Napkin Data: Ronald Reagan and Monkey Movies

Though Ronald Reagan is best known as a cigarette salesman and Hollywood actor, some also remember him for his systematic dismantling of the U.S. economy during the 1980s. One need only look at a chart like the one below to see how The Gipper rigged the system to line the pockets of his wealthy friends forevermore. And all while blaming it on fabulous welfare queens like RuPaul!

When it came to Americans’ long-term economic well-being Dutch wasn’t the best. But more importantly, what can be said of his legacy when it comes to monkey movies?

According to The Movie Database, 83 movies made in English have at least one rating and have been tagged with a simian keyword. This list includes only comedies, because obviously the best monkey movies are funny. As you can see in the following chart, the comedy monkey movie genre has had quite a few ups and down over the years.

As an actor, Reagan’s most celebrated role was as pre-DSM psychologist Peter Boyd in “Bedtime for Bonzo“, a movie in which his acting was nearly on par with his chimpanzee co-star’s. “Bedtime for Bonzo” was released in 1951 and garners a respectable 7.1 vote average on TMDB. However, the film came out during a typically tumultuous time in monkey movies, followed as it was by the “Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla,” a film that sadly did not live up to the awesome promise of its title.

Thirty years later Reagan traded his cowboy hat for a suit and tie and took to heart “The most terrifying words in the English language: I’m from the government and I’m here to help.” Thankfully, his tenure in the big house was a decent time for monkey movies. After the 1981 flop “Going Ape!” was out of the way, “Cannonball Run II” and “Project X” proved to be at least watchable. And though it wasn’t released until 1992, Peter Jackson’s documentary “Braindead” (aka “Dead Alive”) perfectly captured the neo-zombie-ism of the 1980s.

So, the next time you’re watching a group of bazillionaire’s blast off in a phallic rocket ship to colonize some still habitable planet, you can thank Uncle Ronnie both for the plutocrats and maybe the half-way decent vintage monkey comedy movie you can rent for $99.99 crypto in your personal metaverse.

The complete monkey movie data appears below for your enjoyment, but first a few select monkey movie highlights:

The highest rated monkey comedy movie (10 votes min): “The Cameraman” (1928)

The lowest rated monkey comedy movie: “Sex Kittens Go to College” (1960)

The year with the most monkey movies: 1933 (5)

The most popular monkey movie of the 20th Century on TMDB: “Baby’s Day Out”

Monkey movie that should’ve been in a Wu Tang Clan song: King Kung Fu (1976)

Strangest monkey movie description candidate: “A group of sex-crazed cave people are being harassed by a Tyrannosaurus Rex. While they try to figure out a way to deal with this threat, they have sex and eat a lot.” (“One Million AC/DC”, 1969)

