White Tiger Attacked Roy Horn of 'Siegfried & Roy'

[ml_man]

(CNN) -- A nine-year-old white tiger attacked Roy Horn of 'Siegfried & Roy' during a Friday night performance on the Las Vegas strip -- the tiger's first time on stage, and the trainer's 59th birthday.

The tiger lunged at Horn's neck about half-way through the show, and dragged him off stage, audience members said.

"He looked like a rag doll in his mouth," said Kirk Baser, from Pennsylvania.

Emergency officials arrived at the MGM Mirage Hotel-Casino around 8:20 p.m. (10:20 p.m. ET), and treated Horn for massive blood loss before he was rushed to University Medical Center for emergency surgery.

He was listed in critical condition shortly after midnight (2 a.m. ET), according to a recorded message from hospital spokeswoman Cheryl Persinger.

Horn was talking at the time emergency workers arrived, but had trouble breathing, Clark County Fire spokesman Bob Leinbach said.

Horn, the darker-haired member of 'Siegfried & Roy', was born in Nordenham, Germany on October 3, 1944. Combining magic with tiger stunts, the flamboyant duo has performed on the Las Vegas strip for nearly 30 years.

The tiger that attacked Horn is currently in quarantine and no one else was injured in the attack, according to MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman.

Audience members were shocked to realized the attack was not part of an illusion or magic trick.

Amy Sherman, who was sitting in the front row with her mother about 10 yards away from the stage, said the attack happened right after Horn introduced the tiger, saying it was the animal's first performance.

"Right after that, the tiger kind of turned its head and bit him on the arm," Sherman said. "Roy started taking a microphone and started whapping the tiger on the head."

The tiger, who was on a short leash, then dragged Horn to the ground and they struggled before the tiger dragged him behind a curtain by his neck, she said. Trainers on stage rushed to aid Horn, trying to subdue the tiger.

"We just heard all this commotion behind the curtain and you could hear Roy scream," Sherman said. "Everyone at our table was kind of looking at each other, like 'Oh my God,'" she said.

About a minute, which Sherman's mother said seemed like forever, Siegfried appeared on stage.

"You could tell he was really shook up, and he just said, 'I'm sorry but the show is over, and you know, the show has been canceled'" Joyce Edenholl said.

"Everyone there I think , thought it was part of the act, because no one really freaked out," Kirk Baser said. "When it grabbed him and dragged him off the stage, I thought maybe it was like some magic trick where they switch a rag doll or something."

A group of Australians said they witnessed the attack from the front row of the crowded theater, and also thought it was just part of the show.

"A lady ran past me, freaking out and it was then I sort of, in the back of my mind, thought now this isn't part of the show," said David Strudwick. "And then you look at the staff and they had a bit of horror in their eyes and ... it was like, wait a second, it may not be a part of the show."

[Morning_Wood]

play with fire....

sooner or later.............

[ml_man]

(Oct. 8) -- Casino mogul Steve Wynn is one of the people who best knows Siegfried and Roy. He is one of the duos closest friends. He hired the illusionists when he built The Mirage in 1990. He even built a special theater just for their show.

Wynn gave an exclusive interview to Eyewitness News Anchor, Gary Waddell on Wednesday. He explained, "What happened Friday night was a fluke, something that never should have occurred. And something that no one could have foreseen." He continued to say, "That even as Roy was being carried off stage by the tiger, he was saying he didn't want anything to happen to the cat."

Even though Wynn was in Idaho on Friday night when the incident happened, he was one of the first people called. He flew home Saturday morning and went straight to the hospital to visit Roy. He then began the task of trying to figure out what went wrong.

Wynn said he is certain that Montecore did not attack Roy Horn. He refers to attack reports as being false. Instead, he says it was a string of unfortunate events that led to the tiger carrying Roy off the stage. He described it as being similar to how a tiger would carry a cub. "Montecore would never attack Roy. In a way, the tiger was trying to protect him," Wynn said.

Wynn says he spoke to many people who were on the scene and pieced together the following set of circumstances that preceded Roy being injured.

"As Roy was leading Montecore out to stage front on a lease, the cat became fascinated and distracted by woman with a big hairdo in the front row." Wynn says instead of Montecore following Roy through his usual routine, the cat became fascinated with a woman in the audience that had a big hairdo. "For whatever reason, Montecore was fascinated and distracted by the guest sitting ringside."

"Montecore got down on all fours and put his 26-inch head four inches away from of the woman. She thinks this is adorable and part of the show and reaches out to try and rub him under his chin. Roy is talking and sees this move. That's way wrong all the way around. As usual, the heroic fellow that he is, Roy jumps between the woman and the tiger."

Wynn says at that point, Roy tried to get the tiger's attention by pulling back on the leash and saying, "No, no, no, no. Come on, get up". Wynn adds that Montecore resisted, as if to say, "No, I'm not ready yet." Roy continued to command him to get up.

"The tiger gently reached up and grabbed Roy's right arm with his jaws between Roy's elbow and wrist in a very gentle way," Wynn said, pointing out that Roy did not receive a scratch on his arm, nor was his costume torn. "That's how gentle Montecore's grip was on Roy."

"Roy loudly commanded the cat to release its grip by saying, "No, no, no, no. Release, release," several times. He had to whack him with the rubber microphone several times to try and get the tiger to release the grip. This didn't hurt the tiger, but it did make a loud noise."

"Roy continued to pull on Montecore's leash not realizing that one of the cat's paws was behind his leg." According to Wynn, Roy tripped over the paw and fell backward on the stage and was lying on his back. He said that four stagehands then rushed out and jumped on the cat. Wynn believes Montecore was confused and reacted by trying to carry Roy off the stage to safety.

Wynn says Montecore just leaned over Roy and picked him up like he was a cub. Wynn says it was not a bite or an attack. "There was no damage to Roy's neck, but there were two puncture wounds and one of those teeth went through Roy's vertebral artery and severed it -- the one behind his neck -- that's what caused the stroke and massive bleeding putting him in a near-death situation."

Wynn says Montecore walked off the stage as if he were finishing his routine and even attempts to go back into his cage carrying Roy. Stagehands backstage used a technique that made Montecore release Roy. That technique reportedly involved spraying the tiger with a fire extinguisher.

Roy was then rushed to UMC.

Wynn underscores that Montecore was acting to protect Roy. He explained that during a lethal attack, a predator's instinct is to violently grab its prey by the neck, vigorously shaking its head and snapping the neck of its prey. He says this is not what happened.

While Gary Waddell was with Steve Wynn today, he got a call from Bernie Yuman, Siegfried and Roy's manager. Yuman said that they had just brought Roy's dog to visit him in the hospital and that Roy had responded by petting the dog.

Wynn also says he's been told that they are starting to wean Roy off the life support systems in order to let his body function on its own. If that's successful, that will be a very big step in Roy's recovery.