Jimmy Stewart had a deep love for dogs, and throughout his long marriage to Gloria, they had several. Stewart had a special fondness for his golden retriever, Beau, who had a unique habit of sneaking into bed at night to lie between Stewart and Gloria. Stewart once confessed, "I know that I should have pushed him off the bed, but I didn't. He was up there because he wanted me to pat his head, so that's what I would do. Somehow, my touching his hair made him happier, and just the feeling of him lying against me helped me sleep better."
When Beau became terminally ill and had to be euthanized, Stewart spent ten minutes in his car afterward, clearing his eyes of tears. He later shared, "After he died, there were a lot of nights when I was certain that I could feel him get into bed beside me, and I would reach out and pat his head. The feeling was so real that I wrote a poem about it and about how much it hurt to realize that he wasn't going to be there anymore."
The poem, titled "Beau," was first recited on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson in 1981. As Stewart read the poem, both he and Carson struggled to hold back tears. In the poem, Stewart reflects on Beau's quirks and misadventures, capturing the essence of his beloved dog.
The poem begins with humor and ends with sadness:
"He never came to me when I would call
Unless I had a tennis ball,
But mostly he didn't come at all.
Discipline was not his bag
But when you were with him, things sure didn't drag.
He'd dig up a rosebush just to spite me,
And when I'd grab him, he'd turn and bite me.
He bit lots of folks from day to day,
The delivery boy was his favorite prey.
The gas man wouldn't read our meter,
He said we owned a real man-eater.
He set the house on fire,
But the story's long to tell.
Suffice to say that he survived
And the house survived as well.
And on evening walks, when Gloria took him,
He was always first out the door.
The Old One and I brought up the rear
Because our bones were sore.
He'd charge up the street with Mom hanging on,
What a beautiful pair they were!
And if it was still light and the tourists were out,
They created a bit of a stir.
But every once in a while, he'd stop in his tracks
And with a frown on his face look around.
It was just to make sure that the Old One was there
To follow him where he was bound.
We're early-to-bedders in our house - I guess I'm the first to retire.
And as I'd leave the room he'd look at me
And get up from his place by the fire.
He knew where the tennis balls were upstairs,
And I'd give him one for a while.
And he'd push it under the bed with his nose
And I'd dig it out with a smile.
But before very long he'd tire of the ball
And he'd be asleep in his corner in no time at all.
And there were nights when I'd feel him climb up on our bed
And there were nights when I'd feel his stare
And I'd wake up and he'd be sitting there
And I'd reach out to stroke his hair.
And sometimes I'd feel him sigh and I think I know the reason why.
And he would have this fear
Of the dark, of life, of lots of things,
And he'd be glad to have me near.
And there are nights when I think I feel him
Climb up on our bed and lie between us,
And there are nights when I think I feel that stare
And I reach out my hand to stroke his hair,
Oh, how I wish that wasn't so,
I'll always love a dog named Beau."
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