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Monty Krizan, host of the beloved television show and exhibit Monty’s Traveling Reptile Show, has died at the age of 74, a family member told Global News on Tuesday.

What started out as reptile talks Monty gave in schools in the mid-1970s quickly grew into a widely renowned educational exhibit and television show, according to Monty’s nephew.

Brian Teigen, who worked with Monty and will carry on the business, spoke to Global News in a phone interview from Wisconsin on Tuesday.

He estimates his uncle gave more than 10,000 school assembly talks since he started his business. In addition, he’d been setting up with his wide range of reptiles at the Minnesota State Fair, his biggest event, since 1980.

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“Interesting and unique would be quite the understatement,” Teigen said about his time working with Monty’s Traveling Reptile Show.

Teigen said a career with the reptile show isn’t something he imagined growing up, but when he started helping his uncle out in college, he found he shared the same passion.

“We will carry on his legacy – we’ll do our best to continue spreading his message and love for reptiles.”

Wide range of reptiles

As Monty’s message of reptile love and respect started to grow in reach, so too did his vast collection of animals.

“Under our roof, we take care of right around 100 [reptiles],” Teigen said, adding that not all of them are featured in the shows.

“We’re big softies and we take care of them. We try to spread the message that if you’re going to get a reptile or you’re going to get a pet, you’re in for the whole thing.”

Teigen said Monty’s oldest reptile is a 40-year-old American alligator named Albert. In addition to Albert, Monty’s team’s built facility in Wisconsin is home to a variety of animals like rattlesnakes, six-metre pythons, anacondas, rock iguanas and a water monitor, which is a relative of the Komodo dragon. They also have a number of non-venomous snakes.

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Teigen said his uncle loved each one of them.

He said the thing Monty found most rewarding was being able to educate someone who might approach him at a fair or event saying “they hate reptiles, or the only good snake is a dead snake.”

Monty would take the time to explain to the person why reptiles are important to the ecosystem and important to him, and in the end, while they may not have been converted into a reptile lover, they’d have a new understanding.

“He had a special gift for reaching people and sharing his passion.”

Special Canadian connection

In addition to the school talks and exhibits at fairs, Monty’s Traveling Reptile Show was a television show filmed in Canada. It was shot right in the Global Calgary studio in northeast Calgary. The show ran on 2&7 in the 1990s.

“He loved his time in Canada, there’s no doubt about that,” Teigen said.

“His friends and people that he met … that was a big part of his life that he loved.”

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Teigen said if it weren’t for the complications resulting from trying to cross the border from the U.S. with so many reptiles, they likely wouldn’t have stopped visiting.

He said he will now carry on the legacy his uncle started, but future plans are not being made without a bit of sadness knowing the impact Monty had across North America.

“The amount of support and people that he’s touched over the years, the calls from Canada to Florida, California,” Teigen said. “Monty touched people from all over.”