Rashida Jones recalls 'traumatic' moment she was bitten by Michael Jackson's pet chimpanzee as a child
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Rashida Jones revealed she was bitten by Michael Jackson's chimpanzee, Bubbles, when she was nine-years-old.
The Sunny actress - whose father Quincy Jones produced the Billie Jean hitmaker's iconic albums Off the Wall, Bad, and Thriller - had a 'traumatic' experience with the late singer's beloved pet after she let him out of his cage and her attempts to stop him causing chaos backfired.
When asked about her memories of the King of Pop during her childhood, the 48-year-old star told The New Yorker: 'He was really young. My dad met him on The Wiz. He was maybe 19. He was like a big kid with lots of animals.'
'Sorry, I was just sighing, because I was just thinking about how I was bit by his monkey,' she recalled. 'It was my fault. Well, no, it's not my fault. I am not the one who put a chimpanzee in overalls and a diaper.'
The Los Angeles native admitted she may have antagonized the animal, who she said removed the 'hairband out' of her hand while in his cage.
Rashida Jones revealed she was bitten by Michael Jackson's chimpanzee, Bubbles, when she was nine-years-old; seen in June 2024
'Everybody else had left the room, and I was, like, 'Give it back!' He was playing with it and wouldn't give it back to me. So I opened the cage, and he came out,' she remembered. 'Then he started running around the room and throwing books.'
Rashida proceeded to detail the incident, which she said was 'a bit of a nightmare.'
'I went up to him and was, like, 'No! No!' — because I'd seen Michael say 'No!' to him. And I slapped him on the head, just a light, little slap. And he took my hand like a sandwich and bit into it.
'I know. Traumatic. He's 40 and he lives in Florida now, I think. He's retired. [From what?] Biting children?' she mused, referring to the chimpanzee. 'I saw that he's the alpha male of his group, in whatever chimp retirement home he's at.'
Bubbles, who is 41, has been enjoying a nice life at the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Florida.
Bubbles is in the twilight of his lifetime as the average lifespan for a chimp in captivity is between 50 and 60-years-old.
The chimp weighs 180 pounds and is regularly checked out by a veterinarian in addition to a staff of caregivers.
The Center for Great Apes mission 'is to provide a sanctuary for orangutans and chimpanzees who have been rescued or retired from entertainment, research, or the pet trade.'
The Sunny actress - whose father Quincy Jones produced the Billie Jean hitmaker's iconic albums Off the Wall, Bad, and Thriller - had a 'traumatic' experience with the late singer's beloved pet after she let him out of his cage and her attempts to stop him causing chaos backfired; pictured in 1986
When asked about her memories of the King of Pop during her childhood, the 48-year-old star told The New Yorker: 'He was really young. My dad met him on The Wiz. He was maybe 19. He was like a big kid with lots of animals' (seen in 1987)
In 2005, Bubbles made his way to the Florida facility after being deemed 'too aggressive' to live at Jackson's home.
The center lists Bubbles as a 'physically imposing 185-pound, 4-and-a-half foot adult male' who is 'now treated as the dominant male in his group of chimpanzees that includes his best friends, Ripley and Oopsie.'
'Bubbles enjoys quiet moments and painting,' according to the website.
The website adds that 'Bubbles will occasionally spit water or throw sand (with amazing accuracy) at strangers just to see how they react.'
Back in March the center posted an Instagram celebrating Bubbles' 19th anniversary of being there as they revealed that they do not know his actual birthdate but know he was born in 1983.
'Sorry, I was just sighing, because I was just thinking about how I was bit by his monkey,' she recalled; Bubbles is pictured recently
The caption read: 'Bubbles was reportedly born in a biomedical laboratory.'
Eventually Bubbles was given to Michael by a Hollywood trainer in 1986.
The post read: 'While still an infant, he was taken from his mother and given to a Hollywood trainer, who then gave him to be a pet chimpanzee for the world-famous pop singer Michael Jackson.
'In such a bright limelight, it’s no surprise that Bubbles soon gained fame—and many adoring fans—of his own. He appeared in television shows, movies, and music videos. When he was only four years old, he went to Japan on a promotional tour with Jackson.'