Title	Year	Rating	Overview
The Mischievous Monkey	1897	3.0	“This is a very laughable scene. A guest in a hotel who has retired, is disturbed in his slumbers by a monkey, which enters through the window and goes through a series of queer antics. The part of the monkey is taken by a skilled acrobat; and his work in this scene is of a particularly clever sort.” (AMB Picture Catalogue)
Do-Re-Mi-Boom!	1915	4.0	A man falls in love with a piano player and tries to woo her. A passerby hears a maid’s music, fancies he’s found his true love, and chats her up. Her boyfriend arrives for his music lesson and jealously dismisses the interloper, who swipes a grinder’s organ (and monkey) to help him serenade the maid. Later he follows the boyfriend to a residence hotel and plants a bomb in the man’s piano. The organ-grinder is gunning for the thief, and soon the piano, bomb, monkey, thief, and pistol-packing grinder are rolling down the road to the delight of maid and lover. It’s ka-boom for some and a kiss for others.
Go and Get It	1920	6.0	Wrestling legend Bull Montana plays a murderous gorilla with a human brain transplant who is tracked by a feisty newspaper reporter.
Go West	1923	5.5	Western Movies with monkeys in the roles. The son of mom and dad Monkey gets home too late after a wet night. The father, tired of this behavior has enough and throws his son out of the house.
Monkey Business	1926	6.5	An abused chimpanzee escapes from a zoo. On the run, he meets Farina, running away from home and his battling parents. The two become friends and inspire the rest of the gang to put on a show to make money from neighborhood kids. But the chimp has his own idea and runs off creating havoc all over town until chased down by the local cops.
The Kid Brother	1927	7.0	The most important family in Hickoryville is (not surprisingly) the Hickorys, with sheriff Jim and his tough manly sons Leo and Olin. The timid youngest son, Harold, doesn’t have the muscles to match up to them, so he has to use his wits to win the respect of his strong father and also the love of beautiful Mary.
The Cameraman	1928	8.0	A photographer takes up newsreel shooting to impress a secretary.
Lazy Days	1929	4.7	While the other kids and animals find things to do on the farm, Farina becomes single-minded in his quest to do nothing at all.
The Chimp	1932	6.7	Stan and Ollie play bumbling circus performers who inadvertently drive the circus into bankruptcy. The circus can’t pay them their wages so they are given a gorilla and a flea circus as payment. Bedlam ensues.
Show Business	1932	4.0	The girls and their pet monkey create havoc on board a train carrying a traveling Broadway troupe.
The Organ Grinder	1933	5.5	In this Merrie Melodies animated short, an organ grinder and his monkey make their way down a city street.
I Like Mountain Music	1933	4.9	After hours, individuals on various magazine covers in a drugstore come to life and sing, speak, or perform. Caricature celebrity depictions include George Arliss, Eddie Cantor, Sonja Henie, Benito Mussolini, Ignacy Paderewski, Edward G. Robinson, Will Rogers, and Ed Wynn. A robbery sequence features bad guys breaking into the cash register and Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson on the case. King Kong also makes an appearance. A Merrie Melody cartoon.
King Klunk	1933	6.5	Pooch the Pup takes his girlfriend and an anthropomorphic camera to the jungle in search of the giant ape, King Klunk. They arrive just as the Hot-Cha tribe is offering one of their own girls to the ape as a sacrifice. King Klunk tries to bite down on her head, but even his enormous fangs can’t make a dent in her hard skull. His attention turns to Pete the Pup’s girl, whom he snatches up in his huge hand. The ape doesn’t know what to make of her until Cupid hits him with an arrow. Suddenly, King Klunk is in love. He even battles a dinosaur to prevent her from getting devoured. During the fight, Pooch takes the opportunity to rescue her. After winning his battle, the ape takes after the fleeing pair, but they defeat him by cracking a giant egg over his head. Soon, Pooch and his girl are exhibiting the giant ape in a big-city theater. Mischievous Cupid reappears to reignite the ape’s passion for the girl.
Parade of the Wooden Soldiers	1933	6.5	A toy version of Betty Boop drops in on a small toy shop. The other toys come to life and crown her their queen. Then the cartoon quickly turns into Fleischer’s idea of King Kong.
Wild Elephinks	1933	6.5	Popeye and Olive, adrift on a raft, land on what apparently is Africa, and are immediately battling elephants and gorillas (also a moose!). Popeye eventually battles an entire menagerie at once – after first gulping down a can of spinach, of course.
Charlie Chan at the Circus	1936	6.5	While visiting the circus with his family, Charlie is recruited by the big top’s co-owner to investigate threatening letters that he’s received.
