NIPPER THE BRISTOL BORN DOGHe was a mongrel with a touch of bull-terrier and a century later he's still celebrated for his role as the loyal pooch listening to His Master's Voice.
The Bristol-born dog was bought as a pup in 1884 by flamboyant Bristol theatrical artist Mark Barraud and the two became inseparable.
Nipper is perhaps the best-known and most loved advertising trademark. In the United States, we know him as the "RCA dog." But he started life in Bristol, England in 1884. Nipper was a mutt, part bull terrier and a trace of fox terrier.
When his master died he became the pet of the Barraud brothers, Mark and Francis. At Francis Barraud's photographic studio, Nipper would listen attentively to the old phonograph.
NIPPER AND THE GRAMOPHONE
One day it occurred to Barraud that the dog might be waiting to hear his master's voice. This inspired him to paint the oil (1895) of Nipper and the gramophone, which is titled appropriately "His Master's Voice."
Barraud was not satisfied with the painting because he thought it was too dark. He decided to visit the Gramophone Co., Ltd in London to borrow a brass horn to brighten up the painting. Since he was there he asked William Barry Owen if the company would be interested in the painting (he had brought along a photograph). They were indeed interested, but only if Barraud would agree to replace the Edison-Bell cylinder phonograph in his original painting with the company's new disc gramophone.
HMV
His Master's Voice. This painting is the finished product that hung on the wall of Gramophone Co., Ltd. It was first used as a trademark in 1900 in England and was called "Dog and Trumpet." In May 1900, Emile Berliner, inventor of the disc gramophone, visited the company and so admired the painting that he returned to the United States and began using the trademark before he had registered it as "Nipper and the Gramophone." He did register the trademark in the U.S. on May 26, 1900 and also in Canada soon afterward. Berliner founded the company that later became the Victor Talking Machine.
Along with the original painting, Barraud also painted some exact (or Chinese) copies. He produced the copy in precisely the same way he created the original, by painting the dog with the Edison cylinder phonograph and then painting over it with the Gramophone.
SUPERSTAR
Today the replica is on display at the Capitol Records Building in Hollywood, California. By 1950 Nipper was such a superstar that the record company HMV, named after the painting, wanted
to remove his remains to their headquarters in Hayes, Middlesex. Alas, Nipper's bones had been covered by a newly-built concrete car park. And there he rests.
A nationwide search has been launched to find a new Jack Russell to pose as Nipper, the dog who has been used in HMV advertising for nearly a century.
After 10 years in the job the current canine celebrity is retiring and ITV's This Morning series has begun the hunt for a replacement. Meeting stars like Sir Cliff is one of the perks of the job. Through his work the current Nipper has met Sir Cliff Richard, Take That and Harry Enfield and attends about 20 store-ngs and events a year.
A spokesman for record company HMV said: "Everybody loves Nipper, you could say he's a British institution, and the HMV dog and trumpet logo is one of the most recognised trademarks in the world."
The current Nipper comes from Warrington, Cheshire and got the job after winning a competition on BBC's That's Life series.
The original Nipper painting can be seen at EMI Music's Gloucester Place headquarters in London.
