Ann DueGerman Shepherds have many talents, and for a long time they have been making their way in the film industry with numerous acting roles.  Today I thought I would take a quick glimpse through history and see how many of these you remember.  So grab your popcorn, and prepare to take a trip down memory lane at the “GSD Movies” reviews.

First up we have Strongheart.  He may not be the oldest, but definitely the oldest one I can find.  Born in Germany he immigrated to the USA with his owners at the age of 3.  He appeared in several movies, including a 1925 adaption of White Fang.  He was a beloved celebrity in his day and paved the way for many that followed.  Strongheart lived between 1917 – 1929.

Following closely behind in the same era we have Rin Tin Tin.  After being rescued from a WW1 battlefield, the soldier who saved him nicknamed him “Rinty” and trained him before obtaining Silent Film work for him.  He was an immediate box office success and went on to appear in a massive 27 Hollywood Films, gaining worldwide fame.  A true ambassador to the breed as his success lead to an increasing popularity of the breed as family pets.  “Rinty” is believed to have been born in 1918 and lived until 1932.

Bullet was another Actor and was owned by Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.  He was a loving family pet and starred as himself in the Roy Rogers Show between 1951-1957.  An American Western Classic series, he starred alongside a golden Palomino horse called Trigger.  The loyal dog was always getting Roy out of sticking situations.

A little bit more recently we have “Inspector Rex”.  As this was a 14 year running series between 1994 – 2008 three dogs were fortunate enough to play the role of Rex.  Firstly, we had Santo von Haus Zieglmayer (or better known as Beejay).  He was then replaced by Rhett Butler.  When the show was coming to an end, Henry was the beloved dog who took up the challenge and filled the shoes of the two stars before him.  Who doesn’t love a show about a dog and his owner solving crimes??

And keeping with the crime theme, the last one I am going to mention is K-9 (which went onto have 2 sequels.  A police officer who is looking for justice against a drug dealer who tried to kill him.  Little did he expect to be given a German Shepherd narcotics dog to assist him.  With his lack of experience, and a very independent “Jerry Lee”, things were not always rosy… but just encase you haven’t seen it – I wont spoil the ending, as thing’s always work out in the end.  “Jerry Lee” was played by numerous dogs during the filming, so many proud owners had the opportunity to say “My dog is a STAR”.

Despite all the GSD stars that have been seen on our screens over the years, we all have stars around us.  I took great pride in being able to tell people my dog had been a “Calendar Boy”.  I was always so proud, and I believe the real “Stars” are those that we show every year in this publication.  A huge thank you to all of those that take the time to put this together, and if you haven’t got one yet – please, don’t forget.  There are plenty more months in the year to continue enjoying our beautiful fur babies on a daily basis.