AT 13, B'VILLE LION TRAINER "MEME" KING TAMED HOLLYWOOD

Special to El Rrun-Rrun

Born with a Whip in his Hand

In 1934, Manuel was 11 years old, a typical American boy and a fifth grader at a Brownsville, Texas grammar school.

Except that Manuel was literally born with a whip in his hand— the mastery of which he developed to grow up to became one of the youngest lion tamers in the world.

Manuel was the son of William Abraham King, a veteran animal trainer who was a breeder of lions, tigers, jaguars, and other savage animals in an extensive preserve along the Rio Grande near Brownsville. He well known as the “Snake King” of the Texas-Mexican border.

At an incredibly young age, Manuel got an eye-catching gift from his father. He was given ten newborn lion cubs for his birthday. From this point on they became inseparable, playing and
growing as one.

Just like most prodigies have a personal trainer, Manuel was under the tutelage of John. C. Guilfoyle, who, with decades of experience of working with animals, proved Manuel's perfect mentor.

John described Manuel as utterly unafraid of the lions, and had difficulty convincing him that precautions were necessary.

He would turn his back on the beasts or hug them which according to experience trainers was reckless. John had to remind him that these were no longer his playful cubs, but treacherous - and sometimes hungry - carnivores

The young Manuel had a talent given to few and inherited a profession that kept him in constant danger. He would walk fearlessly into a cage equipped with a cracking whip, light chair, and a blank cartridge pistol.

In the cage…

The lions would not react until his sharp demands were given, and what followed was silence from the bleachers as the crowd anticipated that the worst was yet to come.

But to their surprise, the animals obediently took every command and started rolling barrels across the floor, frolic on a seesaw,  and roared deeply, and lustily in mock rage.

He was a midget standing among lions, yet at four feet tall his cracking whip got their immediate attention.

When the lions grew restless, he would crack the whip over them and when one would try to
approach him, he would thrust out the light chair, feet first. If these strategies would not work,
he would fire his pistol.

The Climate…

His finale brought the crowd to their feet as Manuel delivered a captivating ending with his most trusted brute. He trained one lion, Yo-Yo, to furnish a thrilling climax to his exhibition. He would put on a make-believe fight, and at his word, Yo-Yo roared terrifically, and revealed his dangerous looking fangs and stroke out menacingly with his paws.


only trusted assistant in the cage with Manuel was Trixie, his pet sheep dog born at the same time as the cubs and raised with them.

If the lions became grouchy, Trixie would jump between them and immediately got results. It just took a sharp bite on their sensitive noses and it would send them scurrying back to their places.

The boy tamer became well-known playing to larger audiences around the country—and Hollywood took notice.

(Note: While in Hollywood, Manuel was rubbing elbows with other child movie stars. He was invited to attend a Christmas party along with Jackie Cooper and Mickey Rooney.)

On the big scene…

The movie serial “Darkest Africa,” was released in 1936 and according to Republic Pictures, which filmed the movie, Manuel gave a fine performance. The main star in the movie though, was Clyde Beatty, perhaps the foremost lion trainer in the world.

Early in the movie Manuel loses his parents and grows up in the jungle as sort of a boy Tarzan. Film crew invaded Brownsville for several weeks to take shots of the scenes that included the lions in the city.

The success of the movie led to a five-year contract offer for Manuel—but the elder King turned it down.

Manuel’s father stated, “He is going to be just a kid like the other boys,
” declared King. "The lions and movie stuff will be just a game to him, that’s the way we are going to work it.”

The young King, along with his lions, grew and lived a long fruitful life as a circus professional. He died in 2016 at the age of 92.