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Rin Tin Tin: The Life and the Legend Paperback – October 9, 2012

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Susan Orlean (Author)
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Susan Orlean (Author)
3.9 out of 5 stars 250 customer reviews
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Product Details

  • Paperback: 352 pages
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Reprint edition (October 9, 2012)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1439190143
  • ISBN-13: 978-1439190142
  • Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1 x 8.4 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
  • Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (250 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #171,895 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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4.0 out of 5 starsAbout a boy and a dog
By Jessica Weissman on September 7, 2011
Format: Hardcover Vine Customer Review of Free Product ( What's this? )
Rin Tin Tin, who has been both a dog and a symbol for nearly 90 years, is the subject of Susan Orlean's latest book. She is one of our best narrative/observational nonfiction writers, on a level with the John McPhee of old, before he got obsessed with geology.

This is her second book length piece, based more on research than on observation, and it shows. The writing is just as captivating as ever. Rin Tin Tin and his career are both interesting and throw light on both how movies have changed in 90 years and how the place of dogs in our culture has changed in the same period. Much of the story is about the humans around Rin Tin Tin, from Lee Duncan the orphan boy who discovered Rinty in France to the producers and writers of the TV shows, to the various people who feel that they are the true custodians of the legacy of Rin Tin Tin.

We spend a lot of time with these guys, and they just aren't that interesting. Rin Tin Tin himself and his assorted namesakes and descendants are more interesting than their human handlers and promoters. Which makes parts of the book dull going despite the sparkle of most of the writing. The best parts came at the start, where we get the story of how Rin Tin Tin was found and brought back to the US, and in the spots where Ms. Orlean observes such scenes as the dog's grave in France and so on. The history drags a bit, I am sorry to say.

So: if you are interested both in dogs and in how they were presented in the movies and on TV, this book is for you. If you enjoy Susan Orlean's writing, this book might be for you. It's not her best, but her less-than-best is still beyond what most nonfictioneers can do.
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2.0 out of 5 starsWhen the tail drags
By MarjorieRaskin on January 11, 2012
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
I love German Shepherds and have been lucky enough to own two of these remarkable animals. I bought the book to learn about the world's most famous Shepherd. It was exciting to read about a struggling bitch raising her pups on a French battlefield with just enough food to keep them alive. Equally moving was learning that Lee Duncan, a boy raised mainly in an orphanage, adopted the pup who became Rin Tin Tin. Duncan's extraordinary bond with this dog, his pups and his stand ins was equally compelling. The dog was actually named as co-respondent in one of Duncan's divorces.
The little we are told about Duncan's training the dog to display different facial expressions was also of interest. As was the dog's success in silent films (he didn't mug) and his difficulties in talkies.
However when the book began telling us what felt like the life story of almost everyone who ever petted Rin Tin Tin or his successors I couldn't wait for it to end. The author's own interest in this dog was unconvincing. She could have just told the fascinating story of the dog, his owner and some of their adventures in tinsel land.
A good dog has to conform to a meaningful and useful shape. So too, does a story.
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2.0 out of 5 starsA Tale of Authorial Self-Justification
By Jack R. Meyer on October 19, 2011
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
The first one-third of this book is the tale (a remarkable story well-told, and the only reason that two stars were given) of the wartime discovery, adoption, bonding, training and eventual life and career of the original movie-star dog and his owner/trainer Lee Duncan. If only the tale had stopped here, however brief, it would have been time well-spent. Unfortunately, the next large chunk is the pathetic tale of Duncan's attempt to keep the Rin Tin Tin brand alive via a series of unworthy successors, who were at least linked by bloodline to the original marvel. The remainder is an ever-more pathetic and rambling discourse on the evolution of America's relationships with companion animals, related to the previous tale by the far-less interesting story of the hugely successful 1950's television show that had little to do with the original dog (Duncan's latest "successor" may not have been related to the original at all, and was so ineptly trained/capable that another trainer's dog was finally used in the show and Duncan sidelined altogether). From here, the story meanders endlessly from boring tales of the career decline of the television series' producer to a obsessed breeder's attempt to claim the franchise by dint of having inherited her grandmother's breeding business based upon the purchase of one of Rin Tin Tin's descendents. Through all of this morass, the author keeps inserting her own "journey" and what it meant to her by way of (it seems) justifcation for why she kept writing after the basic story had long since been concluded. I honestly don't know how I managed to get through to the end. Perhaps I just wanted to see how far the author would drift from any coherent thesis or point.Read more ›
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2.0 out of 5 starsA myth grows
By Melvin Anderson on November 5, 2011
Format: Hardcover Verified Purchase
Rin Tin Tin was a dog but his name came to be more than a dog. The original dog had the name and carried it into a series of silent movies where the name metamorphosed into a legend due to a bond formed between the dog and a soldier who found and adopted him over in France during World War I. The author did a beautiful job of telling this part of the story despite the loss of most of the dog's film stories; she had to use newspaper reviews and other second hand accounts to describe the reception accorded these films but there were a few films available for first hand viewing and the dog's ability could be seen. but there is a problem, as in all life. Times bring change; standards change and what is new and absorbing when first seen pales and even falls into disfavor with these changes. In Rin Tin Tin's case, however, his acting soared beyond this normal occurrence; his fame never failed. New dogs took the place of the original; intercourse between the film characters became normal and the mute animals fell out of their high regard. To overcome this the stories associated with the animals changed, Rin Tin Tin made the change successfully according to the author.
Here is the beginning of the book'd decline. Orlean kept my interest up to this point, despite her failure to bring Duncan to life. She stressed his bond with his dog, she made a point of this bond accounting for Rinty's success in his feature films but with the talkies this bond was stretched, the owner could no longer give the dog voice commands and hand signals did not get the response movie goers had been expecting. Trainers were used with the new dogs; different writers were used to come up with the new type stories and only the name remained.Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 starsRin Tin Tin - the hero dog.

