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Conservationists know that gorillas are not fond of eye contact. Though eye contact may seem like an opportunity to bond among humans, gorillas perceive this action as a threat or being taunted. This was made abundantly clear nearly 20 years ago during a harrowing episode at a zoo in Rotterdam. In turn, the shocking ordeal inspired one of the cheekiest marketing stunts of all time.
In 2007, an incident at the Diergaarde Blijdorp Zoo shook the Netherlands. A gorilla named Bokito, the dominant male of his group, escaped from his enclosure after a group of children threw rocks at him. “He got over the moat—which in itself is remarkable because gorillas can't swim,” the zoo director, Ton Dorrestijn, told the press, per The Guardian. “He got onto a path for visitors and started running, and went at full speed through tables and diners at the Oranje restaurant.”
However, when the 400-pound gorilla broke out, he didn't go after the kids. Instead, Bokito attacked a woman. She was bit, dragged, and suffered some broken bones; however, the woman was seen walking unaided and, luckily, she survived. As for Bokito, he was barricaded before being sedated with a dart and returned to his enclosure.
Details later emerged about why he had attacked that particular woman, revealing that he had felt taunted given that she stared directly at him, during her constant visits to the zoo. She had mistakenly thought they were creating a bond.
“I go to the zoo almost every day with my husband, and we’re always going to see Bokito. I even have pictures and videos from Berlin when he was only 4 months old,” the woman told De Telegraaf. She even boasted that if she smiled at him, he smiled right back—likely mistaking the defensive gorilla showing his teeth for a friendly grin. “He is and remains my darling,” the woman added.
Inspired by this, insurance company FTBO came up with a marketing stunt that continues to elicit chuckles around the world, even almost two decades later. They handed out glasses to zoo visitors that were designed to avoid eye contact with the gorilla. The cardboard glasses, called Bokito Kijker (Bokito Viewer), depict a pair of eyes looking to the left, while a cleverly placed hole allows the viewer to catch a glance at the gorilla without provoking him. The humorous images of the stunt show people goofily looking to the side.
The campaign was so successful that the glasses were even available to download as PDFs on the FTBO site, but they are now gone. Meanwhile, Bokito made the headlines a couple more times too, first for contracting COVID-19 in 2021, and sadly passing at age 27 in 2023. His legacy lives on through the 10 gorillas he fathered and the great lessons in zoology and marketing he's provided. Remember: don't engage with the gorillas, and maybe, just maybe, a story with a not-so-bad ending can inspire a memorable campaign.
In 2007, an incident at a zoo in Rotterdam shook the Netherlands. A gorilla named Bokito escaped from his enclosure and attacked a woman who had repeatedly engaged in eye contact with him.
Inspired by this, insurance company FTBO handed out glasses to avoid eye contact with the gorilla to zoo visitors.
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The cardboard glasses, called Bokito Kijker (Bokito Viewer) depict a pair of eyes looking to the left, while a cleverly placed hole allows the viewer to catch a glance at the gorilla without provoking him.
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The images of the humorous stunt show people goofily looking to the side—and continue to elicit chuckles around the world, even almost two decades later.
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Sources: dieuwermeteenu on Instagram; Dutch woman still likes gorilla despite attack; Glasses to avoid direct eye contact with gorillas at the zoo on Reddit; Disturbing reason glasses were made to avoid direct eye contact with gorillas at the zoo; BokitoKijker – Glasses for viewing gorillas and the like.; The Do's and Don'ts of Gorilla Eye Contact
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