Do-Gooder
Full Name
Buck
Alias
California Dog
Southland Dog King Ghost Dog Evil Spirit
Origin
The Call of the Wild
Occupation
House dog (formerly)
Sled dog (formerly) Alpha of the wolf pack
Powers/Skills
Strength
Speed Endurance Leadership
Hobby
Being with his owners.
Hunting.
Goals
Become a successful sled dog leader (succeeded).
Find love and happiness for someone who cares for him (succeeded). Find freedom from humanity with his own kind (succeeded).
Family
Elmo (father)
Shep (mother) Carol (mate) Lou and Bruno (sons)
Friends/Allies
Judge Miller (first owner)
Millers children Millers servants Toots Ysabel Fox Terriers Manuel (formerly) The Man in the Red Sweater Francois Perrault Curly Dave Billee Joe Sol-leks Pike Dub Teek Koona Dolly (formerly) Scotch Half-BreedJohn Thornton † (owner) Nig Skeet Hans Pete Wild Brother Wolf Pack
Enemies
Spitz (arch-nemesis)
Hal (Other Arch-nemesis) Charles Mercedes Manuel Yeehats Black Burton Dolly Wild Huskies The Man in the Red Sweater (formerly) The Baggage Man The Saloon-Keeper Smugglers Rival Wolves
Type of Hero
Freedom Fighter
Former Slave Leader
Buck is the main protagonist of Jack Londons 1903 short adventure novel The Call of the Wild, and its adaptations. At first, Buck is a pampered dog living in the Santa Clara Valley in California. However, the Judges gardner, Manuel captures him and sells him to the Yukon. As the story progresses, Buck changes as he is forced to work as a sled dog in the harsh conditions of the Yukon. However, a man named John Thornton rescues him and adopts him and Buck begins to become part of the wild.
He was portrayed by Terry Notary in the 2020 film, who also played King Kong, Groot and Rocket.
Buck is a large and powerful St Bernard-Scotch Shepherd living happily in Californias Santa Clara Valley as the pampered pet of rich Judge Miller and his family. However, he is stolen by the gardeners assistant, Manuel, and sold to finance his gambling addiction. He is ill-treated and starved by the smugglers, while being shipped to Seattle. He attacks a trainer known as the “man in the red sweater”, but he teaches him the “law of the club” until he tires out and shows some kindness towards him. Buck is then sold to a pair of French-Canadian mailers named François and Perrault, who take him with them to the Klondike region of Canada. There, they train him as a sled dog. From his teammates, he quickly learns to survive cold winter nights and the pack society. Buck befriends a female Newfoundland dog named Curly, but she gets killed by a pack of wild huskies. A rivalry develops between Buck and the evil lead dog Spitz. Buck eventually beats Spitz in a fight to the death. Spitz is killed by the pack after his defeat by Buck, and Buck eventually becomes the leader of the team.
When Francois and Perrault reach Dawson with their dispatches, and are given new orders from the Canadian government, the team is then sold to a “Scotch half-breed” man, who is also working the mail service. The dogs must carry heavy loads to the mining areas, and the journeys they make are tiresome and long. One of the team, a morose husky named Dave, becomes sick and the half-breed is forced to put him out of his misery.
Bucks next owners are a trio of inexperienced and incompetent stampeders named Hal, Charles and Mercedes. They struggle to control the sled and ignore helpful advice from others, in particular the warnings that the spring melt poses dangers. They overfeed the dogs and then starve them when the food runs out. On their journey they meet John Thornton, an experienced outdoorsman, who notices the dogs have been poorly treated and are in a weakened condition. He warns the trio against crossing the river, but they ignore his advice and order Buck to move on. Exhausted, starving, and sensing the danger ahead, Buck refuses and continues to lie unmoving in the snow. After Buck is beaten by Hal, Thornton recognizes him to be a remarkable dog. Disgusted by the drivers treatment of Buck, Thornton hits Hal with the butt of his axe, cuts Buck free from his traces, and tells the trio he is keeping him, much to Hals displeasure. After some argument, the trio leaves and tries to cross the river, but as Thornton warned, the ice breaks, and the three fall into the river and drown, along with the sled and neglected dogs.
Buck comes to love and grow devoted to Thornton as he nurses him back to health. He saves Thornton when the man is being beaten by a gangster named Black Burton and falls into a river. After Thornton takes him on trips to pan for gold, a bonanza king named Matthewson, wagers Thornton on the dogs strength and devotion. Buck wins by breaking a half-ton sled free of the frozen ground, pulling it 100 yards and winning US$1,600 in gold dust. A king of the Skookum Benches offers a large sum to buy Buck, but Thornton has grown fond of him and declines. Using his winnings, John Thornton retires his debts, but elects to continue searching for gold.
