Story of a Dog

1945 0h 10m EN

😐

6.1

MID

★6.1TMDB · 9

Documentary

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

A dog trains for the battlefield and becomes a crucial part of the United States military. This 1945 short documentary film was nominated for an Oscar for Best Live Action Short, One-Reel.

“Some stories are better left unspoiled.”

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Cast

Knox Manning
Narrator (voice)

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Gordon Hollingshead
Writers: Saul Elkins
Languages: English
Countries: United States of America

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 6

RUNTIME

Did you know

Tight 10-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 6

ERA

Did you know

81 years old — a genuine piece of film history.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 6

RUNTIME

Did you know

Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 6

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Editor Victor Kline Jr. shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 6

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt0038121 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 6

WILD

Did you know

Only 9 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Gordon Hollingshead directs. Victor Kline Jr. cuts. Runs lean at under 100 minutes. Produced in United States of America. Dialogue in English.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Tight 10-minute runtime — shorter than most television pilots.
281 years old — a genuine piece of film history.
3Lean credit list — fewer than 30 people officially credited.
4Editor Victor Kline Jr. shaped the rhythm. On an edit-heavy film, the editor does more to control your pulse than the director.
5IMDB entry: tt0038121 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.
6Only 9 TMDB ratings — you're getting ahead of the curve on this one.
7Classified under 15 themes, including "world war ii", "coast guard", "black and white", "dog".

The technical file

Editing: Victor Kline Jr.
Runtime: 10 min · 0h 10m
Status: Released
Original language: EN
IMDB: Story of a Dog (1945)

Also by

Gordon Hollingshead

Community reviews

What people are saying

CinemaSerf2025-07-06
★ 6/10
Given what they were being fed, I was quite surprised these dogs didn’t turn on their handlers and eat them instead! Rather than that, though, the narration adopts the persona of these mutts as they undertake some brutal and onerous training so that they are as immune to the effects of war as it’s possible to be. That’s handy because the plan is to ship them off to the Far East theatre of the Second World War where they can be used to sniff out snipers hiding in the dense undergrowth - hopefully saving many a soldier’s life. It’s all fairly standard wartime fayre that I think could have worked better had someone like Pete Smith provided a more humorous and engaging commentary rather than this really quite dry and earnest output. It’s interesting just how much effort and import was placed on the training of hundreds of these animals and at just how much reliance the military placed on these creatures with enhanced senses and skills.

Production companies