Jiggs (''c.'' 1929 – February 28, 1938) was a male

chimpanzee The chimpanzee (''Pan troglodytes''), also known as simply the chimp, is a species of great ape native to the forest and savannah of tropical Africa. It has four confirmed subspecies and a fifth proposed subspecies. When its close relative t ...

and animal actor who originated the character of Cheeta in the 1930s

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

Tarzan Tarzan (John Clayton II, Viscount Greystoke) is a fictional character, an archetypal feral child raised in the African jungle by the Mangani great apes; he later experiences civilization, only to reject it and return to the wild as a heroic adv ...

movie A film also called a movie, motion picture, moving picture, picture, photoplay or (slang) flick is a work of visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, feelings, beauty, or atmosphere ...

s. He was owned and trained by Tony and Jacqueline Gentry.Kingsley, Grace. "Hobnobbing in Hollywood," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', November 21, 1933, page 11."Chimpanzee Actor Dies; Funeral Planned for Today," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', March 2, 1938, page A3."Famous Chimpanzee, Jiggs, Dies on Coast," in ''The Atlanta Constitution'', March 2, 1938, page 2."Owner Sues for 'Jigg's' Death," in ''The New York Times'', April 15, 1938, page 22."Alas, poor Jiggs !" in ''The Brooklyn Daily Eagle'', March 6, 1938, page 4.

Early life

In a likely apocryphal account Jiggs was said to have been brought over from Africa by

Gary Cooper Gary Cooper (born Frank James Cooper; May 7, 1901May 13, 1961) was an American actor known for his strong, quiet screen persona and understated acting style. He won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice and had a further three nominations, a ...

, who sold him because the animal occasionally went berserk.Fidler, Jimmie. "Jimmie Fidler in Hollywood," in ''The Washington Post'', October 25, 1936, page AA2. More reliably, Jacqueline Gentry claimed to have raised and trained Jiggs from infancy. He is stated to have been brought up with a collie named Spanky and to have later refused to do any film work without the dog present.Del Valle, John. "Four-Legged Stars Come and Go," in the ''New York Herald Tribune'', December 19, 1937, page E3. Spanky was also used to help control Jiggs on the set.

Career

Jiggs had a seven-year film career."Chimpanzee Film Star Dies," in the ''New York Herald Tribune'', March 2, 1938, page 14. He appeared as Cheeta in the first two

Johnny Weissmuller Johnny Weissmuller (born Johann Peter Weißmüller; June 2, 1904 – January 20, 1984) was an American Olympic swimmer, water polo player and actor. He was known for having one of the best competitive swimming records of the 20th century. H ...

Tarzan films, '' Tarzan the Ape Man'' (1932) and '' Tarzan and His Mate'' (1934)."Movie Chimpanzee Receives $350 a week; Jiggs Is Animal Star, Not Camera Shy," in ''The New York Times'', May 20, 1935, page 19.Dean, Paul. "A Chimp Off the Old Block in Many a Tarzan Movie," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', March 25, 1985, page OC-C1. Apparently he was in the third of the series, '' Tarzan Escapes'' (1936), as well.Tully, Jim. "Animal Stars," in the ''New York Herald Tribune'', March 1, 1936, page SM5. He also appeared in the rival

Buster Crabbe Clarence Linden Crabbe II (; February 7, 1908 – April 23, 1983), known professionally as Buster Crabbe, was an American two-time Olympic swimmer and film and television actor. He won the 1932 Olympic gold medal for 400-meter freestyle swimmi ...

serial '' Tarzan the Fearless'' (1933)Kingsley, Grace. "Hobnobbing in Hollywood," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', June 21, 1933, page A7. and the Herman Brix serial ''

The New Adventures of Tarzan ''The New Adventures of Tarzan'' is a 1935 American film serial in 12 chapters starring Herman Brix. The serial presents a more authentic version of the character than most other film adaptations, with Tarzan as the cultured and well-educated gen ...

'' (1935), also released in feature-film form as ''

Tarzan and the Green Goddess ''The New Adventures of Tarzan'' is a 1935 American film serial in 12 chapters starring Herman Brix. The serial presents a more authentic version of the character than most other film adaptations, with Tarzan as the cultured and well-educated gen ...

'' (1938).Schallert, Edwin. "Popularity of Tarzan Movies Results in Deluge of Ape-Man Hero Stories," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', January 10, 1935, page 19. In the Brix films, which were more faithful to Edgar Rice Burroughs' original stories than the Weissmuller ones, Jiggs was cast as

Nkima Nkima is a fictional character in Edgar Rice Burroughs' Tarzan novels, and in adaptations of the saga to other media, particularly comics. His name comes from either the word N'kima ('monkey' in the Mbugu language, a regional dialect of Swahili) ...

