Dane Ranch
Original Pitch by John Cawley – September 1997
BEHIND THE STORY...
They say write what you know. Since my wife and I breed and show Great Danes, it seemed like a place to start. Danes have such a likeable personality that blends heart with simplicity. (Scooby Doo, Marmaduke). My wife and I discussed several ideas, but the one I liked the best placed them all in a Wild West setting. Rachel created a nice piece of pitch art using all of our current kids in western gear. So I adjusted the idea to include cats and an Akita. In fact, by including our Akita, it gave it an "east-west" sensibility like the classic KUNG FU series. And letting the cats be the straight characters, we felt we could go extremely broad with the Danes.
In the end, it turned out to be the wrong direction. FOX, Disney and Warners looked at the pitch and proclaimed "westerns were dead". In fact FOX thought the ‘wild west’ was as unappealing, and unknown to modern kids as the circus.
And now my pitch...
Dane Ranch: The Wild and Woofy West
An Animated Series Proposal by John & Rachel Cawley
The Dane Ranch, pride of the West, is on hard times. The three remaining Dane brains haven’t been able to make things work since they took over. Spot, the self-proclaimed boss, is more of a complainer and ego than a leader. Ears, the slower of the slow, can’t seem to get things right. Bess, the lady of the ranch, is only an expert when it comes to being a girl. These canine stooges have all but demolished this once proud ranch. Their three hired cats, Fats (a large orange tubby), Chan (a lanky lady) and Manx (a tiny, feminine terror) have done their feline best to keep the ranch in some shape. Their one hope appears when a noble Akita, known as Nanji Deska, comes to visit. Can his secrets and patience of the East bring order to this wild of a west?
text, image and format © John Cawley
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