vicious bear It’s already in theaters so viewers can enjoy one of the craziest movies of the year. Its synopsis can only be guessed from its title – especially in the original version, cocaine bear—, and the truth is that it is a festival of laughter, blood and, above all, immodesty. But, Did you know it’s based on a true story?
The idea that there was a bear addicted to drugs can be hilarious, but the truth is that it is most tragic. It is obvious that the film has a great deal of fiction, something obligatory if you wanted to tell this story in a comic tone; because what really happened is not very funny.
Anyone who goes to the movies to see it will see the story of some hikers and other people who are in a forest—stuff in life, the nature park it’s based in is very busy when the action happens— , but the truth is that not everything was as fun as some scenes in the film. Nor, of course, it lasted as long as it appeared on screen.
The real story of the vicious bear took place in 1985, more precisely on September 11th. The area? At first a bit difficult to locate, because it was from the air: Andrew Carter Thortona cocaine dealer, He made the worst decision of his life.
He had a curious resume: first a paratrooper, then a racehorse trainer, then a drug cop, then a DEA agent, then a lawyer; then end up negotiating. Neither homer simpson In Belen Lopez Vazquez They can boast of so many pitfalls of work, something that may have affected how he acted that day in a crisis situation.
It was not his first trip carrying this equipment, but it was one of the most committed. It was nothing out of the ordinary, he had to bring the drugs across the border to drop off in the southeastern United States for his associates, although this time it was different . Frightened because he believed he was being persecuted – the film’s production notes do not say if he was under the influence of drugs -, he did not hesitate to launch the goods from the sky… In a curious way.
He had a habit of getting rid of any evidence of crime at the slightest suspicion, although he always did so while flying over the ocean. This time, absolutely convinced of being followed by the Feds after breaking into the country’s airspace, he was in a hurry to throw everything out the window. It fell in Chattahoochee National Park, North Georgia.
The trip ended in the weirdest way. His co-pilot – who didn’t know how to use a parachute and had barely completed a few minutes of tutorial before Thornton pushed him – went into the void and survived, clearing himself of all charges. As for Thornton, he went on autopilot and made a mistake, favoring his greed: he filled his pockets with more than 4.5 dollars – in coins and bills, mind you – six Kurggerands of gold from an ounce — it’s an investment coin — several notebooks with relevant data, an assault pistol, night vision goggles, a utility knife, food, an altimeter… And a 3 meter long rope attached to a backpack with 35 bags of cocaine equal to 35 kilos.
The Real Vicious Bear
On the market, such a cargo would be worth 1,225,000, but it was never sold. It’s unclear if Thornton hit his head before jumping, but the truth is he ended up landing the worst way by not even being able to open the secondary parachute – likely due to the large amount of weight which he decided to carry in his jump. . His body was found in Knoxville, Tennessee; although he was not the only victim of this whole story.
Four months after Tronton’s discovery, a 180-pound black bear was also found to have crossed paths throughout this story. The animal was wandering in the Chattahoochee Forest near Blood Mountain and came across merchandise thrown by Thornton. Far from running away from his curious mind, the mammal began to sniff what was inside the bag with a fatal fate.
A black bear like the one in the movie. / Jared Lloyd
The autopsy revealed that his death was due to cerebral hemorrhage, respiratory, renal and cardiac failure and hyperthermia. When they opened his stomach, they found out why: had consumed 16 kilos of cocaine, despite the fact that only 4 grams passed through his blood – it takes twice as much to kill a person of the same weight, 80 kilograms. As for the rest of the drug, it is assumed that the rest of the 35 kilos of powder was also damaged since other wild animals could have consumed it during the 4 months it took them to find everything.
In short, it is clear that the bear did not have as much fun as the film shows, in fact, died a few minutes after taking the drug; even if vicious bear shows quite a macabre sight of the bear on the mountain. Will there be a sequel with all these animals also enjoying the open bar? Clearly the universe he ruled Elizabeth Banks everything is possible.
vicious bear It’s already in theaters.