Taking Responsibility and Being Credible:

9/4/07

Listen up, lassie.net….

I was a kid when Truman was President, but  I always loved the sign on his desk: “The buck stops here.” Believe it or not, I know how to use metaphors and I know how to define words. Oh yeah, and I know how to write my own blogs…Let’s  start with “the buck”. Money – greed – profiteering. There’s a difference between making an honest buck from an honest day’s work and profiting from someone else’s lifelong labor. When it comes to the history of Lassie and the use of talent to create something of value and endurance, the only ones who can lay claim to that are my father and myself. We did the work, every bit of it. We did it ourselves with no outsiders or pretend insiders. Sure, there were moments of glory and recognition. But if you think that it was all or even mostly sunglasses and autographs, you’re in more of a fantasy world than even I can imagine. MOST of it was old-fashioned blood, sweat, and tears – what no one ever sees behind the scenes, in the quiet of a kennel, the endless hours of training and practice, the risky hours when life starts and when it ends.  Were you there when Pal needed surgery? In those days, the vets didn’t give us the Elizabethan collars that keep a dog from going after its stitches. My sister and I took shifts sitting with Pal – day and night – to keep him occupied and his teeth away from the stitches. My family EARNED what we made for every minute of every hour of every week, month and year. Did we ever overwork our dogs for our own benefit or anybody else’s? NEVER. The dogs came first – always did and always will. Did our families gain and suffer for it? Yes – both. Do I own up to that? Yes. Sure, my father was successful and famous. But, as they say, at what price? I saw how he changed from the pressure of Lassie’s success and the pressure to create a dynasty at the same or higher levels of excellence. I saw him when he was completely broken-hearted after the puppy he thought would be the greatest Lassie yet – who he trained in his lap from babyhood – leaped into his arms and landed there dead from a trapped air bubble in his lungs. I know how it marked me from an early age, falling in love with puppies that didn’t make it, having to nurse the old dogs in their last days. Do you think I enjoyed the days and nights I wasresponsible for the dog who had distemper? Someone had brought a sick dog to our kennel, and it hit one of our collies hard. At age 12, I nursed that dog in my bedroom. I carried all 80 pounds of him downstairs so he could relieve himself. I stood him up and held him, and then I carried him back up. I held him when the vet gave him his penicillin shots. And I’ll never forget the look the dog gave me one day when he saw the vet take out a different syringe. The dog knew what was happening, and it killed me but I held him while he took his last breath. I was the one who had to carry his body, covered in a blanket, downstairs for the last time. I was the one who had to take the shovel and dig the grave. I was the one who laid him to rest. This was my childhood and my adulthood over and over again. Were you there to help me? Were you there to have your hopes raised and dashed when a litter didn’t turn out or there were still births to deal with? Were you there to help me put down the old mutts and the old Lassies who couldn’t die by themselves buthad no quality of life left? Where you there for the hardships thatconstantly wore my father and me down, making us wonder why and how we carried on? No, you weren’t there, but the dogs were. The dogs we bred and were responsible for. The dogs we worked and cherished for each one’s talent. The dogs we loved. The dogs we lived for. The dogs who gave the world such great joy. The dogs who infused us with passion for our craft. The dogs whose deaths filled us with deep private pain.Now let’s look at your contribution, where and when you came into the picture. You came to me at an in between time; I was busy working, the Lassie fan club manager had retired, and theadvantages of computer technology were becoming obvious(something I knew nothing about but knew could be good forLassie). You came along just in time to take advantage of the cakewalk – the good times. You presented a plan to revitalize the fan club and give Lassie a web presence. Sounded good. Looked good. You volunteered. I said okay. Did I buy something from you? No. Did you buy something from me? No. Did you buy your way into my business or my personal life? No. Did I expect you to be decent dedicated people, as all Lassie fans have seemed to be? Yes. Did I give you access to the information and material you needed to handle the fan club and set up the web site? Yes. Did I get in your way when you included your own collie collectibles among the licensed Lassie merchandise? No. Did we have a friendlybusiness relationship? Yes. Would I even call it a personal friendship? Yes. Were you there to help when I had problems on the job? Yes, and I was very grateful. Did you make a difference in helping to show the power of a fan base? Absolutely.Did you profit by all this? You bet you did. You could tell people you were connected to a star. You could say the only way to reach the star was through you. You took full advantage of the growing power of the Web and the Internet to establish yourself as the direct line to me and my dog. Was that really true? Only partially. There was always the superior presence of a corporate licensor and the protective presence of my attorney. Did you dare think yourself on a par with them? You dared. In reality were you? Of course not. You were there to serve as intermediaries between the fans and the dog. Did you have to accompany Lassie and me on personal appearances? No! Did you do so because you wanted to be there? Yes. Was it helpful to have a booth of Lassie merchandise that you could run as a complementary venture? Sure. Was it necessary or mandatory? No. Did you get off on being part of a Lassie entourage? I know you did. Did it feed your ego and your sense of self? Again, I know it did. Did you feel important?  Everyone who has had to deal with you and your website knows the answer to that one.

