COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL | WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 16, 2019 | 5A
Pet Tips
‘n’ Tales
Celebrating a Keaton Classic
By Mary Ellen
“Angel Scribe”
Gracie needs manners!
Gracie (left) loves cats and hates dogs — which is a
good thing for her kitty sister, Fiesta.
H
COURTESY PHOTO
Buster Keaton’s 1926 design of the Civil War town of Marietta, Ga. circa 1861. Fourteenth Street in
Cottage Grove was a dirt road with false-front buildings constructed on each side to create the town
used in the film’s opening sequence. At the end of the film, the scene was modified to become
Chattanooga, Tenn. Today, Safeway is located to the left and Domino’s Pizza and the Cottage Grove
Post Office are to the right. In the background is Hansen Butte, seen many times in scenes shot from
various angles.
Historical Society hosting annual Buster Keaton Film Night
The annual Buster Keaton Film
Night, a Cottage Grove Historical
Society fundraiser, will be featur-
ing the Keaton silent film classic,
“The General.”
This fun evening celebrates
the silent film star, who was the
son of vaudeville performers and
grew up around the stage. His
fame would peak in the silent
film era as an actor and director.
While known for his deadpan
facial expression during come-
dic routines, Keaton’s true genius
can be seen in his development
of comedic stunts which he per-
formed himself. Many of his rou-
tines have been replicated over
the years.
Keaton came to Cottage Grove
in 1926 to film what would be-
come the blockbuster hit of the
time, “The General.” Local streets
became the backdrop and local
landmarks can be seen in the
background of many shots.
Cottage Grove’s railroad tracks
were key to filming this Civil War
tale based, loosely, on the real sto-
ry of the chase to recover a stolen
supply train.
The Buster Keaton Film night
is an annual event presented by
the Cottage Grove Historical So-
ciety to celebrate Keaton and his
contribution to Cottage Grove’s
cinematic beginnings.
Participants will enjoy a couple
of his short films, followed by the
feature. Join the Historical Soci-
ety this Saturday, Oct. 19, at the
Cottage Grove Community Cen-
ter, 700 Gibbs Street.
Doors open at 7 p.m. and the
show begins at 7:30 p.m.
There is a $5 admission fee, and
concessions will be available. Step
back in time, smell the fresh air-
popped popcorn, hear the hum of
a reel-to-reel projector and enjoy
the magic of silent films.
LORANE NEWS
• The next CAL School
Board meeting is next
Thurs., Oct. 17, at Apple-
for The Sentinel
gate Elementary.
• Everyone attending
• Lorane Grange hosts
the RAC movie at Lorane spaghetti dinner and bingo
Grange Saturday evening is this Fri., Oct. 18, begin-
had a wonderful time.
ning at 5:30 p.m. with din-
Contributed by
Lil Thompson
high school. Come by
Wednesday from 3:30 to
5 p.m. in the music room.
The class is from beginners
to advanced and everyone
had fun learning.
Transmissions Plus &
6-day
weather forecast
THURSDAY
FRIDAY
56° | 47°
57° | 48°
Rain
Rain
SATURDAY
SUNDAY
52° | 45°
57° | 47°
Rain
Rain
MONDAY
TUESDAY
65° | 48°
ner in the hall. Bingo starts
at 6:30 p.m. The progressive
bingo has grown. Come
have great food, great prices
and fun with family, friends
and neighbors.
• You can still join the
Ukulele Group at Crow
63° | 43°
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eartbroken after the passing of their dog, Emily,
John and Donna were dog-less for the first time in
38 years!
“We can’t live without dogs — just can’t. We had to get
another dog ASAP,” admitted Donna.
An hour’s drive south at a pet shelter, she located a dog
needing a forever home that resembled Emily, except
this Dachshund/Beagle cross, Gracie, had floppy ears.
“The dog was shy and standoffish, but we wanted her,
especially since her adoption profile read, ‘she loves oth-
er dogs, cats and children,’” said Donna. “Could it be
more perfect?”
Two days later, “Gracie” was spayed; and as John
walked her to the car, they noticed that life with Gracie
may be a tad different than it had been with Emily. Gra-
cie jumped behind the driver’s seat and wouldn’t budge.
Donna sat in the back seat consoling their new pound
pup.
Donna surmised, “If I hugged her for the hour’s drive
home, then maybe she’ll feel safe and relax. But the
scared dog did not respond as planned.”
When they arrived home, John and Donna discovered
that their new dog behaved more like a cat than a dog as
it leaped onto their furniture, just like a cat. It had other
cat-like behaviors, so they assumed that it was raised by
cats. Which may explain her next behavior.
Excited to walk their new dog, they put a harness on
Gracie and proudly led her around the neighborhood.
“Things did not go well,” said Donna.
They discovered that the dog, who was supposed to be
as peaceful as Gandhi, did not like other dogs — at all.
“She hated dogs; big ones, small ones, every dog she
met,” said Donna.
They promptly signed Gracie up for doggy obedience
classes and, in the meantime, amended their walking be-
havior to meet her limitations.
“Well, her obedience classes did not go well either,”
said Donna. “After three exhausting lessons we decided
to just keep her away from other dogs. We even thought
of contacting TV’s famous dog trainer, Cesar Millan,
because when a dog approached, we had to reverse di-
rections, pulling her down the road barking. It was like
hanging onto a heavy log as it rolled down a hill. Walk-
ing a crazed 50-pound dog is exhausting. Gracie was
teaching us that at four years of age, ‘You can’t teach an
old dog new tricks!’ Maybe her cat mentality made her
hate dogs? Another mystery!”
All Donna knew about her dog’s background was that
she was found on the streets after delivering numerous
litters of puppies. The canine mother’s face has scars
from previous dog encounters while fending for their
lives.
“We love and accept Gracie for the way she is and
work around her PTSD and separation anxiety,” said
Donna. “If she doesn’t see me, she panics and, like most
mothers, I have not been to the bathroom alone since
her adoption. She is an affectionate dog who absolutely
adores us and her two kitty siblings, Lily and Fiesta. She
loves attention and people giving her pats, belly rubs and
she snuggles with the cats.”
In the five years that Gracie has kept Donna and John
on their toes, she is slowly getting used to other dogs and
has a few dog friends. Their house sitter, Alice (of the
famous Buddy rescue article) brings Buddy with her and
the dogs are best pals.
“We are dedicated dog lovers and, in our home, ‘the
dog always wins!’” said Donna. “We will never know
what shaped her before she arrived. We’ve learned to
read Gracie’s body language. We adopted her for life. We
were her hope and her love for us overrides any negative
aspects. She is goofy, weird, makes us laugh, is a good
guard dog and she has a home that dearly loves her.”
MAINTAINING YOUR VEHICLE AFFORDABLY
Rain
Rain
Prepare more than a policy
to plan in event of disaster.
We can develop your business’ emergency plan.
WE LIVE IN THE SAME TOWN WE WORK IN
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Call today (541) 942-0555.
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TIPS:
“Sleep quality is often affected by depression and for-
tunately, sharing your life with a dog can improve your
quality of sleep,” writes Canadian pet trainer and colum-
nist, Joan Klucha. “A Mayo clinical sleep disorder study
found that people who slept with their pets felt more se-
cure, relaxed and content when their pets slept close by,
which led to falling asleep faster, staying asleep longer
and an overall better quality of sleep.”
Share your fur-avorite pet memory or adventure at
angelscribe@msn.com. Visit Pet Tips ‘n’ Tales on Face-
book at/www.facebook.com/PetTipsandTales
Humane Society for Neuter/Spay Assistance Program.
