Perry the donkey, who inspired Eddie Murphy’s animated Shrek character. dies aged 30
Perry the donkey, who inspired Eddie Murphy’s animated Shrek character. dies aged 30
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Perry’s handlers said he won the hearts of visitors ‘with his beautiful soulful eyes and his sweet and gentle disposition’. A donkey said to have provided the inspiration for the famous Shrek character, Donkey, has died aged 30. Perry – short for Pericles – a miniature donkey born in New York City in 1994, achieved fame when he apparently modelled for animators working on the Oscar-winning 2001 comedy.
Voiced by Eddie Murphy, the talkative Donkey served as the sidekick to Shrek (Mike Meyers) in the original film and three sequels, the most recent of which was released in 2010. “It’s amazing how much of our donkey is in Donkey, the way he flips his head when he’s mad at Shrek, the way he trots.”.
Perry was five years old when he modelled for the Shrek animators and was apparently paid $75 (£60) for his work. News of Perry’s death was announced by the Barron Park Donkeys Instagram account, where he arrived “as a young and feisty three-year-old” companion to another donkey, Miner 49er.
“Throughout his long life here, Perry captured the hearts of the Barron Park community, and far beyond, with his beautiful soulful eyes, his sweet and gentle disposition, his amiable stroll to the pasture gate to greet his visitors, and of course his contributions to the movie Shrek – as the motion model for the Donkey character in the movie,” the statement said.
