“If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog,” said Harry Truman. Portraits of presidents with their dogs in quiet moments of reflection or boisterous fun have played a role in forming perceptions of the character and personality of our presidents in recent years.


Fun Fact: Fala becomes a movie star.



Fala with news photographers at the White House, 1942. Franklin D. Roosevelt Library

In 1943, MGM made a short-subject film relating the World War II home front story from Fala’s perspective. The studio made a second installment in 1946 after his master’s death that included Fala’s tour of Hyde Park, the Roosevelt family estate, and future site of a presidential library.