Jack Hanna to Fort Collins: Welcome to the jungle
Animal expert, friends will visit Oct. 6
JACK HANNA and FRIEND
Jungle Jack Hanna

Stop me if you've heard this one: Famed zoo guy Jungle Jack Hanna (you know, from Letterman?) and a flamingo get stuck in a turnstile at the Ohio airport...
Actually, it's no joke. The morning before Hanna spoke with the Coloradoan about his upcoming Fort Collins appearance, he got stuck trying to squeeze himself and an 11-month-old flamingo through an airport security turnstile.
"I never thought about the crate being square and the turnstile being round," Hanna said. "I was stuck like a worm."
Hanna eventually wriggled free, leaving the flamingo still wedged inside. He walked to a nearby fire station to ask for a "flamingo rescue." It took three firefighters to hoist the crate up and out of the turnstile.
On the road
But Hanna wouldn't let a little thing like that keep him from again flying the friendly skies with his animal kingdom.
In between filming his new reality show, "Into the Wild," and guest appearances on Letterman and Good Morning America, Hanna is traveling to theaters throughout the country to share his adventures with audiences and introduce them to some of his furry, feathered and scaly pals.
It took some convincing that live shows would be a good idea, said Hanna, as he headed to the airport on his way to another show - hopefully san flamingo. Two TV shows - Hanna also does "Jack Hanna's Animal Adventures" - were enough.
"But I did one and I had a ball," he said. "It was fun to get to talk to people one-on-one."
In his live shows, Hanna brings a number of baby animals on stage - for his Oct. 6 appearance at the Lincoln Center Hanna said he'll likely have a sloth, wild cat, bird of prey, porcupine, python and kangaroo. He also shows clips from his adventures, including one of his favorite places, Rwanda, where he owns a home near an area where a large group of mountain gorillas live.
Conserve and protect
Near, not on top of. There's a difference between working to conserve nature and simply capitalizing on it, Hanna clarified.
"When I started there were only one or two shows like this," he said. "And now there are 30, and they're looking for ratings at any cost."
Some of these programs simply want the dangerous shots because that's what brings in the viewers, Hanna said. They aren't worried about nature at all.
That's not a swipe at Hanna's friend, famed crocodile hunter Steve Irwin, who died filming in September 2006 after being fatally pierced in the chest by a stingray barb.
"Steve Irwin was a conservationist," Hanna said. "Did I film like him? No, but he was a conservationist. (He) never put an animal in harm's way."
People have to remember that these are called "wild" animals for a reason.
"If I'm every hurt by an animal 99 percent of time it's my own fault," said Hanna, who's had several close calls, including almost losing several fingers to a 20-foot-long anaconda. "Steve Irwin would say the same... They're like a loaded gun; they can go off at any time."
That said, Hanna said he truly loves all animals, even the dangerous ones.
"Every animal the good Lord created has a purpose," he said. "And I am fascinated by them all."