Skippy

Skippy (also known as Asta, 1931–1951) was a Wire Fox Terrier dog actor who appeared in dozens of movies during the 1930s. Skippy is best known for the role of the pet dog "Asta" in the 1934 detective comedy The Thin Man, starring William Powell and Myrna Loy, and for his role in the 1938 comedy Bringing Up Baby, starring Katharine Hepburn and Cary Grant. Due to the popularity of The Thin Man role, Skippy is sometimes credited as Asta in public and in other films. Career Skippy was trained by his owners Henry East and Gale Henry East, and also by Frank Weatherwax, and assistant trainers Rudd Weatherwax, and Frank Inn. In 1936, Skippy and several other movie dogs were profiled in the book Dog Stars of Hollywood by Gertrude Orr. At the time Skippy was said to be four and a half years old, giving him a birth year of 1931–32. He was said to be one of the most intelligent of animal stars then working in pictures. In addition to verbal commands, he also worked to hand cues, essential for a dog performing in sound films. His training began when he was three months old, and he made his first professional film appearances at the age of one year, in 1932–33, as a bit player providing "atmosphere." In Orr's book Skippy was shown in a series of publicity shots with Wendy Barrie in It's a Small World, Mae Clarke in The Daring Young Man and Mary Carlisle in an unidentified film. He became a star overnight in The Thin Man (1934).