Posted on 09/04/2014 8:04:15 AM PDT by dead
Robin Williams could make anyone laugh — even a gorilla. In fact, the actor forged such a bond with one gorilla that she’s said to be mourning the loss of her friend.
Back in 2001, Williams visited the Gorilla Foundation in California and met with Koko, a gorilla who uses American Sign Language to communicate. During their encounter, Williams and Koko laughed, tickled each other and hugged like old friends.
On Monday, Koko overheard Dr. Penny Patterson, her mentor and surrogate mother, talking on the phone about Williams’ death. “She became extremely sad,” Patterson wrote on Koko.org.
Koko's handlers took this photo of the gorilla reacting to the news of Robin Williams' death.
"Koko became very somber, with her head bowed and her lip quivering," they said.
“Robin’s ability to just ‘hang out’ with Koko, a gorilla, and in minutes become one of her closest friends, was extraordinary and unforgettable,” Patterson continued in a tribute post to Williams, who was an ambassador for Great Ape conservation.
The Gorilla Foundation resurfaced this 2001 video of the meeting between Koko and Williams on YouTube.
“I recently had a mind-altering experience communicating with a gorilla,” Williams said in the video. “We shared something extraordinary: Laughter. Koko understands spoken English and uses over 1,000 signs to share her feelings and thoughts about daily events, life, love, even death. It was awesome and unforgettable.”
Koko felt so comfortable with Williams during their 2001 encounter that she pulled his glasses off his face and tried them on. She also picked his pocket, producing his wallet and rifling through it.
Near the end of their meeting, Koko kissed Williams’ hand, then pulled him in for a big hug.
“Notice that Robin made Koko smile — something she hadn’t done for over six months, ever since her childhood gorilla companion, Michael, passed away at the age of 27,” Patterson wrote. “But not only did Robin cheer up Koko, the effect was mutual, and Robin seemed transformed.”
[ Koko grabbed William Shatner’s balls. ]
Koko was just hungry for Ham....
Did the ape go...um...ape...and fling some poo to demonstrate its sorrow?
Well, seeing how he mated with every species he met in space...
This and other horse$hit you might believe, tonight at 11 on your local DNC station.
Yeah, I was going to bring up dogs as well. They seem to queue off human emotion and try to read us. Dogs seem to display emotion through attachment/separation so I would think gorillas could as well.
Perhaps Koko was sad that Robin’s checks won’t be coming every month?
Did the ape go...um...ape...and fling some poo to demonstrate its sorrow?
Chimpanzees are the ones who throw poo the most... Not gorillas...
I worked in the North Stamford, Ct. area for 10 years and saw Travis the chimp being chauffeured around in his owner’s tow truck a few times. I wasn’t surprised when he escaped and tied up traffic for hours, and I wasn’t surprised several years later when he attacked Charla Nash. Nasty creature.
[ Yeah, I was going to bring up dogs as well. They seem to queue off human emotion and try to read us. Dogs seem to display emotion through attachment/separation so I would think gorillas could as well. ]
Precisely, your dog doesn’t know you are sad because you got fired or that granny died, they are sad because YOU are sad, and when the leader of the pack is sad, they are sad.
Same with the Gorilla. Unless the Gorilla loses it’s trainer like a dog losing it’s master then the gorillas would be sad.
[ I worked in the North Stamford, Ct. area for 10 years and saw Travis the chimp being chauffeured around in his owner’s tow truck a few times. I wasn’t surprised when he escaped and tied up traffic for hours, and I wasn’t surprised several years later when he attacked Charla Nash. Nasty creature. ]
Planet of the apes got it totally wrong, Chimsp would be the aggresive warriors, the Gorillas would be the pacifists, and not sure abour Orangutanas, but maybe they got the Orange Apes closest to the truth...
Thank you for that clarification. That must mean the ape I saw throwing it and eating it was an aberration. Next visit when it does it again I shall have to yell at him, "Quit acting like a chimpanzee!"
Bingo!
Some NBC wonk believes this story.
NBC is dumb enough to make the story news.
NBC thinks we're all dumb enough to believe this news story.
OMG!!! We don’t DESERVE help from God with this CLAPTRAP being on the media!!!
[ Chimpanzees are the ones who throw poo the most... Not gorillas...
Thank you for that clarification. That must mean the ape I saw throwing it and eating it was an aberration. Next visit when it does it again I shall have to yell at him, “Quit acting like a chimpanzee!” ]
Note I said “The most” meaning Gorillas throw poo, just not as much as their chimp cousins...
That's really gonna hurt.
Never own a pet that can plot your own murder.
And the NBC viewer takes the bait.
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