A fateful encounter with a National Geographic gave reality producer Thom Beers the wildlife bug, he revealed during a photo shoot for The Hollywood Reporter’s reality heat list.
His mother’s boyfriend (the late British writer Alan Sillitoe) showed a young Beers the masthead of a National Geographic and pointed out that the vice president of the publication also was named Thomas Beers.
“It really kind of set this course for me, and I started getting really interested in National Geographic.” he said. “It’s just one of those weird things. There are no accidents.”
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Beers also recalled when Deadliest Catch became successful, a new Discovery Channel executive was blown away by the ratings that a three-hour block of the show had brought in over the weekend.
“’This is unbelievable, I want more,’” Beers recalled the exec saying. He joked the network head was panicked when learning it would take a year before another batch would be ready.
“’No, no, no, no. I need them now,’” Beers recalled him saying.
Beers also shared globetrotting stories of being tossed through the air by a charging bull, and later by a baby elephant.
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“I kind of wish those two moments were actually caught on TV. There’s something about me flying through the air that I’m fascinated by,” he said.
And as for what he does when he’s not adventuring or making hit shows, Beers also revealed some of his reality TV viewing habits. His guilty pleasure? Bravo’s Tabatha Takes Over.
“She’s just a hard-ass. I love that woman. I love everything about her,” he said. Through his wife, he watches a lot of Bravo’s Shahs of Sunset and the Real Housewives series.
Watch the video above.
