houses for rent in ely, iowa. All this may be imaginative conjecture of a teenage boy.. .Once thing sure, though, Him and his wife sure looked scary, to we boys, in those white Drs. The mouse would die. In 1990 he moved to Punta Gorda, Florida, with his snakes, where he established the Miami Serpentarium Laboratories. That was in 1971 and I kept that car until 3 years ago when I sold it for 35000.00 in pieces. I asked him one evening if I could walk with him he said yes in the baritone of gentle command. My uncle introduced me to the Florida Eastern Diamondback that grew up to 6 feet in length. It's a shame good things must always come to an end, isn't it? After the fight ended, the victim walked away, at which time Cox pulled out a gun and shot at the victim, striking him in the head, authorities said. The great legendary Bill Haast, pioneer of venom production for venom research since 1946, was founder and director of the world renowned Miami Serpentarium Laboratories As a kid, it was a thrill to see the man himself up close. His first serious snake bite came at age 12, when he was bitten by a timber rattlesnake at Boy Scout camp. [4] As of 2008 he continued to have his wife inject him with small amounts of snake venom. (Miami-Dade Corrections & Rehabilitation/WPLG), just before 11 p.m. March 21 at the North Park at Scott Carver apartment complex. boy killed by crocodile at miami serpentarium. Having said all that, thank you Mr. Haas for all your wonderful work with snakes. Great stories were told on our nightly walks, stories of Africa in the "War" , Safaries, snakes hey we like snakes , Dick gets in troule all the time with his snakes. For the first five years Bill, Clarita, and his son were the only staff. Early in Haast's career, he slogged the wilds of the Everglades collecting cottonmouths and rattlers. On a September day in 1977, a small boy visiting the Serpentarium fell into one of the reptile pits and was grabbed by a 12-foot African crocodile. I visited many times in the 60's - 70's. 5 killed in Cleveland, Texas shooting, including 8-year-old child Every week, Haast still injects his arm with a cocktail of venom from five snakes -- cobras, mambas, kraits, cottonmouths and rattlesnakes. It was intuitive. (Different venoms require different antidotes.). haasti is different from the parent species only by virtue of an unusual configuration of white coloration on the head and chin. A 6-year-old boy fell into a crocodile pit and was killed. He was a great neighborhhod Dad, and I will always remember the fun we had with he, his wife and his children. On another visit I was told that the big lump in the python I was looking at was the suckling pig it had swallowed whole and was digesting, I, was surprised to find myself on the ground with ammonia being waved under my nose! 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. We got a motel room across the road from the Serpentarium. Serpentarium | Flashback Miami I visited the Serpentarium November 22, 1965 while on my Honeymoon with my wife Lynne. I was fascinated watching them put Mr Haast's feeding tube down and feed the snake. The event left Haast shaken and the next day, he shot the 1800-pound crocodile nine times. Shame on Hass and the parents this poor animal was slaughtered. Haast's mental trauma over the boy's death eventually led to the closure of the Serpentarium on South Dixie Highway. On the way from the Fontainebleau Hotel we heard that President Kennedy had been shot. "We're the only fire-based response team in the world." I wish I could have taken my girls there! I. Woww! Nevertheless, researchers have continued to work on drugs made from venom in the hope of using it to treat cancer, Alzheimers and other diseases. According to the arrest report, detectives discovered that the victim and suspect had been involved in a verbal dispute that night that resulted in them getting into a physical altercation. I can't imagine more suitable place than South Florida for Bill Haas's Serpentarium. He was rushed to see a doctor, but quickly recovered without further treatment. Bowker, of New York, pleaded guilty for his role in arranging for 22 snakes to be delivered to the Serpentarium in an apparent swap for the same number of American alligators. I visited the Serpentarium in1969 as an 18-year-old on spring break with a buddy. But in 1980 the Food and Drug Administration banned the product as useless after saying that numerous deficiencies had been found in Mr. Haasts manufacturing process. We entered the Serpentarium and a fellow (Haas) walked out of the back office to greet the tourists and said" he's dead" referring to John F. Kennedy, President of the USA. The man then went next door with his . What a rush. Jim F. Thank you for bringing back many many wonderful memories. Barry Ellis III, a 15-year-old eight-grader at Horace Mann Middle School, was shot and killed at the trailer park at 8050 NW Miami Ct. on Wednesday. I lived just across the road from Bill's place in 1959 thru 1961 and went. Soon, his quest for exotic snakes stretched around the world. He moved his venom-gathering operation to Utah. June 18, 2011 / 3:12 PM His original Miami Serpentarium, south of Miami on South Dixie Highway, attracted 50,000 tourists a year for four decades. She finally agreed to let him keep a snake or two in cages. 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. independent local journalism in Miami. Unless otherwise noted under the right bottom of the photo, all images are copyrighted by Don Boyd, Bill Haast and the Miami Serpentarium - recent news articles, SW 128th Street and South Dixie Highway, Dade County, Memories of Old Hialeah, Old Miami and Old South Florida Photo Galleries - largest non-Facebook collection on the internet, Miami Area Tourist and Local ATTRACTIONS Historical Photos Gallery - All Years - click on image to view. As a joke on him, a staff member placed a rubber snake into one of the boxes that normally held a venomous snake for the show. Mr Haast came out at my parents request after thrilling us with a great show. As a young teenager in the mid 1960's I was very interested in all types of reptiles. The boy's father and another man, Nicolas Caulineau, jumped into the pit and straddled the crocodile. PARROT JUNGLE, MONKEY JUNGLE, SEAQUARIUM, ETC. I rememer Bill Jr. when we rode motorcycles in scramble races out in North Dade. He became interested in snakes while at a Boy Scout summer camp when he was 11 years old. Miami Serpentarium Historical Marker The giant concrete-and-stucco cobra was donated to South Miami Senior High but fell apart during its move to the school. His unique contribution to medicine earned him widespread recognition. My uncle made a point to tell me to look up this site. The couple moved back to New Jersey, where Haast studied aviation mechanics, and was certified after four years.