The Patsy Award was originated by the Hollywood office of the American Humane Association

American Humane Association

The American Humane Association is an organization founded in 1877 dedicated to the welfare of animals and children.The AHA's Film and Television Unit has monitored the welfare of animals during the production of films and television programs since 1940. They are the source of the familiar...

 in 1939. They decided to honor animal performers after a horse was killed in an on-set accident during the filming of the Tyrone Power

Tyrone Power

Tyrone Edmund Power, Jr. , usually credited as Tyrone Power and known sometimes as Ty Power, was an American film and stage actor who appeared in dozens of films from the 1930s to the 1950s, often in swashbuckler roles or romantic leads such as in The Mark of Zorro, Blood and Sand, The Black Swan,...

 film Jesse James. The letters are an acronym, and stand for Picture Animal Top Star of the Year.

The very first recipient of a Patsy was Francis the Talking Mule

Francis the Talking Mule

Francis the Talking Mule was a mule celebrity, featured in seven movie comedies in the 1950s. The character originated in a novel by writer David Stern, and Universal Studios bought the rights for a film series, with Stern adapting his own script for the first entry, simply titled...

 in 1951. The award now covers both film and television and is separated into four categories: canine, equine, wild and special. The special category encompasses everything from goats to cats to pigs - Arnold Ziffel

Arnold Ziffel

Arnold Ziffel was a pig featured in Green Acres, an American situation comedy that was produced by Filmways, Inc., and originally aired on the CBS network from 1965 to 1971...

 of TV's Green Acres

Green Acres

Green Acres is an American television series starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm...

was a two-time winner. Arnold's trainer, Frank Inn

Frank Inn

Frank Inn was born as Elias Franklin Freeman, was an American animal trainer. He trained several animals for movies, but was most known for his work with the dogs in the Benji series.-Personal life:...

, was the proud owner of over 40 Patsy awards, thanks to his work with Orangey

Orangey

Orangey, a red tabby cat, was a talented animal actor owned and trained by the well-known cinematic animal handler Frank Inn.Orangey had a prolific career in film and television in the 1950s and early 1960s and was the only cat to win two Patsy Awards , the first for the title role...

, the cat from Rhubarb

Rhubarb

Rhubarb is a group of plants that belong to the genus Rheum in the family Polygonaceae. They are herbaceous perennial plants growing from short, thick rhizomes. They have large leaves that are somewhat triangular-shaped with long fleshy petioles...

(1951) and Breakfast at Tiffany's (1961); Higgins

Higgins (dog)

Higgins was one of the best-known dog actors of the 1960s – 1970s. Most people remember him either as "Dog" or as "Benji," two of the most popular roles he played during a 14-year career in show business....

, the dog (who played the lead in the Benji

Benji

Benji is the name of a fictional dog who has been the focus of several movies from 1974 through the 2000s. It is also the title of the first film in the Benji series....

movies and "Dog" on Petticoat Junction

Petticoat Junction

Petticoat Junction is an American situation comedy produced by Filmways which originally aired on CBS from 1963 to 1970. The series is one of three interrelated shows about rural characters created by Paul Henning; the others are The Beverly Hillbillies and Green Acres.The setting for the series...

); Cleo the Basset Hound; and Lassie

Lassie

Lassie is a fictional collie dog character created by Eric Knight in a short story expanded to novel length called Lassie Come-Home. Published in 1940, the novel was filmed by MGM in 1943 as Lassie Come Home with a dog named Pal playing Lassie. Pal then appeared with the stage name "Lassie" in six...

, to name a few.

Bob Barker

Bob Barker

Robert William "Bob" Barker is a former American television game show host. He is best known for hosting CBS's The Price Is Right from 1972 to 2007, making it the longest-running daytime game show in North American television history, and for hosting Truth or Consequences from 1956 to 1975.Born...

served as host for the Patsy Awards but eventually resigned in protest of the cruel methods some trainers use when training animals for films.

The awards ended in 1986 due to lack of funding.

The American Humane Association is the organization responsible for the disclaimer at the end of many films and television programs that "No Animals Were Harmed" in the production.