The Rookie Fireman	1936	2.5	Another of the “Variety Views” continuing adventures with Shorty the Chimp getting loose and running amok. Tired of waiting at the fire house for a blaze, Shorty sets one in the building himself. At another fire, Shorty makes a jungle-style rescue by climbing hand-over-hand on wires leading into a building.
Swiss Miss	1938	6.4	Stan and Ollie are mousetrap salesmen hoping for better business in Switzerland, with Stan’s theory that because there is more cheese in Switzerland, there should be more mice.
The Gorilla	1939	4.9	When an escaped circus gorilla appears to have gone on a murderous rampage, a threatened attorney calls on the detective trio of Garrity, Harrigan and Mullivan to act as bodyguards. In short order, we discover that there is more to the attorney than meets the eye, and the ape may be innocent after all. When a pretty young heiress faces peril, it’s up to our heroic trio to save the day.
Quiet, Please	1939	6.0	A temperamental director multiple times completely changes the concept during a movie’s production.
Gildersleeve’s Ghost	1944	6.3	Gildersleeve, running for office, is aided by two ghosts and hindered by a mad scientist and an invisible woman.
Crazy Knights	1944	4.5	Also known as Ghost Crazy. Three goofballs run up against ghosts and a giant gorilla in a haunted house.
Spook Busters	1946	5.0	The Bowery Boys–Slip, Sach, Bobby, Whitey & Chuck–start their own exterminating service, and get a job which takes them to a spooky old abandoned mansion in the middle of the night. Meeting up with pal Gabe and his new French bride, the boys are tormented by mad scientists who try to convince them the place is haunted and then kidnap Sach in order to place his brain inside a gorilla.
Gorilla My Dreams	1948	6.8	Bugs is sailing the South Seas when a gorilla mother, desperate for a child, hijacks his barrel and presents Bugs to her husband. Bugs decides to play along, but quickly discovers his new “father” plays a bit rough.
Bedtime for Bonzo	1951	7.1	College prof Peter Boyd tries to salvage his professional and personal reputation by using a lab chimp to prove that environment trumps heredity in behavioral development.
Casper Comes to Clown	1951	7.0	Casper befriends a bear cub with a natural talent for juggling. Soon the cub is in the circus, but a gorilla proves to be much scarier than any ghost.
Bela Lugosi Meets a Brooklyn Gorilla	1952	3.8	Two goofy entertainers meet a mad scientist on a jungle island.
The Bowery Boys Meet the Monsters	1954	5.3	Slip, Sach and the rest of the Bowery Boys enter a haunted house, where they engage in slapstick with a gorilla, a robot and a vampire
Around the World in Eighty Days	1956	6.7	Based on the famous book by Jules Verne the movie follows Phileas Fogg on his journey around the world. Which has to be completed within 80 days, a very short period for those days.
Sex Kittens Go to College	1960	3.0	Collins College needs a new department head for their science department, so Doctors Carter and Zorch consult Thinko, the campus computer, and come up with Dr. Mathilda West, who has degrees in lots of things, but turns out to be disruptively attractive as well.
Five Weeks in a Balloon	1962	5.3	Professor Fergusson plans to make aviation history by making his way across Africa by balloon. He plans to claim uncharted territories in West Africa as proof of his inventions worth.
#Bfl O (ggGX /STwWcfl xZs 4	1963	5.0	Six sketches, featuring off-screen human voices and on-screen chimpanzees in men’s clothing, illustrating six aspects of movie making: script writing, using a camera, working in a darkroom, editing, art and animation, and shooting a scene with special attention to sound. The screen goes black between each sketch. The narration is straightforward with the chimps providing comic, contradicting subtexts.
The Monkey’s Uncle	1965	6.5	College whiz-kid Merlin Jones concocts a method for teaching advanced information to a chimpanzee, then creates a flying machine of his own design, ultimately raising havoc on the campus.
The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini	1966	5.7	A corpse has 24 hours to mastermind a good deed without leaving his crypt, to go “up there” and have his youth restored.
Lt. Robin Crusoe U.S.N.	1966	5.8	Lt. Robin Crusoe is a navy pilot who bails out of his plane after engine trouble. He reaches a deserted island paradise where he builds a house and begins to adjust to life. He is in for trouble however when a local girl is banished to the island by her father, who then comes after Crusoe.
Rat Pfink a Boo Boo	1966	5.0	Picking a random name out of the phone book, thugs decide to terrorize and kidnap Cee Bee Beaumont, girlfriend of rock sensation Lonnie Lord. Rat Pfink and his sidekick Boo Boo spring into action!
