FILM HOUND WILD

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FILM HOUND WILD

No discussion of Alaska, Gold Rush and sled dogs would be complete without including "Call of the Wild," the Jack London novel about a St. Bernard/Shepherd mix resembling a wolf. The dog named Buck leaves his domesticated lifestyle and is forced to adapt to the hardships of a sled dog during the Klondike Gold Rush. Film fans probably best remember the 1935 movie adaptation starring Clark Gable and Loretta Young who experienced their own call of the wild while filming on location up north. The conditions may have been chilly but the co-stars managed to stay warm.

Posted by at May 13, 2008 1:12 p.m.

Comments

#128403

Posted by RichardBond at 5/13/08 4:39 p.m.

Dear E. Mitchell,

It might please you to know that the dog in the novel The Call of the Wild was in a sense real as it was based on a dog that Jack london used in Dawson City during the Klondike Gold Rush. It had beloned to two brothers Marshall Bond and his brother Louis from whom London had rented a tent space during fall 1897 and Spring of 1898. The tent space was rented on a labor exchange and London used the dog for chores for the Bonds and other clients.

Previous to the Klondike Gold Rush the Bonds were involved in mining in the Cascades and their father Judge Hiram Bond was a mining financier. Judge Bond had felt that his sons should not have left Seattle and instead taken advantage of the boom by buying the Seattle Post Intelligencer. The Bonds were in a few land and mining finance deals with owner Leigh S J Hunt during the decade of the 1890s.

So what are the Bond descendants doing today and are any still in Seattle? Amy Browne Anderson a great grandaughter of the dogs owner is the co-owner of a civil engineering firm D A Hogan & Co. on Bellevue Ave. which specializes in athletic fields. Among their clients are the Seattle Seahawks and the Mariners.

There are two photos of Marshall Bond one with the dog and one with Jack London. You can get more information online by searching for Marshall Bond and Judge Hiram Bond. The best image of the dog is online at Yale University under Marshall Bond Papers where he is shown on the left being held by my grandfather.

Richard Bond

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#128541

Posted by Robert Latham at 5/13/08 9:45 p.m.

Awesome! Nice to have some background.

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#128627

Posted by E. Mitchell at 5/14/08 7:30 a.m.

Dear Mr. Bond,
Many thanks for the remarkable backstory information! Your unique perspective is very enlightening and greatly appreciated.
E. Mitchell, the Film Hound

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#129341

Posted by RichardBond at 5/15/08 6:33 p.m.

E,

As a result of there being a circle of Jack London fans I know his descendants and heirs.

I would love to do paid appearances during which I could discuss my family history and the back story of the novelette.

Richard

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#130819

Posted by E. Mitchell at 5/21/08 9:37 a.m.

Dear Richard,
Almost forgot to mention - if you ever have a link, anecdote or photo you'd like to share on this subject I'd be delighted to post it for you.
E. the Film Hound

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