The Shaggy Dog (1959 film)
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''The Shaggy Dog'' is a 1959 American
comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending (black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the ol ...
produced by
Walt Disney Productions The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
and loosely based on the 1923 novel ''
The Hound of Florence ''The Hound of Florence: A Novel'' (german: link=no, Der Hund von Florenz) is a 1923 novel written by Felix Salten. It is best known today for partly inspiring the 1959 Walt Disney Productions film '' The Shaggy Dog'', as well as sequels and remak ...
'' by
Felix Salten Felix Salten (; 6 September 1869 – 8 October 1945) was an Austro-Hungarian author and literary critic in Vienna. Life and death Salten was born Siegmund Salzmann on 6 September 1869 in Pest, Austria-Hungary. His father was Fülöp Salzmann, ...
. Directed by Charles Barton from a screenplay by
Lillie Hayward Lillie Hayward (born Lillian Olenda Auen, September 12, 1891 – June 29, 1977) was an American screenwriter whose Hollywood career began during the silent film, silent era and continued well into the television, age of television. She wrot ...
and Bill Walsh, the film stars
Fred MacMurray Frederick Martin MacMurray (August 30, 1908 – November 5, 1991) was an American actor. He appeared in more than one hundred films and a successful television series, in a career that spanned nearly a half-century. His career as a major film le ...
,
Tommy Kirk Thomas Lee Kirk (December 10, 1941 – September 28, 2021) was an American actor, best known for his performances in films made by Walt Disney Studios such as ''Old Yeller'', '' The Shaggy Dog'', ''Swiss Family Robinson'', ''The Absent-Minded P ...
,
Jean Hagen Jean Hagen (born Jean Shirley Verhagen; August 3, 1923 – August 29, 1977) was an American actress best known for her role as Lina Lamont in ''Singin' in the Rain'' (1952), for which she was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Supporting ...
,
Kevin Corcoran Kevin Anthony "Moochie" Corcoran (June 10, 1949 – October 6, 2015) was an American child actor, director and producer. He appeared in numerous Disney projects between 1957 and 1963, leading him to be honored as a Disney Legend in 2006. Hi ...
,
Tim Considine Timothy Daniel Considine (December 31, 1940 – March 3, 2022) was an American actor, writer, photographer, and automotive historian. He was best known for his acting roles in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Early life Considine was born in Lo ...
,
Roberta Shore Roberta Jymme Schourop (born April 7, 1943, Monterey Park, California), better known as Roberta Shore, is a retired American actress and performer. She is notable for her roles in the original '' Shaggy Dog'' film and as Betsy Garth on the Wester ...
, and
Annette Funicello Annette Joanne Funicello (October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013) was an American actress and singer. Funicello began her professional career as a child performer at the age of twelve. She was one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the orig ...
. The film follows a teenage boy named Wilby Daniels who, by the power of an enchanted ring of the
Borgia The House of Borgia ( , ; Spanish and an, Borja ; ca-valencia, Borja ) was an Italian-Aragonese Spanish noble family, which rose to prominence during the Italian Renaissance. They were from Valencia, the surname being a toponymic from the town ...
s, is transformed into a shaggy
Old English Sheepdog The Old English Sheepdog is a large breed of dog that emerged in England from early types of herding dog. Obsolete names for the breed include Shepherd's Dog and . The nickname ''Bob-tail'' (or ''Bobtail'') originates from how dogs of the breed ...
. The film was released on March 19, 1959, and grossed over $9 million during its initial release, making it the second-highest-grossing film of 1959. A sequel, ''
The Shaggy D.A. ''The Shaggy D.A.'' is a 1976 American comedy film and a sequel to '' The Shaggy Dog'' (1959) produced by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait. As with the first film in the series, it takes some ...
'' (1976), starred Dean Jones,
Tim Conway Thomas Daniel "Tim" Conway (December 15, 1933 – May 14, 2019) was an American actor, comedian, writer, and director. From 1966 to 2012 he appeared in more than 100 TV shows, TV series and films. Among his more notable roles, he portrayed the ...
, and
Suzanne Pleshette Suzanne Pleshette (January 31, 1937 – January 19, 2008) was an American theatre, film, television, and voice actress. Pleshette started her career in the theatre and began appearing in films in the late 1950s and later appeared in prominent ...
. It was followed by a 1987 television sequel, a 1994 television remake and a 2006 live-action theatrical remake.


