American illusionist Siegfried Fischbacher was left distraught after the death of his long-term show business partner Roy Horn just eight months ago.
Mr Fischbacher, of legendary entertainment duo Siegfried and Roy, died after on Wednesday after a battle with pancreatic cancer, aged 81.
The pair teamed up in their native Germany in the 1950s, and the highlight of their extravagant shows was their performances with white lions and white tigers.
In 1967, the pair took entertainment work on a cruise ship and it led to decades of success in show business.
They shot to fame in the 1980s and 1990s, becoming headlining pioneers on the Las Vegas strip.
They began performing at the Mirage hotel-casino in 1990.
Their unique brand of magic and artistry saw then perform around 5,000 shows for 10 million fans in the city.
However their run came to an end when Mr Horn was attacked by a white tiger named Mantecore in 2003. He was left partially paralyzed at the age of 60, though did learn to walk again.
They retired from the limelight in 2010.
After Mr Horn’s death last year, Mr Fischbacher said: “The world has lost one of the greats of magic, but I have lost my best friend.
“From the moment we met, I knew Roy and I, together, would change the world. There could be no Siegfried without Roy, and no Roy without Siegfried.”
Fans last saw Mr Fischbacher in public in September when he attended the dedication of the Siegfried and Roy Drive at The Mirage Hotel on the strip.
Mr Fischbacher recently had a 12-hour operation to remove a malignant tumour. He had been receiving care at home from two hospice workers in recent days.
However he spent his final days at home on his Las Vegas estate, insisting he did not want to die in hospital like Horn, who was killed by complication of Covid-19 in May, aged 75.
He is survived by brother Marinus Fischbacher and sisters Margot and Dolore, all of whom live in Germany.
