TRAFFIC | Free Tony The Tiger

Report: DiCaprio plans animal-poach film Leave a comment

Re-posting this article that mentions Tony. For the article concerning Mr. DiCaprio’s support for Tony see: http://aldf.org/article.php?id=1695

Published: Aug. 27, 2012 at 5:24 PM

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 27 (UPI) — Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy and Tobey Maguire are working to produce an animal-trafficking film like the U.S. crime drama “Traffic,” a trade daily reported.

The unnamed Warner Bros. Pictures film would look at animal trafficking from a number of perspectives, similar to 2000’s “Traffic,” directed by Steven Soderbergh and written by Stephen Gaghan, The Hollywood Reporter said.

“Traffic,” adapted from the British TV series “Traffik,” explores the illegal-drug trade from the perspective of a user, an enforcer, a politician and a trafficker, with their stories edited together.

In this case, the story would look at trafficking from different angles including those of the ground war on poachers in the African savannah and how animal material ends up in Paris fashion houses, the newspaper said.

The trio are looking for a screenplay writer, the Reporter said.

English actor Hardy — who played arch-villain Bane in Christopher Nolan‘s recent Batman film “The Dark Knight Rises” — came up with the new film’s idea, the Reporter said.

He was inspired by friends who are former Special Forces operatives and later became anti-poacher fighters in South Africa and other countries, the newspaper said.

Maguire — best known for his role as Peter Parker aka Spider-Man in Sam Raimi‘s “Spider-Man” film trilogy — has been good friends with DiCaprio since their early-career days, when they found themselves auditioning for roles opposite each other.

The pair made an informal pact to help each other get parts in their movies, TV shows and other projects.

They both star in the 3D romantic drama “The Great Gatsby,” to be released next year.

DiCaprio is longtime animal-rights activist. He donated $1 million to New York’s Wildlife Conservation Society in 2010 and joined a so-far-unsuccessful campaign by California’s Animal Legal Defense Fund to free a tiger named Tony, who has spent a decade in a roadside cage at the Tiger Truck Stop in Grosse Tete, La.

DiCaprio became the spokesman last year for a campaign organized by the International Fund for Animal Welfare to protect elephants.

http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/Movies/2012/08/27/Report-DiCaprio-plans-animal-poach-film/UPI-11051346102655/?spt=hs&or=en

Ask Your Congressperson to Support H.R.4122 – The Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act Leave a comment

Please ask your congressperson to support H.R.4122 – The Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act would prohibit private possession of big cats except at highly-qualified facilities like accredited zoos where they can be properly cared for and safely managed.

Enter your zip code at this link: http://capwiz.com/bigcatrescue/issues/bills/?bill=61054001 for a fast easy way to voice your support of this bill and ask your congressperson to co-sponsor it. Please share the link. Thank You.

WWF – Latest News – Taking Tigers Out of American Backyards
Mar 01, 2012

Did you know that there are more tigers in American backyards than there are in the wild around the world?

Estimated at perhaps 5,000 tigers, they are found in:

backyards
urban apartments
sideshows
truck stops
private breeding facilities

For the past four years, WWF and TRAFFIC have raised the alarm on the lack of captive tiger regulation. Thanks to the “Big Cats and Public Safety Protection Act” introduced by Congressman Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-CA) and Rep. Loretta Sanchez (D-CA) on February 29, 2012, the U.S. is now taking a step in the right direction.

“We welcome this important legislation because as the Zanesville incident showed, it’s critical for America to clear out captive big cats from our backyards,” says WWF’s Leigh Henry. “This is a matter not only of public safety, but also of preventing captive tigers from being fed into the massive illegal tiger trade driven by a booming black market for tiger products.”

If the bill passes, it will:

Prohibit private possession of big cats like tigers and lions except at highly-qualified facilities, like accredited zoos and sanctuaries, where they can be properly cared for and restrained.
Require any persons who currently possess big cats to register those animals with the USDA in order to keep the cats they currently own.
Outlaw the breeding of any big cat except at accredited zoos and research and educational institutions.

Violators could face stiff penalties including confiscation of animals, fines as much as $20,000 and up to five years in jail.

Senator John Kerry (D-MA) is working on introducing a companion bill in the Senate.

Learn more
Watch a video to learn how captive tigers impact wild tigers
Is your toilet paper linked to tiger habitat destruction?

http://www.worldwildlife.org/who/media/press/2012/WWFPresitem27118.html