Jackie Visits Panda Research Base in Chengdu

On May 12, the first anniversary of the devastating Sichuan earthquake, Jackie visited the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding in the Sichuan province of China. Jackie was named Panda Ambassador and became the adoptive "parent" of two panda babies born in August, 2008. He named them  "Cheng Cheng" and "Long Long" after his Chinese name, Cheng Long. Jackie was so thrilled that he promised to adopt more panda babies and in a show of support for the panda research base, he added one more zero onto a 100,000 RMB donation check, turning the gift into 1,000,000 RMB (US $146,600).

Jackie told the audience that the first time he'd seen a panda up close was in a zoo in Berlin, Germany about 10 years ago. He said that he'd stood and admired the panda and realized that it was impossible to look at it without smiling and forgetting all worries. He encouraged his fans all over the world to support the great work being done at the research base.