Sometimes you need a hero to step in and give you the answer you’re searching for.
For the Denver Zoo, they asked for help from the one man they knew could solve their question of ‘Who is the Father?’ of their newest baby orangutan, Siska.
And that hero answered that call – after all, it was his area of expertise.
Who was it you ask? Nineties talk-show host, and revealer of unknown fathers, Maury Povich.
Povich spent 31 years telling American women if their current or former flames were the father of their children on daytime TV.
With his knowledge and amazing ability to announce the paternity of a child with pizzazz, Povich knew he couldn’t turn the Denver Zoo down.
Fresh off receiving the Daytime Emmys Lifetime Achievement Honor, Maury Povich is here to help us announce the paternity results for Siska, our four-month-old Sumatran orangutan! Is Siska’s father thirty-year-old Berani or 16-year-old Jaya? Watch the video for the big reveal! 🧡 pic.twitter.com/jyh1Mp0Y7C
— Denver Zoo (@DenverZoo) December 19, 2023
Zoo officials had waited four-months after Siska’s birth to find out the paternity. The idea for Povich came from Denver Zoo spokesman Jack Kubie.
The two possible fathers, Berani, left; Jaya, right. Photo courtesy of the Denver Zoo
Apparently, Kubie said, it turned out he was “more of a Maury Povich fan” than he realized.
“The first thing that popped into my mind was, ‘You are the father!’” Kubie said. After all, the daytime talk-show host was known for that catchphrase. “It was kind of a joke at first, and I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if Maury did this?’”
No one was more shocked than Kubie, when Povich decided to give the results. “I was surprised and delighted that he did this for us,” he said.
The zoo had two choices for Siska: 30-year-old Berani or 16-year-old Jaya.
Jaya was brought to the Denver Zoo to be a potential mating partner for Eirina, Siska’s mother, Kubie said. But both Jaya and Berani both took a liking toward Eirina. Then, in the spring, staff realized Eirina was going to have a baby.
“To everyone’s delight, she did get pregnant, but no one knew who the father was the whole time,” Kubie said.
Povich gave the announcement the importance it deserved. Dressed in a tuxedo, before going onstage to accept a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Daytime Emmys, he stood with his familiar envelope. “This is really important,” he said.
Retired TV personality Maury Povich announced the paternity results for an orangutan at the Denver Zoo. Photo courtesy of the Denver Zoo
Opening the envelope, he paused, understanding the gravity of his next words. “When it comes to the orangutan — 4-month-old Siska — Berani …
“ … you are the father!”
Denver Zoo staff had been watching the reveal and burst into cheers. Berani, clearly happy with the results, began swinging on ropes in his enclosure.
“Berani is the father!” the staff yelled in glee.
Baby Siska is the product of an intense effort to increase the population of Sumatran orangutans, which are critically endangered with only roughly 9,200 in existence, International Union for Conservation of Nature.
Multiple factors play a role in why there are so few left, including forest fires, logging and timber clearing, the zoo said. There is also, sadly, a demand for them as a food source, as well as the international pet trade.
So Siska’s birth in August was a joyous moment for the zoo, but since they could not interfere with the mom’s effort to bond with the little one, they had to wait until they could get a hair sample to check the DNA results.
And the rest was fate. Well, fate and a little bit of what Kubie called “light online stalking”. He discovered a LinkedIn profile for Povich’s former executive producer, and took a chance and reached out to her.
“This might be an unorthodox idea — or maybe you get hit up for this stuff all the time — but I was wondering if you would be open to helping us out by having Maury reveal the paternity results as only he can,” Kubie wrote in his message.
Not long after, Kubie said, he was copied on an e-mail with Povich’s assistant.
“She asked Maury if he would do it and he was game,” Kubie said. “I love that he was wearing a tuxedo.”
He added, “The fact that he was willing to be a good sport and dedicate time and energy to this meant a lot to us.”
Watch the amazing reveal below!
Sources: Washington Post | Today
