Women sue over gorilla's fetish
2005-02-20 10:21
San Francisco - Two women sacked from their jobs caring for a "talking" gorilla have sued their ex-employer for allegedly ordering them to bare their breasts to the nipple-obsessed simian, reports said on Saturday.
The former employees claimed in their bizarre lawsuit that they were told to display their breasts in order to bond with, Koko, a 33-year-old female gorilla famed for her ability to "speak" sign language.
Nancy Alperin and Kendra Keller sued the Gorilla Foundation, based in Woodside, near the US city of San Francisco, and its president, Francine "Penny" Patterson, earlier this week, according to several local newspapers.
Patterson told Alperin several times last year that "exposing one's breasts to Koko was a normal component to developing a personal bond with the gorilla", the suit alleges, according to the San Jose Mercury News.
"On at least two incidents in mid-to-late June 2004, Patterson intensely pressured Keller to expose herself to Koko while they were working outside where other employees could potentially view Keller's naked body," the suit stated.
"On one such occasion, Patterson said, 'Koko, you see my nipples all the time. You are probably bored with my nipples. You need to see new nipples. I will turn my back so Kendra can show you her nipples,'" the suit added.
The women say they never did undress for the voyeuristic gorilla.
But the Gorilla Foundation, set up in 1976, strongly denied the allegations made in the suit filed in court in San Mateo County, accusing them of distorting the facts to draw publicity to their labour gripes.
"We unequivocally deny these allegations and are confident that this case lacks merit," said the foundation's lawyer Todd Roberts in a statement.
"We intend to try this case in the San Mateo County court and not in the press," he said, adding that the suit was a bid by the women and their lawyers to "manipulate a purported employment issue and miscast it purely for publicity purposes".
The women, who were sacked on August 6 last year, seeking more than one million dollars in damages for alleged sexual discrimination, wrongful dismissal in retaliation for reporting health violations at the foundation and for outstanding overtime pay.
They claim they were sacked after telling authorities of alleged health violations, including the alleged storage of gorilla urine in the same fridge as human food, various local media reports said.
The 47-year-old Alperin is seeking $719 830 in damages while Keller, 48, is asking for $366 192.
Koko became the subject of books, television shows and press reports in 1998 after learning more than 1 000 words in American Sign Language from Patterson.
The hirsute linguist, who also has a reported taste for painting abstract and still-life artworks, took part in an Internet chatroom conversation with fans later the same year.