Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom

I remember sitting around the TV with my family and watching this. It was educational and entertaining family entertainment that simply doesn't exist anymore. Merlin of course did the in studio while Jim was in the field wrestling whatever animal was the subject. Truly miss it. Jim being on Johnny Carson was great as well.

If you, like myself. enjoy watching well-produced wildlife/nature shows, then the super-thrilling "Wild Kingdom" TV series, which successfully ran from 1963-1988, should be of some real interest to you.

So, sit back, relax, and see why this Emmy award-winning series, which was hosted by zoologist Marlin Perkins (with co-hosts Jim Fowler and Stan Brock), is so highly praised and credited for increasing ecological and environmental awareness wherever it was televised.

These informative episodes from Wild Kingdom take the viewer right across the globe to study the fascinating behavior of animals and their endless struggle to survive as man continues to encroach on their dwindling territory.

Excellently photographed in living color, Wild Kingdom is truly an exciting look at animals in their natural habitat.

This show's episodes have running times that vary from 30-90 minutes.

I have fond memories of the original series, not just because it was so well done but because I worked for Don Meier Productions, in Chicago, c. 1977-78. It was a great place to work for a first job out of college. (At the wages they paid, though, I was pretty much forced to move on.)

The show had been in production for 15 years at that point, and was a well-oiled machine. The ever-dapper Don Meier had cinematographers scattered around the globe shooting raw footage. The footage was sent to the offices on Chicago's Magnificent Mile, where very experienced editors would piece together each show. Then, the writer (Allan Eckert?) would create a script that conformed to the visuals -- just the reverse of how fictional stories are shot and produced (although this may still be the method used with wildlife and other documentaries).

One of my jobs was to edit in the commercial segues, usually spoken by Marlin Perkins ... "Just as the mother lion protects her cubs, you can protect your family with Mutual of Omaha ..."

It was a treat to watch these pros at work, and to learn from them. Animal Planet and all the animal-related shows on the Discovery Channel owe much to these pioneers. Though it would be great to see the old shows (and Marlin, Jim, Stan) on TV again, I believe the advances in animal photography and documentary production make that, sadly, unlikely.

Named as one of the longest running documentary series in television history, "Mutual Of Omaha's Wild Kingdom" also known as "The Zoo Parade" made its network television debut on January 6, 1963 when it aired on NBC where it was first shown on Sunday afternoons and later moved to Sunday night prime time where it was scheduled with "The Wonderful World Of Disney " and "Bonanza " for the duration of its run that lasted eight seasons for NBC until February 7, 1971. The network aired repeated episodes from earlier seasons during the summer of 1971. After NBC canceled the series in the spring of 1971 the series was picked up for national syndication until 1988 where it remained for the next seventeen seasons. From 1971 until 1985 it was seen in repeated episodes with brand new episodes that were later shown in syndication. By 1985, the series continued in repeated episodes until its last and final telecast in 1988 (spanning more than 25 years on television with more than 275 episodes produced on both network television and in national syndication). Marlin Perkins was the host of this series who appeared in all 275 episodes during its tenture on the air.

"Mutual Of Omaha's Wild Kingdom " was during the early 1960's the first nature style documentary series to be filmed in location in various parts of the world and presented in living color. The show's sponsor throughout its run was The Mutual Of Omaha Insurance Company. Under the guidance of Marlin Perkins and co-creator Don Meier(who was the executive producer of this series under his production company Don Meier Productions) takes audiences to exotic places to study and conduct research on various types of animals and there behaviors.

Each week your host Marlin Perkins along with assistants Jim Fowler, Stan Brock, Tom Allan, and Peter Gros takes us on a fascinating adventure through various parts of the world as they study and conduct various research on different species of animals in there natural habitat. Each week was an exciting adventure through various countries around the globe doing not only intense further study but risking chances in dealing with various types of animals. It was so successful that "Wild Kingdom"won five Prime Time Emmys for Best Documentary Series for Outstanding Programming (1966, 1967, 1969, 1970 and 1971). After its run on television it is still seen in syndicated repeats but more than 60 years after its premiere it it one of the greatest animal shows of all time. Thanks to the great Marlin Perkins, it's still great family entertainment.

Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom" series, which intrigued while it educated from 1963 to 1968 is back in 2003-04 on the Animal Planet network, co-produced by the BBC.

Based on the original format by Don Meier, in which Marlin Perkins played so big a role as expedition leader, the series now has Alec Baldwin narrating.

One recent show on "Cave Elephants" (2004) was shot on location in the Serengeti preserve in Africa. Never before footage of local animals were recorded while they made their trek into an ancient volcano to find precious salt need for their survival.

Using infra-red lighting, we were able to observe the happenings in pitch-black conditions. As the outside land yields less and less salt, predators mix with prey as they proceed on the inner rocky trail to their goal.

Personal friends who've gone on the Kenya-Tanzania safari (the site of this particular show) have reported that it's the closest thing to heaven on earth. Now that there are stiff penalties for poachers, an entire new breed of wild animals exist, living in peace with humans. And the African land is rich in natural resources and beauty (it's said every human originated in this, the "Mother Country.")

"Wild Kingdom" captures these pleasures, and reminds us of our need to preserve with steadfast commitment our fellow earthly inhabitants. Every program in the "Wild Kingdom" series appears a collector's item, and we end totally awe-struck by the miracle of nature.