July 1, 1923: The Rise of Rin Tin Tin

July 1, 1923: The silent film Where the North Begins, about fur trappers in early Canada, premieres. It is the 1st starring vehicle for Rin Tin Tin, "the Dog That Saved Hollywood."

"Rinty" wasn't the 1st dog, or even the 1st European-born German shepherd, to star in films. Starting with The Silent Call in 1921, the German-born Strongheart was a star, peaking in 1925 with a film version of Jack London's story White Fang. An on-set accident led to his death in 1929, at the age of 12.

On September 15, 1918, U.S. troops in Flirey, France found a kennel, but the only surviving adult dog was a German shepherd which had just given birth to 5 puppies. Corporal Lee Duncan raised the puppies, and gave 3 of them to his buddies, keeping 2 for himself, one of each gender, naming the male "Rin Tin Tin" and the female "Nanette," after a pair of dolls representing lovers that French children considered to be a good luck charm.

Duncan took the dogs back to America with him in 1919, but Nanette died shortly after arrival. Duncan taught Rin Tin Tin tricks, thinking he could be the next Strongheart. In 1922, Rin Tin Tin was "cast" in the Western The Man From Hell's River. It was a hit, and he was written as the centerpiece of Where the North Begins, premiering on July 1, 1923. 

Rin Tin Tin was responsible for greatly increasing the popularity of German Shepherd dogs as family pets. (My family had 2 when I was growing up.) The immense profitability of his films contributed to the success of Warner Bros. studios, and helped advance the career of Darryl F. Zanuck from screenwriter to producer and studio executive.

Rin Tin Tin was much sought after and was signed for endorsement deals, especially for dog food makers Ken-L Ration. Warner Bros. fielded fan letters by the thousands, sending back a glossy portrait signed with a paw print and a message written by Duncan: "Most faithfully, Rin Tin Tin."

Given that the film industry, like so many others, is a monkey-see-monkey-do industry, and that Rinty himself wasn't the original, of course there were, if you'll pardon my mixing of metaphors, copycats. RKO found its own German shepherd, Ace the Wonder Dog. Paramount had one, too, named Thunder the Marvel Dog. Universal had Silver Streak, and then Dynamite the Dog. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer had Pete the Pup for its Our Gang films. Warner Bros. even hired Strongheart's grandson, Lightning, for films in the 1930s.

Rin Tin Tin presaged such later dog stars as Asta from the Thin Man films (first film, 1934), Toto from The Wizard of Oz (1939), Lassie (1943), Benji (1974), and Buddy from the Air Bud films (1997).

Film historian Jan-Christopher Horak wrote that by 1927, Rin Tin Tin was the most popular actor with the very sophisticated film audience in Berlin. There is also a persistent rumor in Hollywood that, in 1929, Rin Tin Tin may have received the most votes for the first Academy Award for Best Actor, but the Academy determined that a human had to win. (It was given to Emil Jannings.)

After Rin Tin Tin died on August 10, 1932, from undetermined causes, shortly before he would have turned 14, the name was given to several related German Shepherd dogs featured in fictional stories on film, radio, and television. Rin Tin Tin Jr. appeared in some serialized films, but was not as talented as his father. Rin Tin Tin III, said to be Rin Tin Tin's grandson, but was probably only distantly related, helped promote the military use of dogs during World War II.

Duncan groomed Rin Tin Tin IV for the television series The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin. However, the dog performed poorly in a screen test, and was replaced in the TV show by trainer Frank Barnes' dogs, primarily one named Flame Jr., with the public led to believe that the "actor" was still a descendant of the original Rinty. The show ran on ABC from 1954 to 1959.

After Duncan died in 1960, the screen property of Rin Tin Tin passed to his business partner Bert Leonard, who worked on further adaptations, such as the 1988–1993 Canadian-made TV show Katts and Dog, which was called Rin Tin Tin: K-9 Cop in the U.S. and Rintintin Junior in France.

Leonard died in 2006, and control of the intellectual property.surrounding Rin Tin Tin now rests with Dorothy Yanchak, whose family has been breeding descendants of the original dog since the 1950s. The dog Rin Tin Tin XII, owned by Yanchak, takes part in public events to represent the Rin Tin Tin legacy.

In 1960, Rin Tin Tin, Strongheart and Lassie became the 1st 3 animals to receive stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. As of July 1, 2022, no other real animal has, not even a horse like Roy Rogers' Trigger or Mister Ed. (Some fictional characters have, like Kermit the Frog.)

In 1976, Bruce Dern and Madeline Kahn starred in Won Ton Ton, the Dog Who Saved Hollywood. It was an obvious tribute to Rin Tin Tin.

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July 1, 1923 was a Sunday. In Massachusetts and Pennsylvania, it was still illegal to host professional sporting events on Sundays. As a result, the Boston Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies did not play. Still, there was nearly a full slate of baseball games:

* The New York Yankees beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 4-0 at Yankee Stadium, the original version, in its 1st season of operation. Sad Sam Jones outpitched Eddie Rommel. Babe Ruth went 1-for-4.

* The Brooklyn Robins (as the Dodgers were known while Wilbert Robinson managed them from 1914 to 1931) beat their arch-rivals, the New York Giants, 2-1 at Ebbets Field. Dutch Reuther outpitched Hugh McQuillan. Jack Fournier drove in both Brooklyn runs with a home run.

* The Washington Senators beat the Boston Red Sox, 8-1 at Griffith Stadium in Washington.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 6-2 at League Park in Cleveland. Tris Speaker went 1-for-4.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 3-2 at Redland Field (later renamed Crosley Field) in Cincinnati.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 8-7 at Cubs Park (later renamed Wrigley Field) in Chicago. Rogers Hornsby went 2-for-5.

* And the St. Louis Browns beat the Detroit Tigers, 8-0 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Frank "Dixie" Davis pitched a 5-hit shutout.