It's official: Chimpanzees are making more money than me.

This article confirms what I've suspected all along - that somewhere, a chimpanzee is sitting on a huge pile of money (maybe even Spanish dubloons!) and laughing at me:

"Chimp compensation is on the rise, animal trainers and ad agency creatives said, because a recent surge of retirements has created a primate shortage. And that-paired with marketers' still potent urge to tap chimps and orangutans to hawk job listings, light beer and stock brokerages-is driving prices up.
...
And Marshall Ross, executive creative director at CareerBuilder's agency, Cramer-Krasselt, Chicago, said the cost of using chimps has risen as much as 30% since the popular ads started running in 2004. "It's a great time to be a working chimp," he noted.
...
A spokeswoman for Steve Martin's Working Wildlife, now Hollywood's largest ape handler, said the cost of using its chimps rose 25% last year, to $1,000 per day from $800. "They're working more, too," she said."

Discussion topic: what other animals are out-earning The Pirate of Selby Avenue? (please tell me it's not squirrels)