''My Life as a Dog'' is a contemporary, half-hour

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

drama series that ran for 22 episodes from September 8, 1996 until February 2, 1997. It was based on the 1985 Swedish movie of the same name and was developed for Canadian television by, among others,

Reidar Jönsson Reidar Vallis Håkan Jönsson (born June 16, 1944, Malmö) is a Swedish author. He is best known for the 1983 semi-autobiographical novel ''Mitt liv som hund'', which was adapted into the film ''My Life as a Dog''. His co-written screenplay for ...

, author of the original autobiographical book. It is the coming of age story of a young boy, brutally dragged away from his familiar universe into an unknown world. Though aimed at teens, it has been rated above the usual "infantile sitcoms".New York Times, Canada
'LIFE AS A DOG': FETCHING DEBUT
April 4, 1997. The series was shot on location in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

and Gimli,

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

. It was directed by Neill Fearnley and produced by Atlantis Films Limited and Credo Entertainment Group.

Plot

After his mother's death and with his sailor father away at sea, imaginative 11-year-old Eric Johansson is sent to live in a small fishing village with his mother's twin brother, Johnny Johansson. Eric's adventures in Gimli will help him to feel at home with his new family and come to terms with some pre-adolescent uncertainties while Johnny, burdened with unexpected fatherly duties, has to make some choices he avoided to face before.

Cast

Michael Yarmush Michael Lawrence Yarmush (born June 19, 1982) is an American actor. He is known for providing the original voice of Arthur Read in the PBS children's animated television series ''Arthur''. Early life Yarmush was born in Miami, Florida, the son o ...

- Eric Johansson *

Callum Keith Rennie Callum Keith Rennie (born 14 September 1960) is a British-born Canadian actor who started his career in Canadian film and television projects, where his portrayal of Stanley Raymond Kowalski on the television series ''Due South'' was his first ...

- Johnny Johansson * Marley Otto - Anastasia 'AJ' Burke *

Jennifer Clement Jennifer Clement (born 1960) is an American-Mexican author. In 2015, she was elected as the first woman president of PEN International, an organization that was founded in 1921. Under her leadership, the groundbreaking PEN International Women's ...

- Zoë Johansson *

Joy Coghill Joy Dorothy Coghill-Thorne, CM, (May 13, 1926 – January 20, 2017) was a Canadian actress, director, and writer. Her obituary in ''The Vancouver Sun'' described her as having had "a seven-decade run at the top of the Vancouver theatre world." ...

- Astrid 'Auntie Auntie' Árnesson * Bucky Hill - Sam LaFresne *

Yank Azman Yank Azman (born October 19, 1947) is a Canadian television and film actor. Early life Azman was born in a displaced persons camp in Bad Wörishofen, Germany to Cesia (née Waishand), a sales clerk, and Kuba Zajfman, a tailor and furrier, Holoca ...

- Tom Shaughnessy

Awards

In 1997

won a

Gemini Award The Gemini Awards were awards given by the Academy of Canadian Cinema & Television between 1986–2011 to recognize the achievements of Canada's television industry. The Gemini Awards are analogous to the Emmy Awards given in the United States ...

for ''Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or Series'' for his role as Johnny Johansson.

won the 1998

Young Artist Award The Young Artist Award (originally known as the Youth in Film Award) is an accolade presented by the Young Artist Foundation, a nonprofit organization founded in 1978 to honor excellence of youth performers, and to provide scholarships for young ...

for ''Best Performance in a TV Drama Series - Leading Young Actor'' and was nominated for a

YoungStar Award The YoungStar Awards, presented by ''The Hollywood Reporter'', honored young American actors and actresses from ages 6–18 in their work in film, television, stage and music. Winners were chosen via a poll of 3,500 entertainment industry insiders ...

for ''Best Performance by a Young Actor in a Drama TV Series'' the same year.

Episodes

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:My Life As A Dog (Tv Series) 1990s Canadian children's television series 1990s Canadian comedy-drama television series 1996 Canadian television series debuts 1997 Canadian television series endings Canadian children's comedy television series Canadian children's drama television series Television series about brothers Television series about orphans Television series about twins Television series by CBS Studios Television shows filmed in Winnipeg