July 31, 2020: It is with a very heavy heart that I tell you the sad news that The Edgar Winter Dog passed away peacefully yesterday at the august age of 16 as a result of complications of cancer and congestive heart disease.
As a TV personality and major award from the Animal Planet television show Who Gets the Dog, Hugs, a.k.a. The Edgar Winter Dog, a.k.a. Little White Cloud (named for the midwestern girls he craved), was a very special soul and a popular personality from Who Gets the Dog. His momentous decision to live with Julie Wiskirchen and me resulted in many happy repercussions including the adoptions of many more fur-kids into our extended Los Angeles family.
Julie and I taped the TV show (basically our audition for Edgar) at our Kelton Avenue house in the early Fall of 2004. The results were later taped in October of 2004 and we were very surprised to come home with this most significant and esteemed prize. However, Julie and I would have to keep him a secret from our families and friends for months until the show aired in January of 2005.
Edgar lived on Kelton Avenue in Mar Vista for many years before he retired to the luxury of the Raintree community in Culver City. He has spent many years there co-hosting parties and making his circuit around the old MGM Tarzan lake just beyond his condo windows. Edgar enjoyed monitoring the duck situation and providing advice to residents and fellow fur-friends alike on the Raintree pathways.
He was exceedingly popular at Los Angeles dog parks as well and was often seen dining around town. One uncle dubbed him “the mayor of Venice” after a walk from the Venice boardwalk to Abbot Kinney where a beach-goer met him and exclaimed, “That dog is a party!”
Although he never officially won Best Smile at the event Nuts for Mutts, he clearly had the best smile in Southern California. But for an LA boy, he had an unusual distaste for the beach. He was not one to gloat much about his former days in the Hollywood limelight. He preferred instead to rest on his laurels and enjoy the adoration of his many fans. One unnamed source said, “He was probably the easiest TV celebrity you’d ever want to live with. Really, he had no ego.”
In the style of Cher saying goodbye to Sonny, I would just like to say that Edgar was the most dapper gentleman I ever met in my entire life. It was an honor and privilege not only to have known him but to have been chosen by him.
He leaves behind Mommy #1 and Mommy #2, his Dad Dave and many uncles including John and Christopher, his first girlfriend Zella (now in North Carolina), his bromance protégé Franz (now in New Mexico)…
and cousin Audrey Pickles (current whereabouts unknown). He was preceded in death by his cousins Kizzy and Petunia.
Good Dog-Dog Talk Rescue is a southern California rescue group where Edgar and his people have volunteered. If you want to make a donation in Edgar Wiskirchen’s name, here is the link to their website: https://gooddogdogtalk.com/donate.