| Don Wildman | |
|---|---|
 Don Wildman at Wolf Creek Dam in 2011 for Travel Channel | |
| Born | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Actor, television host, narrator, historical investigator |
| Years active | 1969–present |
| Spouse | Melissa Haizlip |
Don Wildman is a podcast and documentary host. He is the current host of the American History Hit podcast as well as the host and narrator of Mysteries at the Museum, Beyond the Unknown, Dark Tales with Don Wildman, and Buried Worlds with Don Wildman on the Travel Channel.
He also hosted and narrated Travel Channel's Weird Travels, Off Limits, and Monumental Mysteries.
Early life
Wildman was raised in Pitman, New Jersey, and is a 1979 graduate of Westtown School, a Quaker boarding school located in Chester County, Pennsylvania. He also attended Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana (another Quaker school) and trained as an actor at The Drama Studio in London, England.
Acting
Wildman was originally a stage actor in several production the best known of which was Gross Indecency: The Three Trials of Oscar Wilde. He also acted in several commercials before finding success with his love of history and mysteries.
Travel Channel
Wildman began working for the Travel Channel in 2003 with Weird Travels, a documentary TV series made in the United States about international paranormal destinations. The show aired from 2001 to 2006, but Wildman was only involved from 2003 to 2005.
He continued his work with Travel Channel in 2007 with two programs: The Incurables and Cities of the Underworld, which ended in 2008 and 2009, respectively.
In 2011, Wildman hosted Pompeii: Back from the Dead and has been working at the channel ever since.
His most successful TV series to date was Mysteries at the Museum, which ran from 2011 to 2020. He is currently, as of late 2023, hosting Mysteries of the Unknown, which airs new episodes (as of December 2023) every Monday night at 8 p.m., on the Travel Channel.
Producer
In addition to acting, hosting and narrating, Wildman produced Off Limits from 2011 to 2013 for the Travel Channel, a documentary series about historical sites around the United States which are unknown and/or off limits. He also hosted the show. He has not produced anything else to date.
Podcast host
Since 2022, Wildman has been the host of the twice-weekly podcast American History Hit. He interviews experts and authors on such topics as the Battle of Midway, Presidential assassinations, the Oregon Trail, and Ellis Island. The podcast is associated with the British video streaming service and podcast channel History Hit.
Filmography
This list includes both film and television credits.
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Men's Journal | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2003 | Primetime Glick | Sam Hoibins | (2001 TV series) Episode: "Chris Elliot" |
| 2003 | Weird Travels | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2003–2004 | Passions | Crane / seventies flashback | (1999 TV series) 2 episodes |
| 2006 | New York Waiting | Michael | Film |
| 2007–2008 | The Incurables | Host | TV series |
| 2008–2009 | Cities of the Underworld | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2011 | Pompei: Back from the Dead | Himself/host | TV movie/documentary |
| 2011–2013 | Off Limits | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2011–present | Mysteries at the Museum | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2012 | World's Best Bartender | Himself/host | TV special |
| 2013 | Sidewalk's Entertainment | Guest | TV series |
| 2013–2015 | Monumental Mysteries | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2014 | The Trip: 2014 | Himself/host | TV special |
| 2014 | KCAL 9 News Weekend Report | Guest | TV series |
| 2013–2014 | Greatest Mysteries | Himself/host | TV series documentary |
| 2015 | The Trip: 2015 | Himself/host | TV special |
| 2015 | Metropolis | Himself/host | TV mini-series documentary |
| 2013–2015 | Mysteries at the Monument | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2019–present | Beyond the Unknown | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2020 | Josh Gates Tonight | Himself/Guest | TV series |
| 2020 | Buried Worlds with Don Wildman | Himself/host | TV series |
| 2020–present | Mysteries of the Unknown (2-hour special episodes of Mysteries at the Museum) |
Himself/host | TV series |
Currently, Don Wildman hosts Travel Channel's 'Mysteries at the Museum.' According to an article published by travel channel, "Don Wildman is fast becoming one the most recognizable faces in documentary television."
References
- "Don Wildman". veria.com. Archived from the original on November 15, 2010.
- "Beyond the Unknown".
- "Buried Worlds with Don Wildman".
- "Don Wildman: Off Limits". Archived from the original on 2011-12-31. Retrieved 2011-11-29.
- "Breaking News - Travel Channel's Don Wildman Reveals Surprising Secrets of America's Extraordinary Monuments in Network's New Original Series "Monumental Mysteries" Premiering Thursday, May 9 at 9:00 P.M. ET/PT". The Futon Critic. 2013-03-27. Retrieved 2022-05-06.
- "Don Wildman net worth, height. Is he married to wife, husband?". BiographyPedia. 2021-01-04. Retrieved 2022-02-11.
- Weird Travels (Documentary, History), Authentic Entertainment, retrieved 2022-02-11
- The Incurables (Documentary), Echo Entertainment (II), retrieved 2022-02-11
- Cities of the Underworld (Documentary, History), Authentic Entertainment, Thirty Four Productions, 2007-03-02, retrieved 2022-02-11
- Mysteries at the Museum (Documentary, Adventure, Biography), Optomen Productions, Travel Channel, 2010-11-02, retrieved 2022-02-11
- Off Limits (Documentary), Authentic Entertainment, Travel Channel, 2011-05-16, retrieved 2022-02-11
- "Meet Don Wildman". Travel Channel. Retrieved 2019-07-29.