Line #56 Franchise/Lassie


1	[[quoteright:320:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/lassie-timmy_6686.jpg]]
2	[[caption-width-right:320:Lassie and Joe, from the 2005 movie.]]
3
4	''Lassie'' is a media franchise revolving around Lassie, a HeroicDog.
5
6	The franchise began with the 1943 film ''Lassie Come Home'' (based on a novel by Eric Knight), but really took off with the [[Series/{{Lassie}} long-running TV series]] ("[[CommonKnowledge What's that, Lassie? Timmy's fallen down a well?]]").
7
8	The original screen "Lassie" was a collie owned and trained by professional trainer Rudd Weatherwax, whose off-screen name was Pal. Pal starred in the 1943 film and six sequels; when the film series ended, Weatherwax acquired the Lassie trademark (in lieu of unpaid wages, according to one account), and the television series resulted. Pal retired partway through the two-decade run of the series, and was succeeded by a string of his descendants. (Yes, ''his''. All the dogs who played Lassie were actually male; male collies were less subject to shedding issues due to hormones related to the female's heat cycle).
9	----
10	[[AC:There are various incarnations of Lassie in the media:]]
11	* Short story
12	** "[[http://www.lassieweb.org/lasshome.htm Lassie Come Home]]" (1938), original short story by Eric Knight
13	* Novel
14	** ''Lassie Come-Home'' (1940) by Eric Knight, expanding on his short story
15	* Films:
16	** ''Film/LassieComeHome'' (1943), adaptation of 1940 novel
17	** ''Son of Lassie'' (1945)
18	** ''Courage of Lassie'' (1946)
19	** ''Hills of Home'' (1948)
20	** ''The Sun Comes Up'' (1949)
21	** ''Challenge to Lassie'' (1950)
22	** ''Film/ThePaintedHills'' (1951)
23	** ''Lassie's Great Adventure'' (1963). A combination of five television episodes, theatrically released.
24	** ''The Magic of Lassie'' (1978)
25	** ''Lassie'' (1994)
26	** ''Lassie'' (2005)
27	** ''Lassie - Ein neues Abenteuer'' (2023)
28	* Radio
29	** ''The Lassie Radio Show'' (1947-1950)
30	* Live action TV
31	** ''Series/{{Lassie}}'' (1954-1973). Lasted 19 seasons, 588 episodes. Some episodes were also combined as television films.
32	** ''The New Lassie'' (1989 - 1991). Lasted 2 seasons, 48 episodes.
33	** ''Lassie'' (1997 - 1999). Lasted 2 seasons, 49 episodes.
34	** ''Lassie's Pet Vet'' (2007). A reality television show. Lasted 1 season, 13 episodes.
35	* Animation
36	** ''Lassie's Rescue Rangers'' (1972-1973). Lasted 1 season, 15 episodes.
37	** ''Famous Dog Lassie'' (1996). Was that year's entry into the Japanese ''Anime/WorldMasterpieceTheater'' series and a 26 episode long adaption of the original novel.
38	** ''The New Adventures of Lassie'' (2014).
39	* Manga.
40	** ''Lassie'' (2001) by Yoshihiro Takahashi. A short-lived series, only 2 volumes.
41	----
42	!!Parts of the franchise with their own trope pages include:
43	[[index]]
44	* ''Film/LassieComeHome'' (1943 film)
45	* ''Film/ThePaintedHills'' (1951 film)
46	* ''Series/{{Lassie}}'' (the TV series)
47	[[/index]]
48
49	!!Otherwise this franchise provides examples of:
50	* AmplifiedAnimalAptitude: Lassie is capable of a lot of heroic feats without ever needing to talk.
51	* AnimalsLackAttributes: Lassie is a female dog (note the root of the name is ''Lass'' not ''Lad'') played by males with their belly hair coiffed very carefully to cover up the naughty bits.
52	* ABoyAndHisX: Boy and his dog. Different boy in each version, but always apparently the same dog.
53	* CrosscastRole: Famously the female Lassie was always played by male dogs.
54	* HeroicDog: One of best known examples.
55	* InNameOnly: Of the sequel films created in the wake of ''Film/LassieComeHome'''s success, only ''Son of Lassie'' is a proper sequel to the original film, featuring older versions of the Carraclough family as well as other characters featured in the original novel. The other films centered around a dog often (but not always) named Lassie, surrounded by different characters. This made some sense, considering that Lassie was probably a common dog name in and around the Scottish Highlands. But by the time of ''The Sun Comes Up'', the fifth entry in the series, the action had shifted from the UK to the southern US (and was based on a short story by the author of ''Literature/TheYearling''). ''Film/ThePaintedHills'' finds Lassie out in California, and the television show was set on a US farm of [[WhereTheHellIsSpringfield unspecified locale]]. However, Lassie still always received top billing in the credits, despite the real-life dog's name actually being Pal.
56	* SmartAnimalAverageHuman: Creator/DaveBarry repeatedly mentions that the smartest character on Lassie is the dog, as the family is forever getting themselves stuck in deadly situations that Lassie needs to fetch the rest of the family to get out of. And even then, Lassie needs to bark for ten minutes before they finally get the message despite this happening every week. He believes Lassie has to do their income taxes as well.
57	* StageNames: Pal and his successors were all credited as "Lassie".
58	* TropeyComeHome: TropeNamer

Context Franchise / Lassie