"You are the father!"
After baby Siska, an orangutan, was born, there was a lot of drama at the
Denver Zoo. It was unknown to the zookeepers who the father was—Jaya, age
16, or Berani, age 30. Thus, in order to ascertain Siska's true paternity,
they identified Maury Povich as the ideal candidate.
One of the highlights of Povich's 31-year tenure as host of his own daytime
talk program was his paternity tests, in which he would theatrically explain
whether or not he was the father.
Maury revealed to the world on December 19th, through a video that the zoo
had posted.
Wearing a tuxedo, Povich remarked, "We want to thank the Denver Zoo for
everything they do, but this is really important." "Berani, you are the
father when it comes to the orangutan—4-month-old Siska—" he said,
superimposing images of the two orangutans in question on the screen.
Povich started out as a professional journalist, but his name is now linked
with paternity testing. Povich began her career in the 1960s as a news
anchor before taking over as presenter of "A Current Affair" in 1986.
When Povich won the Daytime Emmy Awards on December 16 for Lifetime
Achievement, his wife, journalist Connie Chung, corrected the record.
According to ABC News, Chung remarked, "I know that you think he's been
determining the paternity of every child in America all his life."
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
Chung went on, "But no, in his 67 freaking years in television, he's been a
news reporter, news anchor, and host of an old-fashioned talk show where he
interviews members of Congress, world leaders, authors, movie stars, and
even Julia Child."