Gargantua (gorilla)
Encyclopedia
Gargantua was a captive lowland gorilla
who was famous in his lifetime and has been credited with saving the Ringling Brothers
circus
from bankruptcy. An acid
scar
on his face gave Gargantua a snarling, menacing expression, and the circus management attracted attention to him by emphasizing, in their publicity, his alleged hatred of humans. He was also claimed to be the largest gorilla in captivity.
Gargantua was captured as a baby in Africa
, and was known as "Buddy" for years. After he was sold to Ringling Brothers by his previous owner, Gertrude Lintz
, he was renamed after the literary character Gargantua for his large size (the literary Gargantua was a giant
) and because the name sounded more frightening.
He had a "mate" named Toto
, but apparently never showed any interest in her. She was nevertheless advertised by the circus as "Mrs Gargantua".
The film Buddy, starring Rene Russo
, is very loosely based on the early life of Gargantua/Buddy and another of Mrs Lintz's gorillas, Massa
.
in approximately 1929. In the early-1930s, the gorilla was given to a Captain Arthur Phillips as a gift from missionaries
in Africa
. The captain was fond of him and called him "Buddy". He was kept aboard his freighter
and became popular with most of the crew. One sailor, however, drunk and seeking revenge
on the captain's strictness, threw nitric acid
in Buddy's face. This did not kill the gorilla but the attack almost blinded him and left both mental and physical scars - leading to much more aggressive behaviour.
Unable to deal with this aggression, the captain gave Buddy to Gertrude Lintz
, a wealthy eccentric
who looked after sick animals in Brooklyn
. Her husband, Dr Bill Lintz, diagnosed Buddy with double pneumonia
. Mrs Lintz treated the little gorilla back to health, including chewing his food for him, and along with her kennel-man, Richard "Dick" Kroener, trained and raised Buddy. She cared for Buddy, and other apes, as her children and even arranged for plastic surgery on the scar, leaving Buddy with a permanent sneer
. She was known to drive around Brooklyn with Buddy, dressed in clothes, in the passenger seat. This behaviour backfired, however, in 1937. Buddy, frightened by thunder
, broke out of his cage and climbed into bed with his "mother" for comfort. Buddy was about 460 lb (208.7 kg) at this time. Mrs Lintz contacted John Ringling
shortly thereafter.
, in financial problems after the Great Depression
, heavily advertised their newest attraction. Their extravagant claims included:
Regardless of the truth of these slogans, Gargantua attracted millions and single-handedly saved the circus.
A special cage was built for Gargantua by The Crane Company. It was air-tight and air conditioned, designed to keep Gargantua in and the spectators' diseases out.
His first public appearance was in April 1938 and was recorded by Time Magazine:
Gargantua stole the show.
Gargantua's supposed aggression and violence were emphasized in the Circus' publicity. For example, Time Magazine also wrote this earlier in the same year:
In 1941, he was paired with another gorilla, Toto
(short for Mitoto or M'Toto), who was advertised as "Mrs Gargantua". Nothing ever came of the relationship, however, and both lived in separate cages.
. An autopsy performed at Johns Hopkins Hospital
revealed that Gargantua had been suffering from several conditions at the time of his death, including skin disease and four impacted and rotten wisdom teeth.
His skeleton was donated to the Peabody Museum in 1950 but is now only displayed on special occasions.
Gorilla
Gorillas are the largest extant species of primates. They are ground-dwelling, predominantly herbivorous apes that inhabit the forests of central Africa. Gorillas are divided into two species and either four or five subspecies...
who was famous in his lifetime and has been credited with saving the Ringling Brothers
Ringling brothers
The Ringling brothers were seven siblings who transformed their small touring company of performers into one of America's largest circuses in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in McGregor, Iowa and raised in Baraboo, Wisconsin, they were the children of Heinrich Friedrich August Ringling...
circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
from bankruptcy. An acid
Acid
An acid is a substance which reacts with a base. Commonly, acids can be identified as tasting sour, reacting with metals such as calcium, and bases like sodium carbonate. Aqueous acids have a pH of less than 7, where an acid of lower pH is typically stronger, and turn blue litmus paper red...
scar
Scar
Scars are areas of fibrous tissue that replace normal skin after injury. A scar results from the biological process of wound repair in the skin and other tissues of the body. Thus, scarring is a natural part of the healing process. With the exception of very minor lesions, every wound results in...
on his face gave Gargantua a snarling, menacing expression, and the circus management attracted attention to him by emphasizing, in their publicity, his alleged hatred of humans. He was also claimed to be the largest gorilla in captivity.
Gargantua was captured as a baby in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, and was known as "Buddy" for years. After he was sold to Ringling Brothers by his previous owner, Gertrude Lintz
Gertrude Lintz
Gertrude Davies Lintz was an eccentric animal lover from Brooklyn, New York.She kept several animals in her Brooklyn home, including several St. Bernards and the famous gorillas Gargantua and Massa. She was known to drive around Brooklyn with a fully clothed gorilla or chimpanzee sitting in the...
