The Call of the Wilderness (1926) DVD-R

Starring Sandow the Dog, Lewis Sargent, Edna Marion, Sidney De Gray, Albert J. Smith
Directed by Jack Nelson

Print: black/white
Runtime: 56 min.
Genre: drama

Because of the success of dog actors like Strongheart and Rin-Tin-Tin (the dog star to end all dog stars), a lot of imitators came along. Sandow -- billed as "Sandow, the dog" -- was one of the many and his performance in this drama is no more distinguished than that of his unmemorable human co-stars. Andy Horton (Lewis Sargent) is disinherited by his wealthy family and heads West. Because he is attracted by a girl (Edna Marion), he settles on a homestead where a prospector has found gold. Red Morgan (Al Smith) gets into a dispute with Horton over the rights to the land and he does everything he can to drive him away. When nothing works, he causes Horton to wreck his car. Sandow finds the girl and brings her to the car, where Horton is pinned under the wreckage. Then the dog goes after Morgan and chases him over a cliff. When we last see Sandow, he is playing nursemaid to the couple's new baby.