Doc Antle · The Texas Seven
Plus some upcoming projects, and a Victorian lady bank scammer
the true crime that's worth your time
The crime
According to myriad former associates, that “Doc” Bhagavan Antle turned a magic act involving the occasional big cat into a wildlife-sanctuary cult, whose primary aim was to procure underage partners for Antle.
The story
You have to wonder about the mood in the Netflix executive suites vis-a-vis Tiger King content that was likely commissioned a year and a half ago, because I don’t feel like I heard much about the streamer’s latest relevant release, the three-part Tiger King: The Doc Antle Story, until I got one of those “we just released a docuseries you might like” emails over the weekend. I didn’t agree that I might like it, and I suspect Netflix marketing probably knows that but is obliged to keep running out these bought-and-paid-for ancillary properties juuuust in case a few dozen people don’t yet have TK fatigue, but I took a run at the premiere episode, for a couple of reasons.
The first is that, back when I reviewed the original Tiger King, I made the mistake — not that I knew it then — of saying this:
Bhagavan "Doc" Antle, the ponytailed proprietor of Myrtle Beach Safari, could get his own season: former employees stop just short of calling him a cult leader; he's a "doctor" of mystical science — the comely women who work at the safari for a pittance constitute a harem of sorts — and his property got raided at the end of 2019.
So in a sense, TK:TDAS is on me, and I have an obligation to contend with it. But the second reason is that The Doc Antle Story exists much more in the alleged-cult, guru-sex-trafficker space than it does the animal-cruelty or failed-hit subgenres, and as such, it might have something to offer us — it might let the scales fall from the eyes of one devotee who finds the artist formerly known as Kevin Antle convincingly charismatic that she rationalizes his (alleged, sigh) terrible temper. It might remind people that “polyamorous relationship system” is not synonymous with “harem,” and prioritizes meaningful consent. If you take a particular true-crime interest cults and their leaders, this might be worth your time…
…if you watch it at 1.25x speed. Otherwise, I don’t think The Doc Antle Story does anything that Wild Wild Country or the last few years’ numerous NXIVM exposés didn’t, or that the 30 For 30 Bikram pod series didn’t. You get a lot of testimony from former wives and “apprentices” about Antle’s abusive behavior (and profound cheesiness — the Delorean, the Ren Faire costume closet). Just in the first ep, you get a story about a “teachable moment” in which Antle (allegedly, sigh) put a monkey in a freezer to teach a follower a lesson about self-control. But you’ve heard horrible stories of that ilk before. Not to sound all Evil-Willow “bored now” about these testimonies, of course, and this is not a good dude. I just don’t know that those testimonies outweigh possible animal-cruelty and sexual-assault triggers, never mind the fug of overstock cynicism surrounding the entire franchise at this point.
No doubt you’ve got other things to watch; watch those. — SDB
A bit short on time today thanks to a handful of scheduling surprises, so here’s a quick reading list to fill that time you won’t be spending on wildlife-park weirdos. — SDB
American Greed is back for a 15th season // Its 200th (!) episode is devoted to Theranos.
“The No. 1 Ladies’ Defrauding Agency” // That hall-of-fame hed tops a longread on a 19th-century women’s-bank scammer.
Selena Gomez is producing a true-crime series for Univision’s streaming service // It’s a Spanish-language series whose title in English translates to “The Cartel Among Us.”
The second season of Berlinger’s Crime Scene drops December 29 // S02 will focus on the Times Square Killer.
Today marks the anniversary of the Texas Seven prison break // The lamsters remained at large for over a month before a tip from an America’s Most Wanted broadcast got six of them rounded up. (The ending of History.com’s overview is a little rushed for me on the subject of their sentencing fates afterwards; anyone else feel that way?)
This week on Best Evidence: A roundup of pods, a sketchy job, and the latest HBO docs.
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