Although Yorkshire Terriers started out as working class dogs, living in filth in the mining towns of northern England, they were soon "discovered" and transformed into little Diva Dogs...
Paris Hilton and her Yorkie
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Smoky
Smoky, a little Yorkshire Terrier, was found hiding in a foxhole in New Guinea during the Second World War.... and soon became one of the most famous war dogs ever. The soldiers who found her in February 1944 She was already a young adult Yorkie (fully grown). She weighed only four pounds and stood seven inches tall. Read more>
Was Toto a Yorkie?
Most dog lovers know that the part of Toto in the original MGM Wizard of Oz (1939) was played by a Cairn Terrier...a terrier called Terry in fact, who even has a book written about his Hollywood life!
But take a close look at the original drawings by W.W. Denslow, the original illustrator for The Wonderful Wizard of Oz. Read More>
More famous Yorkies here
Smokey the war dogcontinued
The soldiers initially thought the small dog belonged to the Japanese, but after taking her to a nearby prisoner-of-war camp they realized she did not understand commands in Japanese or English.
Another GI then sold Smoky to Corporal William A. Wynne of Cleveland, Ohio, for two Australian pounds (equal to $6.44 at that time)—the price paid to the seller so he could return to his poker game.For the next two years, Smoky back-packed through the rest of the war and accompanied Wynne on combat flights in the Pacific. She faced adverse circumstances, living in the New Guinea jungle and Rock Islands, suffering the primitive conditions of tents in equatorial heat and humidity.
Throughout her service, Smoky slept in Wynne's tent on a blanket made from a green felt card table cover; she shared Wynne's C-rations and an occasional can of Spam. Unlike the “official” war dogs of World War II, Smoky had neither medical care nor a balanced diet formulated especially for dogs.Most men lost weight over time with the W.W.II Army food provided in the tropics. Smoky thrived on this food, The modern toy dog would not survive long on this type of nourishment.
In spite of this, Smoky was never ill. She even ran on coral for four months without developing any of the paw ailments that plagued some war dogs.
Mr. Wynne flew photo scouting missions above enemy territory, with Smoky riding with him. Smoky also performed practical tasks for the military.
In one instance, the dog saved the Air Force several days of work and having to tear up an airfield to run a communication cable under the pavement. A line was attached to Smoky's collar, and the canine ran with it through a long culvert filled with sand, often with only three or four free inches at the top. What would have been a dangerous three-day digging task to place the wire was instead completed by this little dog in minutes.
As described by Wynne, "Smoky Served in the South Pacific with the 5th Air Force, 26th Photo Recon Squadron [and] flew 12 air/sea rescue and photo reconnaissance missions." On those flights, Smoky spent long hours dangling in a soldier's pack near machine guns used to ward off enemy fighters. Smoky was credited with twelve combat missions and awarded eight battle stars. She survived 150 air raids on New Guinea and made it through a typhoon at Okinawa. Smoky even parachuted from 30 feet in the air, out of a tree, using a parachute made just for her. Wynne credited Smoky with saving his life by warning him of incoming shells on an LST (transport ship), calling her an "angel from a foxhole." As the ship deck was booming and vibrating from anti-aircraft gunnery, Smoky guided Wynne to duck the fire that hit 8 men standing next to them.
After the war, Smoky gained great fame in the United States performing tricks in movies, television shows and at personal appearances. Over the next 10 years Smoky and Wynne traveled to Hollywood and all over the world to perform demonstrations of her remarkable skills, which included walking a tightrope while blindfolded. Smoky worked with some of Hollywood’s biggest stars, including Lionel and Ethel Barrymore, Jimmy Stewart, Jane Wyman, Gig Young, with the stars of the“Blondie” movies, and with other animal stars.
Smoky once made 42 consecutive appearances on a children’s TV program without repeating the same trick.
The little hero of World War II died unexpectedly at the approximate age of 14 on February 21, 1957. Mr. Wynne and his family buried Smoky in a WWII .30 Caliber Ammo Box in the Cleveland Metroparks, Rocky River Reservation in Lakewood, Ohio.
Nearly 50 years later, on Veterans Day, November 11, 2005, a bronze life-size sculpture of Smoky sitting in a GI helmet, atop a two-ton blue granite base, was unveiled there. It is placed above the very spot that Smoky was laid at her final resting place.
This very special monument is dedicated to “Smoky, the Yorkie Doodle Dandy, and the Dogs of All Wars".
Sources: Wikipedia, Eastern New Mexico Univesity, http://www.smokywardog.com, Yorkie Doodle Dandy: Or, the Other Woman Was a Real Dog by
William A. Wynne, Wynnesome Press (July 1996)
Toto, hero of the Wizard of Oz continued
Denslow drew Toto as a terrier -- but was it a Cairn Terrier or a Yorkshire Terrier? Scholars of the Wizard of Oz books (yes!) feel that L. Frank Baum, the author, meant for Toto to be a mongrel. In the movie, Toto (which means “to make whole”) holds the plot together: he’s the loyal and brave pet who starts the journey and who travels with her while keeping the plot moving.
Dorothy’s conflict with Miss Gulch was focused on Toto, and the reason Dorothy was caught in the storm. And don’t forget that in the movie, it was Toto who pulled back the curtain, revealing the Great Oz to be a sham.
But back to the illustrations in the Wizard of Oz... William Wallace Denslow (5 May 1856 – 27 May 1915) collaborated with Frank Baum on the Wizard of Oz series. Denslow himself owned a Yorkshire Terrier, and when you look closely at the drawings you can certainly see "yorkie" all over them!
Even though the book does not distinctively mention Toto's breed, it depicts Toto as "a little black dog with long silky hair. "
More Famous Yorkies
Mignon was the dog that Eva Gabor's character owned in Green Acres, a popular sitcom starring Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor as a couple who move from New York City to a country farm. The series was broadcast on CBS from September 15, 1965, to April 27, 1971. During the first season, the Douglases had the Yorkie named Mignon (as in "filet mignon"). Mignon, was still "present" in Season 2, although not a lot of screen time.
orking class dogs, living in filth in the mining towns of northern England, they were soon "discovered" and transformed into little Diva Dogs... 
Most dog lovers know that the part of Toto in the original MGM Wizard of Oz (1939) was played by a Cairn Terrier...
Smoky once made 42 consecutive appearances on a children’s TV program without repeating the same trick.
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