Lion Myths...or Facts?

Graphic Source: Generic eBay search.

Almost as soon as anything happens, human beings begin to tell their own version of what happened.  Over time, different versions of the same event can become entrenched as "the way it was."  Some versions become so prevalent that they take on a mythological context of their own and are repeated as "fact" until such time people simply nod, agree and move on.

One of our goals with the Leo The Flying Lion Project is to eventually present as many of the myths as possible for each aspect of the saga.  Some of those myths might even be facts!  We want our readers to be able to make up their own minds about what might be myth and what might be fact.  With a 93-year-old story such as this one, it's quite likely all of the so-called "actual facts" may never be known.  Therefore readers are free to adopt and retell their own version(s) of the legend.

There are two basic versions of the origin of the lion aboard the plane.  One purports the lion was "borrowed" from a circus.  The other claims the lion was MGM's "Jackie."  Let's take a look at the first myth first.

We found the following snippet amid Martin Jensen's papers at the University of Wyoming in Laramie:

"These are the main things that Pete Smith remembers about the Leo the Lion story. Pete Smith was Director of Publicity for MGM, and Howard Strickling was his assistant. Leo was borrowed from Al G. Barnes circus, which had its winter quarters in Culver City. Leo was displayed for the press for about a week before the flight, at the MGM studio. The flight was to be the first non-stop, Los Angeles to New York. For many years afterward, the Barnes people publicized "Leo as Leo the MGM Flying lion.' "

Furthermore, Scott Gifford said in a February 11, 2020, email to the Editor:

"BTW: Jackie may have been MGM’s first lion, but Jackie wasn’t the lion in the flight. That lion was borrowed from a circus which wintered in Culver City. I think that’s the big reason why MGM was so concerned about rescuing the lion!"

Source: http://bit.ly/3bEHrLH

The Al G. Barnes Circus wasn't in Culver City, California, in September 1927.  Nope.  That particular circus spent the month of September in Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana.  On the day Martin Jensen took off from San Diego, the Al G. Barnes circus was in Little Rock, Arkansas.  The 1920's were The Golden Age of The Traveling Circus.  After each season, each circus would print a lavishly illustrated "Route Book."  

Think of the Route Books as you might a high school year book.  The books were sold to admiring fans and also used to promote the upcoming season.  As you can see from the cover of the 1927 Route Book, a male African lion is a key icon of the circus.  The lion acts of any given circus were considered by many to be the highlight of the show.  Judging from the poster show at the top of this article, it appears at the Al G. Barnes needed every trained lion they could keep their hands on. 

Page 21 of 1927 Route Book:
http://digital.library.illinoisstate.edu/cdm/ref/collection/p15990coll5/id/10356

Although it's obvious the lion could not have come from the traveling circus itself, the lion COULD have come from a zoo that Barnes once operated in Culver City.  However, there is some trouble with that, too. The land which housed Barnes Zoo was annexed to Culver City in 1925 and Los Angeles in 1926. Upset with tighter regulation and opposition by adjacent homeowners, Barnes moved his winter quarters to unincorporated land in the San Gabriel Valley. In Februrary 1927 he bought a tract of land a quarter of a mile long facing Valley Blvd. between El Monte and Baldwin Park for $1,000,000. Source of above information:
https://www.westland.net/venicehistory/articles/BarnesCircusZoo.htm

Perhaps the lion in Jensen's plane came from the Zoo but at this point we can't find any definitive proof.  We also can't find a nano-scrap of evidence that any Al G. Barnes performing circus lion was billed as "Leo The MGM Flying Lion."  Perhaps one of our astute reader/researchers can dig up more evidence supporting either one or both of those claims.

Meanwhile, a credible source associated with MGM states it was indeed "Jackie" aboard the plane. Jackie was the movie company's second lion after "Slats."

From: MGM LOGO HISTORY AND THE 2008 RESTORATION PROCESS Compiled By Ed Vigdor:

“Jackie” was born circa 1915 and was captured as a cub in the Nubian dessert. He spent much of his life in Hollywood as a performer in jungle pictures, eventually chosen to appear on our logo. He, like “Slats”, would tour the world on behalf of the studio. “Jackie” was nick named “Leo The Lucky” after surviving two train wrecks, an earthquake, a boat sinking, an explosion at the studio and a plane crash."

Source: https://garycoates.files.wordpress.com/2010/02/logo-history-restoration-article.pdf

Ed Vigdor's article is the best summary of the MGM Lions we have yet found.  You will enjoy see the 15 second video of the restoration of Leo The Lion's roaring here: https://youtu.be/OVCxJ1aT24A

So, there you have it.  The choice is yours.  We will continue studying the lion's ownership and origin.

Source of photo below: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leo_the_Lion_(MGM)