Jackson's chimp Bubbles enjoys life out of public eye

Bubbles gained fame over two decades ago as Michael Jackson's simian companion. Now at age 26, Bubbles has retired to the Center for Great Apes outside Wauchula, Florida.

Patti Ragan, director for the Center for Great Apes, explained how Bubbles and 41 other chimpanzees and orangutans spend their day:
"They relax. They take naps together. They might go up in the top of the cupola," she said. "They go out in the chutes and lie under a tree in the tunnel system.
When Bubbles was 5 years old, he and Jackson toured Japan, where the chimp moonwalked for the media. Bubbles' new home has many places for him to hide from the limelight. The nonprofit's tropical forest setting covers more than 100 acres.
The public might not recognize Bubbles. He's aged since his moonwalking days. But he is alive and well, feasting on cucumbers and bananas at the sanctuary, where the care for each animal costs about $17,000. Bubbles might be out of the public eye, but Ragan doesn't want his fans to forget him.
Those days of appearing before the camera were long gone, until today. Bubbles still likes making faces for the camera, faces that Jackson might have recognized, had he visited the sanctuary. Bubbles might have recognized Jackson, too.