Back in the ’90s, MGM Grand had this wild idea to bring live lions into a casino-side den as a tourist attraction. The cats arrived on the property in 1999 and, as predicted, crowds armed with cameras crowded before the glass to watch the animals lay around, lick their giant paws, play with trainers and nap.
So when the hotel announced it would close its cat attraction at the end of January, nightly news segments featured man-on-the street interviews with tourists saddened by the announcement. We’re sad, too. But then we realized, there’s ample opportunity to see lions in the flesh elsewhere. Herewith is a list:
Africa: South of the Sahara on this vast continent are populations of the cats living in-situ, following hundreds of thousands of years of evolution, habitat loss and declining numbers.
Detroit: Their Lions have had a rocky go of it, even losing all their regular season games in 2008, but they’re slowly gaining ground. This year’s 10-6 record puts them in the playoffs for the first time since 1999, increasing their visibility in North America.
New York City: The Lion King musical, based on Disney’s 1994 animated film, can still be seen on Broadway and in select U.S. cities. Its Las Vegas tenure at Mandalay Bay ended last month, however, once again depriving Strip visitors of lions. Myron Martin, president of the Smith Center for the Performing Arts, says that bringing the musical back to Las Vegas for a limited run at the facility, which opens in March, is not entirely out of the question.
Community theater: The Wizard of Oz, a 1902 musical based on a children’s novel by L. Frank Baum, came to be listed as one of the most expensive and greatest movies of all time, premiering in 1939 starring a young Judy Garland. The national tour of this production recently ended, but theaters in towns and cities across America are likely to spring up a performance here and there.
Ranch in the Mojave: Animal handler Keith Evans, president of the Cat House and owner of the 40 lions rotated in and out of the MGM attraction, has said that he plans to open his ranch outside of Las Vegas for guests wanting to view the lions. Stay tuned.
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