his career.
Shuvrajit Das Biswas of the Cinemaholic made a valiant attempt to estimate his net worth.
According to Biswas he could be worth as much as $10million (£8million).
Joe Exotic has had multiple occupations throughout his life (Image: Instagram)
Joe was able to get his zoo off the ground after inheriting $250,000 (£201,000) after his grandfather passed away.
He was also able to claim $140,000 (£112,000) from a lawsuit against the trucking company that killed his brother in a highway accident.
At its height, the G.W Zoo was a very profitable business, and Joe himself said that general admission started at $15 (£12).
Joe Exotic is serving time in prison for after being convicted of a murder-for-hire plot and animal abuse (Image: Handout)
According to Texas Monthly, the zoo’s annual revenue grew from $117,022 (£94,126) in 2001 to $539,320 (£433,802) in 2006.
It’s thought the revenue continued to grow in the ensuing years.
And with a side-gig as a country singer, it could seem like Joe was raking in the cash.
But Joe’s earnings no doubt took a hit due to his legal battles with Carole Baskin, who famously won a $1million (£804,350) civil lawsuit against him in 2013.
Joe has a long-running feud with animal rights activist Carole Baskin (Image: Netflix)
The lawsuit meant he had to file for bankruptcy, but it also turned him into a celebrity of sorts.
He was soon contacted by Good Clean Fun products, the company behind The Bachelor, who wanted Joe Exotic to create a reality show.
The reality show never launched, but he created a YouTube series called JoeExoticTV.
Joe eventually ended up putting the zoo in fellow big-cat enthusiast Jeff Lowe’s name.
He stayed on as an “entertainment director” for a while, and was paid $100,000 (£80,000).
Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