At first I wasn't sure about this book, but it was recommended by a friend. Once I got into it - it was hard to put it down. Read more

Published 1 month ago by Lynda L. Kieres
3.0 out of 5 starsThree Stars

I think the book needs more photos of Rin Tin Tin's history.

Published 1 month ago by Oswaldo Torres
2.0 out of 5 starsTwo Stars

Too long, not enough about the dogs.

Published 2 months ago by PJ
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

great book

Published 4 months ago by henry horwitz
5.0 out of 5 starsOh wait!

If you are looking for a book about a dog don't buy this book. It is about a child, semi orphaned, spending critical formative years in an orphanage. Traumatized by war. Read more

Published 5 months ago by Lloyd F. Mercer
1.0 out of 5 starsDo Not Read

This book received the lowest review in my book club out of the dozens we have read. The author inserted her own experience with Rin Tin Tin and the memory far too much. Read more

Published 5 months ago by JS
3.0 out of 5 starsDogs tales

Tells the story of Lee Duncan who had a sad childhood and discovers German Shepherds in a bombed our kennel during Word War I. Read more

Published 6 months ago by ellison
5.0 out of 5 starsA fascinating historical story of love and loyalty

A fascinating historical story of love and loyalty. I found myself swept up in the obsession for Rin Tin Tin. Orlean is a fine writer - this book is definitely a 'keeper'.

Published 8 months ago by Shelley Tupper
5.0 out of 5 starsFive Stars

Just the right book for the right person.

Published 9 months ago by D. Bigelow
4.0 out of 5 starsInteresting story of film's First Dog

Susan Orlean, who admits being a fan of the original Rin Tin Tin long ago, has constructed a fascinating story about the dog and his master, Lee Duncan, who found the dog in France... Read more

Published 9 months ago by Richard C. Reynolds

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