--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I was about 12 years old and I was…" description: "\"I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the television and it was some kind of talent show, you know, and on marches this monkey, this ape,..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg" --- # I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the… ![“I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the television and it was some kind of talent show, you know, and on marches this monkey, this ape, in a pair of red-checked trousers with a little matching jacket holding a ukelele and it started jigging around playing it, and it was looking…” quote by Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg) > “I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the television and it was some kind of talent show, you know, and on marches this monkey, this ape, in a pair of red-checked trousers with a little matching jacket holding a ukelele and it started jigging around playing it, and it was looking straight into the camera, straight at me, and I remember thinking, that's it, that'll be me, you know, that'll be me.” [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A childhood vision of a performing monkey inspired a lifelong desire to be on stage. **In simple terms:** Seeing a monkey perform sparked a dream of fame. Key Takeaway Pursue the performance that calls to you. Themes dreams identity performance inspiration Mood nostalgic determined hopeful Type personal motivational When to use this quote - stage auditions - music practice - public speaking - personal branding Key Concepts self‑actualization role models creativity Questions to Reflect On - What performance does your inner monkey crave? - How can you channel that energy constructively? A Different Perspective The ideal may be unrealistic; fame can be fleeting. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Apes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apes/) [Cameras](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cameras/) [Holding Ukelele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/holding-ukelele-5553698/) [Jackets](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jackets/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Littles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/littles/) [March](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/march/) [Marches Monkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/marches-monkey-5553695/) [Matching](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/matching/) [Monkey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monkey/) [Monkey Ape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monkey-ape-5553696/) [Monkeys](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monkeys/) [Pairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/pairs/) [Red](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/red/) [Remember](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/remember/) [Shows](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shows/) [Sitting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sitting/) [Talent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talent/) [Talent show](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talent-show/) [Television](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/television/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Ukelele Started](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ukelele-started-5553693/) [Years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/years/) ## Related quotes > [I learned about this talent show on TV that was basically the Estonian version of 'American Idol.' So I lied about my age, went…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kerli/i-learned-about-this-talent-show-on-tv-that-was-basically-the/) [Kerli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kerli/) > [I get really frustrated with people who turn their noses up at talent shows like 'The Voice' and 'X-Factor.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ricki-lee-coulter/i-get-really-frustrated-with-people-who-turn-their-noses-up-at-talent/) [Ricki-Lee Coulter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ricki-lee-coulter/) > [We all want to judge; it's an intrinsic part of our society and human nature. I'm not surprised that talent shows are hits, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melissa-etheridge/we-all-want-to-judge-it-s-an-intrinsic-part-of-our-society-and-human/) [Melissa Etheridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melissa-etheridge/) > [When I was in school, if I was talking as myself and I was presenting something as myself or having to answer a question,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adam-cole/when-i-was-in-school-if-i-was-talking-as-myself-and-i-was-presenting/) [Adam Cole](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adam-cole/) > [I started writing songs when I was real young, when I was 3 years old. The piano spoke to me - I don't remember…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-axel/i-started-writing-songs-when-i-was-real-young-when-i-was-3-years-old/) [Ian Axel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-axel/) > [He's laughing me into a stupor, she thought. I could heckle, I suppose, I could throw a bread roll at him, but he's eaten…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-nicholls/he-s-laughing-me-into-a-stupor-she-thought-i-could-heckle-i-suppose-i/) [David Nicholls](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-nicholls/) > [When I first knew that I wanted to rap I was seven years old and I lost the talent show. It was like spoken…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rico-nasty/when-i-first-knew-that-i-wanted-to-rap-i-was-seven-years-old-and-i/) [Rico Nasty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rico-nasty/) > [I loved dancing the tango at the 1994 Nurses Ball Talent Show. I thought I'd be dancing with Brad Maule (Tony) but the writers…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacklyn-zeman/i-loved-dancing-the-tango-at-the-1994-nurses-ball-talent-show-i/) [Jacklyn Zeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacklyn-zeman/) > [I learned my first songs when I was six and seven, and when I was eight years old, I won a local talent show.