CAROLE BASKIN

Peacock has just released a trailer promoting the streaming network’s new series “Joe vs. Carole,” showing another side of the relationship between Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin. >> Read more trending newsThe limited series is based on Wondery’s ‘Joe Exotic’ podcast and will follow Carole Baskin as she discovers Joe Exotic is trying to make money off of his big cats, People Magazine reported. When I took on this project a year and a half ago, I found Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin to be utterly fascinating, and this crazy tale about two big cat lovers quickly became an important story for me to tell. >> ‘Tiger King’ Joe Exotic says he has ‘aggressive cancer’The show begins streaming on Peacock on March 3. Hey all you cool cats and kittens...the claws are officially out on March 3 with #JOEvsCAROLE streaming only on Peacock.

New leads in the 1997 disappearance of Carole Baskin's former husband?

New leads in the 1997 disappearance of Carole Baskin's former husband?

An inside look at the puzzling disappearance of the Florida millionaire

Alex Spiro, now working for Don Lewis's family, says he's spoken to witnesses he believes corroborate a woman's claims that her ex-husband threatened to put her "in the grinder, like [he] did Don."

Tiger King Cancer FILE - In this Aug. 28, 2013, file photo, Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as Joe Exotic, is seen at the zoo he used to run in Wynnewood, Okla. The former zookeeper has been transferred to a medical facility in North Carolina for federal inmates after a cancer diagnosis, according to his attorney. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki, File) (Sue Ogrocki)BUTNER, N.C. — (AP) — The former Oklahoma zookeeper known as “Tiger King” Joe Exotic, a prominent figure in a Netflix documentary series, has been transferred to a medical facility in North Carolina for federal inmates after a cancer diagnosis, according to his attorney. He was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in federal prison after being convicted of trying to hire two different men to kill Florida animal rights activist Carole Baskin. Maldonado-Passage and his blond mullet were featured in the Netflix documentary “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness.”Meanwhile, Baskin, of Tampa’s Big Cat Rescue sanctuary, lost an effort to stop Netflix and a production company from using previously recorded video of her and her husband in the “Tiger King” sequel.

A defense attorney says the former Oklahoma zookeeper known as “Tiger King” Joe Exotic has been transferred to a medical facility in North Carolina for federal inmates after a cancer diagnosis.

A detective in Florida investigating the disappearance of Carole Baskin’s second husband says that the “Tiger King” star has three times refused requests for interviews.

(Loren Elliott/Tampa Bay Times via AP, File) (Loren Elliott)TAMPA, Fla. — (AP) — A detective in Florida investigating the disappearance of Carole Baskin's second husband said Thursday that the “Tiger King” star had three times refused requests for interviews, and that the probe was ongoing. The case was reopened following the March 2020 release of “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness,” a Netflix documentary series which became a huge hit during the pandemic. Lewis was a Tampa millionaire who vanished in 1997, leaving Baskin with dozens of big cats at their animal sanctuary. Besides Baskin, a former handyman at the sanctuary, Kenny Farr, also “didn't interview with us," the detective said. Baskin recently sued Netflix and a production company to try to prevent the use of interviews and footage involving her in the "Tiger King" sequel, which was released Wednesday.

The Stream This combination of photos shows promotional art for the film "Tick, Tick...Boom! In "King Richard," Will Smith plays Richard Williams, father and tennis guru to Venus and Serena Williams. — Lin-Manuel Miranda makes his feature film directorial debut with "Tick, Tick... In Miranda's film, on Netflix on Friday, "Tick, Tick... is an affectionate ode to Larson, musical theater and Broadway dreams.

This week’s new entertainment releases include a much-anticipated album from Adele, a documentary about Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction during the 2004 Super Bowl half-time show and Will Smith playing father and tennis guru to Venus and Serena Williams.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — (AP) — The founder of a Florida big cat sanctuary featured in the popular “Tiger King” series is suing Netflix and a production company to prevent the use of interviews and footage involving her in an upcoming sequel. In her lawsuit, Baskin contends that Royal Goode Productions Inc., which produced “Tiger King" for Netflix, led her and husband Howard Baskin to believe their footage would only be used in a single documentary. “The Baskins believed that any sequel, though odious, would not include any of their footage,” the lawsuit says. “We have never, ever had anybody mislead us and be so dishonest with us as the producers were of Tiger King,” Baskin told AP. “Defendants did not need to obtain a release from plaintiffs to use the footage in Tiger King 2 or its promotion trailers,” Netflix attorney Rachel Fugate said in court documents.

