One time, he bought a black snake from Mr. Haast, named it "Rodney" and promptly wrapped it around my neck when my mom wasn't looking. THE body of the two-year-old boy, Lane Graves, snatched by an alligator at a Disney resort has . I well remember Bill Haast and his snake "milking" shows. He introduced himself as Col. Spencer, I introduced myself as "I'm Mark and could my brother Dick come too?" I lived just across the road from Bill's place in 1959 thru 1961 and went. Bill and Nanvy were the guest attraction and Bill has with them a 12' hamadrayad, (King Cobra) which was un a 4x4x8 gkass fronted cage identical to that in which the sidewinders were displayed. I'm recommending this site to my grandson, Piers and now that I'm a snowbird residing in Ft. Myers part time, I'll keep watching for news of your 100th birthday party! He always survived and promoted his anti-snake venom that saved many other lives. He died of natural. Source = Youtube. There he met and eloped with his first wife, Ann. During its heyday, it attracted about 50,000 Florida visitors a year. a woman in Florida died after she fell into a pond and was attacked by two alligators, the remains of a 14-year-old boy were cut from a crocodile's stomach, Everyone Practices Cancel Culture | Opinion, Deplatforming Free Speech is Dangerous | Opinion. When she got in the car she said she had a suprise for me. The attack happened on Friday, Dec. 11 during the afternoon in Borneo, Malaysia. Dr. Ben Sheppard mentioned in the article helped me with my drug addiction in 1974. and help keep the future of New Times, Use of this website constitutes acceptance of our, who would go on to become the face of Zoo Miami, Associated Press dispatch quoted a wildlife officer, Haast pumped nine shots from a Luger pistol, finally closing the tourist attraction in 1984. Hi, my uncle Ted Kundtz just passed away a few months ago and he told me that he had helped out Mr. Haast when he was younger. 2010s. It was 1929. These Valuable Pennies Are Worth Thousands. A 6-year-old boy fell into a crocodile pit and was killed. He inspired a life long love of reptiles for me and now my two children.. ", Copyright 2023 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. Before this, the crocodile had lived for 20 years in the pit without incident. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Snake man is master of poison and cure Bill Haast, 97, is lauded for pioneering work with snake venom By Kate Spinner Sarasota Herald-Tribune Published: Friday, July 11, 2008 at 4:30 a.m. CHARLOTTE COUNTY - Bill Haast's 97-year-old fingers, withered by scores of snake bites, are too weak to handle cobras and pit vipers anymore. That photo is one of my favorite collectables. We will have to go and visit the place that a man built who was inspired by Mr. Haast. [8], Haast closed the Serpentarium in 1984, and moved to Utah for a few years. I got excited thinking it was a new toy. He made special trips, bringing back such perilous species as cobras and saw-scaled vipers. It's a shame that everything is gone now. Another interesting attraction there were the large Galopagas turtles he had. Except for the grey hair and receding hairline I would have said 'hasn't changed a bit". There were two fatal alligator attacks in Florida last year in the first reported deaths since 2007. He was carrying a snake-bite kit, and had a friend inject him with antivenom; the bite hospitalized him for a week. As time went on, I read about Bill now and then, such as when he was bitten by the Gaboon viper in the 1970s, and a few other dangerous ones. They all screamed, then everyone had a good laughed together! Every week, Haast still injects his arm with a cocktail of venom from five snakes -- cobras, mambas, kraits, cottonmouths and rattlesnakes. joe pylandgrew up at sunniland park two blocks from the serpentarium.Remember it well..Billy..the grandson ran over my arm in 1962 with his bike..breaking it and I missed the 1st 6 weeks of Khoury League.Remember Haast tamping alsoThis man was incredidle and brave. At the same time his work saved dozens of lives. When we got the photos back, the film was sun damaged, so the next year I went back to hold the Indigo again and friend, Dave took the picture. I grew up in North Miami Beach and remember going to the Serpentarium many times, but my favorites were Sundays when the King Cobra came out. In the area of the Serpentarium, pigmy rattlesnakes abounded. I remember visiting the Serpentarium on a school field trip when I was in kindergarten, in 1971. Bill Haast's daughter was in my 4th grade class and we went to the Serpentarium for a field trip. Crocodile That Killed Boy Is Shot to Death, https://www.nytimes.com/1977/09/05/archives/crocodile-that-killed-boy-is-shot-to-death.html. He would tell us stories about going to Boy Scout Camp with this extraordinary man, Bill Hasst. The family checked into the resort on June 12 and the boy was playing at the waters edge when the alligator stuck, according to eyewitnesses at the scene. A Disney spokeswoman did not go into detail about the tragic incident but said