This is a dog's tale - for it is about Pal, the greatest canine star on the screen.
And Pal, let it be known, has appeared and been featured in more pictures than any other star, canine or otherwise. He has 47 film dramas and more than 100 comedy films to his credit, all in less than four years.
"Little did I think when I was a puppy in Knoxville, Tenn., that I would be a picture star," said Pal (for we are going to let him tell his own story).
Learned Tricks Early
"I was two months' old when my master, Harry Lucenay, bought me and he taught me tricks and how to behave while I was still a puppy. Then came the war, and it was two years before I saw him again. I had not forgotten what he had taught, and when he came to Hollywood late in 1920, he brought me with him. Then he entered the movies.
"My chance came one day when he took me on a set with him. Everyone petted me and the director asked Mr. Lucenay whether I could act. He said I could, and I did all my tricks. And then I was signed for the picture, and have been busy ever since. I don't get much rest, because so many studios want me to work.
"It wasn't long after my debut that I became a full-fledged star, and now my name is emblazoned on theater fronts. Of course, I am proud, both of my work and my master, and though I am a star, I have not become conceited and I remember and greet all my friends.
"I know and have worked with many of the greatest stars - Wallace Reid, William S. Hart, Agnes Ayres, Jack Holt, Dorothy Dalton, Viola Dana, Mildred Harris, Blanche Sweet, Baby Peggy, Clara Kimball Young, Milton Sills and many others. I think I did my best work in 'Fool's Paradise' for Cecil De Mille, who praised me highly. Just now, I have finished a series of 11 comedies at the Century Studios for Universal release, called 'Pal's Comedies,' and next week, I will start in again."
Has Gold Teeth
Pal is perhaps the only dog in the world with gold teeth. Several months ago, two teeth became decayed, and they were crowned with gold by a regular dentist.
"The life of a dog star sometimes is wearisome," sighed Pal. "I can't play with other dogs, and sometimes I would like to bite those that get too snippish, but my master won't let me fight. Of course, I get nice things to eat, and I have 11 collars, of which I am quite proud, for they all have my name engraved on them.
"I am proud of my master, for he is one of the four officers in the American army during the late war that received the Chevalier of the Order of Avis medal from the Portuguese government, the Croix de Guerre with a palm and the Medaille de Sauvetage from the French for bravery."
Pal's son, Pete, is just two years old and has appeared in 27 pictures. Pal is 7 years old and is an American bull terrior.