The founder of a Florida big cat sanctuary featured in the popular “Tiger King” series is suing Netflix and a production company to prevent the use of interviews and footage involving her in an upcoming sequel.

The man known as “Tiger King,” who gained fame in a Netflix documentary following his conviction for trying to hire someone to kill an animal rights activist, says he has cancer.

Joe Exotic has announced he has an aggressive form of cancer. >> Read more trending newsThe former zookeeper, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, is in prison for a murder-for-hire plot. “Doctors called me in today to break the news that my prostate biopsy came back with an aggressive cancer, Carole Will have her own party over this! Doctors called me in today to break the news that my prostate biopsy came back with an aggressive cancer, Carole Will have her own party over this! >>Related: Judge denies Carole Baskin’s request to stop release of ‘Tiger King 2′ footageHe found fame after Netflix streamed the documentary “Tiger King” that focused on Baskin’s and his disagreements.

"Carole Will have her own party over this!" Joe Exotic wrote on Twitter, revealing his cancer diagnosis.

The lawsuit was filed against Netflix and the production company, Royal Goode Productions, the television station reported. According to the lawsuit, Carole and Harold Baskin were surprised to see footage of themselves in the upcoming trailer. The judge left open the possibility that the Baskins could file another lawsuit, WFLA reported. Baskin criticized the first documentary released last year as portraying her wildlife sanctuary in a negative light, WFTS reported. The show also questioned whether she was involved in the disappearance of her former husband, Don Lewis.

The complaint claims "Tiger King 2" uses unauthorized footage of the plaintiffs and alleges they will suffer "irreparable harm" if the show is released.

In court documents filed Monday, Baskin said she only agreed to be featured in a single documentary, and that any sequel cannot feature any footage of her or Big Cat Rescue.

It looks like Netflix is trying to cash in on the “Tiger King” phenomenon one more time.

"Tiger King" is returning to Netflix.

Exotic Animal Park. (Marc Piscotty/Getty Images)NEW YORK — Erik Cowie, one of the zookeepers from the popular Netflix documentary “Tiger King,” was found dead in New York City on Sept. 3. >> Read more trending newsCowie was found dead on Friday in a Brooklyn apartment, police sources told TMZ and New York Daily News. Zookeeper Erik Cowie from “Tiger King” was found dead in a Brooklyn apartment, a police source saidAn autopsy will determine how Cowie, 53, died. “Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness” was the Netflix series that captivated the country as people were isolated in their homes at the start of the coronavirus pandemic in March 2020.

A court vacated the self-proclaimed Tiger King's sentence and called for a re-sentencing due to a conviction error.

The 'Tiger King' should have seen a pair of murder-for-hire charges — and the attendant prison terms — grouped, a federal appeals court says.

DENVER — (AP) — A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that “Tiger King” Joe Exotic should get a shorter prison sentence for his role in a murder-for-hire plot and violating federal wildlife laws. Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in federal prison after being convicted of trying to hire two different men to kill animal rights activist Carole Baskin. A three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver found that the trial court wrongly treated those two convictions separately in calculating his prison term under sentencing guidelines. According to the ruling, the court should have sentenced Maldonado-Passage to somewhere between 17 1/2 years and just under 22 years in prison, rather than between just under 22 years and 27 years in prison. The court ordered the trial court to re-sentence Maldonado-Passage.

A federal appeals court is ordering a shorter sentence for “Tiger King” Joe Exotic.

A federal appeals court ruled Wednesday that “Tiger King” Joe Exotic should get a shorter prison sentence for his role in a murder-for-hire plot and violating federal wildlife laws. Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage, was sentenced in January 2020 to 22 years in federal prison after being convicted of trying to hire two different men to kill animal rights activist Carole Baskin. A three-judge panel for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit in Denver found that the trial court wrongly treated those two convictions separately in calculating his prison term under sentencing guidelines.

