A generation was introduced to classic literature through the efforts of PBS and a quick-witted Jack Russell Terrier on the TV series Wishbone. Now, 30 years later, a new documentary is examining the show and its legacy. Collider is proud to exclusively present a preview sneak peek of What’s the Story, Wishbone?, in which the show’s producers reveal how they chose their dog star.
In the new clip, series creator Rick Duffield heads to Hollywood with the show’s creatives to audition dogs of all shapes and sizes for the lead of the show. They’d auditioned a whole litter of applicants, and none of them seemed right for the part, until their last audition: Soccer, a Jack Russell Terrier who’d already appeared in a number of commercials. Soccer immediately captured their attention with his signature move, a jumping backflip. Furthermore, the dog’s expressive face conveyed a deep intelligence, a trait that would be necessary to portray the literature-loving pup.
The series had its star, but the hard part had only begun. To see the rest of Soccer’s path to public television stardom and Millennial immortality, you’ll have to watch What’s the Story, Wishbone? when it airs on your local PBS affiliate, or on video-on-demand when it makes its worldwide digital debut on June 10.
Collider Exclusive · Universe Personality Quiz Which Iconic Universe Do You Belong in the Most? Star Wars · Lord of the Rings · Harry Potter · Game of Thrones · Star Trek
Five legendary universes. Five completely different visions of what the world could be — or already was. One of them is the world your instincts, your values, and your particular way of existing were built for. Eight questions will tell you which one.
Star Wars
Lord of the Rings
Harry Potter
Game of Thrones
Star Trek
01
What gives your life its deepest sense of meaning? Every universe is built around a different answer to this question.
02
Which kind of world do you most want to inhabit? The environment shapes who you become. Choose carefully.
03
How do you prefer your conflicts resolved? The shape of a world’s conflicts tells you everything about its soul.
04
Who do you want beside you when things get difficult? Your ideal companions reveal the world you were made for.
05
What is your relationship with power? How you seek, wield, or resist power is the map of who you are.
06
How does your universe treat good and evil? A world’s moral architecture tells you more about it than any map.
07
What role would you naturally fall into? Every universe has archetypes. Which one fits you without trying?
08
What do you ultimately believe about the future? The answer to this is the clearest window into which universe already lives inside you.
Your Universe Has Been Chosen You Belong In…
Your answers point to the iconic universe your values, your instincts, and your particular way of seeing the world were built for. This is where you would find your people — and your purpose.
A Galaxy Far, Far Away
Star Wars
You believe in the cause — in the idea that freedom is worth fighting for even when the odds are impossible and the empire is vast.
You are drawn to the moral clarity of a universe where hope itself is a form of resistance.
You’d find your people in the Rebellion — a ragtag coalition of true believers held together by conviction more than resources.
Star Wars is fundamentally a story about ordinary people choosing to matter in an extraordinary conflict — and that is exactly your kind of story.
The Force may or may not be with you. But the will to use it for something larger than yourself certainly is.
Middle-earth
Lord of the Rings
You understand, in the deepest part of yourself, that the journey matters as much as the destination — and that the world’s beauty is worth protecting even at great cost.
Middle-earth is a world of ancient wonder, deep friendship, and a darkness that only retreats when enough small acts of courage accumulate.
You would thrive here because you value the fellowship more than the glory — the road more than the arrival.
Tolkien’s universe rewards patience, loyalty, and the willingness to carry something heavy across a very long distance.
Those are not burdens to you. They are simply how you move through the world.
The Wizarding World
Harry Potter
You believe that love, loyalty, and doing what’s right are not naive sentiments — they are the most powerful forces in any world, magical or otherwise.
The Wizarding World is a place of wonder hidden in plain sight, where learning is transformative and the bonds you form at school follow you into every battle.
You would flourish here because you take both the magic and the friendships seriously — and you understand that one without the other is incomplete.
Harry Potter’s universe ultimately rewards those who choose to stand for something even when standing is terrifying.
That choice — made quietly, without guarantee — is something you understand completely.
Westeros · The Known World
Game of Thrones
You see the world clearly — its power structures, its hypocrisies, its brutal arithmetic — and you are not paralysed by that clarity. You use it.
Westeros is a world that rewards intelligence, adaptability, and the willingness to understand that every alliance is also a negotiation.
You would survive here — possibly thrive here — because you don’t confuse the world as it is with the world as you’d like it to be.
Game of Thrones is a story about what happens when the idealists and the realists collide. You are sharp enough to know which one lasts longer.
Winter always comes. You are already prepared.
The United Federation of Planets
Star Trek
You believe the future is worth building — that curiosity, cooperation, and the expansion of understanding are not just ideals but the most practical path forward for any civilisation.
Star Trek is a universe where the questions matter as much as the answers, and where encountering something utterly alien is cause for wonder rather than fear.
You would belong here because you are fundamentally optimistic about what intelligence and decency can achieve — while being honest about how hard that achievement is.
The Federation is the universe’s most ambitious thought experiment: what if we actually got better?
You don’t just hope that’s possible. You think it’s the only thing worth working toward.
What Was ‘Wishbone’ About?
Wishbone was the pet of Joe (Jordan Wall), a preteen from the town of Oakdale. In every episode, Joe, his friends and family, or even the mischievous Wishbone himself, would encounter a situation that would remind the well-read Wishbone of a work of classic literature; Wishbone’s thoughts, conveyed by voice actor Larry Brantley, could be heard by the audience but not the other characters on the show.
The show would then cut to a condensed (but often not sanitized) re-enactment of that work, with Wishbone, in era-appropriate and adorable costume, playing the role of the main character. It featured a wide range of works, from The Odyssey to The Tempest to Sherlock Holmes, and even stories from The Bible, African folktales, and Dakota mythology. The series was filmed on location in the Texan cities Allen and Plano, and ran for 50 episodes, plus a feature-length finale special, Wishbone’s Dog Days of the West. Soccer died in 2001 at age 13. The series lives on to this day in reruns and the memories of a generation who had the series as their introduction to the world of literature.
What’s the Story, Wishbone? is directed by Joey Stewart, one of the original series’ directors, and features contributions from fellow talents like Duffield, Brantley, producer Betty Buckley, head writer Stephanie Simpson, trainer Jackie Kaptan, and actors MaryChris Wall, Angee Hughes, Jeanne Simpson, and Matt Tompkins. Also featured in the documentary are comedian Mo Rocca, who got his start as a writer on the series, and notable Texans Dan Rather and George W. Bush.
What’s the Story, Wishbone? will make its debut on video on demand on June 10. Stay tuned to Collider for future updates.
Release Date
1995 – 1998-00-00
Directors
Ken Harrison, Rick Duffield, Bert Guthrie, Fred Holmes
![The Dog Behind ‘Wishbone’ Didn’t Just Audition — He Stole the Whole Show [Exclusive]](https://static0.colliderimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/wishbone-1.jpg?w=1600&h=900&fit=crop "The Dog Behind ‘Wishbone’ Didn’t Just Audition — He Stole the Whole Show [Exclusive]")