PATSY Award

The very first recipient of a PATSY was Francis the Talking Mule in 1951, in a ceremony hosted by Ronald Reagan at Hollywood's Carthay Circle Theater.

By the 1970s, the awards were being presented in a televised ceremony, with animal recipients selected by the general public who voted in ballots which appeared in Associated Press newspapers.

Over the years the PATSY Award ceremony was hosted by various celebrities, including Betty White, Allen Ludden, and Bob Barker.

That year the Genesis Awards were established to honor individuals in the major news and entertainment media for producing outstanding works which raise public awareness of animal issues.

The American Humane Association is the organization responsible for the disclaimer at the end of many films and television programs that "No Animals Were Harmed" in the production.