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Florida's Carole Baskin From 'Tiger King' Ready To Roar On 'Dancing With the Stars'

MIAMI (CBSMiami/AP) - Hey all you cats and kittens. Carole Baskin, the Florida woman who became a pop culture sensation with Netflix's docuseries "Tiger King" is joining the new crop of celebrity dancers on "Dancing with the Stars."

On the immensely popular Netflix series "Tiger King", Baskin, who owns a big cat refuge in Tampa, sought to shut down Joe Exotic's for-profit breeding of big cats.  His real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage and he is currently serving a 22-year federal prison sentence for killing five tigers and plotting to have Baskin killed.

In June, a federal judge awarded Baskin ownership of the private Oklahoma zoo run by Maldonado-Passage.

Now, Baskin is roaring onto the dance floor and joining TV and film actress Anne Heche, former NBA star Charles Oakley, Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean, singer Nelly and Olympic figure skater and commentator Johnny Weir among others.

The new season of 'Dancing with the Stars' premieres on ABC on Sept. 14.

Supermodel and businesswoman Tyra Banks will host the new season after longtime co-host Tom Bergeron and Erin Andrews announced their exits from the series in July.

(© Copyright 2020 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)

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