The Godfather Inspired Dog Names

Much like many other famous films and television shows throughout history, making a hit also means providing fodder, willingly or otherwise, to the forces that be: parody. 

The Godfather is so big even people who have never seen the film know where several of its most famous lines come from, such as “I’m going to make him an offer he can’t refuse,” and “Leave the gun, take the cannoli.” Of course, not all references are so blunt. Numerous pop culture references have existed since the film’s initial release in 1972 and it’s been one of the most popular to reference over the last nearly 50 years. 

While those references may be most obvious in shows like The Sopranos, which owes much of its success to its cinema-counterpart and predecessor, or a repeated scene in Get Shorty, many others have flown under the radar, such as Princess Leia garroting Jabba the Hutt and simulating the demise of Luca Brasi, let alone the litany of orange references (oranges are always bad news) scattered throughout history in everything from The Simpsons to Lost to Point Break. 

But one show didn’t wait long. In fact, it appeared just two years after the original film hit theaters and before either of the sequels were anywhere near audience-ready: The Dogfather (1974). 

The Dogfather was a series of animated shorts initially released from 1974 to 1976 and, like it sounds, was basically a parody of The Godfather but instead featured a cast of dogs playing individually adapted parts based on those in the original film. Originally created on their own, the show was soon included as part of The Pink Panther and Friends, one of NBC’s Saturday morning cartoon series. 

While the characters were almost immediately identifiable, the storylines were a far cry from the film’s plot, although occasionally the two would overlap. Instead, many of the show’s 17 episodes ended up being remakes of old Looney Tunes episodes that had aired in the 1940s and 1950s. The series ended up spanning about two years but featured less than 20 episodes and never really garnered the attention the creators had initially sought, even with the significant commercial success the film had garnered, though much of that could be blamed on recycled storylines and the limited availability of subject matter similar to the original. 

The show may have ended up being a short run, but still stands as a significant testament to the type of fanfare and influence the original film inspired. As they say, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.