Animal Planet's 'Redwood Kings' Salvage Ancient Stumps for Art
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LOS ANGELES - This summer, Animal Planet combines the majesty of nature with master craftsmanship in the all-new series REDWOOD KINGS. The titular tree titans are twin brothers and business partners Ron and John Daniels - nationally renowned for turning found pieces of ancient reclaimed redwood trees into hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind works of art. The trees officially take over Animal Planet’s Friday-night lineup beginning August 1, at 9:00 PM (ET/PT) when the series debut of REDWOOD KINGS airs; this is followed by an all-new episode of TREEHOUSE MASTERS at 10:00 PM.

For 15 years, customers from all over the country have turned to the Daniel brothers’ company Daniels Wood Land to create carvings of animated characters, feature film and theme park facades, and even custom play houses and tree houses! It isn't all a forest fairy tale, however --things can turn splintery when “little” brother Ron turns off the chainsaw and reins in John “the carving cowboy.” Keeping every project on schedule and on budget is no easy task, but Daniels’ crew of 40 carpenters, designers, artists and engineers pull off jaw-dropping specimens of art. To a novice, it’s hard to believe their amazing handy-work and painstakingly detailed pieces actually are made of wood. 

In the seven-episode premiere season, Ron and John and the team head back to the glory days of California’s gold rush to create a working replica of a gold-stamp mill and spinning waterwheel for a roadside attraction; build a pirate-themed “scallywag sloop” for lil’ swashbucklers; and construct a 10-gunport shooting gallery for the flagship store of one of the country’s largest sporting-goods chains. The crew members also tackle their largest and most demanding job to date when they design the massive, nine-room, interactive theatrical experience: The San Francisco Dungeon. Located in the historic Fisherman’s Wharf, visitors get a tour through the city’s colorful 200-year-old history, including a plague room complete with model cadavers and a torture chair designed to scare the wits out of them, and are introduced to original San Francisco characters such as James “Shanghai” Kelly and Miss Piggott, from the famed Miss Piggott’s Saloon.

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