Also at the same convention I walked by a very well known Zimbabwean PH who was bad-mouthing Mark’s style of hunting - Mark had six videos on the market at the time - noting especially his disapproval of the charges of buffalo and hippo. I listened and when the PH noted my interest he called me closer, introduced himself, and asked me to watch his video of how buffalo hunting is done “correctly.” He played his video for those watching as well as myself. A client wounded a Cape buffalo and it ran off. After letting the buff “stiffen up” for about half an hour or a bit longer, the PH and client stepped into the back of the Land Cruiser. The bed of the ‘Cruiser was surrounded by a cage of one inch diameter tubing, spaced about eight inches apart, and to the approximate height of the men’s shoulders. Two of the staff - I presume the tracker and skinner - were in the cab and drove slowly into the bush following the spoor. When the buff was sighted he was killed with a few shots. The PH in the booth said, “Now that is how it’s done” and I departed with mixed emotions. What I knew was that Mark’s videos were thrilling to the core - no endless plains game shot at 300 yards or from a blind at a water hole. No spotlighting and night shooting or shooting from a vehicle. I remember thinking I would much rather track an animal (by now I had four hunts in Zimbabwe under my belt) than shoot it from the bed of a glorified pickup truck.

As the years passed and I acquired all of Mark’s videos and appreciated his demeanor and hunting style. I also was very impressed with his double rifles used. By then doubles were my life and I enjoyed seeing them used as they should be! I hunted South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania from 2002 through 2006 and ran into Mark at the Sea Cliff Hotel in Dar es Salaam. We spoke of double rifles and Mark came to my room to see the pair I brought to hunt in the Selous Game Reserve: a .450-400 Harrison and Hussey boxlock ejector and a Joseph Lang .450 No. 2 (which is only 40 numbers apart from Mark’s Lang in the same calibre). And, as a side note, earlier in the day at the hotel I videoed some of the beach and hotel settings and also videoed some photos of Mark on the wall of the hotel for my girlfriend back in Alaska. She has had a crush on Mark and would drop me in a New York minute for a date with him. Mark kindly made a short “Hi Donna” video for me to take back home. And, it earned me extra points!

As the second decade of the new millennium came on I began following Accurate Reloading forums and noticed so much negativity about Mark I was baffled by it. How could so many be so angry at a man whom they had never met? Both at SCI and at the big Dallas Safari Club convention I heard the same. It was not all bad, but negative comments seem to stick around more than positive comments. As I was selling my book on the .600 Nitro Express many came to my booth. All of those that hunted with Mark had wonderful praises to say about him. Not one negative comment. The negative comments only came from those who had never met the man. The owner of the finest forum on guns and hunting on the planet has posted hundreds of very negative comments on his Accurate Reloading. A well-known hunter and author from Zimbabwe begins his Sullivan rants with, “I’ve heard that Mark Sullivan...”

So, to separate fact from fiction, let’s look at Mark Sullivan, see who he really is and what makes up this most controversial figure in the African hunting community and to close with details of his videos and an open letter regarding Safari Club International’s decision to ban Mark from its convention.

Mark first saw the light of this world on October 15, 1949 on Coronado Island in San Diego, California. He was the youngest of two boys. Mark’s dad, Harry Francis Sullivan, was a career naval officer and was aboard the USS Yorktown when it was sunk in World War II during the Battle of Coral Sea. Mark’s mother, Helen, was the traditional (for the time) stay-at-home wife and mother. Mark had a childhood similar to millions of other kids growing up in the prosperity of post-war America. He rode his bike, played with his Lionel trains, attended school, and enjoyed summer vacations. His family was not the outdoor type. There were no guns in the house so no shooting at targets or at small game, no fishing, no mountain climbing or other outdoor activities.

