The Shaggy D.A.

The Shaggy D.A. is a 1976 film sequel to 1959's The Shaggy Dog by Walt Disney Productions. It was directed by Robert Stevenson and written by Don Tait, based on the original film and inspired by the long out-of-print Felix Salten novel, The Hound of Florence.

It starred Dean Jones as the adult Wilby Daniels, Suzanne Pleshette, Tim Conway, Keenan Wynn, Dick van Patten, Jo Anne Worley and Shane Sinutko.

Plot
Wilby Daniels (Dean Jones) is now a successful attorney who is married to Betty (Suzanne Pleshette), and they have a son named Brian (Shane Sinutko). Returning to the town of Medfield from a vacation, the family discovers that they have been robbed of almost all their possessions and Wilby blames the local district attorney John Slade (Keenan Wynn), who is reputed to have connections with organized crime, particularly with warehouse owner Edward "Fast Eddie" Roshak (Vic Tayback). After being robbed a second time later that night (along with their Navy admiral neighbor), Wilby vows to run for district attorney to make his town safe again.

Meanwhile, the two thugs who had robbed the Daniels', Freddie (Richard Bakalyan) and Dip (Warren Berlinger), observe the Borgia ring at the local museum and assume it might fetch a large sum so they steal it. The ugly ring with a scarab on it can only be pawned off to local bumbling ice cream salesman Tim, who is the owner of a large Old English Sheepdog named Elwood. Tim figures he will give the ring to his girlfriend Katrinka, a local roller derby star and pastry assistant.

While dressing himself in preparation for a live television broadcast to announce his candidacy, Wilby hears a report of the Borgia ring being stolen. He freezes in terror, then reveals his former shape-shifting secret to his wife who is certain his story cannot be true; he warns her that if the inscription on the ring ("In canis corpore transmuto") is spoken aloud he will turn into a shaggy dog. Soon afterwards, Wilby is moments before his live television debut as Tim discovers the inscription on the ring and reads it aloud, causing Elwood to disappear – only to reappear moments later as he takes over Wilby’s body. Moments before the cameras roll, Brian notices that shaggy hair is growing all over his father who reacts in horror as he realizes he is turning into a dog. He rushes from the house and cameras in his dog form and briefly confounds Tim who can’t understand why his dog Elwood suddenly can speak. The spell wears off and Wilby is now in his human form again and determined to find the ring as he faces the prospect of being a candidate in the public eye who never knows when he might turn into a dog. &nbsp