Bart the Bear Death
Bart passed away on May 10, 2000 at the age of 23 in Park City, Utah. Bart's cause of death was cancer.
When did Bart the Bear die?
May 10, 2000How did Bart the Bear die? What was the cause of death?
CancerHow old was Bart the Bear when died?
23Where did Bart the Bear die? What was the location of death?
Park City, Utah
Bart the Bear Birthday and Date of Death
Bart the Bear was born on January 10, 1977 and died on May 10, 2000. Bart was 23 years old at the time of death.
Birthday: January 10, 1977
Date of Death: May 10, 2000
Age at Death: 23
Bart the Bear - Biography
Bart the Bear (January 19, 1977 – May 10, 2000) was a male Alaskan Kodiak Bear who appeared in several Hollywood films. Previously, Bart's mother appeared in the films Grizzly and Day of the Animals. Animal trainers Doug Seus and Lynne Seus of Wasatch Rocky Mountain Wildlife, Inc., in Heber City, Utah trained Bart. He grew to 9' 6" (2.90 m) tall and weighed 1,800 pounds (816 kg) throughout his life as an adult.
Anthony Hopkins worked with Bart in two movies: Legends of the Fall and The Edge. According to Lynne Seus, "Tony Hopkins was absolutely brilliant with Bart...He acknowledged and respected him like a fellow actor. He would spend hours just looking at Bart and admiring him. He did so many of his own scenes with Bart." Film critic Kenneth Turan called Bart's performance in The Edge "the capstone of an illustrious career" and "a milestone in ursine acting."
Bart's greatest recognition came when he starred in the title role of Jean-Jacques Annaud's 1988 French film, The Bear, playing an adult grizzly bear who befriends an orphaned cub and defeats hunters. Annaud auditioned 50 bear actors from all over the world before selecting Bart for the role. In order to perform the role, Bart, trained by Seus, successfully learned several new routines and behaviors, including going against his natural abhorrence of a strange bear to accept the unrelated cub co-starring with him. Annaud remained impressed with Bart's performance even after being injured by Bart when Annaud, against trainers' orders, entered Bart's enclosure to pose for publicity photos. The Bear was a hit in both Europe and the United States, grossing over $31 million in the United States and over $100 million worldwide, and reportedly resulting in an Oscar nomination for Bart, which was unable to go forward because animal actors are precluded from receiving Academy Awards.
In October 1998, Bart was diagnosed with cancer, and later underwent surgery twice to remove tumors from his right paw. Cancer reoccurred, taking away his strength and appetite causing him to not want to take the pain medication, so he was euthanized on May 10, 2000, at the age of 23. He was buried on the Seus' ranch.
