While filming a teaser for the report on the Lodi Grape Festival, Fox 40 correspondent Sabrina Rodriguez was able to keep smiling even as her baboon companion, Mickey, clamped his paw on her right breast. "He's trying to cop a little bit of a feel," Rodriguez joked live on camera, the Daily Mail reports.
Looking pleased with himself, Mickey continued holding onto Rodriguez's breast throughout the remainder of the broadcast, a toothy grin on his face, as the reporter wrapped up with the statement, "Join us soon when we'll be learning a bit about why baboons like grapes."
Rodriguez is a 29-year-old, Emmy award-winning television reporter who covers the north Carolina area for Fox 40. Her surprising encounter with Mickey began after she introduced her viewers to the baboon, who was happy to politely shake her hand. Rodriguez was a live segment on the monkey show that takes place from Sept. 13-15 at the Lodi Grape Festival when Mickey decided to get a little hands-on, clambering up behind Rodriguez and hanging onto her from behind.
When asked later if she thought Mickey showing his teeth was a sign of him being angry or a smile, Rodriguez said, "I'm gonna go with smiling."
The segment with Rodriguez demonstrates just how social baboons can be, and given his Hollywood past, it's no surprise that Mickey wasn't shy around his reporter friend, or the cameras.
In 2012, Mickey appeared alongside Tom Cruise in the film "Rock of Ages," and film's director, Adam Shankman, told TheWrap.com that the monkey was just as cheeky on-set.
"One day the baboon got loose, and he was running up and down the street yelling at extras. We had to stop for 20 minutes and wrangle him," Shankman said at the time. "Those are canines on that baby. He's very sweet. Very sensitive. Tom Cruise did a scene where he was actually talking to the baboon - it's not currently in the movie - and he had his face really, really close. Forehead to forehead. I was shivering. But the baboon loves him. Every day we wrapped, Tom would hug me and shake me and say, 'I am having the best time, thank you.'"
