Live ammo trumps dead bodies

Michael Mayo News Columnist
Bummer. No "plastinated" corpses for us.On the bright side, Fort Lauderdale's refusal to allow a controversial show featuring preserved corpses and organs from China means no disruption to the upcoming schedule at the War Memorial Auditorium.That means the Fort Lauderdale Gun and Knife Show is still on for August 19-20, Sept. 23-24 and Nov. 24-26.The weapons shows have been a staple at the city-owned exhibit hall for years. According to the city's and promoter's Web sites, children under 12 are admitted free when accompanied by an adult. Nothing like checking out the latest in semi-automatics and hollow-point bullets for some good family fun!"It doesn't make sense," said state Rep. Eleanor Sobel, D-Hollywood, who saw "BODIES ... The Exhibition" in New York last week. "On the one hand the city says no to an event that presents an educational opportunity, but on the other its says yes to gun shows that could lead to potential killing and violence."Sobel said she found the cadaver exhibit fascinating, calling it "a vivid and lifelike refresher course in anatomy, neurology and biology."The organizers, Atlanta-based Premier Exhibitions Inc., use a process called "plastination" to essentially create see-through corpses, with muscles and internal organs preserved by adding liquid silicone rubber. They have staged the for-profit show in several U.S. cities, including New York, Tampa, Las Vegas and Atlanta.Premier executives tout the show's educational benefits, such as showing the long-term effects of smoking to lungs and drinking to livers.A German anatomist named Gunther von Hagens popularized the cadaver-as-show concept a decade ago with his "Body Worlds" exhibits, the first to feature plastinated corpses. According to a 2005 article in the Chicago Tribune, his father was a Nazi SS sergeant.After von Hagens unveiled his show with corpses playing chess and riding bicycles, the European press labeled him "Dr. Death" and "Dr. Frankenstein." Premier has nothing to do with von Hagens, but they both get cadavers from the Dalian Medical University in China.The whole thing sounds a bit creepy to me, but obviously there's a market for it. The Premier shows have attracted more than 2 million people worldwide, von Hagen's more than 17 million, the promoters say -- despite questions about ethics and the bodies' origins.I can't really blame Fort Lauderdale officials for saying no, and something tells me Premier will easily find another South Florida venue. Sobel said she spent two hours at the exhibit at the South Street Seaport in New York with her husband and daughter, both physicians, and her infant granddaughter."In no way did this exhibit denigrate the beauty of the human body or soul," she said. "These types of events can be pivotal in illuminating the minds of our youth and stimulating them to pursue careers in medicine and science."Fort Lauderdale's decision "is just a form of censorship," Sobel said.Fort Lauderdale Mayor Jim Naugle said his opposition was two-fold: He didn't feel comfortable about an exhibit featuring corpses of unknown origin from a communist country with a history of human rights violations, and he didn't want to displace 27 events from the exhibit hall.Besides the weapons shows, the War Memorial Auditorium is booked to hold shows featuring orchids, computers, cats and antiques from September-March."These small organizations have been supporting the house for years," Naugle said. "The question was do we want a one-time dollar to displace these longtime loyal customers?" Naugle said the city would have given up $600,000 from the existing shows for a cut of the profit from the Bodies exhibition. "It was iffy," Naugle said.Naugle said city staff brought the issue to the commission for guidance because of the business impact. Typically, commission approval isn't needed before the auditorium books events.At a meeting last week, Naugle also said the show wasn't appropriate for "a public facility built by the people of Fort Lauderdale and dedicated to veterans." That sounds noble, until you realize the auditorium has repeatedly hosted bloody "ultimate fighting" bouts and cheesy professional wrestling cards.And all those life-affirming gun shows.Michael Mayo can be reached at mmayo@sun-sentinel.com or 954-356-4508.

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