Hofmann Monkey Show

The Monkey Show is an animatronic show type that has been manufactured by Hofmann Figuren since 1977. These ensemble shows are best known to be the first of Hofmann's animatronic creations, as well as the first animatronic shows to debut outside of the United States.

Die Klimbimski Affentheater

Phantasialand (1977-1983)

The first of the Hofmann monkey shows, Die Klimbimski Affentheater Show was built especially for the Phantasialand theme park in Brühl, Germany. Premiering with the inception of the park's Scala theater in 1977, the show consisted of 22 animated figures (2 parrots, 2 bears, and 18 monkeys). The stage design was a direct rip-off of Disney's Country Bear Jamboree stage, with one large center stage in between four side stages (5 stages in all) all topped with detailed prosceniums. The original German soundtrack for Die Klimbimski-Show is estimated to have a runtime of 30 minutes, structured in a similar format that also mimics Disney's Country Bears. Although the characters were never given proper names, their documented names and stage placements are as follows:

Outer Stage Right

Western Monkey on Washboard
Old Captain Bear

Inner Stage Right

Louis Armstrong Monkey
Showmaster Monkey & Bird

Center Stage

Gorilla Pianist (Lift)
Hawaiian Monkey Trio (Lift)
Saxophone Monkey
Upright Bass Monkey
Banjo Monkey
Drummer Monkey
Violin Monkey
Accordion Monkey
Bavarian Parrot (Off-Stage)
French Parrot (Off-Stage)

Inner Stage Left

Bonvivant Monkey
"Kisses For Me" Monkey Trio

Outer Stage Left

Primadonna Monkey
Drunken Bear with Lantern

The original soundtrack for Die Klimbimski-Show was never released in its entirety. A vinyl LP released by Phantasialand shortly after the show's premiere only included four songs from the soundtrack. Three of these songs were individually performed by the Bonvivant Monkey, Hawaiian Monkey Trio, and Drunken Bear characters, with the show's finale (set to the tune of When the Saints Go Marching In) tagged on at the end of Side A. The record's Side B, meanwhile, was entirely dedicated to "Das Phantasialand-Lied," the park's theme song at the time. Reinhard Hofmann has confirmed the soundtrack's original reels to be in storage at Hofmann Figuren, but have yet to be digitized and approved by Phantasialand for public release.

Avonturenpark Hellendoorn (1989-2003)

By 1983, Phantasialand sought for a replacement of Die Klimbimski-Show to install within the Scala theater, which arrived in the form of Hofmann's Phantasialand Starparade three years later in 1986. When the Klimbimski-Show was removed from Phantasialand, all of the animatronics and stage pieces were sent back to Hofmann and were left unused in their facilities for several years. The show would then be purchased by Avonturenpark Hellendoorn in the Netherlands, leading to a complete refurbishment, reconfiguration, and relocation to the Dutch park for the 1989 season. Similarly to Phantasialand, an all-new building was constructed to house the show, replacing the park's original Autoscooter attraction, named the Broadway Theater. The newly-renamed Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show premiered on March 29th, 1989, with Dutch comedian and actor André van Duin in attendance. Dutch chocolate milk brand Chocomel sponsored the Magical Monkey Show in its initial year.

Although the animatronics and stage design were unchanged overall, some characters were either removed or modified. Hellendoorn's mascot, the Pirate Parrot, was added to the show as an all-new animatronic, leading to the removal of the Bavarian and French parrots. Center Stage and some side stages were given painted backdrops appropriate to their respective characters (though not every character was given these painted backdrops). The Old Captain Bear was redressed to become a cowboy character, while the "Kisses For Me" Monkey Trio were also redressed to seemingly resemble that of female flight attendants. Some characters were repositioned from their original placements on stage, which are as follows:

Right Balcony

Pirate Parrot

Outer Stage Right

"Kisses For Me" Monkey Trio
Western Monkey on Washboard

Inner Stage Right

Showmaster Monkey & Bird
Louis Armstrong Monkey

Center Stage

Gorilla Pianist (Lift)
Hawaiian Monkey Trio (Lift)
Saxophone Monkey
Upright Bass Monkey
Drummer Monkey
Accordion Monkey
Banjo Monkey
Violin Monkey

Inner Stage Left

Primadonna Monkey
Drunken Bear with Lantern

Outer Stage Left

Bonvivant Monkey
Cowboy (Old Captain) Bear

The Dutch soundtrack for the Magical Monkey Show was produced exclusively for Hellendoorn, with an all-new script written by Willem Wilmink, a famous poet and writer in the Netherlands. The Dutch soundtrack has a runtime of about 15 minutes, approximately half of the estimated duration for the German Klimbimski-Show soundtrack. Unlike Phantasialand, Hellendoorn released the complete soundtrack to the Magical Monkey Show on audio-cassette, which had been digitized and uploaded to YouTube by Pretparknostalgie with permission from Avonturenpark Hellendoorn on November 10th, 2023 (20 years since the closure of the attraction at Hellendoorn).