the resort was devastated and was helping the family and authorities. A second boy, 15, was bitten but escaped. I have watched tv programs about him on Animal Planet and the Discovery Channel. Inside the bag was a cardboard box with holes in it. He loved his animals and was deeply committed to bringing them to the world in an educated, and respectful manner. Apparently the damaged tail had to be amputated afterwards. I am transferring my old pictures to new albums and came across our photos at The Serpentarium in 1973 when we were there with our family while on vacatin. While there, he ended up rooming with a moonshiner on the edge of the Everglades, and became proficient at capturing all kinds of snakes. Haast really wanted to find the cure or treatment for polio and feels he came close. As soon as it was handed back to an embarassed little girl, one of the boys said, "Now you have to look and see if it punched your bus ticket!" The 35' cobra ended up on the roof (south side) of South Miami Senior High-my old high school-where it served proudly for many years. So long Mr. Haast, you were a great man. I'm glad I got to experience that part of S. Florida/s history, visiting The Serpentarium, now part of mine. His first king cobra bite was in 1962. FOR THE MIAMI HERALD King cobras. Haast's second wife, Clarita, simply narrated, setting the mood for the audience. This will be of interest to some out there. .mw-parser-output .templatequote{overflow:hidden;margin:1em 0;padding:0 40px}.mw-parser-output .templatequote .templatequotecite{line-height:1.5em;text-align:left;padding-left:1.6em;margin-top:0}, In those days there were no laws prohibiting it, but the crew members didn't appreciate it.[6]. Sometime later when I visited again, I bought Cobras In His Garden, and Dr. Haast, recovering from that or another bite on his hand, left a blood smudge on my book while signing it . the coolest thing i remember is the sighn bill had on the stage while he was milking his terrorfying snakes "there is nothing more exciting then watching danger from a safe distance". For years, Haast tried to prove that venom could treat multiple sclerosis, lupus, arthritis and Parkinson's disease. "Well my dear lad, if you should like I will write to my old friend from the war, Bill Hasst. When I opened the box I saw my new pet, a 6 foot beautiful Indigo Snake. By 1965 the Serpentarium housed more than 500 snakes in 400 cages and three pits in the courtyard. Addressed to Guest: How dare you ever get on a site, and reproach a man for his dispair over the loss of an innocent 6 year old boy. Thank you Diana, and all the other folks who have posted, for posting your personal memories of Bill Haast and your insights that the general public would never know about if you hadn't written in. My father used to deliver popcorn to the Miami Serpentarium in the late 60's early 70's and I used to love to watch Mr. Haast handle the King Cobras. I visited the Serpentarium in1969 as an 18-year-old on spring break with a buddy. Glad to see many others share great memories of the Serpentarium. Thank you, Dr. Haast, for all your good works and trailblazing in this still to be fully recognized work.and for the fascinating memories. There were others I recall, Monkey Jungle, Parrot Jungle, but none had the that eye catching element of suspense like The Serpentarium. 1, my mother carrying a large snake onboard an airplane, and no. This subspecies, restricted to the Florida Keys, obviously was named for Bill Haast. Furthermore, you shouldn't speak about how a parent should have kept a better eye on their dead son. I'd rather go back in the ocean than back to the Serpentarium! However, the venom eventually did affect him, and he was taken to a hospital where it took him several days to recover. Even though the Serpentarium was there, some people still got bitten, and died from the poisonous snakes. Others joined Haast. STAFF PHOTO / ED PFUELLER Order photo Bill Haast, center, is recognized by members of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Venom Response Unit for his work helping snake-bite victims. Back in the 1980's, I lived in the Pepperwood S/D (about one block south of Kendell Drive, just west of Palmetto Expy). CANCUN -- A 12-year-old boy who was bitten by a crocodile at a Mexican resort spoke to "Good Morning America" on Wednesday in his first television interview. Nice to see the photos again. It is unknown whether the signs mentioned anything about alligators crawling in the waters. A crocodile attacked and killed an 11-year-old boy in Malawi, a landlocked country in southeastern Africa, on Monday. "[7], Haast turned 100 in December 2010[10] and died on June 15, 2011.