Early on a bone-chilling late February morning, half of New York City’s Rutherford Park is occupied by the cast and crew filming the pilot for FX’s legal drama Damages. In this scene, Glenn Close and Zeljko Ivanek play attorneys on opposing sides of a class-action suit; Close is Patty Hewes, defender of the underdog; Ivanek is Ray Fiske, who tries to convince Patty to settle, intercepting her during an early-morning play session with her pooch.
Extras amble back and forth, each with his or her own dog on a leash; the casting call for walk-on parts was answered by actors with an eclectic group of canines, including a Cocker spaniel, a Golden retriever, and numerous mutts. The conditions out here are so frigid that, between takes, the actors seek the extremity-thawing rays of an outdoor space heater, while everyone else warms their hands with hot cocoa provided by craft services. Any human who isn’t appearing before the camera is bundled up to here, yet only one dog - the Cocker - wears a winter coat over her birthday suit.
When we think of working dogs, we generally think of selfless animals who dedicate their lives to helping humans: dogs trained to guide the blind and assist the mobility- or hearing-impaired; therapy dogs spreading cheer at hospitals; police K9s detecting explosives and narcotics. But keeping us entertained is yet another valuable service that dogs provide, although it is too often under-appreciated. Consider the Poodle, whose superior intelligence makes him a quick study at walking and twirling on two legs and other stupid human tricks; instead of appreciating the poodle’s willingness to please, people reward all that hard work by scoffing at the dog for being "frivolous."
Early on, Hollywood recognized the public’s need for professional canine entertainers, bestowing immortality on an elite few: Lassie, Rin Tin Tin, and Terry, a.k.a. Toto, to name just three. Fortunately for the canine performers, American Humane has been the industry watchdog since 1940 - the only organization authorized to monitor animals in filmed media and award the trademark "No Animals Were Harmed" end credit disclaimer to productions that meets its high standards.
It may not seem like work to the average observer, but rest assured that show-business dogs are no slackers. Being a dog may be a breeze, but playing one is hard work. Standing around outdoors for hours in freezing temperatures, naked but for a collar, is the least of it. For an actor, keeping focus on a location shoot can be a challenge, which is why human performers may request that their sightline remain unobstructed so they won’t feel distracted by accidental eye contact. Dogs have no such luxury. They must be nothing less than consummate professionals, delivering a spot-on performance regardless of disruptions in their surroundings.
Lead actors enjoy certain perks - trailers; hair-and-makeup; high salaries - that extras only dream about. Canine stardom has its privileges too. No one offers refreshments to the canine extras, despite many of them having previously appeared on NBC’s hugely popular "Law & Order." But the star dog - a mutt named Corey, who plays the pet of Close’s character - is compensated before, during, and after each take with bite-size morsels of Natural Balance turkey-flavor dog food (which resembles an oversize roll of cookie dough). In addition to a steady trickle of treats, Corey gets a fleece mat by Pet Dreams for between-take naps (not that he takes them; he’s wired for action). "Corey’s very smart," says his handler, Loren Manzell. "He remembers everything. I wish he’d do my paperwork!"
A handsome mixed-breed whose plush brown-and-white coat and aerobic work ethic suggest his ancestry is a good part Australian Shepherd, Corey proves that talent and looks only get one so far; ultimately, connections are what make or break any acting career. Corey landed his leading role thanks to Glenn Close.
Consulted about what type of pet her character would be most likely to have, Close opted against casting the most "flashy" of her own three dogs, a Papillon named Petey who appeared with her in the Merchant-Ivory film "Le Divorce." On her recommendation, the show’s casting team went looking for a talented mutt, ending their star search with the Dawn Animal Agency, which had adopted Corey from a Yonkers animal shelter and trained him for screen work.
"I just didn’t think this character would have a Papillon," Close concludes. "It would have been a cliche if she had some fancy, purebred dog. I wanted her to have a mutt - a rescue dog is much more interesting for her character."
Of course, Hollywood is ever on the lookout for younger, cuter models, and dogs are not immune to this harsh law of the show-biz jungle. On Damages, Corey’s rising star was quickly eclipsed by that of an irresistible Jack Russell pup named Buster, part of a stable of canine talent managed by the New Jersey-based Animal Actors International. Buster has charm to spare, for like so many charismatic screen presences (Aidan Quinn, Gabriel Byrne, Stephen Rea, and Liam Neeson, to name but a few), the handsome rogue hails from the Emerald Isle.
