Jack Hanna Stars in Litton's Latest FAST Channel

By Paige Albiniak
( Broadcasting & Cable )
last updated

Jack Hanna Channel is Litton's second FAST offering, following Xplore.

Jack Hanna, famed zoologist, is the star of several wildlife-focused shows.
Jack Hanna, famed zoologist, is the star of several wildlife-focused shows. (Image credit: Litton Entertainment)

Jack Hanna is the focus of Hearst-owned Litton Entertainment's second free, ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channel, The Jack Hanna Channel, launching Wednesday on Vizio SmartCast devices in the U.S., Litton said Wednesday.

The channel will debut in April on Samsung TV Plus in both the U.S. and Canada.

“For more than 40 years, Jack has educated, entertained, and introduced viewers to new worlds,” Andrew Tew, Litton Entertainment VP of licensing and distribution and general manager of global channels, said in a statement. “A channel dedicated to the decades-long adventures of Jack Hanna, his global travels, and his wildlife and conservation efforts will give millions of fans across generations a new programming destination to find their favorite American icon.”

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Hanna -- who got his start as a zoologist at the Columbus, Ohio city zoo in 1978 -- is the star of several wildlife-focused TV shows, including Jack Hanna’s Into the Wild, Jack Hanna’s Wild Countdown and Jack Hanna’s Animal Adventures. Hanna also has been a frequent guest on late-night shows since the ‘80s, appearing on The Late Show with David Letterman and more recently on The Late Late Show with James Corden. 

Last November, Litton launched its first FAST channel, Xplore, which includes programming on travel, lifestyle, natural sciences, technology and others and stars such personalities as Mo Rocca, Miranda Cosgrove and Dylan Dreyer. Xplore is currently available in the U.S. on Vizio SmartCast, Samsung TV Plus, the Roku Channel and Plex and will soon launch on Xumo. It’s slated to launch on Samsung TV Plus in the UK and Canada next month.

Paige Albiniak
Paige Albiniak

Contributing editor Paige Albiniak has been covering the business of television for more than 25 years. She is a longtime contributor to Next TV, Broadcasting + Cable and Multichannel News. She concurrently serves as editorial director for The Global Entertainment Marketing Academy of Arts & Sciences (G.E.M.A.). She has written for such publications as TVNewsCheck, The New York Post, Variety, CBS Watch and more. Albiniak was B+C’s Los Angeles bureau chief from September 2002 to 2004, and an associate editor covering Congress and lobbying for the magazine in Washington, D.C., from January 1997 - September 2002.