J. Fred Muggs
Template:Short description Template:Infobox animal
J. Fred Muggs (born March 14, 1952) is a chimpanzee born in the African colony of French Cameroon that forms part of modern-day Cameroon. Brought to New York City before his first birthday, he was bought by two former NBC pages and eventually appeared on a host of television shows on that network including NBC's Today Show where he served as mascot from 1953 to 1957. Muggs worked in several television shows including a short-lived eponymous series, toured the world and worked at Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida. He officially retired at age 23. Template:As of, Muggs is still alive.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Chimpanzees have been known to live up to 70 years, though 50 is more commonly the animal's lifespan.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
Life and career
Muggs was born in French Cameroon. He first became popular when he was in Henry Trefflich's pet store in New York; a "name that chimp" contest led to his being named Mr. Muggs, to which the Today Show later added "J. Fred".<ref name=acres>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }} According to this site he was only 13 weeks old when Mennella and Waldron bought him.</ref> Carmine "Bud" Mennella and Leroy "Roy" Waldron, former NBC pages, bought him for $600 when he was 10 months old, and Mennella trained him.<ref name=Mennella>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=StPete>Template:Cite news</ref> He appeared on the Perry Como Show and Pat Weaver of the Today Show saw potential in him;<ref name=Missing>Template:Cite news</ref> Mennella had an appointment with NBC executives for Muggs to audition for the Today Show, but missed it; however, Muggs' antics in a coffee shop led the president of the network to offer him a contract anyway.<ref name=Mennella/> Muggs first appeared on the show on February 3, 1953, dressed in diapers like a baby.<ref name=acres/><ref name=Yesterday>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Today Show had begun in 1952, with Dave Garroway as host, but was doing poorly. The introduction of a chimpanzee caused Jim Fleming, the original newsreader, to quit; he was replaced by Frank Blair.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> However, the addition of Muggs boosted ratings and helped win advertisers; the program's producer, Richard Pinkham, once estimated Muggs had brought the network $100 million.<ref name=Mennella/><ref name=StPete/><ref name=Missing/><ref name=observer>Template:Cite news</ref> Muggs sat in Garroway's lap, mastered more than 500 words, and had a wardrobe of 450 outfits.<ref name=Mennella/><ref name=McMahon160>Template:Cite book</ref> He "read" the day's newspapers,<ref name=Stark>Template:Cite book</ref> imitated Popeye and played the piano with Steve Allen.<ref name=acres/> Merchandise featuring him included books, comics, and games;<ref name=party2>Ingram. Sixty Years of NBC's Today Show: Part Two.</ref> as a star, he was called on to open supermarkets and commission US Navy ships.<ref name=McMahon160/>
Many sources refer to Garroway as jealous of Muggs. Joe Hagan of The New York Observer noted, without attribution, that "Legend has it that ... Mr. Garroway grew jealous and began spiking Muggs' orange juice with benzedrine to make him misbehave and deliver his human co-host back to center stage."<ref name=observer/> Many sources suggested that Muggs did not have a good disposition. He has been described as "a nasty little monkey"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and as "throwing legendary tantrums".<ref name=party2/> He is said to have learned that if he misbehaved when the red light was on, indicating that the program was broadcasting live, he could not be disciplined.<ref name=party2/><ref name=McMahon>McMahon, pp. 56–57.</ref> At the press conference announcing his addition to the show, Muggs yanked Garroway's glasses off.<ref>Battaglio, p. 34; according to this author, Garroway said that Muggs behaved on-camera but misbehaved as soon as the red light went off.</ref> He was restrained in a harness and leash, but sometimes escaped: during one remote broadcast he climbed a tree and had to be lured down with bananas, and in Beirut an associate producer had to chase him in her underwear down a hotel hallway.<ref name=Yesterday37/>
Many contemporary websites refer to Muggs as having bitten comedian Martha Raye on the arm.<ref name=acres/><ref name=Stark/><ref name=party2/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Though Gerald Preis told Hagan that this story was a "tabloid rumor" and "just plain bullshit.",<ref name=observer/> the story is well documented in the 1954 press, including the report from an NBC representative circulated by the International News Service: "An NBC spokesman said yesterday the network plans no punitive action against J. Fred Muggs, popular TV chimp star which bit comedienne Martha Raye and her understudy [Vickie Carlson] Saturday night."<ref>"N.B.C. Won't Punish J. Fred for Bites." Albany (NY) Times-Union, 19 April 1954.</ref>
Muggs's handlers at one point sued Garroway in the chimp's name for allegedly ruining Muggs's career by claiming to have been bitten by him;<ref name=McMahon/> Garroway said Muggs had bitten him on the face on live TV.<ref name=Yesterday/><ref name=party2/>
During a 1955 episode of the game show Make the Connection, Muggs appeared with Joanne Cottingham, who served as his babysitter; the panel was supposed to attempt to guess her relationship to the chimpanzee, but after Muggs was introduced, he spent most of the segment running all over the set (as well as behind it) until host Gene Rayburn finally called the game and awarded Cottingham the show's maximum $150 payoff by default.Template:Citation needed
Muggs was also an artist. In 1958, one of his finger paintings was used as the cover of Mad #38.<ref>J. Fred Muggs' MAD Magazine cover (#38, March 1958) at Doug Gilford's Mad Cover Site, retrieved April 5, 2016.</ref> Supposedly, Muggs bit editor Al Feldstein.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Muggs was associated with Mad in another way, when the magazine ran an article titled "The Dave Garrowunway Show".<ref name=Yesterday37>Battaglio, p. 37.</ref> This article focused on the chimpanzee, whom writer Harvey Kurtzman named "J. Floyd Gluggs", and his apparent ambition to take over "Garrowunway's" spot as anchor. Sure enough, by the end of the article, with "Garrowunway" rapping rudely on the window from outside the building, "Gluggs" appears in Garroway's familiar closing pose, in suit, glasses and lavalier microphone, saying "vootie" in place of the anchor's tagline "Peace," with his right palm thrust forward. The caption reads, "By George...we've warned Garrowunway to watch out..."