Plot

Wilbur "Wilby" Daniels is a boy who is misunderstood by his father, Wilson. Wilson thinks Wilby is crazy half the time because of his elder son's often dangerous inventions. As a retired mailman who often ran afoul of canines, he has a hatred of dogs, and he simply cannot understand why his younger son, Montgomery ("Moochie"), would want a dog. Wilby and his rival Buzz Miller go with a French girl named Francesca Andrassé to the local museum. Wilby gets separated from the other two, who leave without him. Wilby encounters former acquaintance Professor Plumcutt (whose newspaper Wilby used to deliver), who tells him all about mystical ancient beliefs, including the legend of the Borgia family, who used
shape-shifting In mythology, folklore and speculative fiction, shape-shifting is the ability to physically transform oneself through an inherently superhuman ability, divine intervention, demonic manipulation, sorcery, spells or having inherited the ...
as a weapon against their enemies. On the way out, Wilby collides with a table that holds a display case of jewelry. He accidentally ends up with one of the rings in the cuff of his pants. It is the cursed Borgia ring, and no sooner does he read the
inscription Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...
on it ("''In canis corpore transmuto'', which, unknown to Wilby, means, "Into a dog's body I change") then he transforms into the Shaggy Dog, named Chiffon, who is Francesca's shaggy "Bratislavian sheepdog", a.k.a
Old English Sheepdog The Old English Sheepdog is a large breed of dog that emerged in England from early types of herding dog. Obsolete names for the breed include Shepherd's Dog and . The nickname ''Bob-tail'' (or ''Bobtail'') originates from how dogs of the breed ...
. Confused, Wilby, as a dog, goes to Professor Plumcutt, who says Wilby has invoked the Borgia curse upon himself, which can only be broken through a heroic act of selflessness. After getting chased out of his own house by his enraged father, who fails to recognize him as a dog, Wilby has a series of misadventures while switching back and forth between human form and dog form. Only Moochie and Professor Plumcutt know his true identity, as Wilby has spoken to them both in dog form. While at a local dance in his human form, he accidentally transforms himself into a dog. Francesca sees that Chiffon has been acting strangely, and she asks her adoptive father, Dr. Valasky, to watch over Chiffon for the night. As she exits, a secretive associate of Dr. Valasky named Thurm enters. Wilby, as a dog, overhears Thurm and Dr. Valasky discuss plans to steal a government secret. The next day, Wilby, as a dog, tells Moochie about the spies. Wilby reveals the secret to his dumbfounded father. As Wilby and Moochie discuss what to do next, Francesca's butler Stefano comes out and drags Wilby into the house. Moochie runs to his father to get help, who goes to the authorities, until Wilson suddenly finds himself accused of being either crazy or a spy. Stefano and Francesca's adoptive father, Dr. Valasky, are discussing plans to steal a government secret, and Wilby, as a dog, overhears. Unfortunately for him, he transforms into human Wilby right in front of the spies and has been discovered, but not before he hears Dr. Valasky expressing his wish to get rid of his own daughter. The spies angrily capture Wilby and force Francesca to leave with them, leaving the human Wilby bound and gagged in the closet at once. Fortunately, Moochie sneaks into the house just after Dr. Valasky, Stefano and Francesca leave, and discovers Wilby, who is transformed into a dog, still bound and gagged in the closet. When Buzz appears at the Valasky residence to take Francesca on a date, Wilby, still in his dog form, steals Buzz's hot rod automobile. Buzz reports this to Officers Hansen and Kelly, who are in disbelief until they see the shaggy dog driving Buzz's hot rod. Wilson and Moochie follow Buzz and the police, who end up chasing everyone. The spies attempt to leave aboard a boat, but the police call in the harbor patrol to apprehend Dr. Valasky and stop his boat. Wilby, in his dog form, swims up and wrestles with the men, as Francesca gets knocked out of the boat. He then saves her life and drags her ashore, which finally breaks the curse of dog form. When Francesca regains her consciousness, Buzz tries to take credit for saving her. This angers Wilby, who is still a dog, so much that he attacks Buzz. Seconds later, Buzz is surprised to find himself wrestling with the ''real'' human Wilby, and the ''real'' Chiffon reappears. Since Chiffon is soaking wet, Francesca concludes that he has ''really'' saved her from the ocean and she hugs and praises him. Now that Wilson and Chiffon are declared heroes, Francesca is able to leave for Paris without her evil adoptive father and former butler, both of whom have been arrested for
espionage Espionage, spying, or intelligence gathering is the act of obtaining secret or confidential information (intelligence) from non-disclosed sources or divulging of the same without the permission of the holder of the information for a tangibl ...
; and she gives Chiffon to the Daniels family for them to keep as her way of thanking them. Since Wilson has gotten such commendation for foiling a spy ring because of "his love of dogs," he has a change of heart over his hatred of dogs, a promise to change his ways, and a sense of humor, while he also realizes that his dog-hating attitude isn't really good anymore, so he allows Moochie to care for Chiffon, as he wanted a dog all along. Wilby and Buzz decide to forget their rivalry over Francesca and resume their friendship instead.