1951

Motion Pictures

1. Francis the mule (Francis the Talking Mule)
2. California the horse (The Palamino)
3. Pierre the chimp (My Friend Irma Goes West)

Award of Excellence

• Flame the dog (My Pal)
• Lassie the dog (Challenge to Lassie)
• Black Diamond the horse (Black Midnight)
• Jackie the Lion (Samson and Delilah)

Craven Award

• Jerry Brown the horse - trained by Ace Hudkins

1952

Motion Pictures

1. Rhubarb the cat (Rhubarb)
2. Francis the mule (Francis Goes to the Races)

Award of Excellence

• Chinook the dog (Yukon Manhunt)
• Diamond the horse (Flame of Araby)
• Corky the dog (Behave Yourself)

Craven Award

• Smoky the horse - owned / trained by Fat Jones

1953

Motion Pictures

1. Jackie the lion (Fearless Fagen)
2. Bonzo the Chimp (Bonzo Goes to College)
3. Trigger the horse (Son of Paleface)

Award of Excellence

• Francis the mule (Francis Goes to West Point)
• Tramp Jr. the dog (Room for One More)
• Cheetah the chimp (Tarzan's Savage Fury)
• Chinook the dog (Yukon Gold)

Craven Award

• Bracket the horse - owned by Hudkins Stables

1954

Motion Pictures

1. Sam the dog (Hondo)
2. Francis the mule (Francis Covers the Big Town)
3. Jackie the lion (Androcles and the Lion)

Award of Excellence

• Baron the dog (Back to God's Country)
• Peggy the chimp (Valley of the Headhunters)
• Jackie the lion (White Witch Doctor)

Craven Award

• Cocaine the horse - owned / trained by Chuck Roberson

1955

Motion Pictures

1. Beauty the horse (Gypsy Colt)
2. Francis the mule (Francis Joins the WACS)
3. Esmerelda the seal (20,000 Leagues Under the Sea)

Award of Excellence

• Shep the dog (A Bullet is Waiting)
• Satin the tiger (Demetrius and the Gladiators)
• Beauty the horse (Outlaw Stallion)

Craven Award

• Flash the horse - owned / trained by Henry Willis

1956

Motion Pictures

1. Wildfire the dog (It's a Dog's Life)
2. Francis the mule (Francis Joins the Navy)
3. Faro the dog (The Kentuckian)

Award of Excellence
Craven Award

• Flame the dog - owned /trained by Frank Barnes

1957

Motion Pictures

1. Samantha the goose (Friendly Persuasion)
2. Beauty the Horse (Giant)
3. Francis the mule (Francis in the Haunted House)

Award of Excellence

• Silver the horse (The Lone Ranger)
• Lady the dog (Goodbye, My Lady)
• Bascom the dog (Hollywood or Bust)

Craven Award

• King Cotton the horse - owned / trained by Ralph McCutcheon

1958

(Starting 1958 PATSY awards were also awarded to television animals)

Motion Pictures

1. Spike the dog (Old Yeller)
2. Beauty the horse (Wild Is the Wind)
3. Kelly the dog (Kelly and Me)

Television# Lassie the dog (Lassie)

1. Cleo the dog (The People's Choice)
2. Rin Tin Tin the dog (The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin)

Award of Excellence

• Toby the horse (Hoofs and Goofs / Movies)
• Flicka the horse (My Friend Flicka / TV)

Craven Award

• Trigger the horse - owned by Roy Rogers / trained by Glenn Randall

1959

Motion Pictures

1. Pyewacket the cat (Bell, Book, and Candle)
2. Tonka the horse (Tonka)
3. Henry the rabbit (The Geisha Boy)

Television# Lassie the dog (Lassie)

1. Asta the dog (The Thin Man)
2. Rin Tin Tin the dog (The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin)

Award of Excellence

• King the dog (The Proud Rebel / Movies)
• Jasper the dog (Bachelor Father / TV)

Craven Award

• Baldy the horse - owned by Fat Jones Stables / trained by William "Buster" Trow

External links

• American Humane Association
• Stunt Horses
• Advertising Awards: The PATSY Award