When I was a kid, I loved Poochie, a little pink cartoon poodle; the star of her own animated 1980s TV show. I had Poochie everything: books, stickers, sun visors...there was something about that smiling pink poodle I thought was just so cute. Forget "Hello Kitty"-- I was a Poochie the poodle fan.
Poochie's brief popularity faded out with neon tracksuits and Gitano jeans (it was the 80s, you had to be there...), but she was just one of many famous Poodles in pop-culture. To this day, poodles remain the pet-of-choice for celebs, and are still making their mark (with their paws, of course) in Hollywood, Government, and Literature.
Here's a list of some of our favorite famous Poodles and their owners:
Famed writer John Steinbeck, author of "Of Mice and Men," traveled around America with his poodle, Charley. He chronicled their journey in: Travels with Charley: In Search of America. Other famous writers who were big fans of Poodles include Charles Dickens and Victor Hugo.
Believe it or not, on the leadership side, Sir Winston Churchill owned a poodle named Rufus. Sadly, Rufus was hit was car, and according to a popular Poodle blog, a fan offered Churchill one of her bulldogs as an alternative pet. He declined, and the fan was told: “If Mr. Churchill has another dog it will be a poodle again.”
As for Instgram fame…Spice Dogsss is a social media account run by poodle enthusiasts who own about 5 poodles; each one looks different and has a vastly different personality. The striking photos and videos on this site are too cute for words--I love how the Poodles are adorned in accessories and placed in huge tote bags for photo opps. Countless others must agree, because this fan page has over 345K followers!
Apparently, THE Walt Disney himself owned a poodle named Dee Dee, who accompanied him to his animation studios. (Which begs the question--if he owned a poodle, why did he make 101 Dalmations and Lady and The Tramp, two classics which didn't feature a single poodle?) The only cartoon Disney poodle is Georgette from Oliver & Company, but it's comforting to know Walt himself was a poodle owner even if it didn't really translate on to the screen. See a photo of Dee Dee here.
He crooned, "You Ain't Nothin' But a Hound Dog" but the late Elvis Presley – owned many poodles. When he was stationed in Germany as an American GI, his poodle pooch was named Champagne. His wife Priscilla was gifted a Toy poodle named Honey!
Going "old school" here, but in the Americana classic TV show The Beverly Hillbillies, Claude, a Standard Poodle, was owned by the snobby Drysdale family. Mrs. Drysdale was horrified when her beloved showdog ran off with the neighborhood mutt.
The following late and popular celebs are also poodle owners: Lady Gaga, Mike Tyson, Betty White, Katharine Hepburn, Grace Kelly, Ellen Degeneres and Barbara Streisand are included in this list, along with the late Cary Grant and Robin Williams. And, there’s lots of Hollywood Buzz that back in the day Frank Sinatra gifted Marilyn Monroe a little white poodle named Maf. Apparently, Sinatra purchased the dog from Natalie Wood's mother. Interesting!
This breed really is in-demand in Hollywood, and we’re eagerly awaiting to see which future celebs decide to bring a poodle into their home. Honestly, a Poodle is just a timeless classic of a breed. Dog experts describe poodles as fun, energetic, smart, and easy to train, and the standard variety makes a great service dog. What’s not to love?
