It was late at night in Los Angeles, and artist Corie Mattie had indulged in a glass or two of wine when she heard something outside her home. At first she thought her brother's Labrador retriever had got out, so she went to let him in. It was not a chocolate lab. "It was a [expletive] mountain lion," Ms Mattie said. And not just any mountain lion - but the most famous mountain lion in Hollywood, and arguably the world. His name is P-22 and the March encounter left an indelible mark, Ms Mattie said. His green eyes glowed straight at her. She stared back. She took a quick video before hiding inside, and P-22 lingered until dawn, when he quietly made his exit over a lattice fence. "He touched my soul. He could have destroyed me, and he didn't," she said. "It escalated quickly to my spirit animal. It went from zero to one hundred, really quick." Ms Mattie was not the first Angeleno P-22 had bewitched, but residents can no longer look forward to magical encounters with the mysterious beast. On Saturday, the hearts of P-22's fans were shattered when the California Department of Fish and Wildlife announced that, due to his old age and a host of serious heath issues, the legendary feline was humanely put to sleep. Officials called it "the most difficult, but compassionate choice." He has had the city in his thrall since 2012, when he somehow managed to get across two deadly freeways and take up residence in Griffith Park, a 4,200-acre mountain in the heart of one of the world's biggest concrete jungles. Since then, his charisma and curious choice of city habitat have made him a local folk hero. His plight - trapped in an urban island with no possibility of finding a mate - also made him the face of a movement to protect the threatened species. Though he will no longer prowl through the heart of Los Angeles, his decade-long reign has cemented his status as a Hollywood star as bright as any on the big screen.