Precious was a live-in nurse and caregiver for the elderly Edna Wallace. She was also an orangutan; unable to afford a human nurse for her disabled mother's care, Beth Wallace employed Precious instead. During her stay in Harmony Precious developed an unrequited love for Beth's love interest, Luis Lopez-Fitzgerald, which was often depicted in elaborate fantasy sequences.
Precious eventually left Harmony in 2005 to take care of a sick aunt, Divinity; while leaving Harmony on a train, Precious took a picture of Luis and let it fly out a window—symbolizing that she had given up Luis once and for all. After the character's departure, Precious was spoken of frequently by both Edna and Tabitha Lenox; at one point Tabitha was planning to visit Precious and Divinity shortly before the series finale.
The character, while identified as female, was portrayed by a trained male orangutan named BamBam from March 14, 2003 to April 25, 2005.. Though the character was portrayed as a competent caregiver with implied medical credentials, she was intended for comic effect. The use of an orangutan as a nurse drew intense criticism from animal rights activists including famed scientist and ape researcher Dr. Jane Goodall.
In 2003, Passions submitted BamBam for a Daytime Emmy Award. In early 2004, the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which administers the awards, disallowed the entry, with the following statement:
Our ruling is based on the belief that the Academy must draw a line of distinction between animal characters that aren't capable of speaking parts and human actors whose personal interpretation in character portrayal creates nuance and audience engagement that uniquely qualifies those performers for consideration of television's highest honor.
Read more about this topic: Minor Passions Characters
Famous quotes containing the word precious:
“Habit is thus the enormous fly-wheel of society, its most precious conservative agent. It alone is what keeps us all within the bounds of ordinance, and saves the children of fortune from the envious uprisings of the poor.”
—William James (1843–1916)
“Because the young child feels with such intensity, he experiences sorrows that seem inconsolable and losses that feel unbearable. A precious toy gets broken or a good-bye cannot be endured. When this happens, words like “sad” or “disappointed” seem a travesty because they cannot possibly capture the enormity of the child’s loss. He needs a loving adult presence to support him in his pain but he does not want to be talked out of it.”
—Alicia F. Lieberman (20th century)
“Malcolm. Dispute it like a man.
Macduff. I shall do so;
But I must also feel it as a man.
I cannot but remember such things were
That were most precious to me.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)