Rintintin

When I was little, I always got this series mixed up with Lassie. Dog hero - little boy who was friend of dog. Pretty similar, except for the cavalry part and the era being quite different. And, oh yeah - German Shepherd and Collie.

I was very small when I watched this show. It was in syndication at this time.

Basically, I remember Rinny helping rustle bad guys and being the mascot of the Cavalry troop. I also remember Rusty as being a red-haired freckle-faced boy who was cute, a la Beaver Cleaver.

This was an entertaining show - good moral stories with good ending - typical for the fifties.

And really, who could resist a show with a boy and a dog?

Forty years ago my French colleague told me that the name Rin Tin Tin was French and should be pronounced "rrrran tan tan", nasally. It's the sound of the drumstick tapping on the drum; it's the cavalry's drum. Presumably this name goes back to the old days when French was spoken in some of the southern states of the US. (This comment really belongs under Trivia; I tried unsuccessfully to put it there.)

This year marks the 50th anniversary of two great family programs -- Lassie (q.v.) and the subject of this comment, Rin Tin Tin. I remember that the show was sponsored by the National Biscuit Company, Nabisco to you, and that the stars, like stars of other programs of the time advertised certain products. Needless to say, Rinty and Rusty sold a great deal of Shreaded Wheat, to say nothing of Oreo cookies.

The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin was part of my growing up years and the call 'Yoooooooo, Rinty' echoes in my ears to this day.

'Lassie' and 'The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin' are proof positive that the dog is man's (and woman's) best friend.

Happy 50th television anniversary, Rinty.

Adventure packed story after story. Rusty gets into a danger situation and Rin Tin Tin saves him, either by himself or by going back to Fort Apache to get Lt. Rip Masters and/or Sgt O'Hara and Corporal Boone to save him. It was a must see for 5 years on Friday nights on ABC, than afternoon re-runs and Saturday morning re-runs for years.

Back in the day when I was in my single digit years, Rin Tin Tin made his television debut in a series about an orphan kid and the German shepherd puppy found by Cavalry as the only survivors of a wagon train massacre. It was a great TV kid's show and still running in syndication someplace in the world.

We never knew what Rusty's last name was. Lee Aaker played the boy who I thought was lucky at the time to live and grow up on an army post in territorial Arizona. What a great childhood.

Aaker was supported by a good group of movie professionals like James Brown, Joe Sawyer, and Rand Brooks. But it was the boy and the dog and like the previous reviewer, I can still hear the cry of Yo Rinty when Rusty sicced him on a bad guy.

I still remember the episode where Rusty saw the legendary White Buffalo and there were two episodes in which a British colonel and his batman came over from India and later the Fort Apache regulars go over there to deal with real Indians.

Shows for a more innocent time.