But he wasn’t a zoo chimp. He worked for a living and learned things during his lifetime.
What this shows is having interesting things to do in one’s life can be a life extender, even if you’re considered just “an animal”.
I thought he died years ago.
Zoo and acting chimps sometimes were prone to emotional upset and acting-out because of the way that they were caught (IIRC they’re bred now, but that wasn’t the case in the past). Some of them caught in the wild were in their mother’s arms when their mother was shot. They are intelligent enough that an experience like this can seriously weird them out. If Cheeta managed to live without this kind of trouble he was fortunate.
Whoa... I grew up watching those Tarzan movies on Saturday afternoons in the ‘60s.
I cannot believe Cheeta has been alive all this time.
Just freaking wow.
Astonishing and wonderful long life!
!
He lived a constructive peaceful life, with no chip on his shoulder apparently. And then there was... Travis.
I too had thought Cheeta had been long dead. 80 years old....amazing. RIP, Cheeta.
Also, thanks to ETL for posting the pics. Had a crush on Mareen O’Sullivan since I was a kid.....
I’ve always admired Cheetah because, unlike so many, he kept his politics to himself.
WOW! As a kid growing up in the 70s the Tarzan movies on Weekend TV were some of the only black and white films that could actually hold my attention. Being Black & White I had assumed that Cheeta was most likely already dead by the time I ever saw them! I never would have imagined his being alive still - he was only Middle-Aged at that time though! LOL
RIP Cheeta - you were probably my first exposure to a chimpanzee and you represented your species very well!
Didn’t he have like a two-pack a day habit?
LNAO!!!
Is Shirley Temple (that other child star of the ‘30s) next?
I was just thinking of Tarzan this week after watching the previews for John Carter which comes out in March. Both were written by Edgar Rice Burroughs.
Wow. I had no idea he was still alive.
Wow, such a long life. Had no idea he was with us for so long.
That said I have a question - how can one have ‘non-denominational’ Christmas music. CHRISTmas is a CHRISTian holiday which just by it being ‘CHRISTmas’ music makes it Denominational.
“Cheetah was known for his ability to stand up and walk like a person, sanctuary volunteer Ron Priest told WFLA.
Another distinguishing characteristic: “When he didn’t like somebody or something that was going on, he would pick up some poop and throw it at them,” Priest said. “He could get you at 30 feet with bars in between.”...”
http://www.cnn.com/2011/12/28/showbiz/obit-tarzan-cheetah/index.html?eref=rss_mostpopular
