When Oliver Was Bigfoot
Posted by: Loren Coleman on November 13th, 2007
Oliver is not a Sasquatch, but you might not have known that in the 1970s. Articles about Oliver being a Bigfoot were written in all seriousness.
But Oliver is a chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes).
Unfortunately, despite his history being easily obtainable, I still get inquiries about Oliver really being a Bigfoot.
Supposedly, there is a government conspiracy to keep Oliver hidden away in Texas and the “truth” about his Sasquatch affinities hidden from all of you.
Hogwash!
Sometimes a mishandled chimp merely grows up to be a dysfunctional but recovering chimp.
Sometimes a mangy bear is only a mangy bear.
This post was written by
Loren Coleman no longer writes for Cryptomundo. His archived posts remain here at Cryptomundo.
Ive always found Oliver fascinating.
Whenever I see a program on Oliver I always feel sad for that poor chimp. He’s probably so screwed up in the head he doesn’t have any idea what he is. The woman in the clip looks like she’s trying to make another Oliver, sad.
I hope Oliver is happy and healthy in his final years. He’s been through too much. I hope his story will inspire younger people to take a look at the way we treat creatures we call “different.”
hey loren & everyone this article about oliver the primate always realy interest me indeed. oliver is a very interesting & special primate. thanks bill green
A chimpanzee yes, but definitely an exceptional chimpanzee.
Just as we get exceptional humans, surely we also get exceptional chimpanzees.
Do we know which particular sub-species of chimpanzee Oliver was?
Apart from being a chimpanzee, was anything else interesting found about his genetics?
Why yes, saying hes just a chimp doesnt mean that much these days, there are several types.
and has anyone x rayed his hips? walking like that is exceptional in `any` chimp.
An exceptional chimpanzee though he may be, it is still a far cry from the “Bigfoot” or “humanzee” he was labeled as before. I really value the ability of science to dispel misinformation and sensationalism, to cut through rumor and superstition to get to how the world really works. Unfortunately even then, you have those who want to hold on to the mystery, who reject the truth and evidence in order to embrace wild hypotheses like conspiracy stories and cover ups. That does nothing for the credibility of this field.
Hi. I have 2 favorite theories about Oliver.
1. Is Oliver a Bonobo? (Pan paniscus). I read in Wikipedia, they walk upright very often and have genetic differences with the common Chimp (Pan troglodytes).
2. Is Oliver a relic Australophitecus? Who knows? How different is an extinct Australophitecus from a modern Chimp?
I remember when I was a kid and I first saw a video special about Oliver on tv. I guess this was a little over 10 years ago. It terrified me. Just how human like his movements were, etc. frightened me.
He fascinates me now, however.
Like the poster above me, I’d wondered the same about the bonobo. When I first learned about them a few years ago, Oliver actually came to my mind instantly. Were any tests ever done to confirm?