Cast


Production


Development

Walt Disney Walter Elias Disney (; December 5, 1901December 15, 1966) was an American animator, film producer and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film p ...
had previously bought the rights to
Felix Salten Felix Salten (; 6 September 1869 – 8 October 1945) was an Austro-Hungarian author and literary critic in Vienna. Life and death Salten was born Siegmund Salzmann on 6 September 1869 in Pest, Austria-Hungary. His father was Fülöp Salzmann, ...
's 1923 novel ''
Bambi, a Life in the Woods ''Bambi, a Life in the Woods'' (German title: ''Bambi: Eine Lebensgeschichte aus dem Walde'') is a 1923 Austrian literature, Austrian coming-of-age novel written by Felix Salten and originally published in Berlin by Ullstein Verlag. The novel tra ...
'' and produced an
adaptation In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the po ...
of it in 1942 under his animation department. Prior to that film's release, Walt Disney bought the rights to five more Salten novels in May 1941, as well as options to have him adapt them. The novels were ''Bambi's Children'', ''Perri'', ''Renni'', ''City Jungle'', and ''The Hound of Florence''. He did not want to make ''Bambi's Children'' but did not want anyone else to make it; however, he intended to make the other films as cartoons. Salten was then living in
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
and was paid out of funds owing to Disney's then-distributor
RKO Radio Pictures RKO Radio Pictures Inc., commonly known as RKO Pictures or simply RKO, was an American film production and distribution company, one of the "Big Five" film studios of Hollywood's Golden Age. The business was formed after the Keith-Albee-Orphe ...
which had been "frozen" in that country; this would be credited against money RKO owed Disney for distributing his films. (Salten would die in Zurich in 1945.) In June 1955, when Disney was making ''
Lady and the Tramp ''Lady and the Tramp'' is a 1955 American animated musical romance film produced by Walt Disney and released by Buena Vista Film Distribution. The 15th Disney animated feature film, it was directed by Clyde Geronimi, Wilfred Jackson, and Hami ...
'', he said he still had no plans to film ''The Hound of Florence''. However,
ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...
wanted Disney to make another TV series, and he pitched them ''The Shaggy Dog'', "a story that treated the younger generation and its problems in a light manner," he said later. "They turned me down flat. I was hopping mad when I went back to the studio, so I called in Bill Walsh and said 'Let's make a feature of it'."Looking at Hollywood: Hedda Gets the Lowdown on Walt Disney's Success Hopper, Hedda. Chicago Tribune January 1, 1965: c2. Star Tommy Kirk later claimed the film was meant to be a two-part television show and "Only at the very last minute did they decide to splice them together and release them as a film." In the late 1950s, the idea of an adult human turning into a beast was nothing new, but the idea of a teenager doing just that in a movie was considered
avant-garde The avant-garde (; In 'advance guard' or ' vanguard', literally 'fore-guard') is a person or work that is experimental, radical, or unorthodox with respect to art, culture, or society.John Picchione, The New Avant-garde in Italy: Theoretical ...
and even shocking in 1957 when
American International Pictures American International Pictures (AIP) is an American motion picture production label of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution company known for producing and releasing fi ...
released their horror film, ''
I Was a Teenage Werewolf ''I Was a Teenage Werewolf'' is a 1957 horror film starring Michael Landon as a troubled teenager, Yvonne Lime and Whit Bissell. It was co-written and produced by cult film producer Herman Cohen and was one of the most successful films released ...
'', one of the studio's biggest hits.Arkoff, pp. 61–75 ''The Shaggy Dog'' betrays its successful forebear with Fred MacMurray's classic bit of dialogue: "That's ridiculous—my son is not a werewolf! He's nothing more than just a big, baggy, stupid-looking shaggy dog!"Arkoff, pp. 61–75 The director was Charles Barton, who also directed ''
Spin and Marty ''Spin and Marty'' is a series of television shorts that aired as part of ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' show of the mid-1950s, produced by Walt Disney and broadcast on the ABC network in the United States. There were three serials in all, set at the ...
'' for ''The
Mickey Mouse Club ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' is an American variety television show that aired intermittently from 1955 to 1996 and returned to social media in 2017. Created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions, the program was first televised fo ...
''. Veteran screenwriter Lillie Hayward also worked on the ''Spin and Marty'' serials, which featured several of the same young actors as ''The Shaggy Dog''. Disney producer Bill Walsh mused that "The Shaggy Dog" was the direct inspiration for the TV show ''
My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chronicl ...
'', Walsh said "Same kids, same dog and Fred MacMurray!"