US officials have seized 68 big cats from an animal park featured in the hit Netflix series "Tiger King". Lions, tigers, lion-tiger hybrids and a jaguar were taken from the Tiger King Park in Thackerville, Oklahoma, over concerns about the animals' care, the Department of Justice (DOJ) said. The animals belonged to Jeffrey Lowe and his wife Lauren, who starred in the Netflix series alongside Joe Exotic and Carole Baskin. The DOJ filed a civil complaint against the Lowes in November, which accused them of "recurring inhumane treatment and improper handling" of animals protected by the Endangered Species Act. The Tiger King Park was inspected three times since December 2020.

One the breakout characters of ‘Tiger King’ says missing Texas tiger “does not belong in private hands” and puts up $5,000 reward

Carole Baskin issues $CAT cryptocurrency FILE PHOTO: Carole Baskin, the founder of Big Cat Rescue in Florida who gained notoriety on the Netflix documentary "Tiger King," is entering the cryptocurrency economy with a token alternative she calls $CAT. (Marc Piscotty/Getty Images)Carole Baskin, the founder of Big Cat Rescue in Florida who gained notoriety on the Netflix documentary “Tiger King,” is entering the cryptocurrency economy with a token alternative she calls $CAT. “$CAT is not a currency nor investment, but rather is a purr-ency and the first of its kind as a fan token for supporters of Big Cat Rescue,” the group said in a news release. Baskin gained fame from the documentary, which detailed the dispute between her and Joe Exotic, whose real name is Joseph Maldonado-Passage. He is currently serving 22 years in federal prison for his role in a murder-for-hire plot to kill Baskin.

As closely watched cryptocurrencies rally, two traders lay out their expectations for the digital asset space amid the speculative frenzy.

ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A 20-year-old man is in critical condition after a shooting in the Orlando area Thursday evening, according to the Orange County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies said the shooting happened on 2nd Avenue around 6:25 p.m.[TRENDING: Animal nearly severs woman’s arm at Carole Baskin’s rescue | CDC: Avoid travel to Mexico | Brightline targets 2022 for OIA station]The victim was taken to an area hospital in critical condition to receive treatment for a life-threatening gunshot wound, records show. Authorities said the culprit fled the scene before they arrived and thus far a suspect has not been identified. The investigation is ongoing.

TAMPA, Fla. – A volunteer nearly had her arm torn off by a tiger Thursday morning at Big Cat Rescue, a Tampa animal sanctuary owned by Carole Baskin, WTSP-TV reported. “It is against our protocols for anyone to stick any part of their body into a cage with a cat in it,” Big Cat Rescue wrote in a statement, according to WTSP-TV. Couser was taken to a hospital for treatment of serious injuries after staff and other volunteers at Big Cat Rescue sought to stop the bleeding, Baskin said. According to the TV station, another worker heard the attack and came running as the tiger dropped its grip. WTSP-TV, citing Hillsborough County Fire Rescue officials, said the victim was taken to a hospital with serious injuries.

click to enlarge PHOTO VIA BIG CAT RESCUE/YOUTUBEA tiger reportedly bit a staff member at Tampa’s controversial Big Cat Rescue Thursday morning. Big Cat Rescue was most recently made famous on last summer’s Netflix hit documentary Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, starring the animal sanctuary’s CEO Carole Baskin and her nemesis, Oklahoma zookeeper Joseph Maldonado-Passage, aka Joe Exotic. In the documentary, one of Exotic's staff members, Kelci "Saff" Saffery, had their arm ripped off by a tiger, which prompted Joe Exotic's infamous line, "I'm never going to financially recover from this." Last March, Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister said his department was getting “six tips a day” regarding the 23-year-old case, though most were not credible. This is a developing story, first reported by our sister paper Creative Loafing Tampa.

