Rhubarb (Paramount, 1951)
Based on the 1946 novel of the same name by humorist H. Allen Smith, Rhubarb, the film, was directed by Arthur Lubin. The screwball noir comedy starred Jan Sterling and Ray Milland as well as 14 different cats portraying Rhubarb. The plot: A lonely, eccentric millionaire that owns a baseball team, the Brooklyn Loons, leaves the team to a stray cat, Rhubarb, that he took a liking to. Rhubarb becomes a good luck charm for the team who make a run for the championship.
Orangey (credited as the star of Rhubarb) won a PATSY Award (Picture Animal Top Star of the Year; the animal version of an Oscar). Trivia: Orangey later won the award again for his appearance in Breakfast at Tiffany’s, the only cat to win the PATSY more than once. Actor Leonard Nimoy has an uncredited role in Rhubarb.