The People's Almanac
Encyclopedia
The People's Almanac was a series of three books published in 1975, 1978 and 1981 by David Wallechinsky
and his father Irving Wallace
, the novelist responsible for co-authoring the series The Book of Lists
. The format of the almanac departs from a conventional almanac and included many obscure facts, lists and esoteric knowledge. It, as well as the Book of Lists series, is considered a forerunner of Internet
website
s such as Wikipedia
.
The Almanac contained one list that was reprinted in the Book of Lists: the nine breeds of dogs that "bite the most." In order they
were: The German shepherd ("police dog"); the chow
; the poodle
; the Italian bulldog
; the fox terrier
; the cross
ed chow, the Airedale
; the Pekingese
; and the crossed German shepherd. (The authors noted that Dobermans and mongrels did not make the list.)
David Wallechinsky
David Wallechinsky has worked as a commentator for NBC Olympic coverage and is the author of many Olympic reference books and other reference books. He is a Jewish-American. He is the author of The Complete Book of the Summer Olympics and The Complete Book of the Winter Olympics series...
and his father Irving Wallace
Irving Wallace
Irving Wallace was an American best-selling author and screenwriter. Wallace was known for his heavily researched novels, many with a sexual theme. One critic described him "as the most successful of all the many exponents of junk fiction perhaps because he took it all so seriously, not so say...
, the novelist responsible for co-authoring the series The Book of Lists
The Book of Lists
The Book of Lists refers to any one of a series of books compiled by David Wallechinsky, his father best selling author Irving Wallace and sister Amy Wallace....
. The format of the almanac departs from a conventional almanac and included many obscure facts, lists and esoteric knowledge. It, as well as the Book of Lists series, is considered a forerunner of Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
s such as Wikipedia
Wikipedia
Wikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its 20 million articles have been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world. Almost all of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the site,...
.
The Almanac contained one list that was reprinted in the Book of Lists: the nine breeds of dogs that "bite the most." In order they
were: The German shepherd ("police dog"); the chow
Chow Chow
Chow chow is a breed of dog that was developed in China, where it is referred to as Songshi Quan , which literally means "puffy-lion dog".- Appearance :...
; the poodle
Poodle
The Poodle is a breed of dog. The poodle breed is found officially in toy, miniature, and standard sizes, with many coat colors. Originally bred as a type of water dog, the poodle is highly intelligent and skillful in many dog sports, including agility, obedience, tracking, and even herding...
; the Italian bulldog
Bulldog
Bulldog is the name for a breed of dog commonly referred to as the English Bulldog. Other Bulldog breeds include the American Bulldog, Olde English Bulldogge and the French Bulldog. The Bulldog is a muscular heavy dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose...
; the fox terrier
Fox Terrier
Fox Terrier refers primarily to two different breeds of the terrier dog type: the Smooth Fox Terrier and the Wire Fox Terrier. Both of these breeds originated in the 19th century from a handful of dogs who are descended from earlier varieties of British terriers, and are related to other modern...
; the cross
Dog hybrids and crossbreeds
A dog hybrid is a crossbreed of two or more different recognized breeds of dog.-Designer dogs:The Encyclopædia Britannica traces the term "designer dog" to the late 20th century, when breeders began to cross purebred poodles with other purebred breeds in order to obtain a dog with the poodles'...
ed chow, the Airedale
Airedale Terrier
The Airedale Terrier is a breed of the terrier type that originated in Airedale, a geographic area in Yorkshire, England. It is traditionally called the "King of Terriers" because it is the largest of the terrier breeds...
; the Pekingese
Pekingese
The Pekingese, or "Peke" is an ancient breed of toy dog, originating in China. The breed was favored by the Chinese Imperial court, and its name refers to the city of Beijing where the Forbidden City resides...
; and the crossed German shepherd. (The authors noted that Dobermans and mongrels did not make the list.)