Cheeta, the chimpanzee co-star of the Tarzan films, recounts his rise to fame and his cynical observations of Hollywood's Golden Age. As an aging primate living in a retirement sanctuary, Cheeta reflects on his transition from the Liberian jungle to the glitz of the film industry. He navigates the absurdity of celebrity culture, the exploitation of animals in cinema, and his complex, often fraught relationship with Johnny Weissmuller. The narrative is presented as a biting, first-person memoir that strips away the glamour of the studio system to reveal the vanity and moral decay of the era.

This work is widely recognized for its sharp, irreverent tone and its creative subversion of the traditional celebrity autobiography format. Readers and critics often highlight the author's ability to maintain a consistent, cynical voice that effectively skewers the excesses of the film industry. The narrative is frequently praised for its comedic timing and the way it balances historical detail with absurd, fictionalized accounts of Hollywood life. It serves as a pointed critique of the dehumanizing nature of fame, even when viewed through the eyes of a primate protagonist. The book remains a notable example of satirical fiction that uses a unique perspective to expose the artifice of its setting.