(Photo by APEX/MEGA/GC Images) (2020 MEGA)Who: The other star of Netflix’s irresistible “Tiger King." What you’ll need: Your hair pulled back in a bun, glasses, a judge’s robe and a fancy white collar. What you’ll need: A banana costume and a loaf of bread to carry around. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images) (2020 Getty Images)Who: A video conferencing program that became very popular once the pandemic started in early 2020. What you’ll need: A piece of cardboard cut with a whole in the middle to look like a screen.

ORLANDO, Fla. – Carole Baskin, who became a pop culture sensation due to Netflix’s docuseries “Tiger King,” is being sued for defamation by a former assistant. It also names Baskin’s current husband and her tiger rescue sanctuary as defendants. The lawsuit said that Baskin defamed McQueen by posting a video diary entry on YouTube earlier this month in which she said McQueen played a role in Lewis' disappearance. In retaliation, Maldonado-Passage raised questions about Lewis’ disappearance. The documentary extensively covered Maldonado-Passage’s repeated accusations that Baskin killed her husband and possibly fed him to her tigers.

"48 Hours Suspicion": The Tiger King Mystery Shocking new information in the disappearance of tiger activist Carole Baskin’s former husband Don Lewis. "48 Hours" correspondent Richard Schlesinger investigates.

Like all cool cats and kittens, Carole Baskin is going to Dancing With the Stars.The reality TV star who became a pop culture sensation with Netflixs docuseries Tiger King is joining the new crop of celebrity dancers that includes TV and film actress Anne Heche, former NBA star Charles Oakley and Backstreet Boys singer AJ McLean. On the Netflix series Tiger King, Baskin, who owns a big cat refuge, sought to shut down Joseph Maldonado-Passages for-profit breeding of big cats. In June, a federal judge awarded Baskin ownership of the private Oklahoma zoo run by Maldonado-Passage. Others slated to appear on the dancing show are cheer team coach Monica Aldama, Bachelorette star Kaitlyn Bristowe, NFL star Vernon Davis, actress Skai Jackson, actress Justina Machado, TV host Jeannie Mai, Jesse Metcalfe, rapper Nelly, TV host Nev Schulman, real estate agent Chrishell Stause and Olympian Johnny Weir. 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.

LOS ANGELES The saga of Joe Exotic is getting another Hollywood chapter, with Kate McKinnon starring as his rival in a limited TV series. The Saturday Night Live star will play Carole Baskin, who sought to shut down Joseph Maldonado-Passages for-profit breeding of big cats. The conflict became a pop culture sensation with Netflixs docuseries Tiger King.The series, ordered without a pilot episode, will be based on the Wondery podcast Joe Exotic, NBCUniversal Television and Streaming said Tuesday. McKinnon also will be an executiver producer for the show with the working title of Joe Exotic, Maldonado-Passage's nickname. The Joe Exotic role has yet to be cast, NBCUniversal said.

TAMPA, Fla. – There’s a new chapter for the “Tiger King” saga. Lewis is the missing millionaire who was married to Big Cat Rescue founder Carole Baskin, News 6 partner WJXT reports. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister had already reopened the law enforcement investigation a few weeks after the Tiger King series debuted on Netflix. The Tiger King documentary extensively covers repeated accusations that Carole Baskin killed her then-husband and possibly fed him to her tigers. “But hopefully with all this help that we now have one day soon we and you, too, will know the truth and will all finally know happened to my dad.”

TAMPA, Fla. Someone forged the will of the missing husband of Carole Baskin, a woman prominently featured in Netflixs Tiger King" documentary series, a Florida sheriff said. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister told 10 Tampa Bay on Tuesday that two experts had confirmed the will of Jack Don Lewis is a forgery. The documentary extensively covered Maldonado-Passages repeated accusations that Baskin, killed her husband and possibly fed him to her tigers. Baskin, who founded Big Cat Rescue, has never been charged with any crime and released a statement refuting the accusations made in the series. On Monday, a federal judge in Oklahoma awarded ownership of Maldonado-Passages former zoo to Big Cat Rescue Corp. as part of a civil judgment.

