(FISHTAIL, MT) - After widespread speculation among the midstate's rabid TV news fans about his next move, former WHTM-TV news anchor Rick Wagner has started an alpaca breeding ranch in Montana. Separately, he's also begun modeling underwear for regional department stores.
"Alpacas are like llamas, but a hell of a lot cuter," Wagner said, in a phone interview from his new ranch. "As for the underwear thing, I'm hoping I can quit that as soon as I start making money off of these animals. That's just temporary, for easy money."
But in the meantime, he says, he's posing at least once a week for circulars for Big Daddy's Underwear Bonanza, which has five locations throughout Montana, and Briefs and Drugs, a chain of seven pharmacies that also carry undergarments.
"Most ads have me in boxers," Wagner said, "though the contract indicated there would also be a good deal of brief and thong action."
Wagner's move to Montana was as sudden as his departure from WHTM-TV, about which both he and station executives have stayed tight-lipped.
"Let's just say working at a fitness club and calling bingo on Monday nights got old pretty fast," Wagner said.
His former TV colleagues expressed little shock at word of the underwear modeling.
"The alpacas? Yeah, that's just weird," said WHTM-TV weather anchor Chuck Rhodes. "But Rick used to walk around the newsroom in his underwear all the time just to break things up, you know, when things were a little tense."
"Alpacas are like llamas, but a hell of a lot cuter," Wagner said, in a phone interview from his new ranch. "As for the underwear thing, I'm hoping I can quit that as soon as I start making money off of these animals. That's just temporary, for easy money."
But in the meantime, he says, he's posing at least once a week for circulars for Big Daddy's Underwear Bonanza, which has five locations throughout Montana, and Briefs and Drugs, a chain of seven pharmacies that also carry undergarments.
"Most ads have me in boxers," Wagner said, "though the contract indicated there would also be a good deal of brief and thong action."
Wagner's move to Montana was as sudden as his departure from WHTM-TV, about which both he and station executives have stayed tight-lipped.
"Let's just say working at a fitness club and calling bingo on Monday nights got old pretty fast," Wagner said.
His former TV colleagues expressed little shock at word of the underwear modeling.
"The alpacas? Yeah, that's just weird," said WHTM-TV weather anchor Chuck Rhodes. "But Rick used to walk around the newsroom in his underwear all the time just to break things up, you know, when things were a little tense."