[1]. Luckily though, I see from visiting one of the links that there is an attraction to view snake milking in St. "Any time I saw an unusual snake I brought it back," Haast said, sitting on cushioned patio furniture. I grew up near the Serpentarium , and played baseball @ Suniland Park..Many times during games , an iguana that had escaped from the serpentarium , would run across the field..As kids , we too ,sold snakes to the facility , and we managed to see the show several times a yearwe would ride our bikes to Parrot Jungle and the Serpentarium and see all kinds of rare wild animals and snakes , and birds , then fish salt or fresh water within a few miles of homegreat place to grow up in the 60's. Myles, Justin (Dec 2000/Jan 2001 Issue). "One hypothesis is that the animal took the child to the burrow or cave, and there are burrows and caves, but we don't know which one of them it is. They considered him a glorified snake-handler, a showman, a medicine man. My Dad would take me there often, we lived in South Miami (as I do againlong story). ''I know some people have said that about Bill, but he is one of the hardest-working, most diligent, focused individuals you'll ever meet,'' said Van Horn, 62, who worked at the Serpentarium as a young man. We had an African Ball Python that had stopped eating, and I remember bringing it with my father to have it fed. These flights took him to South America, Africa and India, where he bought snakes to bring back to America, including his first cobra. I came upon a reference to a varieth of the black racer that bears the name Coluber constrictor haasti. Since the county revived the antivenin bank in 1998, it has saved 1,000 snake-bite victims, Seigert said. As my mother was paying our admission, a worker rushed over to tell us that we were going to miss the King cobra show. The last time I saw him he told me never to get bit again and offered me a job. I stood, many times, on the grass in the little circle just feet from the Cobra at milking time. David Mark Wasson was apparently sitting on top of the wall around the pit, dangling his feet during an inter mission between shows when he lost his balance, the authorities said. Hearing Bill got bit again, was not uncommon local news.The community always hoping on Bills incredible resilience to even the deadliest of snake bites. Now, he believes, the long-term benefits of the shots have spared him from many of the maladies of old age. I saw the "catch and milk" demos and was fascinated. ''It was the best snake show there ever will be,'' said George Van Horn, a frequent visitor who now runs a similar attraction in Central Florida. "My So-Called Life", pg. I still miss the animals. My uncle made a point to tell me to look up this site. I would take the rattlesnake skins and rub salt into them to try to preserve them. I visited the Serpentarium two time back in 1958 and 1967, it was a very interesting place to tour. I said yes, I got to feed his snakes white mice, met his daughter (she had a pet lion), used to catch snakes and sell them to Mr. It is unclear whether the attack was fatal. BOY KILLED The attraction prospered until a tragedy in 1977. Im just here to say a prayer, he said. My parents stayed at the motel pool, while I was the first one thru the door at the Serpentarium that day. Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings confirmed that the toddlers body was found in the water about 3.30pm, local time, after more than 15 hours of searching the Seven Seas Lagoon in Orlando, Florida. He said his last snakebite, Number 173 suffered in 2003 -- courtesy of a Malaysian pit viper -- was the final blow to his hands, already mangled from years of enduring the nerve- and tissue-destroying poison that snakes spew when biting. "I could become a poster boy for the benefits of venom," Haast boasted. What amemorable time, nobody was dissapointed and we all calmed down and talked quietly afterwaeds. Haast is still trying to prove a point: He'll go to his grave believing venom can heal. He shot the 1800-pound crocodile nine times with a Luger pistol, yet it was still an hour before it died. He has written a book called 'The World of Snakes. ' See the article in its original context from. I helped the staff along with about 6-8 other visitors in straightening out the snake (as much as he would let us), to be measured. Well he is alive and well at the age of 97or 98 and still apparently working with snakes; he said he felt there would come a time when he would not be able work with them but I guest he still is. Mr. Hasst brought out a huge 16 foot long King Cobra and kept it controlled on the lawn in front of us. I was a good friend with Bill Haast's grandson Willie, He and I would catch snakes and bring them to the Surpentarium, I also would go camping in the everglades with Willie and his sister pinkie and their mom and dad, we would swim in the water around gaters and catch snakes. It remains in my library to this day. I visited the Serpentarium in the late 70s on a trip down to Key West. He agreed to chat only by telephone with a Miami Herald reporter. Shaman Killed by Crocodile Horror Stories 812K subscribers Subscribe 27K Save 741K views 3 years ago Notice Age-restricted video (based on Community Guidelines) Almost yours: 2 weeks, on us. My father grew up and was born in Paterson, as well. God bless Mr. Haas, and all the good he has done, on top of the lives he has saved through his bravery and research.
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