Every individual who has ever been a fan of movies, or went to the movies, has seen the face of Leo the Lion. There's alot of history behind that cat ... and all of it has been made famous by MGM. However, as famous as MGM has made Leo, Leo has made them just as famous by his trademark look and popular growl. The Mary Tyler Moore MTM productions parodied Leo by using a little cat meowing at the end of each of their show's. Leo the lion was also the name of the simple hand puppet with wide eyes and spiky whiskers used as commercial spokesperson for the Lyons Moving & Storage Company in the 1950s. Leo wore a moving man's uniform with bow-tie and a hat reading Lyons. There are also buildings and statues that bear "Leo's face"....Leo is displayed proudly by MGM - but claim to have no ties that bind with him, that story later ....
Leo first roared July 31, 1928 for the debut of the movie "White Shadows of the South Seas." The roar was heard via a phonograph record since it was a silent movie. The MGM lion logo was created in 1916 for the Goldwyn Pictures Corporation by advertising executive Howard Dietz. A search was launched and a cub was found in Port Sudan, Africa...the cub to become Leo. Hollywood's premier animal trainer, and Leo's owner, Volney Phifer never thought that he would become inseparable with the cub he had found. The MGM logo was based on the Columbia University fight song Roar, Lion, Roar. In 1924, when Goldwyn merged with Metro and Louis B. Mayer, the lion logo became the trademark for the new company. Over the years a number of lions have portrayed Leo including Slats, Jackie and Tanner. None could be Leo though. Around the circle that framed Leo the Lion in the beginning of each film, the MGM motto "Ars Gratia Artis" (Art for Art's Sake) was displayed. MGM launched an all out tour around the world of Leo. Leo earned a reputation of being a cat with nine lives: he survived two train wrecks, a flood in Mississippi, an earthquake in California, a fire and a plane crash. Leo became MGM. In the early 30's, Leo's trainer (Phifer) retired to his farm in New Jersey, taking his beloved Leo with him. Leo died in 1936 at the age of twenty-three, an old age for a lion, leaving many descendants. His body rests on Phifer's farm in Gillette, New Jersey. You can see his grave here.
ABOUT THE GRAVE OF LEO:
Phifer buried Leo in the front yard and marked the grave with a small, blank block of granite. More significant is the pine tree that Phifer, full of secret European wisdom, planted directly over Leo's body. He insisted that its roots would "hold down the lion's spirit." The grave now is in bad shape. The tree slopes and looks like it could fall any minute, and the granite is getting old and weathered. MGM refuses to contribute to the grave of the lion that has been thier trademark for 76 years now. They claim that there are no ties that bind and Leo's contract has long since run out! Yet they can build big buildings in the image of Leo, and erect HUGE ass statues over THIS TRADEMARK Lion of theirs but there are no ties that bind?? Gimme a break! MGM is a multi-billion dollar company, you'd think they could afford to give thier trademark's grave some well-deserved dignity.
Click here to see a photo of Phifer and Leo
TRIVIA:
Director Marshall Neilan cultivated a first-rate rivalry with MGM chief Louis B. Mayer. Prior to a large MGM preview one day, attended by an array of executives and stars, Neilan altered the soundtrack so that when Leo, MGM's legendary trademark lion, appeared on the screen at the beginning of the picture, rather than giving its usual roar, all that came out was a kitten's meow. |
