Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
O’Hurley Relishes Annual Thanksgiving Dog Show’s Popularity
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 5 years ago on
November 27, 2019

Share

NEW YORK — Television traditions on Thanksgiving have usually involved the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and then hours of football, but in recent years, another has emerged: The National Dog Show.

“They have all laughed him out of the office. But by the end of the day, he had the National Dog Show license from the Kennel Club of Philadelphia, Purina had come on as a presenting sponsor. He called me and I was in L.A. I picked up the phone and I said, ‘Hello.’ And he said, ‘Woof, Woof.’ And that’s how it all started 18 years ago.” — actor John O’Hurley
Hosted by actor John O’Hurley, the annual parade of pooches has become one of the most popular shows of Thanksgiving week.
But according to O’Hurley, it almost didn’t make its way to the small screen.
As O’Hurley tells it, the then-head of NBC Sports was enamored with the dog show parody classic “Best in Show” and came up with the idea to do a real show to fill the gap between the parade and football.
“They have all laughed him out of the office. But by the end of the day, he had the National Dog Show license from the Kennel Club of Philadelphia, Purina had come on as a presenting sponsor,” O’ Hurley recalled. “He called me and I was in L.A. I picked up the phone and I said, ‘Hello.’ And he said, ‘Woof, Woof.’ And that’s how it all started 18 years ago.”
For O’Hurley, best known for his time on “Seinfeld,” it was a natural fit.
“Well, I’ve had a dog ever since I was 4 years old in my lap,” said O’Hurley, as he sat next to Dyson, a Shetland sheepdog on the cusp of two who is training to be a therapy dog. “I always said I’m a better person with a dog in my lap; dogs have a tendency to round out the edges in our lives.”

‘Truly a Family Sport’

O’Hurley is joined by Johnny Weir and Tara Lipinski, the figure skating commentary duo known for their dose of camp, and sports commentator Mary Carillo. David Frei, who is a licensed judge for the American Kennel Club, serves as the analyst.

We’re very proud of what we’ve achieved in such a short amount of time. We haven’t had the history of Westminster, but we certainly are, without a doubt times 100, the most watched dog show in the world.” — actor John O’Hurley
“(There’s) enough money that the team has grown. Well, you know, we want to create more of an entertainment spectacle around a dog show. It’s not just (the) Westminster (Kennel Club Dog Show), which is very kind of sober. And, you know, it’s a very we want to create the feeling of, ‘It’s fun.’ And dogs are fun. They round out the edges in our lives and they’re the greatest companions we have.”
To give it more of a sports feel, handlers are sometimes mic’d, like pro sport players and coaches, so viewers can hear what’s going on on the floor and behind the stage.
“It’s so much fun what’s going on, how they’re actually talking to the dog backstage and the things that they’re saying because the communication between the handler and the dog is irreplaceable,” he said. “I mean, ultimately, the handler must look invisible.”
There are also kid handlers, which O’Hurley says shows that dog competitions are “truly a family sport. And it’s a wonderful way of growing up in the world of a sense of discipline, of a sense of presentation, a sense of confidence. It does so many wonderful things for young people that we love to see young people come into this entire world of dog shows.”
The two-hour show, which is pre-taped in the Philadelphia area, will air Thursday from noon to 2 p.m. Eastern. It inevitably draws comparisons to that other dog show — the venerable Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, held each February. O’Hurley stressed that they are “two completely different shows and two very prestigious titles.”
He added: “We’re very proud of what we’ve achieved in such a short amount of time. We haven’t had the history of Westminster, but we certainly are, without a doubt times 100, the most watched dog show in the world.”

DON'T MISS

Pope Francis in Critical Condition After Long Respiratory Crisis

DON'T MISS

Musk Gives All Federal Workers 48 Hours to Explain What They Did Last Week

DON'T MISS

Fresno State Suspends 2 Players, Removes Another Amid Gambling Investigation

DON'T MISS

Israel Delays Release of Palestinian Prisoners, Citing ‘Degrading’ Hostage Handovers

DON'T MISS

Officer Killed After Gunman Took Hostages at Pennsylvania Hospital

DON'T MISS

Kash Patel Plans to Move Up to 1,500 Workers Out of Washington

DON'T MISS

Fired Employees Fear Beloved Yosemite National Park Will Lose Its Luster

DON'T MISS

US and Ukraine Nearing Rare Earths Deal That Would Tighten Relationship

DON'T MISS

Trump Fires Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Two Other Military Officers

DON'T MISS

Less Is More: 5 Ingredient Dinners Are Easier Than You Think

UP NEXT

Wolfie the Handsome Pup Seeks Loving Home After Life in the Wild

UP NEXT

Hotels Are So Last Year – Why Everyone’s Sleeping in Castles, Caves and Cranes

UP NEXT

Voletta Wallace, Notorious B.I.G.’s Mother and Keeper of His Legacy, Dies at 78

UP NEXT

Nearly 1 in 10 U.S. Adults Identifies as LGBTQ+, Survey Finds

UP NEXT

Watch Out for Nibbles. He’ll Put His Mark on Your Heart!

UP NEXT

A$AP Rocky Returns to a Life of Music, Fashion, Film and Rihanna With His Acquittal

UP NEXT

NASCAR’s Jeff Gordon Talks ‘Days of Thunder’ Sequel With Tom Cruise

UP NEXT

Death of South Korean Actor at 24 Sparks Discussion About Social Media

UP NEXT

Blink-182 Bassist’s $6M Banksy Painting Heads to Auction for Charity

UP NEXT

Where to Chill on the Cheap in the Caribbean

Israel Delays Release of Palestinian Prisoners, Citing ‘Degrading’ Hostage Handovers

50 minutes ago

Officer Killed After Gunman Took Hostages at Pennsylvania Hospital

55 minutes ago

Kash Patel Plans to Move Up to 1,500 Workers Out of Washington

7 hours ago

Fired Employees Fear Beloved Yosemite National Park Will Lose Its Luster

7 hours ago

US and Ukraine Nearing Rare Earths Deal That Would Tighten Relationship

7 hours ago

Trump Fires Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Two Other Military Officers

7 hours ago

Less Is More: 5 Ingredient Dinners Are Easier Than You Think

7 hours ago

Trump-Putin Summit Preparations Are Underway, Russia Says

8 hours ago

Warren Buffett Offers Trump Some Advice While Celebrating Berkshire’s Success

8 hours ago

Hungarians Will Decide Whether Ukraine Can Join the European Union, Orbán Says

8 hours ago

Pope Francis in Critical Condition After Long Respiratory Crisis

ROME — Pope Francis was in critical condition Saturday after he suffered a prolonged asthmatic respiratory crisis while being treated for pn...

19 minutes ago

19 minutes ago

Pope Francis in Critical Condition After Long Respiratory Crisis

37 minutes ago

Musk Gives All Federal Workers 48 Hours to Explain What They Did Last Week

43 minutes ago

Fresno State Suspends 2 Players, Removes Another Amid Gambling Investigation

51 minutes ago

Israel Delays Release of Palestinian Prisoners, Citing ‘Degrading’ Hostage Handovers

55 minutes ago

Officer Killed After Gunman Took Hostages at Pennsylvania Hospital

7 hours ago

Kash Patel Plans to Move Up to 1,500 Workers Out of Washington

7 hours ago

Fired Employees Fear Beloved Yosemite National Park Will Lose Its Luster

7 hours ago

US and Ukraine Nearing Rare Earths Deal That Would Tighten Relationship

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend