PEARSON: CBS wagging about 'Dog' reality

By Mike Pearson, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published July 15, 2008 at 3 p.m.
Updated July 15, 2008 at 5:43 p.m.

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Who's your favorite TV dog?

Photo by Monty Brinton / CBS

David, Beth Joy, Brandy and Travis and their dogs stage a pep rally for a themed-event challenge on the first episode of CBS' Greatest American Dog.

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Greatest American Dog

* When and where: 7 p.m. Thursday, CBS4

CBS is going to the dogs and getting good ratings in the process.

The network debuted its latest reality show - Greatest American Dog - July 10 after weeks of promoting it on-air as if it were the greatest thing since the invention of the pooper scooper.

That was enough to draw 9.5 million viewers its first night, more than 2 million more than its nearest competitor, Fox's Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader?

Twelve contestants from disparate walks of life (a rancher, a pet sitter, a bartender, a comedian) and their dogs arrive at Canine Academy, a sprawling estate with stately rooms, lavish lawns and bushes trimmed to look like fire hydrants, to put the pooches through their paces. The goal is to win a grand prize of $250,000.

Zoologist Jarod Miller welcomes the contenders, then all but disappears for the hour. He may be the least visible host in the history of reality TV.

The dogs are as varied as their owners: an English bulldog, a giant schnauzer, a Boston terrier, a Brittany spaniel, a border collie and sundry others.

The conceit is to see how well dogs and owners interact. In the first "dog bone challenge," owners and dogs played musical chairs. Dogs who failed to find a perch atop tables and sit down when the music stopped were eliminated. The winner of each challenge gets to stay in a swanky dog- bone suite in the mansion. Think of a bedroom designed for Richie Rich.

There's very much a Big Brother element to the show, as dog owners bond and form alliances. The challenge winner gets to select a contestant to sleep in the doghouse for three days. It's just what it sounds like: a large, dowdy doghouse on the lawn, with just enough room for one person and their pet. (Fellow dog owners proved their kindness by bringing blankets, pillows and food to the first exile.)

Each episode of Greatest American Dog ends with a best-in-show competition, where contenders gather in groups of four and perform for a panel of judges. The first night included a Hawaiian-theme skit, a disco dog skit and a high school pep rally. The judges (dog trainer Victoria Stillwell, journalist Allen Reznik and dog-rescue specialist Wendy Diamond) then eliminate one owner/pet pair.

So, does any of this work?

The dogs are cute and their owners are suitably neurotic. There are, as expected, some tears, and viewers with dogs will immediately note the different levels of training. Some dogs follow commands expertly; others regard their owners exhortations as some kind of mental breakdown.

Still, it's hard to tell exactly what the judges are looking for: obedience or level of bonding between owner and pet?

You'll no doubt come away rooting for a favorite owner and dog (in my case it's 60-year-old rancher Bill and his Brittany spaniel, Star), and disliking others (the cocky JD, the smug Beth Joy and her "actress" dog Bella Starlet). So far the canine challenges have been modest; the highlight was the English bulldog who could ride a skateboard.

No doubt the challenges will get more complicated as the weeks roll on. It may not be the greatest reality show ever conceived, but it clearly taps into a ready market of dog owners who think their pet's more perfect than a human companion could ever be.

pearsonm@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2592

Classic canines

Everyone has a favorite animal in entertainment, from Rin Tin Tin to Mr. Ed to Benji. Here are some classic TV dogs worth remembering:

* Lassie - This star of radio, movies and three TV shows is the most famous collie in the world. Whether saving Timmy from a well (OK, that one never happened) or alerting the family to the house on fire, Lassie epitomized the way entertainment anthropomorphizes animals. About the only thing she couldn't do was talk.

* Dino (The Flintstones) - OK, so he wasn't a dog per se, unless you lived in Bedrock and your name was Fred Flintstone. Dino the dinosaur never tired of running up to Fred and slobbering on him when he got home. If only all of our pets were this happy to see us - without food in our hands.

* Scooby-Doo - The smartest dog in the world? Only when it comes to solving crimes. Resourceful, cheerful and occasionally cowardly, this animated Great Dane's only drawback is a penchant for getting involved with ghosts and other baddies.

* Zeus and Apollo (Magnum P.I.) - Remember the Doberman pinschers who scowled at Thomas Magnum? OK, so they had a rather one-dimensional role, but they gave caretaker Higgins a chance to play good cop-bad cop - and someone to talk to.

* Eddie (Frasier): This four-legged nemesis of fastidious Frasier Crane was the pride of his father, Martin. One of the funniest episodes had a neighbor showing up with a box of puppies that she claimed Eddie (a Jack Russell terrier) sired. What better foil for a repressed radio psychiatrist?

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