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roy-orbison/i-learned-my-first-songs-when-i-was-six-and-seven-and-when-i-was/) [Roy Orbison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roy-orbison/) > [I also used to work in the Catskill Mountains as a bus boy, and I performed in talent shows.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-mann/i-also-used-to-work-in-the-catskill-mountains-as-a-bus-boy-and-i/) [Barry Mann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-mann/) > [I was definitely a thespian of sorts in elementary school. I went to a real small private school, and every year, I participated in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ariel-pink/i-was-definitely-a-thespian-of-sorts-in-elementary-school-i-went-to-a/) [Ariel Pink](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ariel-pink/) > [Your privates aren't a talent show, don't show them off. Your wrist isn't wood, don't cut it. You're not fat, don't starve yourself. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-benson/your-privates-aren-t-a-talent-show-don-t-show-them-off-your-wrist-isn/) [Matthew Benson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-benson/) > [Joker rhymes like the is you just happy to see me trick, classical slapstick rappers need chapstick, a lot of them sound like they…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mf-doom/joker-rhymes-like-the-is-you-just-happy-to-see-me-trick-classical/) [MF Doom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mf-doom/) > [One day, when I was about eight years old, some kids pushed me on stage at school during a talent show because they knew…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mavis-staples/one-day-when-i-was-about-eight-years-old-some-kids-pushed-me-on-stage/) [Mavis Staples](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mavis-staples/) > [I wrote a song about how I hated Wednesdays, and I played it at my school talent show. It definitely made people concerned for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noah-kahan/i-wrote-a-song-about-how-i-hated-wednesdays-and-i-played-it-at-my/) [Noah Kahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noah-kahan/) ## More by Nick Cave > [Texting is apocalyptic on some level. It's a reduction of things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/texting-is-apocalyptic-on-some-level-it-s-a-reduction-of-things/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“And I know why our friendship must be kept a secret. Or they will kill You like they killed You in the Bible. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/and-i-know-why-our-friendship-must-be-kept-a-secret-or-they-will-kill/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I want to write songs that are so sad, the kind of sad where you take someone's little finger and break it in three…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-want-to-write-songs-that-are-so-sad-the-kind-of-sad-where-you-take/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“Through these days Bunny made increasingly frequent and protracted visits to the bathroom, beating off with a single-minded savagery intense even by Bunny's standards.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/through-these-days-bunny-made-increasingly-frequent-and-protracted/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Personally I find the story of Christ incredibly moving.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/personally-i-find-the-story-of-christ-incredibly-moving/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [ That's what we \[outsiders\] feel America is really about - the kind of crazed ravings of the Christian right - when it's probably something… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/that-s-what-we-outsiders-feel-america-is-really-about-the-kind-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [“My relationship with my muse is a delicate one at the best of times and I feel that it is my duty to protect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-relationship-with-my-muse-is-a-delicate-one-at-the-best-of-times/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I'm kind of old-school and love nothing more than sitting, opening a book, and reading it. But I also love listening to audio books.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-m-kind-of-old-school-and-love-nothing-more-than-sitting-opening-a/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Early on I realized when you write a song about someone, it flatters them on some level, and gives you a lot of room…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/early-on-i-realized-when-you-write-a-song-about-someone-it-flatters/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [My father was a teacher and my mother also worked in the school, so the family has a background in education.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/my-father-was-a-teacher-and-my-mother-also-worked-in-the-school-so/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [I think it's an essential fact for any performer or artist to fail as poignantly as they can succeed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-think-it-s-an-essential-fact-for-any-performer-or-artist-to-fail-as/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [To my undying shame, I do read reviews. I don't read them all, but I like to get some kind of idea how things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/to-my-undying-shame-i-do-read-reviews-i-don-t-read-them-all-but-i/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Brother, be a brother, fill this tiny cup of mine. And please, sir, make it whiskey: I have no head for wine!