While Thornton and his two friends Pete and Hans are panning in a campsite, Buck explores the wilderness and socializes with a timber wolf from a local pack. However, Buck decides not join the wolves and elects to return to Thornton, mirroring Johns refusal to sell Buck. However, Buck returns to the campsite to find Hans and Pete murdered, then sees John Thornton suffered the same fate. Buck finds out the murderers were a tribe of Yeehats when he realizes the Indians also stole John Thorntons luggage (as the items still bore the kindly mans scent). Buck eventually kills the natives to avenge Thornton, and he then is attacked by an entire pack of wolves. Buck wins the fight, then finds that his wild brother was in the pack he fought. Buck then follows the wolf and its pack into the forest, and answers the call of the wild. The legend of Buck is spread amongst other Indian tribes as the “Ghost Dog of the Northland”. Buck comes out of the backwoods once a year on the anniversary of his attack on the Yeehats, at the former campsite where he was last with John Thornton, Hans and Pete, in order to mourn their deaths.
Adapted from the beloved literary classic, The Call Of The Wild vividly brings to life the story of Buck, a big-hearted dog, and the man (Harrison Ford) he must learn to trust. Buck’s life is turned upside down when he’s pulled from domestic life in California to become a member of a mail delivery sled team in the Alaskan Yukon during the 1890s.DETAILS
Adapted from Jack London’s beloved literary classic, The Call Of The Wild vividly brings to life the story of a big-hearted dog named Buck, and John Thornton (Harrison Ford), the man Buck must learn to trust. Abruptly uprooted from his pampered lifestyle in sunny California, Buck finds himself in the exotic wilds of the Alaskan Yukon. As the newest dog on a mail delivery sled team during the turbulent Gold Rush days of the 1890s, Buck has left behind a once comfortable life for one of hardship and survival. Life again changes dramatically for Buck when he meets Thornton, a loner-turned-adventurer, and it’s clear that the two are destined to experience the adventure of a lifetime. Navigating through an environment that is as unforgiving as it is spectacular, the journey profoundly transforms both man and dog. With its unique blend of intense live action and cutting-edge animation, The Call Of The Wild is a visually stunning experience featuring realistic, emotionally authentic characters.
While Thornton and his two friends Pete and Hans are panning in a campsite, Buck explores the wilderness and socializes with a timber wolf from a local pack. However, Buck decides not join the wolves and elects to return to Thornton, mirroring Johns refusal to sell Buck. However, Buck returns to the campsite to find Hans and Pete murdered, then sees John Thornton suffered the same fate. Buck finds out the murderers were a tribe of Yeehats when he realizes the Indians also stole John Thorntons luggage (as the items still bore the kindly mans scent). Buck eventually kills the natives to avenge Thornton, and he then is attacked by an entire pack of wolves. Buck wins the fight, then finds that his wild brother was in the pack he fought. Buck then follows the wolf and its pack into the forest, and answers the call of the wild. The legend of Buck is spread amongst other Indian tribes as the “Ghost Dog of the Northland”. Buck comes out of the backwoods once a year on the anniversary of his attack on the Yeehats, at the former campsite where he was last with John Thornton, Hans and Pete, in order to mourn their deaths.
Do-Gooder
Full Name
Buck
Alias
California Dog
Southland Dog King Ghost Dog Evil Spirit
Origin
The Call of the Wild
Occupation
House dog (formerly)
Sled dog (formerly) Alpha of the wolf pack
Powers/Skills
Strength
Speed Endurance Leadership
Hobby
Being with his owners.
Hunting.
Goals
Become a successful sled dog leader (succeeded).
Find love and happiness for someone who cares for him (succeeded). Find freedom from humanity with his own kind (succeeded).
