It was only a matter of time, really.
Just like Carole Baskin before him, Joe Exotic has gotten into the NFT game and is selling off a bunch of digital treasures such as animated images of Exotic and a chimpanzee and another of him with the Dogecoin dog.
According to Rolling Stone, there’s also a handful of NFTs tied to audio recordings, including Exotic’s song, I Saw a Tiger and a message he recorded in April 2021 from prison in which he defines NFT as “Never Forget the Tigers.”
Buyers won’t just be receiving their purchases via the cloud, either, as many of the lots for sale are accompanied by a physical item such as Exotic’s cowboy jacket and his matching black leather pants and jacket outfit,
The sale, which is being hosted on Mintable, also counts Exotic’s “nonfunctioning” Smith and Wesson pistol as one of the possessions for sale. It currently carries a high bid of USD $100,000.
In a statement, the Tiger King star expressed his excitement at getting into the world of cryptocurrency, saying, “It’s great to have a voice via blockchain technology and I’m honoured to be the first to kickoff More’s celebrity NFTs.
“I hope whoever purchases my favourite belongings is able to give them a well-deserved home. Being able to auction off collectibles makes me feel connected with the outside world, especially without my cats by my side. Whether you love me or hate me for what you think I’ve done, there’s no doubt that everyone wants a piece of the Tiger King!”
Exotic, who became a household name in 2020 thanks to the Netflix series about his stranger-than-fiction life, is currently serving a 22-year sentence in a Fort Worth, Texas, federal prison for his conviction on charges that he participated in a murder-for-hire plot against Tiger King star and rival Carole Baskin in addition to animal abuse charges.
Baskin announced in May 2021 that she had launched her own cryptocurrency, appropriately named $CAT, which, according to CNN, “allows fans to buy merchandise or online experiences from Baskin’s Big Cat Rescue animal sanctuary in Tampa, Florida, starting at five dollars.”
Exotic’s story is one that has generated so much interest that there are several projects about the 58-year-old in the works including two scripted television series —one of which stars Nicholas Cage, the other with Kate McKinnon as Baskin — as well as a podcast, comic book and a documentary about Exotic’s traumatic past.
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