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★ Acting

Richard Monahan

· Active 1950–1982
▶ Watch on SassyFlix 1 film available
White Dog

White Dog

1982 ★ 6.8
as Assistant Director

During the American civil rights movement, white actress Julie Sawyer accidentally runs over a stray White Shepherd dog. After the veterinarian treats him, Julie takes him home while trying to find his owners. A rapist breaks into her house and tries to attack her, but the dog protects her. She decides to adopt him, against the wishes of her boyfriend Roland Graele. Unbeknown to her, the dog was trained by a white racist to attack black people on sight. The dog sneaks out of the house, and kills a black truck driver. Later, Julie takes the dog to work with her, and he mauls a black actress on the set. Julie takes the dog to a trainer, Carruthers, who tells her to euthanize the dog. Another dog trainer, Keys, who is black, decides to try to retrain the dog. He dons protective gear and keeps the dog in a large enclosure, taking him out on a chain and exposing himself to the dog each day and making sure he is the only one to feed or care for the dog. The dog escapes and kills an elderly black man in a church. Keys recovers him, and opts not to turn him over to authorities to continue the training, over Julie's protests. He warns her that the training has reached a tipping point, where the dog might be cured or go insane. He believes that curing the dog will discourage white racists from training dogs like this. Eventually, the dog becomes friendly towards Keys. Julie confronts the dog's original owner, who has come to claim him. She angrily tells him the dog has been cured by a black person in front of his grandchildren who knew the dog to be a loving pet. Just as Julie and Keys celebrate their victory, the dog, without warning, turns its attention to Carruthers and attacks him. To save his employer's life, Keys is forced to shoot and kill the dog.

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Filmography

18 credits
1980s 1 credit
1982
White Dog as Assistant Director
Movie ★ 6.6
1970s 3 credits
1978
Taxi as Winslow
TV ★ 7.3
1975
Shampoo as Waiter (uncredited)
Movie ★ 6.0
1974
Blazing Saddles as Dancer (uncredited)
Movie ★ 7.2
1960s 1 credit
1969
Hello, Dolly! as Dancer (uncredited)
Movie ★ 7.0
1950s 13 credits
1959
Lone Texan as Jesse
Movie ★ 7.0
1958
Thundering Jets as Mechanic #1
Movie ★ 9.0
1956
Movie ★ 6.1
1952
Movie ★ 4.1
1951
Danger Zone as Henry - the Bartender
Movie ★ 4.2
1951
G.I. Jane as Tired Pfc.
Movie ★ 6.3
1951
Pier 23 as Henry - Bartender
Movie ★ 5.5
1951
The Steel Helmet as Private Baldy
Movie ★ 7.0
1951
Fixed Bayonets! as Walowicz (uncredited)
Movie ★ 6.6
1951
FBI Girl as Donald
Movie ★ 6.2
1951
Roaring City as Henry - the Bartender
Movie ★ 5.1
1951
Leave It to the Marines as Pvt. Partridge
Movie ★ 7.0
1950
Breakthrough as Pvt. "Four-Eff" Nelson
Movie ★ 7.0