Family
Elmo (father)
Shep (mother) Carol (mate) Lou and Bruno (sons)
Friends/Allies
Judge Miller (first owner)
Millers children Millers servants Toots Ysabel Fox Terriers Manuel (formerly) The Man in the Red Sweater Francois Perrault Curly Dave Billee Joe Sol-leks Pike Dub Teek Koona Dolly (formerly) Scotch Half-BreedJohn Thornton † (owner) Nig Skeet Hans Pete Wild Brother Wolf Pack
Enemies
Spitz (arch-nemesis)
Hal (Other Arch-nemesis) Charles Mercedes Manuel Yeehats Black Burton Dolly Wild Huskies The Man in the Red Sweater (formerly) The Baggage Man The Saloon-Keeper Smugglers Rival Wolves
Type of Hero
Freedom Fighter
Former Slave Leader
Buck comes to love and grow devoted to Thornton as he nurses him back to health. He saves Thornton when the man is being beaten by a gangster named Black Burton and falls into a river. After Thornton takes him on trips to pan for gold, a bonanza king named Matthewson, wagers Thornton on the dogs strength and devotion. Buck wins by breaking a half-ton sled free of the frozen ground, pulling it 100 yards and winning US$1,600 in gold dust. A king of the Skookum Benches offers a large sum to buy Buck, but Thornton has grown fond of him and declines. Using his winnings, John Thornton retires his debts, but elects to continue searching for gold.
Buck is the main protagonist of Jack Londons 1903 short adventure novel The Call of the Wild, and its adaptations. At first, Buck is a pampered dog living in the Santa Clara Valley in California. However, the Judges gardner, Manuel captures him and sells him to the Yukon. As the story progresses, Buck changes as he is forced to work as a sled dog in the harsh conditions of the Yukon. However, a man named John Thornton rescues him and adopts him and Buck begins to become part of the wild.
Buck is a large and powerful St Bernard-Scotch Shepherd living happily in Californias Santa Clara Valley as the pampered pet of rich Judge Miller and his family. However, he is stolen by the gardeners assistant, Manuel, and sold to finance his gambling addiction. He is ill-treated and starved by the smugglers, while being shipped to Seattle. He attacks a trainer known as the “man in the red sweater”, but he teaches him the “law of the club” until he tires out and shows some kindness towards him. Buck is then sold to a pair of French-Canadian mailers named François and Perrault, who take him with them to the Klondike region of Canada. There, they train him as a sled dog. From his teammates, he quickly learns to survive cold winter nights and the pack society. Buck befriends a female Newfoundland dog named Curly, but she gets killed by a pack of wild huskies. A rivalry develops between Buck and the evil lead dog Spitz. Buck eventually beats Spitz in a fight to the death. Spitz is killed by the pack after his defeat by Buck, and Buck eventually becomes the leader of the team.
Jack Londons 1903 novel, “Call of the Wild,” is about the brutal realities beneath the thin veneer of civilization. “Call of the Wild,” the 2020 movie, is mostly about cute dog shots.
In place of Londons harsh truths, we get dog antics and heroics. Buck, in the movie, is a kind of super dog, rushing to rescue a human from drowning or the sled from an avalanche. He even saves a wolf from being washed away in some rapids. And when hes not performing noble deeds, hes getting into adorable mischief: decimating a table laden with food or hiding the liquor from good master John Thornton (Harrison Ford.)
Thornton lost his young son to illness years before the start of the film, and Buck effectively becomes his surrogate son. Instead of a story about the triumph of the wild over civilization, the movie becomes a tale about grief, reconciliation and healing. Or more precisely, those themes stump around each other in the snow, confusing the tracks and never quite getting back to camp. Stripped of Londons mean-spirited violence, the movie version of “Call of the Wild” doesnt have the propulsive inevitability of the original. Instead, it meanders, from adorable set piece to adorable set piece. The movie is the equivalent of looking at WeRateDogs online, except that the writing on the WeRateDogs account is better.
In its slobbering rush for kid-friendly credentials, the film carefully skirts the books fiercer aspects. Defeated dogs quietly retreat rather than being torn to pieces by the pack. Feckless city slickers are just embarrassed, rather than killed, by their lack of knowledge on the trail. And so forth
The novel sees Bucks journey into atavism as a triumph over civilized weakness and pretense. Bucks first beating at the hands of a cruel master is treated as almost a religious conversion: “That club was revelation… The facts of life took on a fiercer aspect,” London writes. London also exults in “the decay or going to pieces of [Bucks] moral nature” as the dog learns to steal food from humans and other dogs alike. “It was all well enough in the Southland, under the law of love and fellowship, to respect private property and personal feelings,” London says. But in the north, “under the law of club and fang, whoso took such things into account was a fool.” Buck becomes a tougher, more awesome, more interesting dog because he comes to understand the hungry necessity of selfishness, cruelty and mercilessness.
FAQ
What movie has Harrison Ford in a dog named Buck in it?
Is Call of the Wild based on a true story?