In 1970, a small concrete collie statue was placed on the burial site denoting the dog’s significance. Toots died in 1945 (two years after Knight died in a plane crash) and the family buried Toots a “considerable distance northeast of the house” on the family’s property, Springhouse Farm, in Bucks County, Pennsylvania.
That honor belongs instead to a collie named Toots, the dog Eric Knight owned that inspired his original novel, Lassie Come-Home. Interestingly, Pal was not actually the “original” Lassie. When the collie died in 1958 at age 18, trainer Rudd Weatherwax buried Pal/Lassie on his ranch in Canyon Country, California.
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While numerous dogs portrayed Lassie in later movie sequels, television and radio shows, a collie named Pal played the title role in the first seven films. The uber-intelligent collie first appeared in the 1943 MGM film Lassie Come Home, a film adaptation of the 1940 novel by British author Eric Knight. A life-size dolphin statue marks her gravesite with a plaque that reads: “Dedicated to the memory of Mitzi, The original Flipper, 1958-1972.” Lassie Trained by Milton Santini, Mitzi/Flipper died in 1972 and was buried on the grounds of the Dolphin Research Center in Grassy Key, Florida. FlipperĪlthough several dolphins portrayed the title character in the 1960s television show Flipper, one stands snout-and-tail above the rest - Mitzi, who portrayed Flipper in the original 1963 film of the same name. Unfortunately, the cocker spaniel would never romp around the Oval Office at President Nixon’s feet because Checkers died in 1964 and was buried at the Bide-a-Wee Pet Cemetery in Wantagh, New York. Now known as the “Checkers speech,” Nixon won election as vice president and later became president in 1968. Checkers, a black-and-white cocker spaniel, did just that in 1952 when Richard Nixon found himself embroiled in a campaign-finance scandal that threatened to derail him as the Republican vice presidential candidate.Īppearing on television, Nixon denied any wrongdoing but admitted he did receive a puppy from a supporter and would not give it back because his daughters loved the dog. presidents have welcomed a dog as a member of the family during their time in the White House, but few such canines actually saved their owner’s political career. After Benji/Higgins died in 1978, his trainer cremated the dog and kept the “ashes” in an urn until 2002, when they were buried in Frank Inn’s casket in Forest Lawn Memorial Park, Los Angeles, California. Thus, when Inn needed a super-smart pooch to star in a new film about a, er… well, a super-smart pooch, he called Higgins out of retirement to film Benji.ĭespite training hundreds of animals during his career, this dog carried a special place in his handler’s heart. Rescued from California’s Burbank Animal Shelter in 1960 by animal trainer Frank Inn, Higgins (as the dog was then called) impressed his handler by quickly learning new tricks whenever needed. Benjiįans of the 1960s television show Petticoat Junction might remember a loveable mutt known only as “Dog” but might not connect him to the 1974 film that earned him the screen name for which he’s remembered. Here you will discover the burial sites and final resting places for 10 of the world’s best-known or beloved animals from movies, T.V., sports and even politics. We often wonder what happened to a well-known athlete, film or television star who faded into obscurity, but few of us think about the fate of the animals that managed to become household names. Two collies can legitimately claim the honor of “original” Lassie, and they’re buried
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