, he was renamed after the literary character Gargantua for his large size (the literary Gargantua was a giant
Giant (mythology)
The mythology and legends of many different cultures include monsters of human appearance but prodigious size and strength. "Giant" is the English word commonly used for such beings, derived from one of the most famed examples: the gigantes of Greek mythology.In various Indo-European mythologies,...
) and because the name sounded more frightening.
He had a "mate" named Toto
Toto (gorilla)
Toto was a gorilla that was adopted and raised very much like a human child....
, but apparently never showed any interest in her. She was nevertheless advertised by the circus as "Mrs Gargantua".
The film Buddy, starring Rene Russo
Rene Russo
- Early life :Russo was born in Burbank, California, the daughter of Shirley , a factory worker and barmaid, and Nino Russo, a sculptor and car mechanic who left the family when Rene was two. Her father and maternal grandfather were of Italian descent. Russo grew up with her sister, Toni, and their...
, is very loosely based on the early life of Gargantua/Buddy and another of Mrs Lintz's gorillas, Massa
Massa (gorilla)
Massa lived to be 54 years old, and until 2008 was the longest lived gorilla ever recorded.Massa was born in the wild in Ghana. He was shipped to America at an early age and his first owner was Brooklyn eccentric Gertrude Lintz. In 1935, after accidentally spilling water on Massa, which...
.
Early life of Gargantua
Gargantua was born wild in the Belgian CongoBelgian Congo
The Belgian Congo was the formal title of present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo between King Leopold II's formal relinquishment of his personal control over the state to Belgium on 15 November 1908, and Congolese independence on 30 June 1960.-Congo Free State, 1884–1908:Until the latter...
in approximately 1929. In the early-1930s, the gorilla was given to a Captain Arthur Phillips as a gift from missionaries
Missionary
A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
in Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. The captain was fond of him and called him "Buddy". He was kept aboard his freighter
Cargo ship
A cargo ship or freighter is any sort of ship or vessel that carries cargo, goods, and materials from one port to another. Thousands of cargo carriers ply the world's seas and oceans each year; they handle the bulk of international trade...
and became popular with most of the crew. One sailor, however, drunk and seeking revenge
Revenge
Revenge is a harmful action against a person or group in response to a grievance, be it real or perceived. It is also called payback, retribution, retaliation or vengeance; it may be characterized, justly or unjustly, as a form of justice.-Function in society:Some societies believe that the...
on the captain's strictness, threw nitric acid
Nitric acid
Nitric acid , also known as aqua fortis and spirit of nitre, is a highly corrosive and toxic strong acid.Colorless when pure, older samples tend to acquire a yellow cast due to the accumulation of oxides of nitrogen. If the solution contains more than 86% nitric acid, it is referred to as fuming...
in Buddy's face. This did not kill the gorilla but the attack almost blinded him and left both mental and physical scars - leading to much more aggressive behaviour.
Unable to deal with this aggression, the captain gave Buddy to Gertrude Lintz
Gertrude Lintz
Gertrude Davies Lintz was an eccentric animal lover from Brooklyn, New York.She kept several animals in her Brooklyn home, including several St. Bernards and the famous gorillas Gargantua and Massa. She was known to drive around Brooklyn with a fully clothed gorilla or chimpanzee sitting in the...
, a wealthy eccentric
Eccentricity (behavior)
In popular usage, eccentricity refers to unusual or odd behavior on the part of an individual. This behavior would typically be perceived as unusual or unnecessary, without being demonstrably maladaptive...
who looked after sick animals in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
. Her husband, Dr Bill Lintz, diagnosed Buddy with double pneumonia
Acute lung injury
Acute lung injury is a diffuse heterogeneous lung injury characterized by hypoxemia, non cardiogenic pulmonary edema, low lung compliance and widespread capillary leakage...
. Mrs Lintz treated the little gorilla back to health, including chewing his food for him, and along with her kennel-man, Richard "Dick" Kroener, trained and raised Buddy. She cared for Buddy, and other apes, as her children and even arranged for plastic surgery on the scar, leaving Buddy with a permanent sneer
Sneer
A sneer is a facial expression of scorn or disgust characterized by a slight raising of one corner of the upper lip, known also as curling the lip or turning up the nose...
. She was known to drive around Brooklyn with Buddy, dressed in clothes, in the passenger seat. This behaviour backfired, however, in 1937. Buddy, frightened by thunder
Thunder
Thunder is the sound made by lightning. Depending on the nature of the lightning and distance of the listener, thunder can range from a sharp, loud crack to a long, low rumble . The sudden increase in pressure and temperature from lightning produces rapid expansion of the air surrounding and within...
, broke out of his cage and climbed into bed with his "mother" for comfort. Buddy was about 460 lb (208.7 kg) at this time. Mrs Lintz contacted John Ringling
John Ringling
John Nicholas Ringling now is the most well-known of the seven Ringling brothers, five of whom merged the Barnum & Bailey Circus with their own Ringling Brothers Circus to create a virtual monopoly of traveling circuses and helped shape the circus into what it is today.-Early circus life:John was...
shortly thereafter.
