Andy Serkis Reads a Letter from a Chimpanzee

To understand the context of this Letters Live performance, you need to know the cast of characters.

Dr. Serge Voronoff transplanted glands from monkey testicles into human men in the 1920s, in order to "rejuvenate" them and extend their lives. Dr. Edward Bach was a bacteriologist who warned in 1928 that not only was Voronoff's surgery a con, but that the patients would take on a chimpanzee's "worst characteristics." While chimpanzees are not monkeys, Voronoff used the glands of both baboons and chimps.

Consul Junior was a chimpanzee at the London Zoo, and a favorite among visitors. A letter from Consul Junior appeared in the London Daily News shortly after Bach's statement. Irish playwright George Bernard Shaw was the actual author of the chimp's letter.

Actor Andy Serkis is a motion capture specialist who played Caesar in the 21st-century Planet of the Apes movies. In this video, he reads that letter from the chimpanzee objecting to what Bach called a chimp's "worst characteristics." (via Laughing Squid)