Elephants parade through LA ahead of Jackson funeral
In a suitably bizarre prelude to Michael Jackson’s funeral, a parade of elephants made their way early Tuesday through Los Angeles to the Staples Center – the scene of a public memorial for the reclusive zookeeper.
Arriving before dawn, hours before the memorial was due to start, the 11 Asian elephants and seven circus horses came trunk-to-nose with dedicated Jackson fans who had arrived early to mourn the eccentric singer.
The march through Los Angeles is an annual ritual ahead of the arrival in town of the Ringling Brothers & Barnum and Bailey Circus, which is due to perform at the Staples Center from Wednesday.
Jackson would perhaps have appreciated the gesture: his Neverland mansion featured an exotic zoo before the star fell on hard times.
Jackson’s animals, including Bubbles the chimpanzee, ended up animal sanctuaries in the United States. It is claimed Jacksonnever visited Bubbles when the ape became too large to be kept as a pet.