McGruff the Crime Dog
| McGruff the Crime Dog | |
|---|---|
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| First appearance | July 1980 |
| Created by | Dancer Fitzgerald Sample (now Saatchi & Saatchi) through the Ad Council |
| Information | |
| Species | Dog |
| Gender | Male |
McGruff the Crime Dog is an anthropomorphic animated dog created by Dancer Fitzgerald Sample through the Ad Council and later the National Crime Prevention Council to increase crime awareness and personal safety in the United States. McGruff costumes are used by police outreach efforts, often with children. McGruff was created by Sherry Nemmers and Ray Krivascy in 1979 and debuted in 1980 with a series of Public service announcements educating citizens on personal security measures, such as locking doors and putting lights on timers, in order to reduce crime. His name was selected as part of a nationwide contest in July 1980.
McGruff proved to be a successful campaign with over $100 million in free air time donated in the first year reaching over 50% of adults. McGruff campaigns continued over the years to cover topics such as child abduction, anti-drug messages, and anti-bullying campaigns. From 1982 to 2012, a number of municipalities participated in the McGruff house program which offered temporary haven to children fearing immediate harm. McGruff has continued to be well recognized with nine out of ten people recognizing him in a 2008 survey and recent campaigns against cyber-bullying and elder-crime.
The decades prior to MCGruff's creation saw an increase in public concern over crime. In the 1960's, a number of riots broke out across the nation and numerous public figures were assassinated, including President Kennedy, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Malcolm X. Accepting the Republican nomination for president, Barry Goldwater positioned crime as one of the biggest issues facing the nation. While Goldwater lost to Lyndon Johnson, the issue of crime did not stop there. In July 1965, President Johnson formed the President's Commission on Law Enforcement and Administration of Justice to "probe ... fully and deeply into the problems of crime in our nation."
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