Many of the holidays that I write about, I have been aware of for quite some time. However, Monkey Day is one of those that took me by surprise a bit.
My research indicated that this is day to celebrate our primate friends. Even possibly to even act like a monkey a bit by screeching (one site suggested even throwing feces). I wouldn’t suggest that myself. But they did say you could hang out with your friends and grunt.
Where did this day come from? Well, it is a bit clouded as to its real origins. But some of the information I found said that it began as a tool to further the awareness of simian species and habitats. Some information suggested that it began as a scientific backlash to all of the religious holidays permeating the month of December, an evolutionary finger to the creationist holidays. I even found some information that it is because of a few drunken young people at a pub one night.
Probably, the most reliable information on this day came from Wikipedia:
“Monkey Day is an unofficial holiday celebrated internationally on December 14. The holiday is primarily celebrated with costume parties intended to help draw attention to issues related to simians, including medical research, animal rights, and evolution.[1] The holiday also cuts across religious boundaries and provides opportunities to share monkey stories.
The holiday was started in 2000 by Casey Sorrow, then artist of the popular comic Fetus-X, and first celebrated by Lansing residents and art students at Michigan State University. There has been an annual Monkey Day Web Comic Marathon since 2004 with comics including Rob Balder’s PartiallyClips, David Malki’s Wondermark, Eric Millikin’s Fetus-X, and Sorrow’s own Feral Calf.In 2005, Peter Jackson’s King Kong was released on the fifth anniversary of Monkey Day.
In 2008, the official Monkey Day celebration was a silent art auction to benefit Chimps Inc., which included paintings from chimps Jackson and Kimie, residents of the Chimps Inc. primate sanctuary. The Biddle Gallery in Detroit also celebrated Monkey Day in 2008 with an annual Monkey Day art sale that included a free banana with each purchase.”
While writing this, I was reminded of a gorilla that actually lived in my town years ago who went on to become quite famous. You could actually see Bobo swinging from the beams in the Lowman’s living room. Bobo went on to be a very famous gorilla in the Pacific Northwest. You can find more information on Bobo on HistoryLink.org. I think I will celebrate this day in honor of Bobo.
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