{"id":264806,"date":"2026-05-09T13:53:13","date_gmt":"2026-05-09T13:53:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/264806\/"},"modified":"2026-05-09T13:53:13","modified_gmt":"2026-05-09T13:53:13","slug":"where-is-michael-jacksons-chimp-bubbles-the-florida-retirement-of-a-hollywood-legend","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/264806\/","title":{"rendered":"Where is Michael Jackson\u2019s chimp Bubbles? The Florida retirement of a Hollywood legend"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Michael Michael Jackson\u2019s chimp Bubbles | Florida For Reel<\/a> <\/p>\n

The Michael movie is shattering box office records, but did you know a Hollywood legend is living right here in the Sunshine State? This week on Florida For Reel, Emari Craft and guest host Regina Gonzalez take you inside the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Florida. Michael Jackson\u2019s former companion is now 43 years old, and we\u2019re getting a rare look at his peaceful retirement.<\/p>\n

WAUCHULA, Fla. – The Michael film is currently shattering box office records, and its massive success has many fans asking: what ever happened to the King of Pop\u2019s famous chimpanzee, Bubbles?<\/p>\n

The backstory:<\/p>\n

From Global Spotlight to the Sunshine State <\/p>\n

Adopted by Michael Jackson as a baby in the mid-1980s, Bubbles was more than just a pet; he became a permanent fixture in 80s pop culture. However, by the late 1990s, the small chimp had matured into a powerful adult ape. After a stay at his trainer\u2019s compound, Bubbles was eventually moved to the Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Florida, in 2005.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Now 43 years old, Bubbles is enjoying a peaceful retirement in the company of other apes. Patti Ragan, the founder of the sanctuary, notes that while Jackson had hoped to visit Bubbles in Florida, he never got the chance.<\/p>\n

What they’re saying:<\/p>\n

“I know Michael wanted to visit bubbles here, but he was in Europe at the time, and when he came back, I think I heard from the grapevine he was hoping to come for a visit, but that’s about the time he passed,” shared Ragan.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Life at the Sanctuary <\/p>\n

While LaToya Jackson visited the sanctuary in 2010, Ragan clarifies that the star of the new biopic, Jaafar Jackson, has not yet met the ape\u2014despite what AI-generated photos on social media might suggest.<\/p>\n

“He didn’t come to visit bubbles. And I mean, he would be welcome, but I don’t think he even knew that Bubbles was alive,” added Ragan.<\/p>\n

\"\" <\/p>\n

Courtesy: The Center for Great Apes <\/p>\n

Ragan believes Bubbles likely shared a very close bond with the late singer.\u00a0<\/p>\n

“Yes, because great apes are, they’re anthropoids, meaning man like that’s the word. They’re very much like humans. They’re our closest relatives, chimpanzees. And so the interaction with people can be very strong and very bonding,” she explained.<\/p>\n

The Cost of Care <\/p>\n

Today, Bubbles’ life is focused on enrichment and health. His care involves:<\/p>\n

A dedicated nutrition staff provides a variety of fresh vegetables, fruits, and leafy greens.It costs over $30,000 annually to care for chimpanzees at the sanctuary.The Michael Jackson Estate continues to pay for Bubbles\u2019 lifelong care. <\/p>\n

The Source: This story was written based on an interview with the founder of the Center for Great Apes, Patti Ragan.<\/p>\n

Hardee County<\/a>Pets and Animals<\/a>Entertainment<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Michael Jackson\u2019s chimp Bubbles | Florida For Reel The Michael movie is shattering box office records, but did…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":264807,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[104,47,28,30,29,28724,115,8713,628],"class_list":["post-264806","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-florida","tag-entertainment","tag-fl","tag-florida","tag-florida-headlines","tag-florida-news","tag-hardee","tag-news","tag-pets-animals","tag-us"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264806","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=264806"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264806\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/264807"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=264806"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=264806"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=264806"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}