TV/Movie bear kills trainer

BIG BEAR LAKE, Calif. (AP) — A grizzly bear killed a trainer Tuesday at a private facility for exotic animals used in movies and television, authorities said.
Three experienced handlers were working with the bear at Randy Miller's Predators in Action facility when the bear bit 39-year-old Stephan Miller on the neck, said San Bernardino County sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Beavers. Stephan Miller is Randy's cousin, she said.

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5i...AnwZgD907BDHG0


I'm shocked and saddened. Not just because a bear killed a trainer, but because I've personally worked with this bear (Rocky) and the trainers. For two days I stood a mere 4 or 5 ft from two of these gorgeous animals with no barrier between us during filming for a Burt Reynolds/FedEx Super Bowl commercial. The size, up close, is jaw-dropping, to say the least.

The trainers brought two bears to the shoot, but Rocky is the one walking through the door in the ad. I searched for the bear's "resume" but Semi-Pro is the only work cited. (If I remember correctly, Rocky was also in The Edge with Baldwin and Hopkins.)

Here's the commercial (from '05):


RIP- Stephan Miller
RIP- Rocky (they'll have to put him down)





PS-I knew I'd forget to list "people I've met" in the other thread, so if I add to the list, remind me to add Burt. (I forgot to list JLHewitt, too-- but that's another story, for another day.)

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No the bear in The Edge was named Bart.

Sad story... all the way around. When I hear anything like this though I can't help but remember what my grandfather told me... "wild animals can teach man many things... and the first lesson is that they are wild."

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Exactly what I was gonna say. Remember the story of the old woman who rescued the wolf?

Sorry for your personal loss in this TZ.

Indeed a sad tale ... I'm sorry about the trainer ... I sincerely hope that he didn't suffer.

But I'm also saddened that the bear also was killed.

It angers and confounds me why the animal always has to be destroyed when it only does what comes instinctively natural

Recently (monthish ago) a couple of teens were out surfing in the morning ... one got taken by a shark and died on the beach later ... the water was murky and anyone who surfs should realise that this is not the conditions to enter the water. So what was the reaction for authorities, close beach and lets hunt that man-eater.

Just glad the shark got away.

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Toza, last I read they hadn't yet decided the bear's fate, since this happened outside his owner/trainer's sheltered area. So he may yet get a reprieve.

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I can see the animal being killed simply for justice. If a wild animal (including a shark) killed someone I cared about, I'd want to kill it too, despite the fact that it may be its natural instinct.

It may be a natural instinct for Naomi Campbell to punch, hit and bite people she comes into contact with, but that doesn't mean we can't arrest her and put her in jail.

Anyway, I think if you wanna be safe, don't train wild animals to be actors. Keep them locked up somewhere or let them roam free in the wilderness (just watch out where you go...) but for god's sakes, don't put them in a commercial with Burt Reynolds! If these creatures turn into temperamental actors, it could be deadly.

As of this posting ... the bear is still alive

Hoping that it will not be euthanised as suggested but be transported to a wildlife sanctuary as it obviously cannot be released into the wild.

I heard this on one of those American morning news programmes where the presenters spent half the show outside the studio so the throng of hyped up audience can scream their throats raw and spastically wave in the background ... I guess fullfulling their lifetime dreams of a 3 second claim to fame

But not the trainer!

No... not the trainer... and, like I said, it is very sad it happened, but he would have had to have been a fool not to have known what could happen... and apparently he accepted that risk...

Everyone remembers Bart because of the remembrance at the end of the credits, but they used more than one bear. A bear that growls for a close up is not necessarily the same bear that's used as a sprinter, or a climber, or in "setting shots." Hell, they brought 2 bears to the two day FedEx shoot (in the link I posted) and Rocky was only shown for a total of a second and a half.

Sad news


Mod please close my thread on this.. I only searched for Semi=Pro bear

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