King's agent 'sought $50,000' to stop him going 'feral'

Mike King went from promoting pork to campaigning for pig welfare. Photo / Supplied

Comedian Mike King's agent wanted a $50,000 severance payment from New Zealand Pork to stop his client going "feral", documents say.

Papers released to the Herald on Sunday under the Official Information Act claim celebrity agent David Steele asked for the payment to stop King "going dog" and speaking out against the pork industry.

The claim was allegedly made in a conversation between Steele and NZ Pork marketing manager Hadleigh Smith in February last year.

Three months later King sensationally fronted a documentary exposing cruel pig farming practices.

The papers also revealed King received almost $550,000 during a six-year commercial relationship with the industry board.

Smith said: "I remember the conversation quite clearly - some severance pay would be a good way to stop Mike going 'dog', help prevent him from going 'feral'. $50,000 was a good number, he indicated."

Steele's request is also noted in records from a NZ Pork committee meeting in February.

Yesterday Steele described that version of events as "an absolute crock of s***." He did not categorically deny using the words "dog" or "feral" in conversations with NZ Pork. "But I'd be very surprised if I used those words," he said.

Steele also said the impression by NZ Pork that a payment would "keep Mike positive about pork" was misinterpreted. "If I said that as a throwaway line, I couldn't say. But it's not where I was coming from," he said.

Steele confirmed he sought $50,000 for his client because he felt the contract was ended with too little notice.

NZ Pork declined the request in writing in March last year.

King said yesterday he didn't inform his agent he had broken into a pig farm with animal activists in February. "I do a lot of things that I don't tell him about. I'm my own man, and he does what he does - which is looking after the money. I didn't tell him I was a cocaine addict either."

Between 2002 and 2008 King was paid $549,943 for use of his image, one day of filming television commercials and two public-speaking engagements a year. He also received two spit-roasted pigs valued at $405 free of charge.

King said the end of the payments from NZ Pork was not a motivating factor in his decision to crusade for pig welfare. "It had nothing to do with money - I don't need money any more. I don't need to buy drugs," he said.

"That's a hell of an expensive way to live your life."

Steele said he knew nothing about "Mike's crusade".

The documents revealed a year after King was recruited as the face of pork in New Zealand, officials became nervous when the comedian left an obscene phone message for the writers of Eating Media Lunch after they lampooned his show Mike King Live.

King said, in part of the expletive-filled message: "You have f***** with the wrong person, you f****** jumped up little s*** head".

NZ Pork chief executive Sam McIvor confirmed that "death, disability and disgrace" insurance was sought as a direct result of the adverse publicity from this incident.

The policy cost NZ Pork $29,000 a year, but insurers refused to cover obscene phone calls under the "disgrace" portion of the policy.

A representative of underwriters Marsh wrote in December 2003: "The NZ Pork industry is aware at the time of buying the insurance that Mike King is liable to make similar outbursts in the future."

King said, in hindsight, insuring against the possibility of disgrace was a wise move by his former employers: "I was pretty out there in those days."