Mahamayavi Bhagavan Antle, also known as Doc, was born on March 15, 1960, in Salinas, California. He spent his formative years developing a profound appreciation for animals on his parents' cattle ranch in Arizona. During his school years, he went by the name "Kevin" due to the challenges that arose from pronouncing his foreign name.
As a young man, Bhagavan traveled to China, where he earned a Doctoral degree in Chinese medicine and acquired the nickname "Doc." It was during this time that he was approached by representatives from Exxon Corporation, who requested that he make a presentation with a tiger at the Exxon Annual Convention in 1982.
The following year, Doc was tasked with training tigers for Exxon's "Put A Tiger In Your Tank" advertising campaign. His tigers gained widespread exposure through print and film media, and their involvement in the campaign lasted for over six years, serving as his first Animal Ambassadors.
Over the course of the next couple of decades, Doc's reputation as an elite animal trainer continued to grow. He received numerous calls from Hollywood and New York City, and he and his animals made half a dozen appearances on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. He was also booked by Britney Spears for the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards and worked on music videos for P. Diddy, Ashante, and Janet Jackson.
In addition to his work in television and film, Doc and his team of animal actors have been featured in several big-screen productions, including Dr. Dolittle, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Disney's Mr. MaGoo, Rudyard Kipling's The Jungle Book, and Mighty Joe Young. The Rolling Stone magazine recently interviewed Doc and compiled a video entitled: Doc Antle's Animal Actors.
