Saturday, November 6, 2010

Saturday encore ~ His master's voice

On one of my trips across the internet last week, I came across a collection of videos of dogs greeting soldiers returning home from active duty. I starting crying happy tears the second I started watching them. As the videos continued and the puddle on the floor beneath my chair grew deeper, Smooch woke up from her nap and came over to investigate.

She could hear all these happy dogs in the office but she couldn't see them.



She looked and she listened...



Then she looked and listened some more.






When she struck this next pose, I immediately thought of the RCA Victor dog, looking into the gramophone.



I did a little googling to find the original picture.



The tag line that accompanied the picture in the 1904 Victor Talking Machine Company ads was "His Master's Voice."


Check out a few of these videos for a modern take on what "his master's voice" means to a whole bunch of happy dogs.

22 comments:

  1. Love those pictures of Smooch, especially where you made her the RCA Victor dog!

    Going to check out the videos now and will also see what Wally thinks of this.

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  2. Now you have me blubbering! The beagles really turned the water works on for me. Thanks for sharing and have a nice weekend.

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  3. I love those videos.

    Anyone who utters the phrase "It's just a dog" has a heart of stone, and I pity them.

    Looks like Smooch practiced until she got the pose just right.

    ~spotz58

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  4. Loved the post the first (and second) time around. Smooch really knows how to "strike a pose"!

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  5. love me some Smooch! Those are awesome pics! It looks they are going twist their own heads off when they do that!

    Great job photoshoping Smooch in the RCA pic! (let's see if I can use just one more exclaimation point!!!!)

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  6. Smooch is really adorable!
    Just fantastic expression on her face and on her pose.
    Great photos, Linda!

    I will see the videos soon. Thanks for sharing.

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  7. How moving these videos!
    I have tears on my eyes....

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  8. I've seen these sad/happy videos before and always want to hug my dog! I'm thankful we can be together every day in a safe place. It's fun to watch our dog's reactions. You captured some great ones of Smooch! And I'm old enough to remember that ad........

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  9. You, my dear win the prize for the most entertaining and beautiful posts. Everytime I visit i end up laughing hysterically-or crying- and always woo'd by you photography skills!

    I could only watch but one of those videos of happy puppies with returning dad's...cause my tears started too..and, the cat ran out of the room!
    THANKS!
    KK

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  10. I don't cry much...I really don't...but I was bawling at these videos. The beagles and Gracie are my favorites. My youngest came in the computer room to check on me ;)
    Thanks for this reminder, Linda.
    As always, incredible pictures of Smooch...give her a smooch for the rest of us ;)

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  11. I don't need the videos to know how dogs react to their returning soldiers. When my eldest son returned after a year in Iraq, his dog was "over the moon". Had never seen anything like it before. Chris had been away for extended periods before, Tye was always happy to see "his boy". This time however was very differant, somehow he knew this absence had been differant. Tye was jumping as high as his little old body would allow, and literally "screaming" with joy. Not a dry eye in the house for those witnessing, shoot, I'm all teared up just writing this.

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  12. Sarah Morgan11/6/10, 9:47 AM

    Ah yes, Nipper is the name of the dog in "His Masters Voice". This brings back memories. I used to work in the old RCA Victor building in Camden NJ. It held the Nipper Tower which has stain glass renderings of this scene on all four sides.

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  13. Smooch is quite photogenic...love the RCA pose! Gotta go check out those videos now...

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  14. Smooch is such a pretty dog. Her face is so expressive. Loved this the first time too.

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  15. You just take the most incredible pics of Smooch and the rest of your colorful, full-of-character Critters! Your replacing Smooch for the RCA dog who is listening to "his master's voice" ... well, I just love it!

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  16. Wonderful, wonderful. Now I'm off to cry as I watch my own dog's reactions.

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  17. Susan, I hope you come back and read comments. I love your story. I am so glad Tye and Chad are back together. I can only imagine what a treat is was to watch them seeing each other after Chad returned. As far as the Smooch, I am so in love with this yellow dog. And she's a "pawcrosser". hehe I have a dog Bob (mix breed) who crosses his paws also. And, I also have "voices" I use talking to all 3 of my dogs. Bob's nickname is puppy and I say in one of my many goofy "voices"...He's a puppy and a paw crosser, he's a puppy pawcrosser. Lord commit me now!

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  18. Aww that's cute My Finny does that with his head too!

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  19. Thank you for sharing the link, Linda!
    How sweet....

    Petra Christensen
    Parelli 2Star Junior Instructor
    Parelli Central

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  20. Fantastic stuff. I LOL'd at the pictures -- the Photoshop especially -- but man, the unconditional love and pure joy of those returns... I think this is why we seek the company of animals in the first place, to be able to enjoy that purity of feeling, albeit secondhand.
    - - - - - - -
    Jack@PDB
    dog beds and more

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  21. totally awesome photos and story

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