Orangutans in popular culture

Orangutans, two species of great apes indigenous to Indonesia and Malaysia, have been the subject of multiple popular culture references.

Famous orangutans

• Ah Meng (1960–2008), Sumatran Orangutan of Singapore
• Ken Allen (1971–2000) was a Bornean orangutan at the San Diego Zoo known for his escape artistry. He unscrewed bolts with his fingers, reached around things and climbed steep walls to find temporary freedom. When keepers discovered and closed one of his escape routes he would find another. At least once he was found out among zoo visitors and was led by the hand to a keeper by a visitor. Ken Allen died in 2000.^[1]

Orangutans as villains

An early example of orangutans in English literature is one of Edgar Allan Poe's most famous stories, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, which featured a murderous orangutan. Orangutans also play a prominent role in Poe's short story Hop-Frog. Later examples offer a more civilized ape: in 1967, Walt Disney produced a film version of The Jungle Book, and added an orangutan King Louie who wanted the power of "man's red fire". The next year, Planet of the Apes featured orangutan administrators and politicians ruling over the other apes and treating humans as vermin. Primarily,this is represented by Dr. Zaius, keeper of the faith, who knows the real truth about ape society and mankind's past.

Orangutans as pets and guardians

The flexible form of the orangutan is put to use, as in Terry Pratchett's Discworld with The Librarian, a human shapechanged into an orangutan. Orangutans become pets (as in Every Which Way but Loose), friends (as in Dunston Checks In) and even guardians, as in Nickelodeon's The Wild Thornberrys, where they raise a human child.

Use in entertainment

Young captive orangutans have been used in films, TV and advertising.

The Clint Eastwood films Every Which Way but Loose and Any Which Way You Can featured an orangutan character named Clyde. Clyde was played by different orangutans in each film. The second orangutan died shortly after the latter film was made. An assistant trainer admitted beating Clyde with a cane and ax handle, which was not illegal at the time.^[2]

The television soap opera Passions used an orangutan named Bam for the character of Precious, a nurse. Baby orangutans have also been used in television commercials for companies such as Ask.com, Capital One and Visa.

Entertainer Bobby Berosini used five orangutans in his Las Vegas act^[3] until he was videotaped beating the animals back stage.^[4] Animal rights group PETA publicized a videotape of the abuse and entered into a long series of lawsuits with Berosini who eventually was denied permission to keep these endangered species by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.^[5]

Orangutans in specific works of fiction

• In Jules Verne's The Mysterious Island the castaways had a red ape named Jupiter.
• Melincourt (first published 1817) by the English author Thomas Love Peacock has an orangutan called Sir Oran Haut-Ton, who is put forward as a candidate for election as a member of parliament.
• Disney's 1967 animated musical adaptation of The Jungle Book added an orangutan called King Louie to Rudyard Kipling's original cast of anthropomorphic characters. He also appeared in the Disney Channel's TaleSpin, but is only referred to as "Louie."
• In Kipling’s short story Bertran and Bimi, an ostensibly domesticated orangutan — “mad mit der jealousy” over his owner’s marriage — brings matters to a bad end.
• In The Colour of Magic, the first book of Terry Pratchett's Discworld series of fantasy novels, The Librarian of the Unseen University is unintentionally turned into an orangutan. He remains so throughout the series and actively prevents attempts to change him back.
• The orangutan Clyde is Clint Eastwood's pet sidekick in the film Every Which Way but Loose and its sequel Any Which Way You Can.
• In the film Dunston Checks In, a young boy befriends a larcenous orangutan in a luxury hotel.
• In the film Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, the protagonists rescue an orangutan named Suzanne from an animal testing laboratory. The trio also appear in the closing scenes of Mallrats.
• Shirt Tales, a 1980's cartoon series produced by Hanna-Barbera featured Bogey Orangutan (so called because he spoke with a Humphrey Bogart-style voice).
• In Nickelodeon's The Wild Thornberrys, the character Donnie was raised by orangutans a for a while after his parents were killed by poachers.
• In Nickelodeon's Drake and Josh, Drake bought an orangutan named Bobo from a car dealership then sold it to a man who meant to eat him.
• In the Futurama episode The Problem with Popplers, Zap Brannigan fooled aliens into eating an orangutan in order to save Leela.
• In Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Raoul Duke is interested in buying an orangutan but later in the book it attacks people and is taken away.
• In the Rob Schneider movie The Animal, Rob's character gets involved in a slapping fight and eventually wrestles with an orangutan.
• In Patrick O'Brian's novel The Thirteen Gun Salute, thirteenth book of the Aubrey-Maturin series, Stephen Maturin is accompanied during his stay at a Buddhist monastery by an elderly female orangutan named Muong.
• Michael Crichton's novel Next features a transgenic orangutan in Sumatra that speaks French and Dutch.
• In the movie, Babe: Pig in the City features an orangutan who likes to dress in human clothes.

Orangutans in videogames

• In Donkey Kong 64 Lanky Kong is a Sumatran orangutan who uses his very long arms to good effect to reach otherwise out-of-bounds areas (in fact, there is a glitch in the game such that by very careful positioning of Lanky using the move he can open and enter doors that are supposed to be locked behind a keeper by touching them). A potion also enables him to do OrangStand, walking on his hands to climb steep slopes. He also appears in other related games such as Super Smash Bros. Brawl.
• In Metal Slug 3, an unnamed AI-controlled orangutan wearing diapers may appear to aid the player on killing zombies with a weapon similar to an UZI ^[6]

See also

• Gorillas in popular culture
• List of fictional apes

References

1. ^ Orangutan from the San Diego Zoo.
2. ^ [1]
3. ^ Bobby Berosini’s orangutans
4. ^ Animal Abuse!! Bobby Berosini torturing, beating orangutans
5. ^ Sunset Strip
6. ^ http://www.gamerstemple.com/vg/games9/001144/001144r01.asp Metal Slug 3 review with a brief comment about the orangutan in the game

Further reading

• Pollock, Mary S. and Catherine Rainwater (eds). Figuring Animals: Essays on Animal Images in Art, Literature, Philosophy & Popular Culture. Palgrave Macmillan, ISBN 1-403-96512-9.
• Rothfels, Nigel. (2002) Representing animals. Indiana University Press, ISBN 100-2-53-551-X.