Casting

The lead role went to
Tommy Kirk Thomas Lee Kirk (December 10, 1941 – September 28, 2021) was an American actor, best known for his performances in films made by Walt Disney Studios such as ''Old Yeller'', '' The Shaggy Dog'', ''Swiss Family Robinson'', ''The Absent-Minded P ...
, who had started with Disney in a
Hardy Boys The Hardy Boys, brothers Frank and Joe Hardy, are fictional characters who appear in several mystery series for children and teens. The series revolves around teenagers who are amateur sleuths, solving cases that stumped their adult counterpa ...
serial for ''
The Mickey Mouse Club ''The Mickey Mouse Club'' is an American variety television show that aired intermittently from 1955 to 1996 and returned to social media in 2017. Created by Walt Disney and produced by Walt Disney Productions, the program was first televised fo ...
'' alongside
Tim Considine Timothy Daniel Considine (December 31, 1940 – March 3, 2022) was an American actor, writer, photographer, and automotive historian. He was best known for his acting roles in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Early life Considine was born in Lo ...
. Considine also played a role, as did
Annette Funicello Annette Joanne Funicello (October 22, 1942 – April 8, 2013) was an American actress and singer. Funicello began her professional career as a child performer at the age of twelve. She was one of the most popular Mouseketeers on the orig ...
who had been the most popular member of ''The Mickey Mouse Club''. It was Funicello's first film. It took several months for Disney to find the right dog. Kirk later said, "At the time, I viewed it as a fairy tale, but in later years, I've come to think that the film has one of the screwiest combinations of plot elements in any movie ever made. It has all the realistic elements of the Cold War -- Russian spies plotting against the government -- mixed in with a rivalry over Annette between two teenage boys, mixed in with a fantasy about a boy who turns into a dog because he encounters a ring from the Borgias!"THE BIG PICTURE TAKES ON FILM Nott, Robert. The Santa Fe New Mexican March 10, 2006: PA-48.


Filming

Filming started August 4, 1958. Disney later recalled that "nobody — not even on the lot — paid any attention to us. We made the picture for one and a quarter million dollars while the rest of the town was turning out super dupers." Tim Considine was clawed in the eye by the sheepdog during filming. Dialogue would be written to match the mouth movements of the dog. If the dog did not move its mouth, beef jerky was used. Kirk said he had "beautiful memories of" Barton. "He was a very gentle, nice person with a good sense of humor." He also enjoyed working with MacMurray:
I thought he was a great actor. I liked him enormously. I tried to get to know him, and got to know him a little bit, but he did have a kind of wall that I never got around. He was distant, he was conservative, and kind of remote. He didn't go out and have lunch. Instead, he had a tiny can of Metrecal — a horrible diet drink. There were stories about him being cheap, and I heard that he was worth $500 million at the time of his death. But I just loved him. They say he was Walt Disney's favorite actor, and I can understand that. He ranks up there with Cary Grant as one of the great light comics.
Veteran Disney voice actor
Paul Frees Solomon Hersh "Paul" Frees (June 22, 1920November 2, 1986) was an American actor, comedian, impressionist, and vaudevillian. He is known for his work on Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Walter Lantz, Rankin/Bass, and Walt Disney theatrical cartoons during ...
had a rare on-screen appearance in the film — for which he received no on-screen credit — as Dr. J.W. Galvin, a psychiatrist who examines Wilby's father (MacMurray), Wilson Daniels. Frees also did his usual voice acting by also playing the part of the narrator who informs the audience that Wilson Daniels is a "man noted for the fact that he is allergic to dogs."


