Siegfried & Roy – The Original Tiger Kings
The Atlantic|November 2022
The improbable rise and savage fall of Siegfried & Roy
By Chris Jones and Michael J. Mooney
Siegfried & Roy – The Original Tiger Kings

The last survivors of a lost empire live behind the Mirage, in Las Vegas, out back by the pool. On a good day, Siegfried & Roy’s Secret Garden will draw more than 1,000 visitors, the $25 adult admission fee justified mostly by the palm shade and tranquility it offers relative to the mania outside its walls. There are also long summer stretches when it’s 100 degrees and things get a little grim. During a recent visit, only a few families strolled through, surveying the five sleeping animals on display: three tigers, a lion, and a leopard. The Secret Garden ostensibly operates as an educational facility. “Look, a lion,” one young father said to his son, while pointing at a tiger.

Yet residual magic remains. The best time to visit is late afternoon, just before closing, when the heat has started to subside and the sleeping cats stir. If you’re lucky—in this city built on the premise that you, against all odds, will be lucky—a tiger will roar when you’re standing nearby. A tiger’s roar is more than audible. You feel it in your chest, in your teeth, in the prickles of your skin. And if you turn to look at its source, you might catch a tiger’s gaze, its haunting eyes staring into yours, tracking your every move, knowing what you’re about to do before you do it.

Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av The Atlantic.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra November 2022-utgaven av The Atlantic.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA THE ATLANTICSe alt
Boat Fish Don't Count
The Atlantic

Boat Fish Don't Count

The wild, obsessive, dangerous pursuit of Montauk's biggest striped bass

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
The Anti-Rock Star
The Atlantic

The Anti-Rock Star

Leonard Cohen's battle against shameless male egoism

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
A Brief History of Yuval Noah Harari
The Atlantic

A Brief History of Yuval Noah Harari

How the scholar became Silicon Valley's favorite guru

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
Rachel Kushner's Surprising Swerve
The Atlantic

Rachel Kushner's Surprising Swerve

She and her narrators have always relied on swagger-but not this time.

time-read
9 mins  |
October 2024
Men on Trips Eating Food
The Atlantic

Men on Trips Eating Food

Why TV is full of late-career Hollywood guys at restaurants

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
You Think You're So Heterodox
The Atlantic

You Think You're So Heterodox

Joe Rogan has turned Austin into a haven for manosphere influencers, just-asking-questions tech bros, and other \"free thinkers\" who happen to all think alike.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
What Abortion Bans Do to Doctors
The Atlantic

What Abortion Bans Do to Doctors

In Idaho and other states, draconian laws are forcing physicians to ignore their training and put patients' lives at risk.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
THE LOYALIST KASH PATEL WILL DO EXACTLY WHAT TRUMP WANTS.
The Atlantic

THE LOYALIST KASH PATEL WILL DO EXACTLY WHAT TRUMP WANTS.

A 40-year-old lawyer with little government experience, he joined the administration in 2019 and rose rapidly. Each new title set off new alarms.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
THE RADICAL CONVERSION OF MIKE LEE
The Atlantic

THE RADICAL CONVERSION OF MIKE LEE

IN 2016, HE TRIED TO STOP TRUMP FROM BECOMING PRESIDENT. BY 2020, HE WAS TRYING TO HELP TRUMP OVERTURN THE ELECTION. NOW HE COULD BECOME TRUMP'S ATTORNEY GENERAL.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024
HYPOCRISY, SPINELESSNESS, AND THE TRIUMPH OF DONALD TRUMP
The Atlantic

HYPOCRISY, SPINELESSNESS, AND THE TRIUMPH OF DONALD TRUMP

He said Republican politicians would be easy to break. He was right.

time-read
10+ mins  |
October 2024