Keiko in “Free Willy”
The story of Free Willy, about a boy who befriends an orca whale at a run-down amusement park and later sets him free, mirrored the real-life tale of the whale that starred. The surprise success of the movie got Keiko the whale nurtured back to health and released after two decades in captivity. The six-ton killer whale lived about a year in the wild before dying of what his trainers said was pneumonia. Keiko was buried in a secret ceremony in Norway to avoid a media circus. (Jack Smith / Associated Press)
Eddie the dog in “Frasier”
Small-screen pooch Moose, who played Eddie for almost 11 years on Frasier, spawned a buying frenzy in the mid-90s despite the warnings of Jack Russell terriers breeders, who tried to caution city folk that the best places for the hyped up pups are wide open spaces. The dogs are like perpetual adolescents, said one breeder. They think nothing can hurt them and theyll live forever. (Ken Hively / Los Angeles Times)