Carole Baskin won a major victory in court Monday against her “Tiger King” nemesis Joe Exotic. In Joe Exotic's worst nightmare scenario, Carole Baskin is now the owner of his infamous animal park. An Oklahoma judge ruled in favor of Baskin's Big Cat Rescue corporation in its lawsuit against Joe Exotic's zoo. The court is giving Baskin control of the 16-acre animal park in Garvin County, Oklahoma, with its array of big cats. An attorney for Jeff Lowe who currently owns Joe Exotic's park, told CNN Baskin's victory was not unexpected.

FILE - This undated file photo provided by the Santa Rose County Jail in Milton, Fla., shows Joseph Maldonado-Passage, also known as Joe Exotic. A federal judge in Oklahoma has awarded ownership of the zoo made famous in Netflix's Tiger King docuseries to Joe Exotic's rival, Carole Baskin. In a ruling Monday, U.S. District Judge Scott Palk granted control of the Oklahoma zoo that was previously run by Joseph Maldonado-Passage also known as Joe Exotic to Big Cat Rescue Corp. Baskin previously sued Maldonado-Passage for trademark and copyright infringements and won a $1 million civil judgment against him. Palk's judgment Monday found that ownership of the zoo was fraudulently transferred to Maldonado-Passage's mother in an attempt to avoid paying the judgment.

click to enlarge Photo via Big Cat Rescue/FacebookBig Cat Rescue, a Hillsborough County animal sanctuary featured prominently in Netflix's Tiger King, is selling CEO Carole Baskin's cloth masks to raise funds. The dual-layered masks come in black and leopard print, with proceeds benefiting the organization. Exotic had fixated on big-cat sanctuary rival Baskin, alleging frequently that she killed Lewis and fed him to her tigers. Lewis disappeared in 1997, and was declared legally dead in 2002, eventually leaving his wealth to Baskin. They're priced at $11 dollars each, with shipping from $2.93 to $68.52 for one-day delivery.

click to enlarge Photo via Blaze StudiosHey all you horny cats and kittensI saw a Tiger and a Tiger saw a pornoThis porno is going to financially ruin meOne of the true constants in life is that everything you enjoy will eventually end up as a porno parody in some form or another, and the Netflix docuseries Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness" is no exception.Yesterday, Tampa-based Blazed Studios announced that they have begun casting calls for a Tiger King porno that will be filmed once the COVID-19 pandemic is behind us.Blazed Studios says the film will be distributed by Pulse Distribution, and that theyve already secured porn stars Macy Cartel as Carole Baskin, Nadia White as Joe Exotic, Warren Peace as Doc Antle, and you can expect "a cameo from Carole's missing husband Don. ""I had multiple friends tell me it was the number one thing I needed to watch," said studio owner Mark Blaze to AVN . "I posted (on FB) that I was going to watch it and within minutes Macy Cartel replied and said she smelled a parody and wanted to be Carole Baskin. Soon afterward Nadia White sent me a photo of her as Joe Exotic and that was itthe project was born. "No word yet on what the name of the project will be, so please allow me to offer a few suggestions:In related news, Nicolas Cage recently signed on to play Joe Exotic in a Tiger King television mini-series.

Will anything ever compare to the antics of Joe Exotic, Doc Antle or Carole Baskin, of “Tiger King” fame? But we have to assume you’ve finished the show by now, which leads us to this next question: What will you watch next? The following five recommendations seem to be just as crazy as “Tiger King” -- not necessarily the same brand of crazy, but on par when it comes to unbelievability, like, “How can this possibly be real?”(OK, and from the sounds of it, No. 5 miiiiight be the same genre as “Tiger King.”)Anyway, to compile this list, we asked around and brainstormed ourselves. I’ll never get those two hours back.”Those weren’t exactly ringing endorsements, but we thought it was worth a mention.

It’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the rumored “Tiger King” reunion episode has officially dropped, and it’s just as wacky and bonkers as you’d hope it would be. Most fans would probably want to hear from the “Tiger King” himself, Joe Exotic, but as we all know, Exotic is currently in jail, so that wasn’t really a possibility. It also seems that everyone in the cast has moved on from Exotic and thinks that he is a terrible human being. McCale also asked the cast members what celebrity they’d want to play them in a movie version of “Tiger King,” and it was pretty funny to hear their answers. Hop on Netflix and soak in every minute of the bonus episode of “Tiger King.”

