Another birkie bites it by being bitten by "benign, trained" bear

Wednesday, April 23, 2008

A grizzly bear that recently featured in a Will Ferrell film has killed his trainer.

The beast named Rocky had to be subdued with pepper spray after killing Stephan Miller with a bite to the neck.

The 317.5kg animal recently appeared on the big screen, wrestling Ferrell's character in the movie Semi-Pro.

The attack on 39-year-old Miller happened yesterday at his cousin Randy Miller's Predators in Action facility, in San Bernardino, southern California. Keyword=PREDATORS.

The county's Department of Fish and Game is investigating - and will consider what to do with five-year-old, 2.3-metre-tall Rocky.

In a February interview, Randy Miller called Rocky "the best working bear in the business".

But he warned: "If one of these animals gets a hold of your throat, you're finished." And yet, he let the bear get a hold of his throat.

Randy Miller doubled for Ferrell in the recent film's wrestling scene. Will may be a comedian but he's no fool.

He won a World Stunt Academy Award for his work wrestling tigers in the 2000 Oscar-winning blockbuster Gladiator and performed stunts with his animals in films including The Postman, The Island of Dr Moreau and The Last Samurai. And was ultimately killed by one of the animals that got sick and tired of his shit.

The centre says it has two grizzly bears, and also trains lions, tigers, leopards, cougars and wolves for uses ranging from film and TV to advertising and education. And killing their trainers the instant they get the chance.