Roy Horn of Siegfried & Roy, the duo whose extraordinary magic tricks astonished millions until Horn was critically injured in 2003 by one of the act’s famed white tigers, has died. He was 75.
Horn (born Use Ludwig Horn) died of complications from the coronavirus on Friday in a Las Vegas hospital.  Roy was injured in 2003 when a tiger named Montecore attacked him on stage at the Mirage, a hotel-casino in Las Vegas. He had severe neck injuries, lost a lot of blood and later suffered a stroke. He underwent lengthy rehabilitation, but the attack ended the long-running Las Vegas Strip production.

The darker-haired of the flashy duo, Horn was credited with the idea of introducing an exotic animal – his pet cheetah – to the magic act. Siegfried & Roy became an institution in Las Vegas, where their magic and artistry consistently attracted sellout crowds. The pair performed six shows a week, 44 weeks per year. Horn and Siegfried Fischbacher, both natives of Germany, met on a cruise ship in 1957. Fischbacher performed the magic tricks, while Horn became his assistant,.

They honed their animal-magic show in clubs in Germany and Switzerland in the 1960s. Their break came in a Monte Carlo casino when an agent in the audience invited them to Las Vegas. The pair debuted at the Tropicana hotel-casino in the late 1960s. Siegfried & Roy began performing at the Mirage in 1990. When they signed a lifetime contract with the Mirage in 2001, it was estimated they had performed 5,000 shows at the casino for 10 million fans since 1990 and grossed more than $1 billion. That came on top of thousands of shows at other venues in earlier years. The pair gained international recognition for helping to save rare white tigers and white lions from extinction. Their $10 million compound was home to dozens of rare animals over the years. The white lions and white tigers were the result of a preservation programme that began in the 1980s. On October 3, 2003 Horn was attacked by his tiger, Mantecore, during a performance and dragged off-stage. His injuries were severe, and the incident effectively ended the Siegfried & Roy stage show. Roy insisted Mantecore didn’t attack him, but rather saved him by dragging him backstage after he suffered a stroke. He requested that no harm come to the tiger.