Reception

''The Shaggy Dog'' was the second-highest-grossing film of 1959 and was Disney's most financially successful film of the 1950s. During its initial release, the film grossed $9.6 million in domestic theatrical rentals on a budget of less than $1 million, making it more profitable than the year's highest-grossing film, '' Ben-Hur''. ''The Shaggy Dog'' also performed very strongly on a 1967 re-release. The film was the most profitable film made by Disney at that time. According to ''Diabolique'', "the movie kicked off a whole bunch of comedies with a slight fantastical element that powered Disney film division for the next two decades. Much of the credit went to MacMurray; a lot of the credit should have gone to Kirk, whose easy-going boy next door charm made him the ideal American teen." On
review aggregator A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Rotten Tomatoes Rotten Tomatoes is an American review-aggregation website for film and television. The company was launched in August 1998 by three undergraduate students at the University of California, Berkeley: Senh Duong, Patrick Y. Lee, and Stephen Wang ...
, the film holds a 68% approval rating with an average rating of 5.8/10, based on 19 reviews. On
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
, the film has a weighted average score of 45 out of 100 based on 6 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".


Novelization

While the movie is based on Salten's ''The Hound of Florence'', a
novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...
of the movie published by Scholastic eight years later in 1967 made some interesting changes to the plot. First, Funicello's character Allison was removed entirely, and her name is not listed among the movie's principal performers. As a result, the rivalry between Wilby and Buzz is greatly reduced. Also, Dr. Valasky is changed into Francesca's uncle, not her adoptive father. A
comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...
adaptation also appeared from
Western Publishing Western Publishing, also known as Western Printing and Lithographing Company, was a Racine, Wisconsin, firm responsible for publishing the Little Golden Books. Its Golden Books Family Entertainment division also produced children's books and ...
, which followed the movie's storyline more closely. This was reprinted in 1978 as a companion story to an adaptation of ''
The Cat from Outer Space ''The Cat from Outer Space'' is a 1978 American science fiction comedy film directed by Norman Tokar (his final film before his death the following year) starring Ken Berry, Sandy Duncan, Harry Morgan, Ronnie Schell, Roddy McDowall and McLean Ste ...
''.


Legacy

''The Shaggy Dog'' was at that time the most profitable film produced by Walt Disney Productions, which influenced the studio's follow-up live-action film production. Using a formula of placing
supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...
and/or fantastical forces within everyday mid-twentieth century American life, the studio created a series of "gimmick comedies" (a term used by Disney historian and film critic
Leonard Maltin Leonard Michael Maltin (born December 18, 1950) is an American film critic and film historian, as well as an author of several mainstream books on cinema, focusing on nostalgic, celebratory narratives. He is perhaps best known for his book of fil ...
) with action to keep children entertained and some light satire to amuse the adult audience. Using television actors on their summer
hiatus Hiatus may refer to: *Hiatus (anatomy), a natural fissure in a structure *Hiatus (stratigraphy), a discontinuity in the age of strata in stratigraphy *''Hiatus'', a genus of picture-winged flies with sole member species ''Hiatus fulvipes'' *Globa ...
who were familiar to audiences but did not necessarily have enough clout to receive over-the-title billing (or a large fee) from another major studio was one way these comedies were produced inexpensively; they also tended to use the same sets from the
Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...
backlot repeatedly. This allowed Walt Disney Productions a low-risk scenario for production, any of these films could easily make back their investment just from moderate matinee attendance in neighborhood theatres, and they could also be packaged on the successful Disney anthology television series ''
The Wonderful World of Disney The Walt Disney Company has produced an anthology television series since 1954 under several titles and formats. The program's current title, ''The Wonderful World of Disney'', was used from 1969 to 1979 and again from 1991 to the present. The pr ...
''. The popular television series ''
My Three Sons ''My Three Sons'' is an American television sitcom that aired from September 29, 1960, to April 13, 1972. The series was broadcast on ABC during its first five seasons, before moving to CBS for the remaining seasons. ''My Three Sons'' chronicl ...
'' (1960–1972) reunited MacMurray and Considine, and also features a pet shaggy sheepdog named "Tramp".


