Before “Benji,” Camp’s only Hollywood experience was playing an extra in “Home From the Hill” (1960) starring Robert Mitchum. But he managed to raise $500,000 to make “Benji.” The first film follows a stray mixed-breed dog who rescues two kids from kidnappers, a la “Lassie.” Camp coaxed doc actor Higgins out of retirement, following roles in projects including “Petticoat Junction,” to play the title role.
Camp directed 11 films over the course of his career, including comedies like Hawmps (1976) and The Double McGuffin (1979), but he was best known for his many Benji projects. When he decided to make the original movie, he had no experience working in Hollywood. He raised around $500,000 and got Higgins, the canine performer, out of retirement to star in the movie.
While he also wrote a series of books about horses, including the popular The Soul of a Horse and Why Horses Are Barefoot, Camp’s most enduring contribution to Hollywood was and remains the beloved and heroic mutt introduced in Camp’s independently financed 1973 family film Benji. In reality, “Benji” was played by a small golden mixed-breed dog named Higgins, who had already become familiar to the American public through years as the dog named Dog on CBS’ hit sitcom Petticoat Junction.
Owned and trained by famed animal trainer Frank Inn, Higgins died in 1975 at age 17. Subsequent Benjis have included the original’s progeny.
