Marlin Perkins (March 28, 1905-June 14, 1986) was a zoologist and the host of the television program Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom.

Born in Carthage, Missouri, he began his zoological career as a laborer at the zoo in St. Louis, Missouri. He rose through the ranks, becoming the reptile curator in 1928. Perkins served as director of the Buffalo Zoological Park in Buffalo, New York and the Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, Illinois, then returned to the Saint Louis Zoological Park as director in 1962. Perkins joined Sir Edmund Hillary as the zoologist for one of Hillary's Himalaya expeditions in 1960 to search for the legendary Yeti. He became host of Wild Kingdom on its debut in 1963. Through his fame on television, he became an advocate for the protection of endangered species. He retired from zookeeping in 1970. Perkins died of cancer in 1986. In 1990 he was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame.

External links

• Perkins at the St. Louis Zoo
• St. Louis Walk of Fame
• Perkins Papers at Western Historical Manuscript Collection at University of Missouri-St. Louis

1905 births | 1986 deaths | Buffalo, New York | People from Joplin, Missouri | Zoologists | St. Louis Walk of Fame | St. Louisans