''Adventures of Rusty'' is a 1945

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

, the first in the "Rusty" series of children's films. The series of eight films were made in the 1940s by

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

with stories centered on Rusty, a

German shepherd The German Shepherd or Alsatian is a German breed of working dog of medium to large size. The breed was developed by Max von Stephanitz using various traditional German herding dogs from 1899. It was originally bred as a herding dog, for he ...

dog. The film is notable for featuring the famous

Ace the Wonder Dog An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the ca ...

as Rusty, the only appearance by Ace in the Rusty films. It was directed by Paul Burnford.

Plot

Danny Mitchell (

Ted Donaldson Ted Donaldson (born August 20, 1933 in New York City) is an American former child actor. Early years Born in Brooklyn, New York, Donaldson was the son of singer-composer Will Donaldson and Will's wife, Jo. His mother died when he was years old. ...

), a young boy in the American town of Lawtonville, is grieving over the loss of his dog. He is also struggling to adjust to his new stepmother, Ann (

Margaret Lindsay Margaret Lindsay (born Margaret Kies; September 19, 1910 – May 9, 1981) was an American film actress. Her time as a Warner Bros. contract player during the 1930s was particularly productive. She was noted for her supporting work in successf ...

), and has a difficult relationship with his father (

Conrad Nagel John Conrad Nagel (March 16, 1897 – February 24, 1970) was an American film, stage, television and radio actor. He was considered a famous matinée idol and leading man of the 1920s and 1930s. He was given an Academy Honorary Award in 1940 and ...

) - causing him to call on Dr. Banning, a

psychiatrist A psychiatrist is a physician who specializes in psychiatry, the branch of medicine devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, study, and treatment of mental disorders. Psychiatrists are physicians and evaluate patients to determine whether their sy ...

(

Addison Richards Addison Whittaker Richards, Jr. (October 20, 1902 – March 22, 1964) was an American actor of film and television. Richards appeared in more than three hundred films between 1933 and his death. Biography A native of Zanesville, Ohio, Richa ...

) for assistance. However, Danny befriends Rusty, a ferocious German shepherd who was brought to the United States from

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Having worked a police dog for the

Gestapo The (), abbreviated Gestapo (; ), was the official secret police of Nazi Germany and in German-occupied Europe. The force was created by Hermann Göring in 1933 by combining the various political police agencies of Prussia into one organi ...

, however, Rusty is ill-tempered and Danny struggles to train him. A subplot involves two

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

saboteurs (

Arno Frey Arnold Frey (11 October 1900 – 26 June 1961) was a German actor who portrayed the Nazi villain Dr. Lang in the Frank Buck movie ''Tiger Fangs'' (1943). Biography Frey arrived in the United States in October 1926, according to the New Yor ...

and Eddie Parker) who arrive in Lawtonville, attempting to evade the

Coast Guard A coast guard or coastguard is a maritime security organization of a particular country. The term embraces wide range of responsibilities in different countries, from being a heavily armed military force with customs and security duties to ...

and blow up an installation. They ultimately try to take Rusty by speaking to him in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

Cast

as Danny Mitchell *

as Ann Mitchell *

as Hugh Mitchell *

Gloria Holden Gloria Anna Holden (September 5, 1903 – March 22, 1991) was an English-born American film actress, best known for her role as ''Dracula's Daughter''. She often portrayed cold society women. Early life Holden was born in London, England. She ...

as Louise Hover * Robert Williams as Will Nelson *

as Dr. Banning, Psychiatrist *

as Tausig * Eddie Parker as Ehrlich *

as Rusty *

Terry (dog) Terry (November 17, 1933 – September 1, 1945) was a female Cairn Terrier performer who appeared in many different movies, most famously as Toto in the film '' The Wizard of Oz'' (1939). It was her only credited role, though she was credited not ...

as Skipper

Cast notes

The dog portraying Rusty would change over the course of the series, with

Flame A flame (from Latin ''flamma'') is the visible, gaseous part of a fire. It is caused by a highly exothermic chemical reaction taking place in a thin zone. When flames are hot enough to have ionized gaseous components of sufficient density they ...

having the most appearances as the character. Danny's parents would also be portrayed by different actors in almost every installment.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Adventures of Rusty 1945 drama films 1945 films American drama films American black-and-white films Columbia Pictures films Films about dogs Films with screenplays by Aubrey Wisberg Rusty (film series) 1940s English-language films 1940s American films

Plot

Cast

Cast notes

See also

References

External links