George "Slim" Lewis

From the list of elephant persons Family: Lewis

George "Slim" Lewis

Photo: Woodland Park Zoo, Knudson family
Profession	circus elephant trainer
Personal details
Born	? in United States

Residence
Country	United States

Locations
Title	animal trainer 1953-1954
Location	at Oklahoma City Zoo in United States

Title	elephant trainer 1941
Location	at Brookfield Zoo in United States

Title	elephant trainer 1932-1933
Location	at Seattle Zoo (Woodland Park Zoo) in United States

Title	owner 1931-1932
Location	at George ”Slim” Lewiss elephants in United States

Title	elephant trainer
Location	at Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus in United States

Title	elephant trainer
Location	at Robbins Brothers Circus (Fred Buchanan) in United States

Relevant literature

Biography details

George Washington Lewis , circus elephant trainer in United States

Lewis was born * ? in United States , in United States .

Affiliation with 3 elephants

1: Judy (trainer from 1953 to 1954) 2: Tusko (owner from 1931 to 1932) 3: Ziggy (attacked)

Casualties

1 casualties

1941-04-26: elephant trainer George "Slim" Lewis attacked by Ziggy. Lewis was able to get Ziggy unchained, and for a while to participate in zoo activities. Then, on April 26, 1941, hormones high from being "in Musth, " Ziggy trunk-slapped Lewis, knocking him fifty Feet, while zoo visitors looked on in horror. Before Lewis could get up, Ziggy had him by the leg, plunging his Tusks down repeatedly, while Lewis, happy to be slim, rolled into the space in between them to avoid getting gored. George "Slim" Lewis Survived. When his Tusks briefly caught deep in the dirt, Lewis managed to escape. Ziggy picked up Lewis's hat and threw it after him.

1931: In his book, Slim wrote: "I heard that Tusko had been sold by Al G. Barnes to a walkathon promoter on the West Coast. The promoter had gone broke and Tusko was stranded in Salem, Oregon." //George "Slim" Lewis

1941-04-26: Slim Lewis, then America's foremost elephant trainer -- from the "old school"-- was brought in to break the Asian rogue. Lewis was able to get Ziggy unchained, and for a while to participate in zoo activities. Then, on April 26, 1941, hormones high from being "in Musth, " Ziggy trunk-slapped Lewis, knocking him fifty Feet, while zoo visitors looked on in horror. Before Lewis could get up, Ziggy had him by the leg, plunging his Tusks down repeatedly, while Lewis, happy to be slim, rolled into the space in between them to avoid getting gored. When his Tusks briefly caught deep in the dirt, Lewis managed to escape. Ziggy picked up Lewis's hat and threw it after him.

1953-1954: "This is "Judy" and "Bab-bo" the chimp I trained for the Oklahoma City Zoo and presented in 1953-54." //George "Slim" Lewis

1970: Lewis, describing Ziggy as a "devilish, wild-eyed monster," quit the zoo. For the next thirty years, Ziggy was removed from public sight, chained away inside a barn. Then, in the late '60s, the zoo got a new director, who started a PR campaign to get a new large elephant area built. Lewis was called back for an all-is-forgiven reunion event. On September 23, 1970, Lewis led a reluctant Ziggy back into the sunlight, amidst great fanfare. After forty minutes, the pachyderm turned around and went back inside.

George "Slim" Lewis is mentioned on 1 other person pagesMorgan Berry,

George "Slim" Lewis is mentioned on 1 elephant record pagesLucy,

Reference list

References

Koehl, Dan, (2025). elephant trainer George Washington Lewis in United States. Elephant Encyclopedia, available online retrieved 15 July 2025 at https://www.elephant.se/person.php?id=2874. (archived at the Wayback machine)

Sources used for this article is among others:

Selected publications

Lewis, George: I Loved Rogues: The Life of an Elephant Tramp, first ed. 1955, Superior Publishing Company; (January 1, 1978), ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 087564954
Lewis, George: The Ape I Knew, Literary Licensing, LLC (July 27, 2013), ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1258776626

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