Robert Weatherwax, a second-generation Hollywood animal trainer and the son of Lassie co-creator Rudd Weatherwax, has died. He was 83.
A Day in the Life of Lassie – Promotional Video by Dog Trainer Rudd Weatherwax
The late trainer's son, Robert Jr., who also continued the family business, announced his father's passing on Friday with a throwback photo of the two of them and one of the descendants of the rough collie owned by original Lassie dog actor Pal.
"It is with great sadness that I announce the passing of my legendary dog training father," Robert Jr. wrote in the post. "He was born exactly one year after my grandfather's MGM Lassie – 'Pal'. I am proud to be the last representative of the greatest dog training family in history."
Rudd created Lassie for CBS in 1954 with producer Robert Maxwell. Robert Weatherwax Sr. joined his father on the show in the early 1960s and continued the Lassie legacy after Rudd died in 1985 at age 77. The family voted in 2002 to sell the character's trademark.