the phenomenon of benji
TRANSCRIPT
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THE LIFE STORYOFAMERICA'S MOSTHUGGABLE HERO-
ASCRAPBOOK
IN WORDS AND PICTURES
JOE CAMP'S
We
PJLeiLomeiLOILw
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CJJenjiS Scrapbook
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JOE CAMP'S
WePltetLa ellOll
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THE PHENOMENON OP BENJI
A Bantam Book
Bantam edition I October 1977
PHOTO CREDITSPare$ 2, 6, 7j 8, 9, I2
1JJ, I7 , I8 , I9 rltht, 20, 21, Z2 bollom, 2J
upper rltht, I , JJ , J4 k ft 46 bollom: Mulberry Square Produc-tiOn$; J8 , 4() : American Humane Association ; 5, 16, I9 left, 22upper rltht, 2J bollom, 4I , 42, 4J , # , 45, 46 upper rlrht: ShellyKat: ; IO, 11: Fllmways Inc .; U, 26, 27 , 29: Peter Borsarl; J2 , J5,J6 : D . Antell; J4 upper rlrht, 47, 48: Nippon Herald Film Inc .
A II rlthts reserved.Copyrltht0 I977 by Mulberry Square Productions, Inc.This book ma y not be reproduced In whok or In port , by
mimeorraph or any other means , without permission.For Information address: Bantam Books, Inc .
ISBN 0-SSJ-16038-9
Pub/Lrhed simultaneously In the United States an d Canada
Bantam Book$ are published by Bantam Books, Inc . Its trade-mark, consisting of the words " Bantam Books" and the por-trayal of a bantam , is r e g l s t e r ~ d In United States PatentOffice and in othtr co untries. Marca Registrada. Bantam
Books, Inc ., 666 Fifth Avenue, York, New York IOOI9.
Pa iNTED IN TH E UNITED STATES OP AMEaJCA
0 9 8 7 6 S 4 3 2 I
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H Frank? Listen, I've got a real cute puppy down
here. Why don't you come over and take a look?"
I had been training animals for movies and
television for more than thirty years. People
were always telling me about a ''cute puppy" or a
11darling cat:' Most of the time nothing came of
it. But this time ...
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Juanita, my wife, and I drove to the Burbank
Animal Shelter to see the ((real cute puppY:' The
puppy was about six weeks old. He was brown
and furry- with a few white and black splotches.A real mutt. He was cute, sort of. But mostly he
looked lonely and afraid.
How could someone leave a helpless puppy to
fend for himself? I thought. Maybe this little
mutt could not be trained for movie work. You
could never know for sure. But I wasn't going to
leave him at the Animal Shelter.Frank, Juanita, and Benji ,
a six-week old puppy.
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I began to train Benji right away. I worked
with him everyday. And that little fella' was
smarter and caught on faster than any dog I had
ever owned.
About six months later, I took Benji to the stu-
dio where I was working on a show called uThe
Beverly Hillbillies" with producer Paul Henning.
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I had some of my trained pigs and chickens in
the show. But I had plenty of time between
scenes, and I used this time to train some of my
younger animals.
Now I was working with Benji. I was teaching
him an especially tricky act. When Benji fin-
ished his routine, I was surprised to hear ap-
plause. I turned to see Paul Henning sitting on
the hood of a nearby car, a big grin on his face.
''He's perfect;' Paul said. I was puzzled.
~ ~ F o my new television series," Paul ex-
plained. He went on to explain that he needed a
dog for a new series called uPetticoat Junction."
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For seven years on "Petticoat Junction"Benji never missed a performance.
Without even trying, Benji had just won his
first audition! Benji became a regular member of
the cast of ttPetticoat Junction." The show went
on for seven years-and Benji never missed a
performance.
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Benji perfonns a classic routine. Benji chasing the t rain on "Petticoat Junction:'
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I t was time for Benji to forget about being an
actor- and to be a full-time dog.
Of course, I had no way of knowing that
Benji's greatest success- one that would make
him world famous- was yet to come.
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One summer afternoon a car drove up to the
house where Juanita and I lived with our ani-
mals. A young man stepped out and ambled up
the path to the door. He had curly hair, a shy
smile, and a very determined look in his eye.
That was the first time I'd met Joe Camp and
when he told me what he wanted, I was sure he
must be crazy.
He had never made a feature film. He had
never worked with animals. And he told me he
wanted a dog to star in a film he had written.
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Joe Camp told me, ui want the film to tell the
story completely from the dog's point of view. So
I need a dog that can really act. I need a dog that
can make us feel just what he is feeling and
thinking."
uThat's impossible," I said.
uNo one has ever made a picture like this ;' Joe
Camp said. uNo one has ever tried it before. I
need your help, Mr. Inn. I need a dog-a lovable
mutt-that can act!'
Joe Camp's enthusiasm was catching. He be-
lieved so completely in what he was doing that I
found myself saying I'd work with him. ui don't
know how we're going to do it ;' I told him. uBut-
I 11 give it everything I've got."
The cool evening breeze was blowing in from
the ocean as Joe Camp and I walked back to Joe's
car.
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As we got near the car, Joe Camp stopped sud-
denly. "Is that one of your dogs over there?" He
pointed to the backyard. Benji was sitting therein his favorite spot under a large palm tree.
Joe walked over to Benji. "This is exactly the
dog I've been looking for!"
Benji didn't know it, but his retirement days
were over.
Joe Camp and Benj i.
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SCENES
FROM THE
GREAT SMASH
BENJI
A Family Filmby Joe Camp
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This old abandoned house is Benji'shome in Benji, his first movie.
