Sunday, November 25, 2012

Sunday Salute XXXVI


I have a great admiration for George and Joy Adamson who worked as conservationis in Africa and were, in a great measure, responsible for shedding light on the plight of all African Animals but especially the big cats.  

From Wikipedia - 
George Adamson (3 February 1906 – 20 August 1989), also known as the Baba ya Simba (“Father of Lions” in Swahili), was a British wildlife conservationist and author. He and his wife, Joy Adamson, are best known through the movie Born Free and best-selling book with the same title, which is based on the true story of Elsa the Lioness, an orphaned lioness cub they had raised and later released into the wild. 

Joy Adamson (20 January 1910 – 3 January 1980) (born Friederike Victoria Gessner) was a naturalist, artist, and author best known for her book, Born Free, which describes her experiences raising a lion cub named Elsa.Born Free was printed in several languages, and made into an Academy Award-winning movie of the same name.


Born Free received largely favorable reviews from critics. Adamson worked closely with publishers to promote the book, which contributed to the Adamsons' new-found international celebrity.
Joy Adamson spent the rest of her life raising money for wildlife, thanks to the popularity of Born Free. The book was followed by Living Free, which is about Elsa as a mother to her cubs, and Forever Free, which tells of the release of the cubs Jespah, Gopa and Little Elsa. Adamson shared book proceeds with various conservation projects.

Quotes
"I really have no patience with people who maintain that an animal's life and actions are governed by pure instinct and conditioned reflexes. Nothing except reasoning powers can explain the careful strategy used by a pride of lions in hunting, and the many examples we have had from Elsa of intelligent and thought out behaviour."   

"Who will now care for the animals, for they cannot look after themselves? Are there young men and women who are willing to take on this charge? Who will raise their voices, when mine is carried away on the wind, to plead their case?"
George Adamson

Since we humans have the better brain, isn't it our responsibility to protect our fellow creatures from, oddly enough, ourselves?  

Joy Adamson



And the work goes on. Chick here -  Born Free Foundation.





Previous Salutes
Martha Raye
Bill Clinton    Brad Pitt   The Masons     Barbra Striesand
Ellen DeGeneres  Edward "Ted" Kennedy  Paul Newman
Michelle Obama  Audrey Hepburn     Princess Diana    Harry S Truman   
John Shelby Spong  Desmond Tutu     Rachael Maddow   Matt Damon  
Jehan Sadat   Jane Goodall    Mohandas Gandhi  
 Eleanor Roosevelt    Lyndon B. Johnson      Michelle Obama
Helen Hayes   Marion Wright Edelman     Bishop Gene Robinson
Bishop Desmond Tutu       Rachel Carson          Helen Keller
Martin Luther King, Jr          Dalai Lama         Dag Hammarskjold

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