Sequels

* The film was followed in 1976 with a theatrical sequel, ''
The Shaggy D.A. ''The Shaggy D.A.'' is a 1976 American comedy film and a sequel to '' The Shaggy Dog'' (1959) produced by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait. As with the first film in the series, it takes some ...
'', starring Dean Jones as a 45-year-old Wilby Daniels. * In 1987, a two-part television movie set somewhere in the 17 years between the events portrayed in ''The Shaggy Dog'' and ''The Shaggy D.A.'', entitled ''
The Return of the Shaggy Dog ''The Return of the Shaggy Dog'' is a 1987 American two-part made-for-television comedy film produced by Walt Disney Television. The film is set in the 17 years between the events portrayed in '' The Shaggy Dog'' (1959) and ''The Shaggy D.A.'' (1 ...
'', presented a post–''
Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serves a ...
''
Gary Kroeger Gary Kroeger (born April 13, 1957) is an American businessman, columnist, and actor best known for his work as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1982 to 1985, and his work on various game shows. He ran in the Democratic Congressional ...
as a 30-something Wilby Daniels.


Remakes

* In 1994, the first remake of the film was a television movie, with Disney regular
Scott Weinger Scott Weinger (born October 5, 1975) is an American actor. He is best known as the voice of Aladdin (Disney character), the Disney character Aladdin in Aladdin (1992 Disney film), the 1992 animated film and various follow-ups, and as Steve Hale ...
as a teenaged Wilbert "Wilby" Joseph Daniels, and Ed Begley Jr. playing a part similar to the one originated by Fred MacMurray in 1959. * In 2006, Disney released a live-action remake of the movie with
Tim Allen Timothy Alan Dick (born June 13, 1953), known professionally as Tim Allen, is an American actor and comedian. He is known for playing Tim "The Toolman" Taylor on the ABC sitcom ''Home Improvement'' (1991–1999) and Mike Baxter on the ABC/Fo ...
as a 50-something Dave Douglas. This film has an entirely different story, characters, and transformation plot device unrelated to the original trilogy. To tie-in with the theatrical release of the 2006 remake, the original 1959 movie was re-issued in the United States as a special DVD labeled ''The Wild & Woolly Edition'', which featured the movie in two forms: one in the original black and white, the other a
colorized Film colorization (American English; or colourisation [British English], or colourization [Canadian English and Oxford English]) is any process that adds color to black-and-white, sepia tone, sepia, or other monochrome moving-pi ...
version. The colorized version however is not restored and suffers from age. In the UK, however, the 1959 movie has only ever been made available on DVD in black and white. The 2006 remake and Tim Allen's performance was poorly received by critics, with a moderately successful box office return.


See also

* ''
The Shaggy D.A. ''The Shaggy D.A.'' is a 1976 American comedy film and a sequel to '' The Shaggy Dog'' (1959) produced by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait. As with the first film in the series, it takes some ...
'', the 1976 theatrical sequel * ''
The Return of the Shaggy Dog ''The Return of the Shaggy Dog'' is a 1987 American two-part made-for-television comedy film produced by Walt Disney Television. The film is set in the 17 years between the events portrayed in '' The Shaggy Dog'' (1959) and ''The Shaggy D.A.'' (1 ...
'', the 1987 television sequel * '' The Shaggy Dog'', the 2006 Disney live-action remake of the 1959 live-action film *
Felix Salten Felix Salten (; 6 September 1869 – 8 October 1945) was an Austro-Hungarian author and literary critic in Vienna. Life and death Salten was born Siegmund Salzmann on 6 September 1869 in Pest, Austria-Hungary. His father was Fülöp Salzmann, ...
, the author of ''
The Hound of Florence ''The Hound of Florence: A Novel'' (german: link=no, Der Hund von Florenz) is a 1923 novel written by Felix Salten. It is best known today for partly inspiring the 1959 Walt Disney Productions film '' The Shaggy Dog'', as well as sequels and remak ...
'', the source material for the 1959 live-action film


References

; Notes ; Bibliography *


Further reading

*


External links

* * * *
UltimateDisney.com: The Shaggy Dog (1959) DVD ReviewReview of film
at ''Variety'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Shaggy Dog, The 1950s fantasy comedy films 1959 films American black-and-white films American fantasy comedy films Anthropomorphic dogs 1950s children's fantasy films 1950s English-language films Films scored by Paul Smith (film and television composer) Films adapted into comics Films about dogs Films about shapeshifting Films based on Austrian novels Films directed by Charles Barton The Shaggy Dog films Walt Disney Pictures films 1959 comedy films Films about father–son relationships 1950s American films