One of NatGeo WILD’s most successful reality programs, The Incredible Dr. Pol established a new normal for veterinarian Dr. Jan Pol, his family, and staff.
At the time of the series’ launch in 2011, Dr. Pol was 69 years of age and had been running his animal clinic with his wife, Diane, since 1981. Now at 77, the vet, if anything, seems as fit and excited to be in his business as ever.
With the success of The Incredible Dr. Pol, the Netherlands-born vet has expanded his practice to bring on more veterinarians and just recently launched his own line of domestic pet food.
Which brings us to the brainchild of it all – Dr. Pol’s very own son, Charles, a producer on the show. Find out how a suggestion by Charles got it all moving into motion.
Charles’ great idea
As the story goes, Dr. Pol and his staff were taking care of business at their clinic in Michigan when Charles, while working at Nickelodeon at the time, was thunderstruck with an idea.
Dr. Pol explained to Tribune News Service in 2018, “[Charles] went to film school in Miami and then went to Hollywood. He said, ‘We’re here in Hollywood. Let’s make movies!’ But the writers’ strike was there, and filmmakers were a dime a dozen, and he was here for about eight to ten years.”
“Then he had a friend at Nickelodeon and Charles said, ‘If you want to make a reality show, you should make one with my dad. He’s a veterinarian. He does large animals. He’s in the Midwest, and there’s been nothing like that on TV. And he’s a CHARACTER,’ ” Dr. Pol recalled, laughing.
NatGeo WILD said yes
“So the three guys came with a cameraman, so you do it for your son. Who cares?” Dr. Pol continued in his conversation with Tribune. “So one week filming they made a four-minute DVD and took it to all the networks.”
Most of the networks weren’t interested. “Nat Geo Wild was a new channel, why not? So they came out with a crew of ten, made four episodes and started broadcasting it, and the rest is history,” grins Pol.
The show’s co-executive producer Jonathan Schroder told NatGeo WILD, “I knew this guy is the kind of guy you can base a television series off of: Loud. Easy with a laugh, easy with a smile,” Schroder said. “I had more doubts about our ability to keep up with Dr. Pol, and to capture the story because I knew we had the talent.”
Charles Pol’s net worth
Dr. Pol’s son, Charles’ net worth is $2 million, according to CelebTattler. He was recently married in January of last year to Beth Oakes, and they had their first child in October of last year.
“My dad is a role model,” says Charles. “He grew up on a poor farm in the middle of a different country. He worked hard and he built … a veterinary empire here in the middle of Michigan through nothing but his blood, sweat, and tears.”
Clearly, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and it shows in the success of The Incredible Dr. Pol, now in its sixteenth season on NatGeo WILD.
Read more: ‘The Incredible Dr. Pol’: Dr. Emily Gets Brutally Honest About Being a Woman in the Veterinary Field
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