Steve Sipek

Stjepan Šipek (1942 – June 23, 2019), also known by his screen name Steve Hawkes, was a Croatian-born American actor and animal sanctuary owner.[1][2]

Life

Sipek was born in what is now Croatia, relocated to Canada in 1959, and subsequently acted in B-movies as Steve Hawkes. He played Tarzan in the 1969 Spanish-made film Tarzán en la gruta del oro / King of the Jungle / Tarzan in the Golden Grotto alongside Kitty Swan, filmed in Suriname, Florida, Africa, Spain and Italy where the producers ran out of money and had to begin filming again. Sipek, working under the name Steve Hawkes, claimed that the film company could not pay the huge licensing fees from Edgar Rice Burroughs' estate and settled for the name "Zan" for the character.[3]

A 1972 sequel, Tarzan and the Brown Prince, followed with sequences filmed in Rainbow Springs, Florida,[4] where both Sipek and Swan were burned in a fire that got out of control. When the two actors were tied down in a scene, some spilled fuel began a blaze that panicked the film crew. The lion in the film who had been trained to remove Hawkes' bonds freed him.[1] though he suffered 90% burns to his body.[5] Sipek vowed he would pay the lion back by looking after big cats.[6]

Sipek also wrote, directed and starred in other films such as Blood Freak and Stevie, Samson and Delilah. The second film was based around his love of his immediate family and how they integrated with his beloved pets.

An animal lover, Sipek later relocated to Loxahatchee, Florida where he started an animal sanctuary[7] that attracted attention when a Bengal tiger escaped and was killed.[8][9] Sipek was arrested at his Florida home and his animals confiscated on February 27, 2012 for non-regulatory compliance in regards to animal permits.[10]

He died on June 23, 2019, at the age of 77.[11]

Notes
  1. Steve Sipek aka Steven Hawkes | The Wild Eye
  2. "Obituary: Former Tarzan Actor Whose 600 Pound Tiger Escaped". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  3. BUNKUM - Interview with Steve Hawkes
  4. p.85 Hollis, Tim Glass Bottom Boats & Mermaid Tails: Florida's Tourist Springs Stackpole Books
  5. Kings Of Steve Hawkes' Jungle - tribunedigital-chicagotribune
  6. ERBzine 2772: Tarzan and the Brown Prince film with Steve Hawkes
  7. Tarzan Tigers Steve Sipek - ABC News
  8. Police search for Tarzan actor's tiger - tribunedigital-chicagotribune
  9. Tarzan's Escaped Tiger Killed
  10. 'Tarzan' actor gets court victory, still can't take animals home
  11. Bryan, Susannah (25 June 2019). "Steve Sipek, owner of Bobo the slain tiger, dies at 77". sun-sentinel.com. Retrieved 29 March 2020.
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