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Take a tip from
Tippi Hedren and enjoy a chance of a lifetime experience…an overnight stay in her exotic tent at the
Shambala wild animal preserve in Acton, California! The age defying actress is offering the exclusive getaway as a means to raise money for the Roar Foundation to help defray costs of caring for her nearly 70 exotic animals, all rescued from uncertain and often dismal fates.
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Tippi appeared in the 1963 thriller “ The Birds” directed by Alfred Hitchcock. l-r, Bella Shaw, Cheryll Jones, CNN anchors with Tippi Hedren
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To help get her message across on the particular day I visited her, Tippi began taping a series of promotional and public service announcements. My anchor friend and former colleague from CNN, Cheryll Jones, serving as interviewer/host/producer, is also the common thread between all involved in today’s productions. Kansas City director/writer Scott Nelson, and LA cameraman Steve Schein, also donated their talents on this sweltering 100 degree day. The lions, tigers, “ligers” and elephants, many abused, neglected and abandoned, have become a life force for this still svelte and stunning actress who reached international stardom in Alfred Hitchcock’s famous 1963 thriller, “The Birds”.
Although always an animal lover, it wasn’t until Hedren worked on location in Africa that she began to realize these beautiful, wild creatures were diminishing rapidly. Later, after acquiring some lions to shoot the movie “Roar”, she learned first hand that these strong, possessive, and often temperamental cats were better off in the wild…not as pets. Her dedication to their preservation resulted in her turning the “Roar” movie location into the beautiful, exotic animal sanctuary, appropriately known as “Shambala”.
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Cheryll, “Leo” and Tippi
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“All of us sustained injuries shooting ‘Roar’. I had a gash in the back of my head. I don’t know whether the lion was trying to play or had full intent of injuring me. An inch lower would have broken my neck and been fatal. I can still hear its teeth grinding,” Tippi says, moving her hand to her neck.
The terrifying incident made a point clearly as she relates emphatically, “These animals are predators… not pets! That’s why we have a bill that would stop the illegal sale and breeding of these animals...the Shambala Wild Animal Protection Act of 2000. If the bill passes, we won’t take these animals away from people. We’ll just make sure they get a license and know how to treat them properly.”
As the stylishly clad Tippi, in khaki stretch jeans and matching safari shirt, gives Cheryll and me a tour of the premises, it’s clear each animal has a name and special story.
Leo, a regal 500-pound lion, for example, was brought to the preserve in 1993 by one of Cheryll’s Kansas City friends who rescued him from a home near Branson, Missouri, where he was being dangerously kept as a pet. The good Samaritan, Terry Huffhines and his son, Justin, nervously drove across country, 1500 miles, thirty hours nonstop, with rambunctious Leo in the back seat of his car!
The lion was graciously welcomed by Tippi, and has lived happily since in the haven known as Shambala, which means in Sanskrit, “a meeting place of peace and harmony for all beings…animal and human.” As fate would have it, he’s become a bit of a celebrity himself, receiving star billing as the official mascot for the Acton Lion’s Club and “poster lion” for the preserve. Leo and the other lucky “residents” rely on Tippi and her devoted helpers for their food and care. This includes invaluable assistant Marcia Newyear, volunteer Jenny Loomis and animal handlers Trudy Farley, Chris Gallucci, Don Scott and Chui (pronounced “Chewey”). The preserve’s expenses are enormous, costing nearly seventy-thousand dollars a month just to keep it running. Most of the money comes from grants, donations, and Tippi’s fundraising efforts.
“It’s amazing how many people think I’m rich”, she says with exasperation. “I’ve never been paid as the head of this foundation. We’re constantly working. My daughter (actress Melanie Griffith, married to actor Antonio Banderas) helps me with fundraising but she’s busy with her own career, children and various projects. She does help, but this just isn’t her thing. We’re constantly looking for grants. Lots of structures are twenty five years old or more. They need to be redone. Basically we need money”, she says passionately.
As Cheryll and I cross an old, narrow, rickety bridge, we spot the safari tent with its curtain of beads glistening in the afternoon sun. The quarters are plush…a decorator’s dream…the ultimate safari fantasy. Among the custom amenities, a comfortable feather down bed with mesh netting canopy, leopard print linens and bathrobes. There’s even a shower stall in the back, complete with designer toiletries. Needless to say, one does not “rough it” spending a night here at Shambala.
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Cheryll explores the luxuries of Shambala "tenting",complete with a stuffed, adoptable Shambala "Wild One"
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As Tippi tells it, “Our guests arrive at 4pm, and have a refreshing drink by the koi pond or waterfall. We go for a walk, talk to the animals, and enjoy a lavish, gourmet dinner. At midnight, we go on a safari stroll to say ‘goodnight’ to all the animals. In the morning, breakfast magically appears at your doorstep in a picnic basket, complete with a copy of the LA Times. It’s like going to Africa for half the price.... it’s a fabulous animal and nature lovers’ getaway.”
Guests say the $2500 tax-deductible price tag is well worth it. “They hug me when they leave. They know how fortunate they were to have such close, yet safe proximity (the animals are protected by a twelve foot perimeter fence) to the animals. I like people to go away anxious to return.”
Perhaps that’s why Tippi opted to live on the premises of the Acton preserve, some 45 miles outside the glitz and glamour of Beverly Hills. “It’s so wonderful to look out the window and see these beautiful creatures, roar, play or sleep. I feel very safe here. I love these animals more than my next breath.” |
