Ian Player
| Ian Cedric Player | |
|---|---|
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Ian Player and Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld (1981)
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| Born |
15 March 1927 Johannesburg, South Africa |
| Died | 30 November 2014 (aged 87) KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa |
| Nationality | South African |
| Occupation | Nature conservationist |
| Employer | Natal Parks Board |
| Spouse(s) | Ann Player |
| Website | ianplayer.com |
Ian Cedric Audley Player DMS (15 March 1927 – 30 November 2014) was a South African international conservationist.
Born in Johannesburg, Player was educated at St. John’s College, Johannesburg, South Africa and served in the 6th South African Armoured Division attached to the American 5th Army in Italy 1944–46.
His conservation career started with the Natal Parks Board in 1952 and whilst Warden of the Umfolozi Game Reserve, he spearheaded two key initiatives:
Dr. Player was the Founder of the Wilderness Leadership School.
This led to the formation of the International Wilderness Leadership Foundation (WILD), the Wilderness Foundation SA, Wilderness Foundation UK, Magqubu Ntombela Foundation not to mention the World Wilderness Congresses, first convened in 1977.
Amongst many orders and awards he counts Knight of the Order of the Golden Ark and the Decoration for Meritorious Service (the highest Republic of South African civilian award).
He was the recipient of two honorary doctorates:
Player died on 30 November 2014 of a stroke. He was the brother of professional golfer Gary Player.
His archives and legacy are owned and managed by Marc Player, who has initiated several projects including books (Into the River of Life) a feature-length movie, a TV series built around Operation Rhino and the PLAYER INDABA which seeks global "PLAYERS' to raise funds to fight the extension of various threatened animal species.
The famous movie director and producer Howard Hawks, wanted a movie about people who catch animals in Africa for zoos, a dangerous profession with exciting scenes the likes of which had never been seen on-screen before. The name of his blockbuster movie is Hatari!, starring John Wayne. Hawks increased his knowledge on animal catching from the humane work of Dr.Player. In 1952 South Africa was disastrously embarked to eliminate all large wild animals to protect livestock, and only 300 white rhinos survived. Player then started his famed rhino catching technique to relocate and save the white rhinos. Player’s humane project was called Operation Rhino and the renowned film documentary named Operation Rhino was produced. Hawks studied this film documentary repeatedly to help incorporate aspects of it into his film Hatari!.
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