So now let’s look at another aspect of “the buck” – power andjealousy. Any power you may have gained came to you through the real power of those who love Lassie. And let’s face it, Lassie has endured because of the generational consistency of my father’s and my breeding programs and training methods. It could have started and stopped with Pal – one dog, a bunch of movies, a great legacy right there. But it’s gone on for 66 years. Oh… and by the way, where did you say you were during that time? Where were you the day Pal came to my parents’ house and my father’s kennel? You only know about it from what you’ve read and what I’ve told you. Where were you when I was born, and Pal was my best friend and babysitter? You weren’t there. Where were you when my father and Pal made any of the movies? Were you present during the filming of any of the television episodes? No. Were you there when Lassie Jr. was diagnosed with cancer? Were you there to help him recuperate? Did you take the burden from my father or mother or sister or me? Were you on the road with my father or me during the lean years? Only my father and I know what it has taken to make and maintain Lassie through the years. Each dog was a wonderful living creature, not a model to beassembled with exchangeable parts. Only my father and I know what has gone on – the good, the bad, and the ugly. No one else is  that kind of insider. No one else is that kind of expert. 

For people to really learn the truth, they have to come to me. I’velived with Lassie every day of my life. Nobody knows what I know,  and anybody who says they do is lying to themselves as much as  to the rest of the world. You think because you run a website that  you’re an expert? You think you know the full extent of my personal life? My business life? My career? My legal dealings? My rights? I did open the door to you in many ways – more than I should have – but what you do know is old, obsolete, and incomplete. What you do know you have twisted, abused, exaggerated, or ignored to serve your own ends. What you don’t know would fill an encyclopedia. That’s right – you are not experts, and it’s clear you’re no longer fans. We all know what the source of that word is – fanatic – and that, in my opinion and from real raw experience, is what your true colors show you to be – obsessed with something you can never have or know. You were passengers during a short run of Lassie history.

Moving on to the rest of Truman’s motto – “stops here”. That’sright. It’s got to stop. Here and now. Pretending you’ve got power that you don’t. Pretending that you’re official when you’re not. Pretending that you have rights or authorization to do what you do and say what you say – and you don’t. How many times have I had attorneys contact you, demanding that you remove from your website anything that is my public and private property? You’ve been asked to remove all mention of me and my father, whose name and likeness I am responsible for protecting. All the dogs you pretend to worship are my dogs (and/or were my father’s). You have no right to put their images up on your site. You have no permission to do so from me. Any permission I granted years ago has been revoked and that revocation made clear to you in letters from attorneys. 

It’s been said that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.Interesting that you have completely revamped your website, making almost daily changes, now that I have my own website. Anybody with half an eye, brain, or wits can see the game of pursuit as well as the game of copycat you’re playing. And that doesn’t include the apparent stalking now attempting to take place at local events and appearances. Here’s another message for you: I’m not flattered. I don’t appreciate it. You look as though you’re grasping at straws to try to maintain your self-importance and a relationship that doesn’t exist. My father would call you solicitors, hucksters who come knocking on your door and interrupt your work and your life. Well, this door is closed and it’s not going to open. NOT EVER. Do yourself a favor. Take the time you chase after my friends, my dog’s fans, and me, spreading your ignorant lies, and instead spend that time with your dogs – the Lassie VIII offspring you got from me when your motives seemed purer. 

If I need to state it one more time for you to understand – and now the rest of the world understands it for you, here it is: You do not have my permission to post anything that has to do with me, my father, my dogs, my property in any shape or form.

This means: remove ALL those written and visual references from lassie.net. I revoked my authorization and ceased any participation years ago. You have abused any personal friendship or business association for several years now, and you continue to exploit the time you spent in MY home, in MYcompany, and with MY dogs for your own gain. That you state your plans to profit from your so-called personal experience with Lassie and me with a book of letters and an autobiography is the height of bad taste, shows a lack of morality and ethics, and reveals total hypocrisy. Speaking of which, I don’t want to forget to mention YOUR ownership of the domain name that is MY name. Exactly why did you snap up “bobweatherwax.com” two and a half years ago? If you meant to give it to me as a birthday or Christmas present, you’ve missed the chance several times over. Why are you keeping it? Or are you just intent on keeping it from me?

The buck has stopped, and you will be receiving confirmation through my legal and business representatives. Oh – and that includes the violation of using your Lassie offspring for commercial purposes. Better go back and read your purchase/adoption agreement. Better yet, go to my FAQ page… it’s right there for everyone to read and see.

Tags: Bob and Laddie, Bob Weatherwax, Laddie Son Of Lassie, Lassie, Lassie Name, Rudd Weatherwax