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Ken Allen (1971–2000) was a Bornean orangutan at the San Diego Zoo. He became one of the most popular animals in the history of the San Diego Zoo because of his many successful escapes from his enclosures. He was nicknamed "the hairy Houdini".〔(Silver, Alexandra, ''Top Ten Zoo Escapes,'' Time Magazine, January 11, 2011 )〕 Ken Allen was born in captivity at the San Diego Zoo in 1971. During the 1980s, Ken Allen gained worldwide attention for a series of three escapes from his enclosure, which had been thought to be escape-proof. Ken Allen's ability to outwit his keepers, as well as his docile demeanor during his escapes, resulted in fame. He had his own fan club and was the subject of T-shirts and bumper stickers (most reading "Free Ken Allen"). A song, ''The Ballad of Ken Allen'', was written about him. Ken Allen developed cancer and was euthanized in December 2000.〔(Los Angeles Times, December 2, 2000 )〕 He was 29 years old. Relatives: Roger Allen, Tash Allen, Pat Allen, Charmaine Allen, Kelly Allen ==Escapes== During his escapes, first on June 13, 1985, again on July 29, 1985, and on August 13, 1985, Ken Allen would peacefully stroll around the zoo looking at other animals, and never acted violently or aggressively towards zoo patrons or other animals. Zookeepers were initially stumped over how Ken Allen had managed to escape. Zoo staff began surveillance of his enclosure to try to catch him in the act, only to find that Ken Allen seemed to be aware that he was being watched for that very purpose. This forced zookeepers to go "undercover", posing as tourists to learn Ken Allen's escape route, but Ken Allen was not fooled. Moreover, other orangutans began following Ken Allen's lead and began escaping from the enclosure.〔(Los Angeles Times, August 26, 1987, cited at pqarchiver )〕 Zoo officials eventually hired experienced rock climbers to find every finger, toe, and foothold within the enclosure and spent $40,000 to eliminate the identified holds. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ken Allen」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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