Koko the Gorilla-Lady’s Journey into Empathy and Intelligence Across Species

The show celebrates the remarkable life of Koko, a gorilla-lady whose sign language, soulful art, and loving bonds with Dr. Penny Patterson, humans, and kittens revealed her extraordinary heart and mind. Her story beautifully reminds us of the intelligence, empathy, and profound kinship we share with the Animal Kingdom.

“Hi, this is Robin Williams. I recently had a mind-altering experience communicating with a gorilla. Her name is Koko. Koko understands spoken English and uses over a thousand signs to share her feelings and thoughts about daily events, life, love, even death.”

Koko became the center of Dr. Patterson’s life, and the two shared a loving mother-and-daughter bond for 44 wonderful years. “I think that was the one that got me the most, is that as ‘Wow, she is every bit as much as of a person as I am.’” She even had one special wish – a tailless kitty! She adopted her first kitten, All Ball. Their beautiful friendship touched hearts around the world and was even featured by National Geographic in 1985. When Koko learned that her cherished All Ball was gone, her grief touched many hearts. “She said that when you die, you’re going to a comfortable hole. And we blow you a kiss goodbye.”

In her later years, Koko became a loving voice not only for gorilla-people but also for nature. “Man Koko love. Earth Koko love. But Man stupid... ... Stupid! Koko cry. Time hurry! Fix Earth! Help Earth! Hurry! Protect Earth… …Nature … Nature see you.”