Imaginary Therapy

The first time he called me, I learned that Moe was a middle-aged chimpanzee living in Southern California.

“I’m not certain, but I may need your help in figuring some things out,” he explained. “I’ve heard that you’re the only one who will listen to me.“
“Okay. Since you’re not here in my office, tell me a little about yourself.”
“That kind of gets to the problem. I don’t know who I am anymore. That’s what I need to figure out.”
“Can you tell me why you’re calling me now?” I asked him.
“I did something I’ve never done before. It’s embarrassing to even talk about. I’m a celebrity – I’ve been on TV – and everyone here knows me.”
After a moment, Moe continued. “Well, here it is. I was being chased and there was a scuffle and I wound up biting a policeman. I’ve never bitten anyone before, but now everyone around here is in an uproar.”
“Was he bleeding?” I was more familiar with child bites and dog bites and the importance of not breaking the skin.
“He was bleeding a lot. Actually, I bit his finger off,” Moe told me.

I asked Moe to catch me up on his life.
Moe told me he was born on February 14, 1966 in Tanzania. Unfortunately, it happened to be a time when the government was trying to reduce their chimpanzee population. When he was only a few days old, hunters found him and his mother. The men threw him out of the way and shot her. Moe, in his infancy, watched the men cut off his mother’s hands and feet, which they would sell. Baby chimps were usually left behind to die. But one of the men thought he could sell the infant and he scooped Moe up and put him in his pocket.

At the same time, St. James Davis, an American who raced just about anything motorized, was in Tanzania for a boat race. He happened to see the tiny chimp and immediately decided to adopt him. It took months of paperwork, but finally St. James was able to bring the baby chimp back to his home in West Covina, California.

St. James named him Mogambo and raised him as his son. It was quickly apparent that he was a smart chimp. Over the next few years, Mogambo learned to dress himself, go to the bathroom by himself, make his own peanut butter sandwiches, brush his teeth and eat with utensils. He learned to act more and more like a human child.

When St. James got married to LaDonna, Mogambo was his best man. LaDonna loved him every bit as much as St. James did, and they became a very close-knit family. When LaDonna tried to teach him to write his name, however, ‘Mogambo’ proved a little too difficult for him. They shortened his name to ‘Moe’ and the now autograph-signing chimp was a hit wherever they took him. In fact, it wasn’t long before he appeared in movies and television shows.

In 1971, when he was five years old, Moe got into a little trouble. Because St. James was a NASCAR driver, it was natural for him to teach Moe how to drive. When Moe drove down the street, he always attracted onlookers, and ultimately the attention of the police.

There was immense media coverage of St. James’ trial. Even the judge was impressed with Moe’s abilities. His ruling was that as long as St. James kept the chimp from driving on the street, Moe could stay in West Covina. In fact, the judge issued him an honorary California driver’s license and said that Moe was better behaved than some people he knew.

Over the years, Moe became a star. He appeared in Sesame Street, BJ and the Bear, and Bowling for Dollars. He was the subject of articles in national magazines and newspapers. He made public appearances at openings, birthday parties and civic events. Everyone in town knew him. And while he was a source of income for the Davis household, no one doubted that he was primarily a beloved member of the family.

For over thirty years, that’s how Moe lived his life. He, St. James and LaDonna Davis shared a house and their lives. Now 32 years old, Moe could expect to live to sixty.

“You have to understand that in all that time, I never spent much time with other chimpanzees,” Moe explained. “I tried hard to be as human as I could possibly be. People didn’t want me to be a chimp; they wanted me to be a chimp who acted like a human.”
“But is that what you wanted?” I asked.
“Absolutely. Everyone loved me.”
“But you’re not a human.”
“I know that. But when I bit the policeman, was that a human thing or a chimp thing? Humans bite people too.”
“I guess what was upsetting was how hard you bit him.”
“That’s a chimp thing. We’re much stronger than any human. In any case, it wasn’t my fault. I was scared and I was just trying to get away. That’s a chimp thing and a human thing.”
“It’s the similarities that have always intrigued people,” I observed.
“Yeah. I can sign autographs all day, but if I bite one human being, they say that’s my true nature coming out. All of a sudden, I’m a dangerous animal and they want to remove me from town.”
Before I could react, Moe continued, “There’s something else.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“I’m a 32 years old chimpanzee.”
“Why is that important?”
“It’s a human thing. I’m not cute anymore.”

SECOND SESSION: January 5, 2000