Roger Waters Has Lost His Pig (Again)

The big news from the Coachella Festival out here in California over the weekend wasn't the return of Portishead but the disappearance of Rogers Waters' inflatable pig. The giant flying pig, which goes back to Pink Floyd's stage shows in support of their Animals record (1977), broke free from its tethers and drifted off. It's not only recognizable because it's a gigantic pig, but because it says "Don't be led to the slaughter. Vote Democrat November 2nd" on it. It also has a check mark next to "Obama" on the bottom. When I first heard that, I wondered if the pig really was Waters' pig--perhaps it was a marketing stunt. There's a good account of the show and the pig here via a blog at Entertainment Weekly (a better source than Reuters this time). Either way, the festival organizers are offering a great reward for its return: $10,000 and four tickets to the festival for life. 

By the way, this isn't the first time the pig has floated away. While shooting the cover for Animals at Battersea Power Station it also got loose. See my earlier blog entry, with video, here.

UPDATE: The pig has apparently been found (here). It landed in at least two pieces at the Hideaway Golf Club in La Quinta, California. No word whether the finders will want to use their festival tickets, but hey, the money's really good in these recessionary times.