{"author_name":"Fine Gorilla Person","author_url":"https://art19.com/shows/fine-gorilla-person","description":"If you grew up in the '80s or '90s, you might be familiar with the story of Koko’s Kitten. It’s the tale of a giant gorilla named Koko who made friends with a tiny baby cat called All Ball. But this gorilla wasn’t just any ape—she spoke sign language. Or at least a gorilla version of it. And when Koko wanted her kitty brought to her, she just signed his name. The story riveted people young and old across America. When the children’s book Koko’s Kitten hit bookstores in 1985, Koko became a bonafide celebrity. She was on the cover of National Geographic magazine…twice. A famous filmmaker made a documentary about her. And she befriended all kinds of famous folks like Robin Williams, Betty White and William Shatner. But behind the celebrity lay a grim reality. All was not well in Koko land. Fine Gorilla Person , a new documentary series hosted by veteran journalist and podcast host Lauren Ober, unpacks the rise and fall of the world’s most famous gorilla. From Koko’s early days as a Stanford University science experiment to the failed schemes to make the captive gorilla a mother to the decades-long boondoggle to build a sanctuary for signing gorillas in Hawaii, Ober takes listeners on a journey to understand what became of Koko’s life. How did this extraordinary creature end up living the last half of her life in a tiny, dirty trailer, depressed, pumped full of pills and party to some weird sexual stuff? And what does it say about a culture that let that happen? An Audible Original produced by Topic Studios. The production company is Rowhome Productions.","html":"","provider_name":"ART19","provider_url":"https://art19.com","title":"Fine Gorilla Person","type":"rich","version":"1.0","width":720,"height":505}