Quincy Jones recalls not-so-happy memories of Bubbles the Chimp and Muscles the Boa
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Since Michael Jackson’s death, scores of Jackson family members have come forward to share their memories of the legendary pop star. By now, you might be a little sick of hearing from LaToya and Tito, but there are several members of Jackson’s family that we haven’t heard too much about -- specifically those of the animal variety.
Bubbles the chimp will always be the pet most often associated with Michael Jackson. After Jackson rescued Bubbles from a cancer research center in 1985, the pair became practically inseparable. Bubbles accompanied Jackson during his ‘Bad’ world tour, and often escorted the famous pop star to awards ceremonies. He even learned how to moonwalk.
Despite Bubbles’ fame, few people were ever aware of Jackson’s other animal buddy: a large boa constrictor named Muscles. As it turns out, Muscles also frequently traveled with Jackson. In a recent interview with Details magazine, Quincy Jones revealed his distaste for the King of Pop’s scaly companion:
Q: It’s interesting you mention this, because I was just watching a clip on YouTube where you’re sitting on a couch with Michael and he’s petting a snake the whole time.
A: Oh, I remember that. Yeah, that was Muscles.
Q: Muscles?
A: Muscles. That’s a big boa constrictor he had. Muscles used to wrap around my leg in a record session and crawl across the console. I was never comfortable with that.
More about Bubbles (and who he bit) after the jump.
Jones had even worse memories of Bubbles, however. He recalled one incident with his daughter, Rashida Jones (who would later go on to star in ‘The Office’ and ‘Boston Public’):
Q: Did you ever meet Bubbles?
A: Are you kidding me? He bit a hole in my daughter’s hand! Rashida’s hand. Rashida Jones. Did you see ‘I Love You, Man’? That’s my daughter. She was a little girl. And Bubbles bit her hand. Michael used to bring Muscles and Bubbles by the house all the time, you know.
Bubbles grew increasingly more aggressive as he aged and was eventually sent away to live in an animal sanctuary where he quickly fell into obscurity.
We may not have heard the last of Bubbles, however. In the wake of Jackson’s death, the ape has already been offered several book and movie deals.
How the heck a chimp is supposed to write a book is really anyone’s guess.
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-- Brendan Bigelow