One of the stars of the series, Jeff Lowe, made a personalized Cameo for Los Angeles Dodgers player Justin Turner, and Lowe announced that one more episode is still to come in the epic “Tiger King” saga. So our friend @christie_dish listened to the podcast, @HoldingKourt and after last weeks episode decided to send us this!!! 🚨BREAKING NEWS FOLKS🚨There will be 1 more episode of #TigerKing on@Netflix pic.twitter.com/YeRSIlDKTJ — Justin Turner (@redturn2) April 4, 2020“Netflix is adding one more episode. Netflix hasn’t actually confirmed a new episode of the show, but given its huge popularity while everyone is stuck inside quarantining, it makes sense for the streaming network to capitalize on the “Tiger King” phenomenon while it’s still hot. Oh, and if you still haven’t hunkered down on your couch to watch “Tiger King” yet, what are you waiting for?

Anyone who has watched Netflix’s new binge-worthy true crime series “Tiger King” is currently asking themselves the biggest questions the series left unanswered, including: Did Carole Baskin kill her husband? While none of us know the answer, that hasn’t stopped fans from speculating (and making memes) about Baskin and her past. And now, as it turns out, one of America’s most notorious felons -- best known as a football star and for being tried in the death of his former wife, Nicole Brown Simpson -- is weighing in on the “Tiger King” mystery. Simpson, also known as “the Juice,” recently posted a video of himself discussing “Tiger King,” and he said he believes that not only did Baskin kill her husband, but she also fed him to her tigers, therefore making “tiger sashimi,” as Simpson references in the video. “We never close a cold case.”So what do you say, you cool cats and kittens?

Variety reports that there is a limited series being made about the big cat lovers, which is based off a podcast called “Joe Exotic," and it will star “SNL’s" Kate McKinnon as Baskin herself. McKinnon signed up to play Baskin in the fall, long before the masses knew anything of the epic feud between Exotic and Baskin, according to the report. Since we have McKinnon cast, the next obvious question is what actors should play the other colorful characters from “Tiger King,” such as Exotic or Doc Antle. Matthew McConaughey comes to mind, especially if you’ve seen him in “Dallas Buyers Club.”Danny McBride, who is known for playing trashy characters, would also nail Exotic. As for who should play Antle, who is equally as zany as Exotic, he’d have to be played by Will Ferrell.

We all know that Netflix has hundreds of movies and TV shows for us to watch, but there’s a new true crime documentary series that just landed called “Tiger King,” and it’s the perfect show to watch while you’re quarantined inside your home. The story mostly follows the self-proclaimed “Tiger King,” also known as Joe Exotic. Exotic (as well as the other exotic animal owners featured in the series) has a nemesis, and her name is Carole Baskin, who owns the Big Cat Rescue in Tampa, Florida. He hates Baskin more than anything in the world, and won’t stop at anything until he sees her destroyed. Let us know what you think of “Tiger King” in the comments once you’ve finished.

click to enlarge Screenshot via Netflix/YouTubeLast April, Oklahoma zookeeper Joseph Maldonado-Passage, more infamously known as Joe Exotic, was convicted of putting out a hit on Carole Baskin, the CEO and founder of Tampas Big Cat Rescue . In January, Maldonado-Passagea blonde-mulleted, self-proclaimed country music star who ran for president in 2016 and then governor of Oklahoma in 2018was sentenced to 22 years in prison for the failed murder-for-hire plot.And now you can watch his story on Netflix while on self-quarantine during the coronavirus pandemic. Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness, which called riveting and perfect social-distancing binge, hits the streaming service today. The true-crime, seven-part docuseries was co-directed by Eric Goode and Rebecca Chaiklin. A large chunk of it is about how Baskinwhose nonprofit works to stop people from breeding big cats and plays sanctuary for unwanted lions and tigersbecame the object of Maldonado-Passages obsession after she called him out.According to the indictment , Maldonado-Passage hired two hitmen to kill Baskin on two different occasions.