Benji greets the morning.
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Benji with his co-star, Allen Fiuzat. Benji and Tiffany share a drink
from the old birdbath in the park.
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Mary and the kids quicklyhide Benji under the table.
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Paul, Cindy, and Tiffany in t rouble.
Benji leads the way to a happy end.
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The star rests while directorJoe Camp and trainer Frank Inn
confer on an upcoming scene.
Benji, his st and-in, and his trainer
get ready to shoot a scene.
Benji with his friend, Officer Thttle.
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Benji and Tiffany.
Juanita Inn helps Benji prepare for a difficult scene. Joe Camp and Benji rest between scenes.
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Benji arrrives for theHollywood premiere of Benji.
THE BENJI PREMIERE
Even the biggest stars in Hollywood couldn't
keep the spotlight away from Benji. This was
Benji's night, and everyone knew it.
The premiere - the opening of Benji's first
movie-was a grand affair. There were search
lights, red carpets, famous Hollywood stars. But
Benji's premiere was special. I t was used to raisemoney to help homeless and forgotten animals.
(Before I adopted him, that's what Benji was
hom eless and forgotten.)
The actress Doris Day had started an organi
zation for these homeless animals. It was called
Actors and Others for Animals.
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Benji with co-stars, Cynthia Smith
and Allen Fiuzat, at the partygiven in Benji's honor following the
Hollywood premiere of the movie.
Doris Day and the other people who came to
the premiere really cared about animals like
Benji. To these people, Benji and his motion pic
ture were symbols of what can happen to a
homeless puppy when someone takes the time to
give him a name, a home, and love.
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Now Benji was becoming a star. His picture
was seen in magazines and newspapers all over
the country. Movie critics said Benji was the best
animal actor the movies had ever had.
HI Feel Love," Benji 's theme song, won the
Golden Globe award for the composers, Euel and
Betty Box. The award from the Hollywood For-
eign Press Association was presented to Euel
Box. Mr. Box , in turn, presented Benji to the au-
dience of famous Hollywood people: ccThis is
Benji; ' he said, "our inspiration."
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WORLD TOUR
Now Benji was a famous star. People all over
the world wanted to meet him in person. Benji
has visited many foreign countries. And his trav-
els have taken him to more than 120 cities in the
United States.
Because Benji thinks he can't get along with-
out me, I've always been allowed to tag along.
These travels have taught me one thing espe-
cially. The smile on a child's face is the same in
Rome, Italy as it is in Boston, Massachusetts, orin Paris, France, or in Tokyo, Japan .
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Benji rides in the official paradeof the 59th Indianapolis 500.
Benji and Frank greet the crowd.
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Once, Benji and I were in the town of Cannes,
France, for a film festival. We came upon some
school children coming home from an outing.
They did not speak English, and I didn't speak
French. But they had seen Benji's movie. Now
they were surprised and delighted to see Benji in
person. I watched those children smiling, laugh-
ing, and talking to Benji. And I knew it was for a
moment like this that we had spent the long
years of hard work.
Those children loved Benji. And because I love
Benji too, I felt close to them. Benji 's theme song
is '' I Feel Love." And that is what Benji means to
people everywhere.
America's Most Huggable Hero!
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Benji and Juanita Inn
meet a new friend on a st reet in Japan.
Benji holds a press conference in Tokyo, Japan.
Benji on stage at theCannes Film Festivalin France.
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Frank Inn and Benji
on the Riviera.
Benji with Frenchschool children.
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Benji is inducted in to theAnimal Actors Hall of Fame.
For a long moment, I stood in the wings. I
could not speak. I could not move. Only once be-
fore in the long history of the American Humane
Association had an animal been inducted into
the Animal Actors Hall of Fame and that, of
course, was the famous Lassie. Someone finally
pushed me toward the stage. Through the years I
had been surprised and honored many times
with awards for my animals, but tonight was
special. For a trainer and his dog, the Hall of
Fame is the top of the ladder.
The sound of applause filled the theater as I
held Benji up and placed the beautiful Silver
Bowl next to him. Benji quickly forgot the ap-
plause and stuck his nose inside-looking for
food. This brought a gale of laughter and more
applause.
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There were no words. The emotion was simply
too great. All I could say was uThank you." I
hoped that everyone there would understand
what
I felt in my heart.
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FOR THE
LOVEOFBENJI
On location in
Athens, Greeceshooting Benji's
second film
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Benji relaxes as Joe Camp and others work.
Benji and I went to Athens, Greece, in the
winter of 1976 to film For the Love ofBenji. This
would be Benji's second full-length motion pic
ture. Joe Camp, of course, was producing and di
recting this film, too.
Benji films a scene
on board ship in Greece.
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As always,Benji made himself right at home.
He made friends with everyone
-the camera crew and the cast.
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Benji at work. Benji and crew celebrate a birthday.
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"There has never been a dog like Benji.
He did everything we asked him
to do, and then he did more."
- JOE CAMP
"They called him the one-take dog.
He was marvelous. Everyone loved him."
- PAUL H ENNING
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"I don't think anybody couldfeel closer
to anyone than I do to this little dog."
-FRANK I NN
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I t's a wonderfulfeeling to know that you've made
a living doing what you love to do, and that what
you've done has made so many people happy.
Benji has made people all over the world laugh
and cry and feel good inside. That knowledge
makes me a very happy man.
From mutt to movie star-the life storyofAmerica's most huggable hero BENJI
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JOE CAMP'S~Pli,eiL,omeiL,Oil,
wA SCRAPBOOKIN WORDS AND PICTURES