Hart House tries out a new receptionist
Comments (2) 
Yes, that is a pink gorilla working the front desk at Hart House. David Farrant (BSc 1994 VIC) came across the strange apparition in December 2008, while accompanying his then-11-year-old son to a chess tournament organized by the Hart House Chess Club. Although he also plays chess, Farrant had opted that day to indulge in another one of his hobbies: photography.
“I had no idea why there was a huge stuffed pink gorilla sitting at reception, while human staff went about their business,” Farrant said in an email. “I should have asked about it, but was probably too busy trying to figure out what sort of photo to take of it.”
The image was one of eight from that day that Farrant entered in “A Day in the Life” Flickr pool.
For more of Farrant’s pictures, visit his Flickr page.
Reader Comments
Cool!
I work at Hart House. An employee held an event where the gorilla was used as a prop. After the event, he needed some place to stash it, so it ended up as an honourary porter. By the way, the people at the desk are called “hubbers,” not receptionists because they perform more services than a receptionist. They used to be called porters, and I keep using that title.