Famous dogs throughout history
While Lassie is one of the most recognizable canine stars of the last century, she’s got plenty of company. Here are some dogs that have warmed our hearts, tickled our funny-bones, and in some cases, scared us silly.
- Buck from The Call of the Wild: Jack London’s 1903 novel follows the adventures of a dog named Buck who returns to a more savage nature after serving as a sled dog during the Gold Rush. Through the novel, Buck symbolizes both the strong pull of the nature and the equally powerful connection of loyalty.
- Cerberus from Greek mythology: Cerberus guarded the gates of Hades and was related to other early animal stars like the Hydra, the Nemean Lion, and the Sphinx. While he’s usually portrayed as having three heads, some authors portrayed him with as many as fifty.
- Clifford the Big Red Dog: First appearing in 1963, this dog appeared in a number of books by author Norman Bridwell. Starting out as the runt of the litter, he soon grew to enormous size (over 25 feet tall). His popularity grew proportionally, including a 2000s cartoon series where he was voiced by John Ritter.
- Cujo: This angry St. Bernard terrorized a Maine family in Stephen King’s 1981 novel, and has terrorized readers and viewers (of the 1983 film) ever since.
- Krypto the Superdog: Grafting the abilities of Superman on to a dog may have seemed like a good idea in 1955, but has led to a lot of silliness since then. Still, many writers have given him their best shot, and Krypto remains an amusing sidenote in Superman historyalbeit one that was given his own animated series in 2005.
- Old Yeller: Of course, no list would be complete without the star of Fred Gipson’s 1957 novel. The film is more well known, of course, for the trauma it inflicted on millions of children who were forced to watch as Old Yeller was put down after getting rabies. Luckily, Yeller’s spirit lives on, and he is still one of the most recognizable canine characters in fiction.