Today would have been Dr. Ian Player’s 91st birthday. In remembering his brother today, Gary Player said: “Reminiscing on the life of my late brother, Dr. Ian Player. He kept every letter I ever wrote to him. Some serious, some playful. Among my favorites was my unsuccessful plea for him to stop eating bacon.”
We keep Dr. Ian Player’s archives, including his collection of letters from Gary Player in the Black Knight Archives. The letters here range in date from the 1950s to the 1970s. The subject of many of the letters is how much Gary misses Ian and South Africa, but he also describes some of his tournament successes and travels, and as Gary recalls, counsels his brother on healthy diet and exercise.
Ian Player’s collection also includes documents and correspondence from his role as game ranger and later Chief Conservator in South Africa, including insight into his successful Operation Rhino, one of the most well-known and successful of his wildlife-saving initiatives.
Gary continues the legacy of Ian Player by supporting wildlife conservation organizations around the world. Black Knight International supports this work as well through the use of Ian’s archives to spread the conservation message.
