Saturday, August 28, 2021

Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood (1976)

 
Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood - 1976

Coming up next we have 1976's "Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood", a sort of spoof on the story of Rin Tin Tin.  In this film, a very smart dog becomes the biggest celebrity of all time and changes the fortunes of a young lady who wants to be an actress.

The film's cast includes Bruce Dern, Madeline Kahn, Art Carney, Phil Silvers, Ron Leibman, Teri Garr, Augustus von Schumacher, Dorothy Lamour, Joan Blondell, Virginia Mayo, Ethel Merman, Nancy Walker, Dick Haymes, Tab Hunter, Robert Alda, Victor Mature, Edgar Bergen, Henry Wilcoxon, Alice Faye, Yvonne De Carlo, Dennis Morgan, William Demarest, Andy Devine, Broderick Crawford, Rudy Vallee, George Jessel, Fritz Feld, Fernando Lamas, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Milton Berle, John Carradine, Walter Pidgeon, Sterling Holloway, Gloria DeHaven, Johnny Weissmuller, Rhonda Fleming, Janet Blair, and Peter Lawford, and many more!


At Grauman's Chinese Theater in 1970's Hollywood, tourists gaze at the handprints and footprints of the stars of yesteryear.  They are particularly interested in the one marked "Won Ton Ton".  The tour guide begins to explain what an important star he was in the 1920s.



In the 1920s, a wannabe actress named Estie Del Ruth comes across a stray dog one day.  He's not just any stray dog.  He's a very smart stray dog.  He even decides to share a snack with her.


Even though Estie doesn't know the dog, he sticks with her.  He rescues her from a very bad situation at a movie studio during what she thought was an audition.


And that, as they say, is history.  The movie producers love the dog (not the girl), and he is instantly rebranded as Won Ton Ton, a star.  His films are an instant success.  Though, Estie still harbors dreams of making it big and becoming a star herself, not just the woman who trains the dog.







Won Ton Ton is given all the treatment of a major Hollywood star.  Fans love him!  He goes on the radio, is featured in dozens of fan magazines, wins an award as the best motion picture actor, signs autographs, has his name on billboards, has his pawprints placed at Grauman's, and even gets massages!




The doggie celebrity even gets his own mega-mansion, which he moves into with Estie and producer Grayson Potchuck, who likes Estie (separate bedrooms, of course!).









Won Ton Ton even gets to work with the biggest star of the day, Rudy Montague, whose Santa Barbara mansion is something right out of Arabian Nights!


Rudy is regarded as something of an eccentric.  He dresses incognito when he goes to see his own movies.  He sees each performance thirty times.

However, Rudy gets very jealous when Won Ton Ton begins to receive more attention than he does.  He even hires a hitman to kill both Won Ton Ton and Estie!  Luckily, he is not successful.

Estie eventually does get the stardom that she seeks.  She also marries Grayson Potchuck.  However, it's a long, hard road to get to that point, and she and Won Ton Ton are separated due to dire circumstances.




Have no fear, though.  They all are reunited and walk off into the sunset together!






This film is packed full of cameos from '30s and '40s Hollywood stars.  They include Dennis Morgan, Ethel Merman, Henry Wilcoxon, William Demarest, Dorothy Lamour, Fernando Lamas, Zsa Zsa Gabor, Alice Faye, and many, many more!

Cast rundown:

Bruce Dern - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Bruce Dern....................................Grayson Potchuck

Madeline Kahn - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Madeline Kahn................................Estie Del Ruth

Art Carney - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Art Carney.....................................J.J. Fromberg

Phil Silvers - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Phil Silvers.....................................Murray Fromberg

Ron Leibman - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Ron Leibman..................................Rudy Montague

Teri Garr - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Teri Garr........................................Fluffy Peters

Augustus von Schumacher - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Augustus von Schumacher...............Won Ton Ton

Dorothy Lamour - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Dorothy Lamour..............................Visiting Film Star

Joan Blondell - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Joan Blondell..................................Landlady

Virginia Mayo - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Virginia Mayo..................................Miss Battley

Ethel Merman - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Ethel Merman.................................Hedda Parsons

Nancy Walker - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Nancy Walker..................................Mrs. Fromberg

Dick Haymes - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Dick Haymes..................................James Crawford

Tab Hunter - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Tab Hunter.....................................David Hamilton

Robert Alda - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Robert Alda....................................Richard Entwhistle

Victor Mature - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Victor Mature.................................Nick

Edgar Bergen - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Edgar Bergen.................................Professor Quicksand

Henry Wilcoxon - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Henry Wilcoxon..............................Silent Film Director

Alice Faye - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Alice Faye......................................Secretary At Gate

Yvonne De Carlo - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Yvonne De Carlo.............................Cleaning Woman

Dennis Morgan - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Dennis Morgan...............................Tour Guide

William Demarest - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   William Demarest...........................Studio Gatekeeper

Andy Devine - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Andy Devine..................................Priest

Broderick Crawford - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Broderick Crawford.........................Special Effects Man

Rudy Vallee - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Rudy Vallee...................................Autograph Hound

George Jessel - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   George Jessel.................................Awards Announcer

Fritz Feld - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Fritz Feld.......................................Rudy's Butler

Fernando Lamas - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Fernando Lamas.............................Premier Male Star

Zsa Zsa Gabor - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Zsa Zsa Gabor................................Premier Female Star

Milton Berle - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Milton Berle....................................Blind Man

John Carradine - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   John Carradine...............................Drunk

Walter Pidgeon - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Walter Pidgeon...............................Grayson's Butler

Sterling Holloway - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Sterling Holloway............................Old Man On Bus

Gloria DeHaven - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Gloria DeHaven..............................President's Girl #1

Johnny Weissmuller - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Johnny Weissmuller.........................Stagehand #2

Rhonda Fleming - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Rhonda Fleming.............................Rhoda Flaming

Janet Blair - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Janet Blair......................................President's Girl #3

Peter Lawford - Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood
   Peter Lawford.................................Slapstick Star

And that's it for Won Ton Ton: The Dog Who Saved Hollywood.  As stated earlier, this film is full of old Hollywood star cameos.  It was intended to include Hedy Lamarr in the film, but she couldn't be traced.  Don Ameche and Cesar Romero were asked to participate, but both were unavailable.  In the 1920s portion of the film, two "future" films were mentioned, "Jaws" and "The Wizard Of Oz".  Both of them were dismissed as movies that the public wouldn't pay to see.

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