Mutual of Omaha Readies Wild Kingdom Tour

Mutual of Omaha Insurance Co. takes its iconic Wild Kingdom on the road next month.

The Wild Kingdom tour will hit 11 markets

The Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom Adventure Tour will travel to 11 markets from June through October after testing in a few markets last fall. The stops—mostly at state fairs—bring a fleet of trailers to build a 75-foot-square site that replicates three habitats: a rainforest, an African savanna, and a polar icecap. Each zone has animatronic animals as part of the display.

A separate display memorializes Marlin Perkins, the original host of Wild Kingdom when the show first aired in the 1960s and 70s.

An enclosed theater plays clips from new episodes of Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, which airs on cable network Animal Planet. Visitors also can have their photo taken against a wilderness backdrop and play an instant-win game.

The Win Something Wild game gives players a passport with a game code; players enter the code (and their name and address) at a computer kiosk on the tour site. Each game card wins; prizes include iPod Nanos and Shuffles, with Mutual of Omaha logos; portable DVD players; Wild Kingdom Adventures in the Wild DVDs; and Wild Kingdom pens.

All players are automatically entered in a sweeps that will award a 55-inch HDTV and a wireless DVD system at the end of the tour. Aspen Marketing Group, Chicago, handles the tour for Omaha, NE-based Mutual of Omaha.

“We are thrilled to bring the adventure and excitement of Wild Kingdom to people all across the country, renewing our bond with those who grew up with Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom while introducing the excitement of Wild Kingdom to new generations.” Said Mutual of Omaha Senior VP John Hildenbiddle in a statement.

The tour traveled to six cities in six weeks last fall, drawing 65,000 visitors—6% of whom opted in for information from Mutual of Omaha. The six markets were Detroit, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Richmond, VA and New Haven, CT.

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