Why the Hatred for Roy — A Survey of the Recent Press on a TragedyInside MagicMagic News Updated Daily for the Professional Magician

Roy and White Tiger (File Photo)

The AP article in The Olympiannotes that: ?Comedians, radio shock jocks and fellow magicians loved to poke fun at the eccentric Germans in glittery, futuristic outfits who for decades pranced around with white tigers on a Las Vegas stage.?

The word ?pranced? isn?t quoted from some other source within the story but apparently was offered by the witty writer working the weekend beat at the AP.

I?ve seen the Siegfried and Roy a bunch of times and never saw either one of them ?prance.? You have to wonder if this type of writing would have been considered appropriate for some other typically maligned group. ?The Irish American Mayor slurred and stumbled through his speech? or ?Female National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice unleashed what seemed to be a PMS-infused argument against the Hamas? leader.?

As it turns out, the word ?pranced? comes from a Penn Jillette quote in another story, he accuses the duo of ?prancing like fairies.?

Roy and White Tiger (File Photo)

The word ?pranced? isn?t quoted from some other source within the story but apparently was offered by the witty writer working the weekend beat at the AP.

As it turns out, the word ?pranced? comes from a Penn Jillette quote in another story, he accuses the duo of ?prancing like fairies.?

I digress. The point of the article is apparently that no one is making fun of Siegfried and Roy any longer for their allegedly gay lifestyle. And yet, within the first sentence, we are returned to the apparent small-minded attempt at humor by some anonymous writerquoting a magician who owes his comfortable Las Vegas living to the “prancing fairies” he attacks even after the nearly fatal attack.

The point of the story is that even Penn and Teller and Howard Stern no longer hold the magicians up as the punch lines for their jokes. The story notes:

Fellow Las Vegas magician Penn Jillette and partner Teller, who bill themselves as the anti-Siegfried and Roy, removed all references to the duo in their nightly show and also stopped running anti-Siegfried and Roy advertisements.
“Every magician in Vegas had to rewrite their show,” Jillette said.
Howard Stern, one of the duo’s harshest lampooners, shared a new perspective this week during his radio show. “They finally get our respect,” he said.

The article also considers the unfortunate attacks that now appear either ironic or poorly timed. A.A. Gill of Vanity Fair called the show the ?worst specialty show? ever. “Everyone’s really here to see the white carnivores, hoping against hope that just maybe, just once, the tables will turn,” Gill wrote. ?Sadly, not this time.”

The Vanity Fair?s incredible statement enraged Siegfried. “Why did they come back over and over again?” he asked. “Because they felt it was true. They believed.”

Gill could not be reached for a comment, much less an apology.

Okay, now I offer the most offensive quote ? at least to me.

Penn Jillette said the duo has never been offended by his past jokes ? they know they are comic fodder. “They do stupid tricks with animals,” he said. “Part of my job is to make jokes about them. Part of their job is to take it. We love our jobs.”

This was a statement made after the attack on Roy.

I realize that Penn takes great pride in his atheistic, nihilism but to the extent he would care about the life of even his partner, Teller, he must respect the pain those who love Roy feel reading such a callous, flippant quote.

Doesn?t anyone like Roy? Yes, some do.

A lot of people care. There was a nice effort put together by the Toledo Zoo for Roy.

The zoo, one of our favorites here at the Mystic Hollow Mansion where Inside Magic is produced, designed a special get-well card for illusionist Roy Horn.

Caring for Their Animals

The three-by-six foot banner at the Toledo Zoo carries the message, “Your magic will always inspire.” By midday Saturday, more than 100 people had signed the card and wished Horn well. The zoo made it possible for folks to sign the banner without paying for admission. Check out the story here.

There is a very nice article in the Las Vegas News Journal talking about Siegfried and Roy?s staying power in a town where things come and go as quickly as dried out food on a casino?s 24 hour a day buffet. The author notes the difference between Siegfried and Roy and traditional ?Vegas? acts such as Wayne Newton or Tom Jones. You can read it here.

The same paper has an editorial titled, Mauling Brings Out the Nuts noting that Roy and Siegfried?s dedication to the preservation of the White Tiger should be lauded and that Roy?s injuries should be the subject of sympathy but People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals attribute the life-threatening attack to the use of animals for entertainment.

You can read the News Journal?s defense of the magicians? care and use of the animals here.

But a lot of people don?t care.

The major metropolitan news outlet, The Saratogian, offered its offensive editorial titled, It’s a Story as Old as Time Itself — 59-year-old Foreign-Born Homosexual Magician Mistaken for Chew Toy by 600-pound White Tiger Named Montecore.

Within the course of the story, the unenlightened rag writes:

PETA members feel the animal should be released back into its natural environment which, in this case is a $15 million Las Vegas estate on 10 acres filled with white marble fountains and 50-foot statues depicting Siegfried and Roy playing ‘hide the magic wand.’

Remember, this tiger wasn’t exactly born free. Of course, the show ain’t exactly free either. At $100 a pop, I’d want to see someone attacked every show. But I digress.

Why don?t they care?

Is it because they suspect Roy is gay?

It can?t be because they don?t like magicians or they don?t like people that work with animals. No one attacks zoo keepers who are killed when an elephant stomps them as they are moved from one small cage to another. You don?t really hear anything bad about other magicians. Sure there is the occasional attack on David Copperfield but nothing so personal or evil.

For every comment by homophobes, fortunately, there are the positive and sincere wishes from Siegfried and Roy?s fans.

The same people that filled their theaters since 1967 and if it is in God?s plan, will continue to attend, applaud and be amazed. The true magic would be our ability as a society to rise above our hatred and prejudice and come together to support the gallant efforts of Roy as he attempts to regain function necessary to speak and walk.

We continue to pray for Roy and Siegfried.