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Ohio Zoo Orangutan Who Loved 'The Price Is Right' Dies

BALTIMORE (WJZ) -- The Toledo Zoo reports that J.J., The Price Is Right-loving orangutan, has died of heart failure at the age of 45.

His long-time keeper Suzanne Husband says J.J. was curious, had a soft spot in his heart for toddlers and was quite playful.

"One of his favorite enrichment items was watching TV," she says. "He loved football and would make a nest in front of the TV on weekends and look like every other guy, kicked back watching the games. He also had a penchant for The Price Is Right. He would come in from exhibit every day at 11 and wait for us to turn on the TV. He would even be a little annoyed if we were late! Then I began to notice that he wasn't coming in as much or was napping rather than watching the TV and it dawned on me that Bob Barker had retired and there was a new host. Later in his life, we were able to stream his TV through the internet and pull up old shows and his interest in the game show came back."

J.J., whose full name was Jiggs Junior, was the oldest male orangutan in North America.

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