The Suncoast Primate Sanctuary in Palm Harbor, Florida has announced that Cheetah, the chimpanzee sidekick in the Tarzan movies of the early 1930s, died on December 24, 2011 at the age of 80.
Based on the works of author Edgar Rice Burroughs, the Tarzan stories, which have spawned scores of books and films over the years, chronicle the adventures of a man who was raised by apes in Africa. Cheetah was the comic relief in the earliest Tarzan films, which starred American Olympic gold medal swimmer Johnny Weissmuller. Cobb said Cheetah came to the sanctuary from Weissmuller’s estate sometime around 1960.
Cheetah lived much longer than most chimps, surviving past both Weissmuller and Maureen O’Sullivan, who played Jane in many of the early films. Chimpanzees normally live an average of 35 to 45 years in captivity. Guinness World Records listed Cheetah as the world’s oldest non-human primate.