Today interrupted its coverage of Queen Elizabeth II's coronation (which involved slightly delayed still pictures and BBC radio audio) with foolery and advertising for tea, featuring Muggs.<ref name=acres/> This was severely criticized in the United Kingdom and by some US television critics, including Jack Gould in The New York Times;<ref name=Yesterday/> in the UK the introduction of commercial television was being debated at the time, and its opponents felt that it strengthened their case. It was arguably a key factor in the strong regulation of ITV (by the Independent Television Authority) written into the Television Act 1954, including its ban on advertising breaks during programming featuring the Royal Family.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Muggs went on a world tour to promote Today; in Japan, where his popularity was second only to that of Marilyn Monroe, 15 geishas waited on him,<ref name=McMahon160/> while in Russia Izvestia described him as "a symbol of the American way of life" and said he was "necessary in order that the average American should not look into reports on rising taxes, and decreasing pay, but rather laugh at the funny mug of a chimpanzee."<ref name=acres/> In 1957—supposedly following the Martha Raye incident—he was replaced on the show by another chimpanzee called Kokomo Jr.<ref name=party2/><ref name=McMahon/> NBC's press release stated that he intended "to extend his personal horizons",<ref name=Yesterday37/> and he briefly starred in The J. Fred Muggs Show.<ref name=acres/><ref>McMahon, p. 161.</ref> He then worked at Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida, and appeared on Good Morning America (on ABC) to celebrate his 23rd birthday, before retiring.<ref name=acres/>
Muggs and his "live-in girlfriend", Phoebe B. Beebe (who also made appearances on Today), were still alive as of January 12, 2012, and living in Citrus Park, Florida, in the care of Gerald Preis, Mennella's son. In 2004, Joe Hagan reached Preis at his home, where Preis stated that Muggs "has a little gray, mostly in his beard."<ref name=observer/>
Legacy
For many years, TV Guide ran an annual feature highlighting its takes on the year's most dubious television programs, episodes, activities, and issues, "The J. Fred Muggs Awards for Distinguished Foolishness".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> And in the 1994 film Quiz Show, chronicling the infamous quiz show scandal of the late 1950s, actor Ralph Fiennes as Twenty-One champion Charles Van Doren—shown being offered a regular job on Today—says to the Dave Garroway character (played by Barry Levinson), "I hope you're not firing the chimp!"
See also
References
External links
- [https://www.imdb.com/{{#if: 1330975
| name/{{#if:{{#invoke:ustring|match|1= 1330975|2=^nm}}
| Template:Trim/
| nm1330975/
}}
| {{#if: {{#property:P345}}
| name/Template:First word/
| find?q=%7B%7B%23if%3A+%0A++++++%7C+%7B%7B%7Bname%7D%7D%7D%0A++++++%7C+%5B%5B%3ATemplate%3APAGENAMEBASE%5D%5D%0A++++++%7D%7D&s=nm
}}
}}{{#if: 1330975 {{#property:P345}} | {{#switch:
| award | awards = awards Awards for | biography | bio = bio Biography for
}}}} {{#if:
| {{{name}}}
| Template:PAGENAMEBASE
}}] at IMDb{{#if: 1330975{{#property:P345}}
| Template:EditAtWikidata
| Template:Main other
}}{{#switch:{{#invoke:string2|matchAny|^nm.........|^nm.......|nm|.........|source= 1330975|plain=false}}
| 1 | 3 = Template:Main otherTemplate:Preview warning | 4 = Template:Main otherTemplate:Preview warning
}}{{#invoke:Check for unknown parameters|check|unknown=Template:Main other|preview=Page using Template:IMDb name with unknown parameter "_VALUE_"|showblankpositional=1| 1 | 2 | id | name | section }} Template:Notable apes Template:Animal actors