Editorial: November 24, 2023

That’s what it was this past weekend as the Kennel Club of Philadelphia was filmed for its Thanksgiving Day televised dog show. While Philadelphia doesn’t boast the largest membership, what it does have is a small group of working members who put on a really good dog show. Proving that, against public opinion, you don't need a huge membership — just a helpful working membership. Running the dog show while adjusting to the needs of the talented Carson production staff and the NBC television crew, they somehow make it seamless. Every year they streamline the production so that it really doesn’t interfere with the running of the dog show. They put it all together and produce a well-run event. With all that goes on, the show still ends relatively early. Of all the current televised dog-show events, this draws the largest audience, aided by the major network NBC and airing at the most ideal viewing time slot, following the Thanksgiving Day Parade at noon Eastern time. Added to this is the public that attends the dog show. This year I’m told they are back to numbers that are pre-pandemic. It would be difficult not to mention the hard work done by club president Wayne Ferguson, whose melodious voice fills the arena as he describes each breed being judged; vice president Stanley Broadbent, the chief steward in the group ring who gets the dogs in quickly and lined up for the cameras; show chairman Frank Paulo, and Harry Booker, who sees to everyone’s needs and does yeoman’s work of getting everyone where they should be and to see that they are well fed — an amazing gentleman who would be an asset to any show-giving club. The members of the Philadelphia club always have some kind of event on Friday evening, and this year was no exception. The Friday-night dinner included Take the Lead as it celebrated its 30th year of helping those of us in need. Among the Take the Lead board members present were Tom Bradley, Dottie Collier, president Mary Miller, Mari-Beth O’Neill, Randy Garren, Susan Sprung, Pam Beale, Amy Green and Jeff Pepper. Remember that Take the Lead is there for all of us, but they need to know when help is needed. Contact the Take the Lead office for any and all information you might need. Next year you should put the Kennel Club of Philadelphia on your list of shows to attend. You might even get yourself on national television, which would be proof positive to your friends and relatives that you are indeed at a dog show. But dress for the camera: Remember, it’s lights, action, camera.