The Survey Says: 90 Percent Of Americans Anticipate A World Disaster... And Want To Go Out With A Cocktail & A Roll In The Hay

New Survey by National Geographic Channel Timed to the Return of Its No. 1 Series, Doomsday Preppers, Reveals That if the End of the World Happened:

58 percent of Americans would want their last sexual encounter to be with significant other; 61 percent say Hurricane Sandy made them think more about being prepared for possible disaster; Sex on the Beach is the no. 1 cocktail Americans would want to sip; 30 percent feel Tom Cruise is most likely an undercover prepper; 24 percent think "Jersey Shore" means the "end" is near

Season Two of Doomsday Preppers Premieres Tonight, Tuesday, November 13, 2012, At 9 & 10 PM ET/PT; Airs Weekly Tuesdays at 9 PM ET/PT

WASHINGTON, Nov. 13, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- With hurricanes, earthquakes and financial concerns affecting so many Americans, National Geographic Channel (NGC) and Kelton Research today released the results of a new survey gauging Americans' preparedness levels and mind-set related to a potential "doomsday" scenario.

This comes as NGC returns its no. 1 series, Doomsday Preppers (premiering Tuesday, November 13, at 9 p.m. & 10 p.m. ET/PT), focusing on Americans with an unshakable certainty that America soon faces tougher times — when grocery stores are empty, water is in short supply and electricity is unavailable — and are stockpiling for survival.

Most Americans are fearful of catastrophes, yet are poorly prepared.  According to a new U.S. end-of-the-world survey from NGC, 90 percent of Americans anticipate a world disaster, while more than half of the nation — 56 percent — is not prepared!

Even though predicting a catastrophe is impossible, in the next quarter-century, more citizens believe that the U.S. might experience a significant hurricane (58%) or a major earthquake (53%), versus a terrorist attack (51%).  All of the above are major calamities, but don't rule out the possibilities for a financial collapse (49%), epic blackout (33%), pandemic (25%) and/or nuclear fallout (13%).  If a major disaster were to happen, almost seven in ten (69%) predict that it would be a natural disaster, not a man-made event.

"It is incredible to learn that even though 90 percent of Americans today anticipate a world disaster, they are not getting themselves properly prepared," said David Kobler, NGC series consultant and co-founder of Practical Preppers.  "In fact, the survey reports that only 28 percent of Americans know a doomsday prepper.  Americans should prepare now more than ever before, as a major disaster, man-made or natural, can hit at any time."

How many Americans were really prepared for Hurricane Sandy?

• Of those affected by the storm in some way, a majority (85%) bought at least one thing to prepare for this event.  And on average, those who weren't directly impacted by Sandy think their current supply load could last around 11 days if a similar storm were to strike their area.
• More than six in ten (61%) Americans say that the storm has made them think more about being prepared for a possible disaster. 
• 57 percent admitted that after the storm ended, they would make more efforts to be prepared for future catastrophes.
• More than four in ten (41%) are confident in the federal government's ability to handle a storm like Sandy appropriately.

Star-studded preppers
Don't think celebrities are any different from others.  Who among the glitterati are secretly preparing for possible doom?

• Nearly three in ten (30%) of Americans think recently divorced Tom Cruise is the star most likely to be an undercover Doomsday Prepper.
• Hollywood comrade Oprah Winfrey came in a close second at 27 percent.

Spend your last days with:

• Actress Jennifer Aniston tops the list of female celebrities with whom men would most like to spend their last few months on earth at 17 percent.  Meanwhile, other popular starlets include:
  • Megan Fox (13%)
  • Scarlett Johansson (11%)
  • Angelina Jolie (10%)

For women, actor George Clooney was in the lead with 23 percent fawning over him, besting Channing Tatum (10%) and Ryan Gosling (6%).

• Speaking of leading men, 25 percent of Americans name "Iron Man" star Robert Downey, Jr. the action hero most likely to have what it takes to help mankind survive a major catastrophe.
• Christian Bale as "Batman" was second at 17 percent and Chris Evans ("Captain America") third at 14 percent.

How about a book?

• 55 percent of Americans would prefer a religious text, such as the Bible or Koran, to have in hand while bracing for a major event; other popular texts include "The Hunger Games" (10%) and "Fifty Shades of Grey" (6%).

Cocktail, anyone?
If the end is near, a cocktail is sure to improve the mood.  The alcoholic beverage that more than one in five (21%) of Americans aged 21 and over would most want to be sipping is Sex on the Beach. Others include:

• Hurricane (rum and fruit juices) at 13 percent
• Bloody Mary (vodka, tomato juice, hot sauce) at 9 percent
• Dark & Stormy (rum and ginger beer) at 6 percent

Love the one you're with:

• Nearly three in five (58%) Americans would most want their last sexual encounter before the world ends to be with their significant other.
• Nearly one in four (22%) would want to sleep with a celebrity.
• While more women than men (67% vs. 49%) would want to sleep with their significant other, more men than women would choose a celebrity (26% vs. 17%).
• More citizens aged 50+ than those aged 18–49 (64% vs. 54%) would most want to have sex with their significant other, while more in the younger group than those older (26% vs. 14%) would opt for their last partner in bed to be a celebrity.

If you knew the end was in 12 months…

• More than half (53%) would make their last New Year's resolution to spend more time with their family.
• 13 percent would have more sex, and another 13 percent would travel.
• Only 3 percent would quit their job.

Is reality TV a sign of the end to come?

• Nearly one in four Americans think that the reality hits "Jersey Shore" (24%), "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" (23%) or "Toddlers & Tiaras" (19%) are TV series that most likely mean the end of the world is near.  

The survey of more than 1,000 men and women was conducted online from September 6 to September 13, 2012, with a 3.1 percent margin of error.  Hurricane Sandy questions were conducted from October 30 to November 4, with a 3.1 percent margin of error.

About Doomsday Preppers
National Geographic Channel's (NGC) highest-rated series Doomsday Preppers begins its 15-episode second season with a premiere on Tuesday, November 13, 2012, at 9 p.m. ET/PT.  In season two, the series will introduce a plethora of individuals who are committed to thinking through every contingency plan.  The season features a 14-year-old preparing for a global economic collapse; a diabetic mother stockpiling insulin to survive the devastation of an F-5 tornado she fears is coming; and a "Brady Bunch"-style prepping family with six children who anticipate a terrorist smallpox epidemic.

For more information on Doomsday Preppers, visit natgeotv.com/preppers.

Doomsday Preppers is produced by Sharp Entertainment for National Geographic Channels.  For Sharp Entertainment, executive producer is Matt Sharp and co-executive producer is Alan Madison.  NGC's executive producer is Kathleen Cromley; the vice president of production and development is Charlie Parsons and the executive vice president of programming is Michael Cascio.

National Geographic Channels
Based at the National Geographic Society headquarters in Washington, D.C., the National Geographic Channels US are a joint venture between National Geographic and Fox Cable Networks.  The Channels contribute to the National Geographic Society's commitment to exploration, conservation and education with smart, innovative programming and profits that directly support its mission.  Launched in January 2001, National Geographic Channel (NGC) celebrated its fifth anniversary with the debut of NGC HD.  In 2010, the wildlife and natural history cable channel Nat Geo WILD was launched, and in 2011, the Spanish-language network Nat Geo Mundo was unveiled.  The Channels have carriage with all of the nation's major cable, telco and satellite television providers, with NGC currently available in over 79 million U.S. homes.  Globally, National Geographic Channels International is available in more than 380 million homes in 163 countries and 37 languages.  For more information, visit www.natgeotv.com.

SOURCE National Geographic Channels