Mara the Lioness Mara the Lioness Mara the Lioness is an animal actor who appeared as Elsa in the 1966 movie "Born Free", based on the true story of Elsa the Lioness raised by George and Joy Adamson. Mara was born in the wild in 1965, a premature cub abandoned by her mother during a violent rain storm. She was found lying on sodden ground, caked in mud on the plains of Masailand by Samwel, an African game scout and Larry Wateridge. Sick with hunger and in a semi coma, she was taken to a nearby coffee plantation in Kenya owned by British
Born Free (TV series) in 1996, starring Linda Purl and Chris Noth. Joy and George Adamson do not appear as the main characters in the story. Guest stars included Peter Lawford, Barbara Parkins, Alex Cord, Susan Dey. Juliet Mills had a recurring role as Dr. Claire Hanley. "Born Free" was scheduled opposite ABC's Top 20 hit "The Rookies" and CBS's Top 30 hit "Gunsmoke". Rating for the series were low and it was canceled in the middle of the 1974-75 television season after thirteen episodes. The series was set in Kenya and filmed in East Africa. The series "Born Free" was released in DVD