Monkeys, Go Home!	1967	5.8	Henry Dussard, a young American, inherits a picturesque but badly neglected olive farm in southern France and is determined to make it operational again despite cautionary advice from the local priest and a pretty villager. Desperate for laborers, the inventive Dussard turns to the zaniest crew of olive pickers ever recruited – four mischievous monkeys! As former members of an Air Force space team, these intelligent chimps quickly pick up on their new responsibilities – but prove to have a turbulent effect on the local townspeople.
No More Excuses	1968	5.0	A bizarre portrait of the New York singles scene.
Agent 77	1969	10.0	A group of spies who want to obtain Egyptian military secrets pretends to be a foreign cinema crew who came to film some scenes inside Egypt. During one of their operations, the microfilm comes to theA group of spies who want to obtain Egyptian military secrets pretends to be a foreign cinema crew who came to film some scenes inside Egypt. During one of their operations, the microfilm comes to the possession of a trio of men who witness a murder, putting their lives at risk.
One Million AC/DC	1969	2.3	A group of sex-crazed cave people are being harassed by a Tyrannosaurus Rex. While they try to figure out a way to deal with this threat, they have sex and eat a lot.
The Thing with Two Heads	1972	4.6	A rich but racist man is dying and hatches an elaborate scheme for transplanting his head onto another man’s body. His health deteriorates rapidly, and doctors are forced to transplant his head onto the only available candidate: a black man from death row.
Schlock	1973	6.0	A quiet suburb in Southern California is terrorized by a mysterious murderous monster living in a cave. As the bodies pile up — with incriminating banana peels always near by the crime scene — a group of teens stumble on the guilty party: a 20-million-year-old Schlockthropus, an ape-like creature with a sense of the absurd.
King Kung Fu	1976	6.9	A remote monastery in China has trained a talking gorilla, King Kung Fu, in the ancient art of kung fu. Having mastered his fighting skills, King Kung Fu is sent to America to demonstrate the power of Chinese martial arts to the West. As he is travelling through Kansas, a pair of bumbling reports see KKF and decide he can be their ticket to fame and wealth. Of course, the gorilla gets away from them, and soon everyone is chasing the Shaolin simian.
Every Which Way but Loose	1978	6.2	Philo Beddoe is your regular, easygoing, truck-driving guy. He’s also the best bar-room brawler west of the Rockies. And he lives with a 165-pound orangutan named Clyde. Like other guys, Philo finally falls in love – with a flighty singer who leads him on a screwball chase across the American Southwest. Nothing’s in the way except a motorcycle gang, and legendary brawler Tank Murdock.
Any Which Way You Can	1980	5.9	Philo takes part in a bare knuckle fight – as he does – to make some more money than he can earn from his car repair business. He decides to retire from fighting, but when the Mafia come along and arrange another fight, he is pushed into it. A motorcycle gang and an orangutan called Clyde all add to the ‘fun’.
Going Ape!	1981	3.9	When his father – who owned a circus – dies, Oscar inherits 5 million dollars – and 3 orang outangs. However there’s a condition connected to the money: if he gives away the apes or just one gets sick or dies during the next 3 years, the zoologic society will get all the money. So he not only has to deal with 3 apes and an annoyed girlfriend, but also with a greedy zoologic society’s president.
Cannonball Run II	1984	5.5	The original characters from the first Cannonball Run movie compete in an illegal race across the country once more in various cars and trucks.
Project X	1987	6.2	A young inductee into the military is given the task of looking after some chimpanzees used in the mysterious ‘Project X’. Getting to know the chimps fairly well, he begins to suspect there is more to the secret project than he is being told.
Braindead	1992	7.4	When a Sumatran rat-monkey bites Lionel Cosgrove’s mother, she’s transformed into a zombie and begins killing (and transforming) the entire town while Lionel races to keep things under control.
Monkey Trouble	1994	5.7	Dodger, a criminal monkey, belongs to a crooked street performer but escapes his life of crime only to end up in the arms of Eva, an innocent little girl whose mother has no idea that her daughter is harboring a fugitive.
Baby’s Day Out	1994	6.2	Baby Bink couldn’t ask for more; he has adoring (if somewhat sickly-sweet) parents, he lives in a huge mansion, and he’s just about to appear in the social pages of the paper. Unfortunately, not everyone in the world is as nice as Baby Bink’s parents; especially the three enterprising kidnapers who pretend to be photographers from the newspaper. Successfully kidnaping Baby Bink, they have a harder time keeping hold of the rascal, who not only keeps one step ahead of them, but seems to be more than a little bit smarter than the three bumbling criminals.
