Peko the marmoset - Pet marmoset seen on the crime drama THE ADVENTURES OF FU- MANCHU/SYN/1955-56. Peko was the small South American monkey owned by the villain Dr. Fu-Manchu (Glen Gordon) who operated out of Macao and other oriental settings. With his Marmoset pet by his side (a forerunner to Dr. Evil and his hairless feline companion Mr. Bigglesworth from the Austin Powers films), Dr. Manchu directed an army of nefarious agents to destroy Democracy around the world (committing such acts as germ warfare, smuggling, and attacking peace conferences). The TV series was based on the Dr. Fu-Manchu crime novels created by English writer Sax Rohmer, aka Henry Sarsfield Ward (1883-1959), between 1913 and 1959. "The Insidious Dr. Fu Manchu" was the first title in the famous series of "Yellow Peril" novels that pits the sinister genius of the Far East against the British duo of Denis Nayland Smith and his sidekick Dr. Petrie.

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(From the 1913 book "The Insidious Dr, Fu-Manchu" Chapter 20)

"You puzzle me, Smith," I confessed. "There is much in this extraordinary case that puzzles me. I can think of nothing to account for the marks."

"Have you thought of Fu-Manchu's marmoset?" asked Smith.

"The monkey!" I cried.

"They were the footprints of a small ape," my friend continued. "For a moment I was deceived as you were, and believed them to be the tracks of a large bird; but I have seen the footprints of apes before now, and a marmoset, though an American variety, I believe, is not unlike some of the apes of Burma."

"I am still in the dark," I said.

"It is pure hypothesis," continued Smith, "but here is the theory-- in lieu of a better one it covers the facts. The marmoset-- and it is contrary from the character of Fu-Manchu to keep any creature for mere amusement--is trained to perform certain duties.

"You observed the waterspout running up beside the window; you observed the iron bar intended to prevent a window-cleaner from falling out? For an ape the climb from the court below to the sill above was a simple one. He carried a cord, probably attached to his body. He climbed on to the sill, over the bar, and climbed down again. By means of this cord a rope was pulled up over the bar, by means of the rope one of those ladders of silk and bamboo. One of the Doctor's servants ascended..."