However, Mark’s family moved every two years due to Navy policy. During these moves Harry and Helen would take their sons to visit their grandparents in Montana. Mark states, “My dad’s mom and dad were exceedingly boring, requiring all the patience a young boy could muster.” Not so with his maternal grandparents who lived across town. They were outdoor folks who hunted and fished and young Mark would revel in stories of his grandpa Glase hunting pheasants with a 16-gauge shotgun, bagging a rabbit with a .22, or taking a deer for the family table food. No trophy hunting here, just table fare, but it was eye-opening for a young man with no outdoor experiences. “Grandpa become the most influential person in my life. Though my time with him could be measured in weeks, not years, he, more that anyone else inspired me to become the person I am today for he, unknowingly, put me on the path of adventure.”

In 1976 Mark bought two copies of a title he saw in a local bookstore, African Hunter. He bought two copies - at $40 each! - and gave one to his grandfather with an inscription of his admiration. Upon his grandfather’s death the book was returned to Mark where it remains in a place of honour upon his bookshelf.

Something was calling Mark at an early age to explore a world unknown to him at the time. In 1961, at the age of twelve, he received his first subscription to Outdoor Life magazine and was spell-bound by the stores of Jack O'Connor, Elgin Gates, Herb Kline and others. He dreamed about hunting in Africa. Stories of hunting white tail or black bear did not do much to make an impression on young Mark.

It was Africa! Big game, big rifles, the thrill of the chase, and danger in a far-off land took hold of Mark and did not let go. By fourteen Mark read a story in Outdoor Life about a grandfather who took his fourteen year old grandson on safari and the boy shot an elephant. 

He made a vow to himself that someday he would go on his own safari and shoot an elephant. As Mark lived without any guns or outdoor adventure (except every other year when visiting Montana) this was a far-reaching goal. However, if Mark has learned anything over his sixty five years it is that a person is only limited by his imagination. “I have always kept true in my heart the self-taught belief that failure in not an option.”

In school Mark’s first car was a 1960 Austin Healy Sprite. This was in 1965 and he was attending Bullard High School in Fresno, California. A typical American youngster that loved cars and gas was cheap! Later he drove a ‘58 T-bird, a Toyota Land Cruiser 4x4, and an outstanding muscle car - a 1966 Chevelle Super Sport 396 big block.

In 1968 Mark graduated from Arcadia High School in Phoenix, Arizona. Two later-to-be-famous personalities also went to Arcadia: Linda Carter (Wonder Woman) and Steven Spielberg. He does not elaborate on his high school career but two years after graduation Mark enlisted in the US Navy. His draft number was 171 and the Viet Nam war was still going strong even though President Nixon was gradually slowing the war down. An educational deferment would have kept Mark at Arizona State University until graduation but he made the choice to enlist sooner rather than later.

Shortly after boot camp Mark married Kathy Louise Espinosa on February 13, 1971. They are still married after 44 years. “I owe everything to my wife. She loves to hunt, she supports all that I do and is a fabulous companion. I could not have become the person I am without her.” Mark and Kathy have three children: Mark Ashley, Shawn Kelly, and Keely McKenna. Shawn worked as a PH with his dad and can be seen in some of the 1990s DVDs. On Kathy’s 24th birthday, September 20, 1975, she became the first Sullivan to draw blood in the field - a pronghorn antelope.

After this, the hunting fever took a hold of Mark. He states “In June of 1976 Kathy and I were invited to drive to Tucson, Arizona and meet C J McElroy, founder and Chairman of Safari Club International. I had heard of Mac but nothing more. I read an article about him and with it was a photo of him standing in the middle of his massive trophy room. I remember telling myself ‘I would give $100 to meet that guy!’ Back then a hundred bucks was a lot of money! Kathy and I arrived at Mac’s house. He was outside watering the flowers. This was long before the Museum was built or even thought of. Mac greeted us warmly and we became best friends until his death. We became frequent house guests. Mac and I would sit and talk until the wee hours of the morning; Mac telling me story after story. One night over dinner at Stuart Anderson’s, Mac asked me what I thought about SCI having it’s own record book? I told Mac I thought it was a great idea. I spent the next eight days with Mac measuring every animal in his trophy room. Between the two of us we established a measuring system that is still used to this day. Because of this I became the first Master Measurer for Safari Club International.”