, not Cheeta. Jiggs was cast in at least three additional films, the

Laurel and Hardy Laurel and Hardy were a British-American comedy duo act during the early Classical Hollywood era of American cinema, consisting of Englishman Stan Laurel (1890–1965) and American Oliver Hardy (1892–1957). Starting their career as a duo in t ...

short '' Dirty Work'' (1933), the

Our Gang ''Our Gang'' (also known as ''The Little Rascals'' or ''Hal Roach's Rascals'') is an American series of comedy short films chronicling a group of poor neighborhood children and their adventures. Created by film producer Hal Roach, also the ...

short '' Divot Diggers'' (1936), and the

Dorothy Lamour Dorothy Lamour (born Mary Leta Dorothy Slaton; December 10, 1914 – September 22, 1996) was an American actress and singer. She is best remembered for having appeared in the '' Road to...'' movies, a series of successful comedies starring Bing ...

film ''

Her Jungle Love ''Her Jungle Love'' is a 1938 American south seas adventure film directed by George Archainbaud and starring Dorothy Lamour and Ray Milland. Portions of the film were shot at Palm Springs, California.here for Table of Contents Plot Two pilots ( ...

'' (1938), which was his last picture."Chimpanzee Rated Star of Picture," in ''The Christian Science Monitor'', April 8, 1938, page 10.Bell, Nelson B. "'Her Jungle Love' Adds Prestige to Technicolor As Aid to Realistic and Beautiful Cinematic Effects," in ''The Washington Post'', April 20, 1938, page X14.

Film anecdotes

On the set of ''Tarzan the Fearless'' Jiggs successfully extracted a thorn from the hand of female lead

Jacqueline Wells Julie Bishop (born Jacqueline Brown; August 30, 1914 – August 30, 2001), previously known as Jacqueline Wells, was an American film and television actress. She appeared in more than 80 films between 1923 and 1957. Early life Julie Bishop w ...

after she and lead actor Buster Crabbe both failed. His trainers, the Gentrys, appear to have separated by early 1936, as Jacqueline alone is cited as his owner in news stories of that date and after."Script Changed to Save Life of Chimpanzee," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', December 26, 1937, page C3. In July 1936, during the filming of ''Her Jungle Love'' Jiggs attacked lead actress Dorothy Lamour,"Film Aide Saves Actress from Mad Ape's Attack," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', July 7, 1936, page A1."Chimpanzee Attacks Film Actress; Two Are Injured," in the ''Chicago Daily Tribune'', July 7, 1936, page 8. who was rescued by a film aide; he was then subdued by his owners and the collie Spanky. In December 1936 Jiggs had an encounter on set with actress

Martha Raye Martha Raye (born Margy Reed; August 27, 1916 – October 19, 1994), nicknamed The Big Mouth, was an American comic actress and singer who performed in movies, and later on television. She also acted in plays, including Broadway. She was honored ...

in which they made faces at each other and Raye lit him a cigarette."Martha Meets Her Match," in the ''Daily Boston Globe'', December 6, 1936, page A6.

Death

Jiggs died on February 28, 1938 or March 1, 1938, at age 9, of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severit ...

, and his funeral was planned for March 2, 1938, in the Los Angeles Pet Cemetery. However, due to the

Los Angeles Flood of 1938 The Los Angeles flood of 1938 was one of the largest floods in the history of Los Angeles, Orange, and Riverside Counties in southern California. The flood was caused by two Pacific storms that swept across the Los Angeles Basin in February-Ma ...

, Jiggs was laid to rest on March 4.

Filmography

*'' Tarzan the Ape Man'' (1932) - Cheeta *'' Dirty Work'' (1933) - The Chimpanzee *'' Tarzan the Fearless'' (1933) - Cheeta *'' Tarzan and His Mate'' (1934) - Cheeta *''

'' (1935) - Nkima *'' Divot Diggers'' (1936) - Chimpanzee *''

'' (1938) - Nkima *''

'' (1938) - Gaga

Later Gentry chimpanzees of the same name

Tony Gentry was a professional animal trainer who owned a number of apes, at first together with his wife Jacqueline and later on his own. Three chimpanzees later owned by Gentry also bore the name Jiggs, of which two have also been associated with the Cheeta role. Jiggs, Jr. (also known as Jiggs II), was a male chimpanzee born about 1935."Fingerprint Chimpanzee," in the ''Los Angeles Times'', May 30, 1937, page B7. Stated to have gone to the Baltimore Zoo when Tony Gentry went into the service in World War II, his ultimate fate is unknown. Cheeta (also known as Jiggs IV) was a male chimpanzee born about 1960, who later resided at the C.H.E.E.T.A. (Creative Habitats and Enrichment for Endangered and Threatened Apes) Primate Sanctuary in Palm Springs, California. For many years, Gentry stated that Jiggs IV was the original Cheeta, which was in fact not true. On May 5, 2022, Cheeta/Jiggs IV died at the C.H.E.E.T.A. sanctuary in Palm Springs, California.

References

External links

* * {{Tarzan movies 1929 animal births 1938 animal deaths Chimpanzee actors