Dunston Checks In	1996	5.3	Hotel manager Robert Grant is forced by his boss to postpone his family vacation when a hotel critic checks in. Trouble is, the critic is really a villainous jewel thief with an orangutan assistant named Dunston. When Dunston gets loose and tries to escape a life of crime — aided by Robert’s sons — havoc, hijinks and lots of laughs abound!
Ed	1996	4.2	Jack Cooper could be a world-class baseball pitcher if he didn’t keep buckling under the pressure. He tries to keep his spirits up after he’s traded to a minor league team but loses all hope when he discovers that Ed, one of his teammates, is a chimp. Ed used to be the team mascot, but was promoted to third base when the owners realized he had a talent for baseball. As Jack struggles to get used to his new surroundings, Ed helps him regain his confidence on and off the field.
Buddy	1997	4.7	An eccentric socialite raises a gorilla as her son.
George of the Jungle	1997	5.6	Deep in the African jungle, a baby named George, the sole survivor of a plane crash, is raised by gorillas. George grows up to be a buff and lovable klutz who has a rain forest full of animal friends: Tookie, his big-beaked toucan messenger; Ape, a witty talking gorilla; and Shep, a peanut-loving pooch of an elephant. But when poachers mess with George’s pals, the King Of Swing swings into action.
Bandwagon	1997	6.2	Tony gets fired from his job. He’s not really sad about this because he prefers writing songs and playing the guitar. He meets the drummer Charlie and they decide to start a band, although Tony is afraid of playing in front of other people. He can’t even play in front of Charlie. They find another guitarist, Wynn, who enjoys fishing if he’s not playing the guitar. The final member of the band is Eric, the bass-player who is often unpredictable in his actions. They name the band Circus Monkey and want to get famous and rich. However, after some successful gigs, they begin to realize what all the big music and show business is about
RocketMan	1997	5.2	Fred Z. Randall is geeky and obnoxious spacecraft designer, who gets the chance to make his dream come true and travel to Mars as a member of the first manned flight there.
Krippendorf’s Tribe	1998	4.6	After squandering his grant money, despondent and recently widowed anthropologist James Krippendorf must produce hard evidence of the existence of a heretofore undiscovered New Guinea tribe. Grass skirts, makeup, and staged rituals transform his three troubled children into the Shelmikedmu, a primitive culture whose habits enthrall scholars. But when a spiteful rival threatens to blow the whistle on Krippendorf’s ruse, he gets into the act as well.
Mom, Can I Keep Her?	1998	4.0	Timmy Blair has the usual twelve-year-old’s share of problems: his father is too busy at work, his new stepmother loads him with chores, and school life is as difficult as ever. When a furry friend follows him home from school, Timmy is delighted. There’s only one problem. His new-found buddy is a 500 pound gorilla
Doctor Dolittle	1998	5.7	A successful physician and devoted family man, John Dolittle seems to have the world by the tail, until a long suppressed talent he possessed as a child, the ability to communicate with animals is suddenly reawakened with a vengeance! Now every creature within squawking distance wants the good doctor’s advice, unleashing an outrageous chain of events that turns his world upside down!
Babe: Pig in the City	1998	5.5	Babe, fresh from his victory in the sheepherding contest, returns to Farmer Hoggett’s farm, but after Farmer Hoggett is injured and unable to work, Babe has to go to the big city to save the farm.
Being John Malkovich	1999	7.4	One day at work, unsuccessful puppeteer Craig finds a portal into the head of actor John Malkovich. The portal soon becomes a passion for anybody who enters its mad and controlling world of overtaking another human body.
MVP 2: Most Vertical Primate	2001	6.1	MVP 2 opens with the lovable Jack being ousted from his hockey team, the Seattle Simians, and having to hit the road after being falsely accused of league misconduct. Jack ends up in the city, where he’s befriended by Ben, a homeless skateboarder, and Ollie, a skate shop owner. Jack proves to be as adept at mastering the half-pipe as he does at delivering a slap shot, and before long, he and Ben are crashing amateur skateboarder competitions all over the country.
Funky Monkey	2004	6.0	Boy genius Michael Dean (Adkins) teams up with a super-talented chimpanzee and his caretaker (Modine) to take down an animal testing lab. In exchange the scientist gives the boy some pointers on the girl of his dreams.
The Ape	2005	4.6	A young writer, nearing a mental breakdown caused by his family and boss, moves into an apartment occupied by a walking, talking, foul-mouthed ape in a Hawaiian shirt and Converse High Tops.