Circus attraction
Ringling bought Buddy from Mr Lintz (for less than $10,000) and renamed him "Gargantua" at his wife's suggestion. The Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey CircusRingling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus
Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus is an American circus company. The company was started when the circus created by James Anthony Bailey and P. T. Barnum was merged with the Ringling Brothers Circus. The Ringling brothers purchased the Barnum & Bailey Circus in 1907, but ran the circuses...
, in financial problems after the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
, heavily advertised their newest attraction. Their extravagant claims included:
- "The Largest Gorilla Ever Exhibited!"
- "The World's Most Terrifying Living Creature!"
- "The Largest and Fiercest Gorilla Ever Brought Before the Eyes of Civilised Man!"
- "The Only Full-Grown Gorilla Ever Seen On This Continent!"
Regardless of the truth of these slogans, Gargantua attracted millions and single-handedly saved the circus.
A special cage was built for Gargantua by The Crane Company. It was air-tight and air conditioned, designed to keep Gargantua in and the spectators' diseases out.
His first public appearance was in April 1938 and was recorded by Time Magazine:
Appearing as Display No. 14 on the 26-item program, Gargantua was hauled round & round the Garden in a heavily barred, thickly glassed, air-conditioned wagon drawn by six white horses. Stocky & truculent, he stared menacingly out of his cage, was characterized by Frank BuckFrank Buck (animal collector)Frank Howard Buck was a hunter and "collector of wild animals," as well as a movie actor, director, writer and producer...
as "the most ferocious, most terrifying and most dangerous of all living creatures."
Gargantua stole the show.
Gargantua's supposed aggression and violence were emphasized in the Circus' publicity. For example, Time Magazine also wrote this earlier in the same year:
"Gargantua the Great, wrote Gargantuan Columnist Heywood BrounHeywood BrounHeywood Campbell Broun, Jr. was an American journalist. He worked as a sportswriter, newspaper columnist, and editor in New York City. He founded the American Newspaper Guild, now known as The Newspaper Guild. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he is best remembered for his writing on social issues and...
three weeks ago, "is the fiercest looking thing I have ever seen on two legs. And probably his power and truculence were all the more impressive because he did look a good deal like a distant relative. No one was allowed to go close to his cage, because Gargantua can reach about five feet through the bars and get a toe hold on a visitor whom he dislikes." Gargantua may not be the world's biggest captive gorilla—since the death of Berlin Zoo's monster, many zoos have claimed that honor for their gorillas—but he is one of the most vindictive. Last week the circus' executive vice president, young John Ringling North, nephew of the late John ("Three-Ring") Ringling, was inspecting the circus' Sarasota, Fla.Sarasota, FloridaSarasota is a city located in Sarasota County on the southwestern coast of the U.S. state of Florida. It is south of the Tampa Bay Area and north of Fort Myers...
winter quarters. Imprudently disregarding warning signs, he leaned against the bars of Gargantua's cage to rest. Gargantua reached through, got no toe hold but wrenched Circusman North's left arm into the cage, bit & wrung it until Trainer Richard Kroner, pounding the gorilla with an iron stake, distracted its slow attention.
In 1941, he was paired with another gorilla, Toto
Toto (gorilla)
Toto was a gorilla that was adopted and raised very much like a human child....
(short for Mitoto or M'Toto), who was advertised as "Mrs Gargantua". Nothing ever came of the relationship, however, and both lived in separate cages.
Death
Gargantua died in November 1949 of double pneumoniaPneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
. An autopsy performed at Johns Hopkins Hospital
Johns Hopkins Hospital
The Johns Hopkins Hospital is the teaching hospital and biomedical research facility of Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, located in Baltimore, Maryland . It was founded using money from a bequest by philanthropist Johns Hopkins...
revealed that Gargantua had been suffering from several conditions at the time of his death, including skin disease and four impacted and rotten wisdom teeth.
His skeleton was donated to the Peabody Museum in 1950 but is now only displayed on special occasions.
Physical characteristics
Sources report Gargantua's weight variously as 550-600 lb. The seven-year old Gargantua was described as 460 lb (208.7 kg) when first displayed. Lowland Gorillas usually only reach 440 lb (199.6 kg) in the wild.Further reading
- Gargantua: Circus Star of the Century by Gene Plowden (Random HouseRandom HouseRandom House, Inc. is the largest general-interest trade book publisher in the world. It has been owned since 1998 by the German private media corporation Bertelsmann and has become the umbrella brand for Bertelsmann book publishing. Random House also has a movie production arm, Random House Films,...
, ISBN 0517136597) - Animals are my Hobby by Gertrude Davies Lintz (Museum Press Limited, 1945, ASIN B0007JAIJC)
External links
- Gangantua Photos - History of Gargantua
- Gargantua the Great at The Nonist
- The News-Times: The Real King Kong
- Extract from Animals are my hobby at Apes & Monkeys