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/brother-be-a-brother-fill-this-tiny-cup-of-mine-and-please-sir-make/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [When you've been initiated, you can stand in the world differently. And I think it is up to all of us, we can have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/when-you-ve-been-initiated-you-can-stand-in-the-world-differently-and/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) > [Polly Jean, I love you. I love the texture of your skin, the taste of your saliva, the softness of your ears. I love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/polly-jean-i-love-you-i-love-the-texture-of-your-skin-the-taste-of/) [Nick Cave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) [Explore all 280 Nick Cave quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/) ## More Apes quotes > [Television's perfect. You turn a few knobs, a few of those mechanical adjustments at which the higher apes are so proficient, and lean back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raymond-chandler/television-s-perfect-you-turn-a-few-knobs-a-few-of-those-mechanical/) [Raymond Chandler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raymond-chandler/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [As nature made every man with a nose and eyes of his own, she gave him a character of his own, too; and yet…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/as-nature-made-every-man-with-a-nose-and-eyes-of-his-own-she-gave-him/) [William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/) > [And the Devil did grin, for his darling sin is pride that apes humility.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-taylor-coleridge/and-the-devil-did-grin-for-his-darling-sin-is-pride-that-apes-humility/) [Samuel Taylor Coleridge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-taylor-coleridge/) > [Battle For The Planet Of The Apes', was just a film for kids and didn't have any deep meaning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-lee-thompson/battle-for-the-planet-of-the-apes-was-just-a-film-for-kids-and-didn-t/) [J. Lee Thompson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-lee-thompson/) > [Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the unfashionable end of the western spiral arm of the Galaxy lies a small unregarded yellow sun.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-adams/far-out-in-the-uncharted-backwaters-of-the-unfashionable-end-of-the/) [Douglas Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-adams/) > [“Civilization is only a pretense; in the crisis, we become mere apes again, forgetting the rational biped of our pretensions and becoming instead the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/civilization-is-only-a-pretense-in-the-crisis-we-become-mere-apes/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [The idea that war should be conducted within a moral framework may seem like a quaint medieval practice, but as speech separates humans from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-idea-that-war-should-be-conducted-within-a-moral-framework-may/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Is man an ape or an angel? Now I am on the side of the angels.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/is-man-an-ape-or-an-angel-now-i-am-on-the-side-of-the-angels/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Mass ought to be in Latin, unless you could do it in Greek or Chinese. In fact, any abracadabra that no bloody member of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ezra-pound/mass-ought-to-be-in-latin-unless-you-could-do-it-in-greek-or-chinese/) [Ezra Pound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ezra-pound/) > [I think the problem we have as apes is we're asking far bigger questions than we could possibly process.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-brooker/i-think-the-problem-we-have-as-apes-is-we-re-asking-far-bigger/) [Charlie Brooker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-brooker/) > [We admit that we are like apes, but we seldom realise that we are apes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-admit-that-we-are-like-apes-but-we-seldom-realise-that-we-are-apes/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Lower your gaze because you become less of a human every time you stare at a woman and you stare at her like she's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nouman-ali-khan/lower-your-gaze-because-you-become-less-of-a-human-every-time-you/) [Nouman Ali Khan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nouman-ali-khan/) > [It was their individuality combined with the shyness of their behavior that remained the most captivating impression of this first encounter with the greatest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dian-fossey/it-was-their-individuality-combined-with-the-shyness-of-their/) [Dian Fossey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dian-fossey/) > [Apes had it worked out. No ape would philosophize, "The mountain is, and is not." They would think, "The banana is. I will eat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/apes-had-it-worked-out-no-ape-would-philosophize-the-mountain-is-and/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) [Browse all 444 Apes quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/apes/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the television and it was some kind of talent show, you know, and on marches this monkey, this ape, in a pair of red-checked trousers with a little matching jacket holding a ukelele and it started jigging around playing it, and it was looking straight into the camera, straight at me, and I remember thinking, that's it, that'll be me, you know, that'll be me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Nick Cave" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitting-watching-the-television/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Apes" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitting-watching-the-television/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a78/nick-cave-1153_apes_i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitti_1509462.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I was about 12 years old and I was sitting watching the television and it was some kind of talent show, you…” — Nick Cave", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Nick Cave", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nick-cave/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I was about 12 years old...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitting-watching-the-television/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nick-cave/i-was-about-12-years-old-and-i-was-sitting-watching-the-television/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```