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Elephant Bubble Plans Popped

Outcry bursts science center's plans to surround elephant with soap bubble

By Rob Quinn, Newser Staff

Posted Mar 15, 2008 6:46 PM CDT

(Newser) – A California science center has ditched plans to surround an elephant with a giant soap bubble, reports the LA Times, after a thousand outraged emailers protested the plan and zoo professionals blasted it as a "Vegas-style sideshow." A "bubble artist" had planned to break a world record by blowing a bubble with a 39-year-old Asian elephant named Tai in it.

Two years ago the same elephant was painted to match wallpaper for a British artist's installation to illustrate "elephant in the room." LA's head of animal services didn't like that stunt, and he didn't like the bubble, either, calling it "the worst sort of animal cruelty." The center denied the cruelty charge, but said they were uninviting the elephant out of worries that protesters might spoil the show. "Bubblefest" will go ahead anyway, with "billions of bubbles." No word if anything will be in them.

[Images (5)]

[Videos (1)]

An elephant wanders in Tembe Elephant Park in the Northern KwaZulu Natal province in Jan 2007. (AP Photo/Denis Farrell)

A Laotian mahout rides his elephant back to camp following an early morning bath at the second annual Elephant Festival in Paklay, Laos, Sunday, Feb. 17, 2008. (AP Photo/David Longstreath)

An elephant performs with its mahout, partly seen, before a show at the 47th annual Elephant Roundup in Surin province, northeastern Thailand, Saturday, Nov. 17, 2007. (AP Photo/Matthew Streib)

An Asian elephant at the Oklahoma City Zoo blows dirt over her back following a swim at the zoo in Oklahoma City, Saturday, July 21, 2007. (AP Photo) (AP Photo)

An outcry from the public and zoo professionals has caused a California science center to cancel plans to surround an elephant with a giant soap bubble. ((c) malfet_)

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Elephant Bubble Plans Popped