“Surely this is not what Rudd Weatherwax would have wanted, it’s a disservice to Bob and his significant career, and the tactics being used are certainly not a “lesson” learned from Lassie.”
-Posting from Joan Neidhardt on www.lassie.net, August 30, 2007-
These words come from a woman who has so exploited the names of Rudd, Bob, and Lassie, that she does not seem to know how to use them honestly. It is my opinion, and that of many other true Lassie fans who are now beginning to speak out, that Joan has sullied the legacy of Lassie by her constant barrage of twisted tales. I believe she has taken something beautiful and universal and tried to make it all hers, belonging only to herself and her partner Cathy Schmidt.
One can’t help but wonder if she was ever anything other than a “fan-atic”, because the one message that emerges from her repetitive postings is all about herself and how much she purports to know about inside dealings. Fans, by their very definition, are admirers. They willingly give their admiration…at a distance.
Joan – and Cathy – exceeded those boundaries a long time ago and do not seem to understand that volunteer fan club presidents and fan site owners only experience a small part of the much bigger picture. They are not paid, they are not hired, they are only “official” as long as they stick to the promises they made.
It’s clear from the direction that Joan and Cathy have taken on their web site, and in exploiting the relationship they once had with Bob Weatherwax and Lassies 8 and 9, that they represent their own interests, not Lassie, not the licensor, and certainly not Rudd or Bob Weatherwax.
Joan’s own words give her obsessions away. She is a fanatic beyond any imagination of the word, and she will tell untruths that are not based on facts. The truth gets twisted and turned around just to fit the convenient needs and ego of the lassie.net operators.
“Even as recently as this past weekend, he (Bob) stopped by to say hello at an event and did not voice any of these sentiments. Thus, much of the information must be written by others and is based on false assumptions, misinformation, and completely inaccurate.”
-Posting by Joan Neidhardt, August 30, 2007, on the Lassie Barker blog-
Again, here is another example of taking an incident, turning it around, making it into a lie, and publishing it as fact to suit their needs.
Bob Weatherwax was at an event this past weekend – National Dog Day – at which Cathy Schmidt set up a booth in order to commercialize her own Lassie offspring. Bob was walking Laddie in an open meadow where some of the day’s activities were going on. When Bob takes Laddie out for a break, it is not to meet and greet the people, although that can inevitably happen. It’s to give the dog time to stretch his legs and relieve himself. Insider that she thinks she is, Cathy should have realized – remembered – known – what Bob’s normal patterns are with the dog, yet when she spotted him, she walked right over to him. She sought Bob out – not the reverse – as stated by Joan. Bob did not voice any opinions to Cathy because that was neither the time nor the place. Bob has too much respect for the Lassie legacy to put himself in that situation. He answered her questions and immediately returned to his booth.
Joan is putting out false information by pretending that this was just a friendly little chat. It was not. Cathy apparently calculated her timing just right so that she could conveniently “run into” Bob. Otherwise, there would have been no words exchanged between the two. Bob’s booth was not situated anywhere near Cathy’s. He and Jon Provost were outside; Cathy was in a building. Many people saw what occurred and can attest to the facts and the truth.
Joan needs to get her facts straight before she puts out the information she insists is the truth. She has deliberately changed the facts in order to promote herself and lassie.net as friends on good terms with Bob. She is not on good terms – Cathy is not on good terms – and they have no contact with him whatsoever, except whenever they force themselves on him. Bob will always remain courteous, but Joan and Cathy burned any bridge long ago and it will NEVER be rebuilt.
Also, Rudd does not deserve to be mentioned by Joan and her cohorts. She did not know him, and he would consider her a complete disgrace to the Lassie image. He would never allow people like Joan and Cathy and their little propaganda tactics to be involved with Lassie.
“…discredit those that are continuing the legacy of Lassie that the Weatherwax family SOLD and Bob WALKED AWAY FROM.”
-Posting by Joan Neidhardt on Friends of Lassie Yahoo Group, August 31, 2007
It is my opinion that lassie.net is not continuing the legacy of Lassie. If anything, Joan and Cathy are discrediting it and every character quality Lassie has ever stood for. How can two people who do not know the meaning of the word “truth” practice it? They cannot. It is beyond their comprehension.
Another point – Bob NEVER walked away from Lassie. Lassie.net has perpetuated this lie and continues to do so. Bob is still here. He has the rightful Lassie 9, and he has the bloodline that will carry Lassie forward. Joan has created yet another bit of fiction to spin what she thinks she knows about the corporate relationship between Bob and the licensor. That is the truth and that is something that Joan cannot stop, no matter how many lies she continues telling.
Go ahead, Joan, burn more bridges!