I Toto: The Autobiography of Terry, The Dog Who Was Toto

Rating:
Summary: A Very Cute Book!!!!
Review: ...I read the book and LOVED it!! Any Dog or religous Terrier fan should get this!!! It has a different point of view and that's what makes it so GREAT!!!!!!!!!!!

Rating:
Summary: Heartwarming and Inspiring
Review: .
And you will too!! Witty author William Carroll "un-covered" the diary of Terry, the little "dumped" dog who played Toto in *The Wizard of Oz.* The look of the book is Grand: this alleged anthropomorphic autobiography was typed on an old Remington manual typewriter, with pictures of "the star" and various "co-stars" during the Heyday of the Hollywood studio system. Knick-nack, Paddy-whack, give this dog a bone! And I give her 5 stars. Delightful! Reviewed by TundraVision

Rating:
Summary: I, Really Like This!
Review: .
And you will too!! Witty author William Carroll "un-covered" the diary of Terry, the little "dumped" dog who played Toto in *The Wizard of Oz.* The look of the book is Grand: this alleged anthropomorphic autobiography was typed on an old Remington manual typewriter, with pictures of "the star" and various "co-stars" during the Heyday of the Hollywood studio system. Knick-nack, Paddy-whack, give this dog a bone! And I give her 5 stars. Delightful! Reviewed by TundraVision

Rating:
Summary: I, Doggie
Review: A really lovely little book, easy to read, thoroughly enjoyable for dog and "Oz" lovers everywhere. Photos and clever stories about being a dog in the film industry.

Rating:
Summary: What a treasure!!
Review: As a Cairn Terrier "mom" of many many years, I had to have this book, no matter how good or not good it may turn out to be. As it turns out, it is PRICELESS! So many pictures, clips, factoids, behind the scenes stuff...more like a well done scrapbook than a straight book. This is a must have! I will treasure it always.

Rating:
Summary: AN OZ Fan Must
Review: Even if your just an animal lover, this little book will make you smile. Quick reading, very entertaining. It's a must for all
Oz nuts. In this troubliing world we live in today, read this one with your kids. It'll brighten you day for days!

Rating:
Summary: sweet little book
Review: I read this in an evening. Really enjoyed it as I am the owner of 2 Cairns and a lifelong fan of the Wizard of OZ.

Rating:
Summary: A Very Cute Book!!!!
Review: I really enjoyed this book. It is an easy and quick read, but with lots of pictures and information. If you love animals, old movies and trivia this book is for you. Good read for adults and children. This will be a keeper in my book shelf to read again.

Rating:
Summary: Adorable Book, easy to read and informative.
Review: I really enjoyed this book. It is an easy and quick read, but with lots of pictures and information. If you love animals, old movies and trivia this book is for you. Good read for adults and children. This will be a keeper in my book shelf to read again.

Rating:
Summary: Author Carroll Is Dog's Best Friend!
Review: I was looking at silver-screen bio's in the library when I came across this clever little volume. Author Willard Carroll knows a lot about Oz, and he also understands a lot about animals and the people who love them. Whether you are a fan of the Wonderful Land of Oz, a dog-lover, or both, you are going to get such a kick out of this book. If you're like me, you're going to breeze through it, and then go back and read it again, preferably with someone nearby to whom you can read the funniest, most touching or trivia-friendly bits. Toto, who began as Terry, a little dog abandoned by her owners, has a very good friend indeed in Mr. Carroll.

This is a story about Toto, but it is also the story of Carl Spitz, who had been training dogs since 1919. When he came to Hollywood in 1927, he opened a training school which combined kindness and discipline, an innovation which most at the time considered "nonsense." Mr. Spitz and his dogs broke into silent movies; he developed a series of silent commands when talkies came along. His dogs appeared with the stars: Prince the Great Dane and Lawrence Olivier in Wuthering Heights; Buck the Saint Bernard and Clarke Gable in The Call of the Wild. The English mastiff and the Scottish terrier were in major productions, too.

Mr. Carroll captures Toto's "voice" so perfectly, even using a font that looks like my mother's old portable Underwood typewriter for the star's narrative. Toto also comments on the dozens of photos, movie stills and other memorabilia of a busy career with red pen.

Toto hobnobs with the stars and has some once-in-a-lifetime moments, such as when Mr. Gable came to visit the kennel owned by Carl Spitz, the trainer who adopted and worked with Toto and many other canine performers. (Don't want to tell you what happened, but it made Mr. Gable smile. Eventually.) She works with Spencer Tracy in Fury and Shirley Temple in Bright Eyes. (Of the latter, Toto reports, "Shirley had her hair cut and recurred and had endless wardrobe fittings and makeup tests. I had a flea bath, a toenail trim, and an enema.")

And then there was Oz. Toto is miffed when a studio official gushed, "She's the one! Looks just like the dog on the cover," for she considers said beast "a genetic mutation of terrifying proportions," but the role is hers and she revels in it, for she soon realizes that the story "IS ALL ABOUT ME!!! ... I'M IN ALMOST EVERY SCENE IN THE BLESSED PICTURE!!!" Toto includes a page from the shooting script with all six of her lines circled, as proof positive of her importance to the film.

Of course, it isn't all green grass and marrow bones. There are those scary wind machines and the shock of seeing that nice Maggie dressed up in black, with her face painted green and the biggest nose since Durante, cackling away. Oh, and the Winkie guard that stepped on her paw by accident. Ouch! And the creepy flying monkeys. But Mr. Spitz' training paid off; Toto found herself able to rebound from such situations and perform like the trooper that she was.

I, Toto is now one of my favourite movie books. Cute but never mawkish, sentimental but never saccharine, informative but never overwhelming, this little story of a little dog is a big winner.