Curious George	2006	6.3	When The Man in the Yellow Hat befriends Curious George in the jungle, they set off on a non-stop, fun-filled journey through the wonders of the big city toward the warmth of true friendship.
Speed Racer	2008	6.2	Speed Racer is the tale of a young and brilliant racing driver. When corruption in the racing leagues costs his brother his life, he must team up with the police and the mysterious Racer X to bring an end to the corruption and criminal activities. Inspired by the cartoon series.
Space Chimps	2008	4.9	Three chimps are sent into space to explore the possibility of alien life when an unmanned space shuttle crash lands on an uncharted planet.
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa	2008	6.4	Alex, Marty, and other zoo animals find a way to escape from Madagascar when the penguins reassemble a wrecked airplane. The precariously repaired craft stays airborne just long enough to make it to the African continent. There the New Yorkers encounter members of their own species for the first time. Africa proves to be a wild place, but Alex and company wonder if it is better than their Central Park home.
Zookeeper	2011	5.4	Kindhearted Griffin Keyes is one of the best-loved caretakers at the Franklin Park Zoo, but since he is more comfortable with the animals than with females of his own species, his love life is lacking. When Griffin decides that the only way to get a girlfriend is to find a more-glamorous career, the animals panic. To keep him from leaving, they reveal their secret ability to talk and offer to teach him the rules of courtship, animal-style.
Snowflake, the White Gorilla	2011	5.5	Snowflake is special, he’s the only white gorilla in the world. He is the zoo’s main attraction, children love him, but the other gorillas don’t see what’s so charming about this weirdo being the center of attention. With the help of Ailur, a Buddhist black panther reincarnated into the body of a red panda, and Paula, a smart little girl, Snowflake plans a sneak visit to the witch at the circus. She can help him be a normal gorilla. But outside the safety of the zoo’s walls, the three friends are in danger. Thomas, a total jinx, is convinced that the white gorilla is the amulet he needs to counter his bad luck. This cruel and superstitious man is prepared to do whatever it takes to capture Snowflake.
Madly Madagascar	2013	6.5	Your favorite Madagascar pals are back in an all-new adventure! Alex’s favorite holiday, Valentine’s Day, brings hilarious surprises and excitement for the entire gang. Melman plans a big surprise for Gloria, Marty tries to impress a new friend and everyone wants to get their hands on King Julien’s love potion. You’ll fall in LOVE with Madly Madagascar!
Spark: A Space Tail	2016	4.6	Spark, a teenage monkey and his friends, Chunk and Vix, are on a mission to regain Planet Bana – a kingdom overtaken by the evil overlord Zhong.
Monkey With A Gun	2016	4.0	Hoodie wants to put an end to vigilantism, but the sheeple, manipulated by a slimy Salesman, are about to give a monkey a gun.
Sylvio	2017	6.1	A small town gorilla joins a local TV program and a series of on-air mishaps threaten to shatter his identity, sending him on an adventure of self-discovery where reality and fantasy start to blend.
WHAT DID JACK DO?	2017	6.4	In a locked down train station, a homicide detective conducts an interview with a tormented monkey who is suspected of murder.
Gorilla’s Day Out	2019	10.0	Gorilla has an eventful day resulting in many twists and turns.
Dora and the Lost City of Gold	2019	6.8	Dora, a girl who has spent most of her life exploring the jungle with her parents, now must navigate her most dangerous adventure yet: high school. Always the explorer, Dora quickly finds herself leading Boots (her best friend, a monkey), Diego, and a rag tag group of teens on an adventure to save her parents and solve the impossible mystery behind a lost Inca civilization.
Bad Trip	2020	6.1	Two pals embark on a road trip full of funny pranks that pull real people into mayhem.
Monkeys Who Live in a House	2020	8.5	Monkey roommates, Gorby and Yorby, receive a visit from Duck Salesman.
The One and Only Ivan	2020	7.5	A gorilla named Ivan who’s living in a suburban shopping mall tries to piece together his past, with the help of other animals, as they hatch a plan to escape from captivity.
Mafia – Chapter 1	2020	10.0	After discovering that his two money launderers, Cleveland and Carlos, had been stealing portions of the money they’d been given to launder over the years, Don Ramos hunts them down.
Vivo	2021	7.7	A music-loving kinkajou named Vivo embarks on the journey of a lifetime to fulfill his destiny and deliver a love song for an old friend.

*Note: If you have a question about this study’s data or methodology you should go play outside.