Posted on 04/11/2026 6:09:27 PM PDT by nickcarraway
A 1950s novelty hit that’s endured, this fun, yet heartfelt ode to man’s best friend is still much-loved today.
Critics argue that so-called “novelty” hits are soon forgotten by serious music fans, but a select few are very fondly remembered. Bobby ‘Boris’ Pickett’s “Monster Mash,” for example, is now a Halloween perennial, while David Seville & The Chipmunks’ “The Chipmunk Song (Christmas Don’t Be Late)” went on to win three Grammy Awards. And who can forget Patti Page’s “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window”? The inimitable U.S. chart-topper that has seduced generations of canine lovers.
Indeed, it’s fair to say that Page’s evergreen 1953 hit remains one of the most cherished of all novelty hits. Written by the versatile U.S. composer Bob Merrill, the jaunty “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window” was recorded by Page in December 1952 and a month later it topped both the Billboard and Cash Box charts in the U.S., going on to sell over two million copies. Incredibly, it even became so popular with dog lovers that the American Kennel Club’s annual registrations jumped by an enormous 8% following the song’s release.
So how did “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window” achieve success on such a stellar scale in the first place? Hindsight suggests that several factors aligned to ensure the song connected with an adoring mainstream audience. Firstly, its writer Bob Merrill had already penned a multi-million-selling novelty hit courtesy of Eileen Barton’s “If I’d Known You Were Coming I’d’ve Baked A Cake” in 1950 and understood what writing such a song entailed. Additionally, vocalist Patti Page was already a star with huge, chart-topping hits such as “With My Eyes Wide Open, I’m Dreaming” and “Tennessee Waltz” to her name and finally…well, a heartstring-tugging ode about a girl wanting to buy her sweetheart a puppy before he left for California was always likely to appeal to a nation of devoted dog lovers, wasn’t it?
Yet the sentiments expressed in “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window” also found favor on the other side of the Atlantic. The success of Page’s original led to Liverpool-born singer Lita Roza recording a cover of the song and taking it to the top of the British charts in April 1953: another significant milestone as it marked the first time a British female singer achieved a No. 1 hit on the U.K. Singles chart.
In fact, it now seems impossible to imagine the world without “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window.” It may be a novelty song but it still makes its presence felt in the 21st Century, having gone on to attract several (mostly) affectionate parodies and established itself as a popular children’s song. It would be wrong to suggest it defined Patti Page, for she enjoyed numerous No.1 hits and eventually sold over 100 million records, yet the versatile Oklahoman singer (who died in January 2013) was always happy to acknowledge the important role “(How Much Is) That Doggie In The Window” played in her career.
“It was a charming little song,” Page told Entertainment Weekly in 1991. “Up to that time, it was mostly teens buying records, but this one spanned all age groups. It’s still the song I’m most known for.”
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The song sounds like Patti is making an exit and wants to leave the guy a dog as consolation prize...
Ah, the good old days, when a silly ditty about a puppy can captivate the masses.
Now we have WAP.
I forgot that we all barked whet the song was sung...
good times!
The musical standards in this country have gone downhill sadly.
I was 4 1/2 in 1953 when this song came out. Plenty of great songs in the 50’s. I had two older sisters. One graduated in 1957 and the other in 1960. My sister born in 1960 bought the first console stereo record player for our house. It got used quite a bit. Both sisters were into music. There was a record shop in a strip mall they passed every day when they walked home from high school. They were always buying 45’s and albums. The shop was still there when I graduated in 1965. My mother loved the Glenn Miller Band, and I’ve continued to enjoy listening to swing in my old age.
No one should buy a dog on display in a window.
Kinder, gentler times, that’s for sure.
Yes, that song was a high point in music history.
I use that as a ringtone for my granddaughter who loves dogs.
Interesting to me because I was born in 1951 and remember the song from about when I was 11 or 12 years old. I just did a search and found out the song was covered by:
Here's the Lennon Sisters version: How Much is That Doggie in the Window. They are so cute! So wholesome and refreshing! This will warm your heart.
Or "a one eyed, one horned flying purple people eater." Or Johnny Horton's "Battle of New Orleans."
Three of my other favorites are: "Come On-A-My House" by Rosemary Clooney, "Pajama Games" "Hernando's Hideaway" by Archie Bleyer, and "Istanbul (not Constantinople)" by The Four Lads.
It was all downhill after Spike Jones.
Most novelty songs grow stale very quickly.
One nobody else has mentioned that I think is extremely clever is “Hello Muddah, Hello Faddah” by Allan Sherman. Just so clever!
That’s the first song I played on the piano when I was about 4, according to Mom.
Dr. Demento made a career off of them - that's where I first heard many of them.
The Doggie in the Window--Anne Lloyd (1953)
This is the flip side. I was amazed at how well I remembered it after not hearing it in 70+ years.
Three Little Puppies--Anne Lloyd, Michael Stewart, Mitch Miller
That Hound Dog in the Window--Homer & Jethrro (1953)
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