science

J. Fred Muggs

J. Fred Muggs is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand J. Fred Muggs rather than just read about it. In short: J. Fred Muggs (born March 14, 1952) is a chimpanzee born in the African colony of French Cameroon that forms part of modern-day Cameroon.

Key takeaways

J. Fred Muggs belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect J. Fred Muggs to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of J. Fred Muggs from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

J. Fred Muggs (born March 14, 1952) is a chimpanzee born in the African colony of French Cameroon that forms part of modern-day Cameroon. Brought to New York City before his first birthday, he was bought by two former NBC pages and eventually appeared on a host of television shows on that network including NBC's Today Show where he served as mascot from 1953 to 1957. Muggs worked in several television shows including a short-lived eponymous series, toured the world and worked at Busch Gardens in Tampa, Florida. He officially retired at age 23.

Life and career Muggs was born in French Cameroon. He first became popular when he was in Henry Trefflich's pet store in New York; a "name that chimp" contest led to his being named Mr. Muggs, to which the Today Show later added "J. Fred". Carmine "Bud" Mennella and Leroy "Roy" Waldron, former NBC pages, bought him for $600 when he was 10 months old, and Mennella trained him. He appeared on the Perry Como Show and Pat Weaver of the Today Show saw potential in him; Mennella had an appointment with NBC executives for Muggs to audition for the Today Show, but missed it; however, Muggs' antics in a coffee shop led the president of the network to offer him a contract anyway. Muggs first appeared on the show on February 3, 1953, dressed in diapers like a baby.

The Today Show had begun in 1952, with Dave Garroway as host, but was doing poorly. The introduction of a chimpanzee caused Jim Fleming, the original newsreader, to quit; he was replaced by Frank Blair. However, the addition of Muggs boosted ratings and helped win advertisers; the program's producer, Richard Pinkham, once estimated Muggs had brought the network $100 million. Muggs sat in Garroway's lap, mastered more than 500 words, and had a wardrobe of 450 outfits. He "read" the day's newspapers, imitated Popeye and played the piano with Steve Allen. Merchandise featuring him included books, comics, and games; as a star, he was called on to open supermarkets and commission US Navy ships. Many sources refer to Garroway as jealous of Muggs. Joe Hagan of The New York Observer noted, without attribution, that "Legend has it that ... Mr. Garroway grew jealous and began spiking Muggs' orange juice with benzedrine to make him misbehave and deliver his human co-host back to center stage." Many sources suggested that Muggs did not have a good disposition. He has been described as "a nasty little monkey" and as "throwing legendary tantrums". He is said to have learned that if he misbehaved when the red light was on, indicating that the program was broadcasting live, he could not be disciplined. At the press conference announcing his addition to the show, Muggs yanked Garroway's glasses off. He was restrained in a harness and leash, but sometimes escaped: during one remote broadcast he climbed a tree and had to be lured down with bananas, and in Beirut an associate producer had to chase him in her underwear down a hotel hallway. Many contemporary websites refer to Muggs as having bitten comedian Martha Raye on the arm. Though Gerald Preis told Hagan that this story was a "tabloid rumor" and "just plain bullshit.", the story is well documented in the 1954 press, including the report from an NBC representative circulated by the International News Service: "An NBC spokesman said yesterday the network plans no punitive action against J. Fred Muggs, popular TV chimp star which bit comedienne Martha Raye and her understudy [Vickie Carlson] Saturday night." Muggs's handlers at one point sued Garroway in the chimp's name for allegedly ruining Muggs's career by claiming to have been bitten by him; Garroway said Muggs had bitten him on the face on live TV.

… excerpt ends here. Continue reading the full article.

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with J. Fred Muggs

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what J. Fred Muggs claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to J. Fred Muggs before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about J. Fred Muggs ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of J. Fred Muggs

In research: J. Fred Muggs appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses J. Fred Muggs in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: J. Fred Muggs is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1952 animal births, Chimpanzee actors, Chimpanzee attacks, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for J. Fred Muggs outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study J. Fred Muggs in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what J. Fred Muggs means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain J. Fred Muggs out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is J. Fred Muggs in simple terms?

J. Fred Muggs (born March 14, 1952) is a chimpanzee born in the African colony of French Cameroon that forms part of modern-day Cameroon.

Why does J. Fred Muggs matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study J. Fred Muggs?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on J. Fred Muggs.