Thursday, April 29, 2010 @ 7pm
Jack Hanna
Naturalist, Adventurer, and Director of the Columbus Zoo
Jack Hanna, popular host of the hit television series, Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures, is one of America's most beloved naturalists and adventurers. Each week, Hanna takes millions of family viewers on exciting journeys to learn about animals and the places they live. Hanna's enthusiasm and wonderment for every new creature and experience he encounters makes his series entertaining and educational for viewers of all ages. No intellectual pomp or indifference here…Jack Hanna is "every person's" television zoologist. He is a regular guest on shows like Good Morning America, Larry King Live, The Late Show With David Letterman, and The Maury Povich Show. He also makes countless personal appearances and speeches throughout the U.S.
The route to becoming a national celebrity began in his family's bathtub in Knoxville, Tennessee where he raised bluegills and then extended his menagerie to their backyard. After majoring in business in college, Hanna, with support from his wife, Suzi, started a pet shop and petting zoo, worked for a wildlife adventure company and directed a small Florida zoo. The couple's subsequent move to Columbus (with their three daughters) was the start of Hanna's rising media star. Hanna began to receive national attention after he became Director of the rundown Columbus Zoo in Columbus, Ohio in 1978. He not only transformed the zoo into a model facility, but, through his media savvy, made the Columbus Zoo a household name. Not only was he a regular on national talk shows, his autobiographical book, Monkeys on the Interstate, was a hit in 1989. Other books, such as Let’s Go To The Petting Zoo With Jungle Jack, What Do Zoo-Keepers Do, and Jungle Jack Hanna’s Safari Adventure have followed.
The natural progression for someone with Hanna's knowledge of animals and the wild, along with his media popularity, was to have his own show, Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures. It now reaches 95% of U.S. television households every weekend. Director Emeritus of the Columbus Zoo since 1993, he still remains active in the zoo and his community.
Hanna is a Professional Fellow of the American Zoo & Aquarium Association and a member of the Explorer's Club. In addition to serving on boards of several educational institutions, he is also an active supporter of the Leukemia Society, Partners in Conservation, The Mountain Gorilla Project, and the Busch Conservation Fund. While he takes all of his civic responsibilities seriously, he maintains that wildlife conservation is his true calling.
For more information contact Scott Powell, Director of Student Activities at 231-439-6349 or spowell@ncmich.edu