Arts & Entertainment

Fair Lawn Dog Appears in Tyler Perry Movie

Striker, a Bernese Mountain Dog, played the family pet in "Peeples."

Fair Lawn's Jillian Morgese made headlines earlier this summer when she made her first starring appearance in a Joss Whedon's "Much Ado About Nothing," but she wasn't the only Fair Lawn native to appear in a movie this summer.  

Striker, a 4-year-old Bernese Mountain Dog, appeared in "Peeples," a movie from Tyler Perry Studios directed by Tina Gordon Chism. The movie ran in theaters in May and June and is due out on DVD in the fall.

The movie's trailer features Striker with star Craig Robinson, best known for his character, Darryl, on "The Office." 

"Peeples" was Striker's first movie, but his owner, JoAnn Biercuk, has had another dog previously appear in commercials.

"I feel very proud that they're able to do these things," Biercuk said.

Biercuk has been training her dogs since she first got a Bernese Mountain Dog 23 years ago. 

"I just enjoy working with my dogs and training them," Biercuk said. "It's a lot of fun."

Striker is already an American Kennel Club champion, companion dog, certified "canine good citizen" and is a registered therapy dog.

Bernese Mountain Dogs are big — Striker weighs about 115 pounds — but they're gentle and make good family dogs, according to Biercuk. The breed's roots go back to Bern, Switzerland, where they were used to pull wagons in the Alps.

Going forward, Biercuk said she plans to keep training Striker for more AKC competitions, have him do therapy work through her church and possibly the Alpine Learning Group in Paramus, where she currently brings a smaller dog to work with the students, and will go for any more movie parts that may come up in the future.

"It's been a wonderful experience," Biercuk said. "We've done things and gone places we otherwise wouldn't have."


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