While the Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show was a success, Dutch park-goers found the attraction to be "repetitive" after viewing more than once. Popularity of the Magical Monkey Show diminished by the early 2000's, in conjunction with rising maintenance costs to operate the show. As a result, the decision was made by Hellendoorn to close the Magical Monkey Show at the end of the 2003 season, gutting the stage and animatronics in favor of live performances inside the refreshed "Golden Palace Theater." The existence of the animatronics past 2003 have been unconfirmed, though some sources claim the animatronics were destroyed upon the attraction's closure. Few remnants of the Magical Monkey Show have remained, despite this, as the Pirate Parrot's balcony remains in its original spot on the left side wall (albeit empty). One side stage proscenium was kept intact, repainted, and installed above the entrance of the Golden Palace Theater as a tribute to the Magical Monkey Show.

Ap-O-Teket Variety Show

COMING SOON!

Animatronics

Phantasialand & Hellendoorn

Animatronic	Manufacturing Date	Status
Western Monkey on Washboard	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Old Captain / Cowboy Bear	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Louis Armstrong Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Showmaster Monkey & Bird	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Gorilla Pianist	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Hawaiian Monkey #1	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Hawaiian Monkey #2	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Hawaiian Monkey #3	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Saxophone Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Upright Bass Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Banjo Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Drummer Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Violin Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Accordion Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Bonvivant Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #1	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #2	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #3	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Primadonna Monkey	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Drunken Bear with Lantern	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Bavarian Parrot	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
French Parrot	1976-77	Unknown/Destroyed
Pirate Parrot	1988-89	Unknown/Destroyed

Liseberg & Edenlandia

Animatronic	Manufacturing Date	Status	Notes
Western Monkey on Washboard	1982-83	Unknown
Old Captain Bear	1980's	Unknown	Edenlandia Addition
Louis Armstrong Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Showmaster Monkey & Skunk	1980's	Unknown	Edenlandia Addition
Gorilla Pianist	1982-83	Unknown
Hawaiian Monkey #1	1982-83	Unknown
Hawaiian Monkey #2	1982-83	Unknown
Hawaiian Monkey #3	1982-83	Unknown
Saxophone Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Upright Bass Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Banjo Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Drummer Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Violin Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Accordion Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Bonvivant Monkey	1980's	Unknown	Edenlandia Addition
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #1	1982-83	Unknown
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #2	1982-83	Unknown
"Kisses For Me" Monkey #3	1982-83	Unknown
Primadonna Monkey	1982-83	Unknown
Drunken Bear with Lantern	1980's	Unknown	Edenlandia Addition
Red Parrot	1982-83	Unknown
Blue Parrot	1982-83	Unknown

Gallery

Phantasialand Klimbimski Affentheater

COMING SOON!

Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show

Magical Monkey Show Chocomel Advertisement
Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show
Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show
Hellendoorn "Kisses For Me" Monkey Trio, Showmaster Monkey, & Gorilla Pianist
Hellendoorn Western Monkey on Washboard, Louis Armstrong Monkey, & Gorilla Pianist
Hellendoorn Gorilla Pianist, Monkey Band, & Hawaiian Monkey Trio
Hellendoorn Gorilla Pianist, Monkey Band, & Hawaiian Monkey Trio
Hellendoorn Drunken Bear & Bonvivant Monkey
Hellendoorn Pirate Parrot
Hellendoorn Western Monkey on Washboard
Hellendoorn "Kisses For Me" Monkey Trio
Hellendoorn Louis Armstrong Monkey
Hellendoorn Showmaster Monkey
Hellendoorn Gorilla Pianist
Hellendoorn Monkey Band
Hellendoorn Hawaiian Monkey Trio
Hellendoorn Primadonna Monkey
Hellendoorn Drunken Bear
Hellendoorn Bonvivant Monkey
Hellendoorn Cowboy (Old Captain) Bear

Liseberg Ap-O-Teket

Ap-O-Teket "Jubel i busken" Show Building (1984)
Liseberg Monkey Band
Liseberg Western Monkey on Washboard
Liseberg Gorilla Pianist & Primadonna Monkey
Liseberg Primadonna Monkey
Liseberg Gorilla Pianist
Liseberg Louis Armstrong Monkey
Liseberg Ap-O-Teket Show

Edenlandia Variety Show

Edenlandia Western Monkey on Washboard (Post-Closure)
Edenlandia Louis Armstrong Monkey (Post-Closure)
Edenlandia Red Parrot (Post-Closure)
Edenlandia Variety Show (Post-Closure)
Edenlandia Bonvivant Monkey (Post-Closure)
Edenlandia Gorilla Pianist & Hawaiian Monkey (Post-Closure)

Videos

Link	Description	Filming Date	Publish Date
YouTube	Die Klimbimski Show snippets at Phantasialand (audio off-sync with footage).	1977-1983	June 11, 2016
YouTube	Die Klimbimski-Show snippets at Phantasialand, show audio replaced with stock music (3:34 - 4:18).	1977-1983	February 13, 2020
YouTube	Die Klimbimski-Show snippets at Phantasialand (3:43 - 7:08).	1978	December 14, 2020
YouTube	The Edenlandia Variety Show performing "Ciao, Ciao, Ciao" on the Italian children's television series "Starlandia."	1990	July 27, 2023
YouTube	Almost complete showing of the Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show.	1989-2003	October 22, 2017
YouTube	Almost complete showing of the Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show (footage in black & white).	1989-2003	December 4, 2020
YouTube	Almost complete showing of the Hellendoorn Magical Monkey Show (17:47 - 30:02).	July 24, 1992	May 27, 2017