Uggie the dog shows off tricks in Studio 1A

>>> well, you know you've made it when you go by just one name. cher, madonna and now uggie. the adorable jack russell terrier was starred in movies like "water for elephants" but his role in the oscar winner "the artist" has solidified his star status. he's here with his trainer omar von mueller. good morning to both of you.

>> good morning.

>> my first question is to uggie. you knew you were an actor. did you know you were an author as well?

>> did you?

>> yeah. he said he does.

>> he did. omar, why did you decide to write this book?

>> actually i got a call from wendy holden which is a writer, and she gave me the idea, and so i talked to him and he said absolutely. let's go for it.

>> you say that there's something special about uggie, that he really is acting. he's really a star. explain.

>> yes. i mean, you can tell when he's acting, when he's on stage, he's the type of dog that just wants the attention. when we say action, he goes to where he's supposed to be doing. not looking at the cameras or me or anybody else and he's totally acting. he loves it.

>> he co-starred with reese witherspoon in "water for elephants." he holds a torch for reese . dead case the book to her, for reese , my love, my light, and he says ours was spontaneous attraction. it was written if the stars for what i hope will be a deep and enduring love . whenever i came into her orbit the incandescent smell she gave me was even more captivating than a slice of pepperoni.

>> actually i knew he had a crush on her, but once he start started barking to me and telling me the whole thing.

>> we see them smooching there. is the feeling mutual? how does reese feel about uggie?

>> he's a little jealous that she got married and he still has a crush on her.

>> now, you've had uggie for a while. you mentioned he's had other roles. when "the artist" first came to you, did you think, wow, this is going to be huge, a breakout movie?

>> no, nobody knew it. it was just like a low-budget frenchy black and white , and we never even knew we would see it on dvd or anything like that, and then it just exploded.

>> and then the oscar. so much has happened. what's been your favorite thing to see and do with uggie since "the artist" has become such a phenomenon?

>> probably the tour. the tour's been great and now the book. he also has his own application so he's going places .

>> is uggie retired from movies now?

>> from movies, definitely yes.

>> why is that? just because there comes a time when it's too much work. he's older now?

>> he still has a lot of energy, but he just doesn't have it to be on set for 10, 15 hours a day, and it's just not fair, and i think he had a great time in "the artist." we're going to leave him there.

>> a hollywood maxim, got to know to leave on a high note . can he did a couple of tricks for us before we go.

>> give him a kiss. you ready. get shy.

>> that's pretty good. he's hiding his eyes.

>> that's pretty cute. the book is called "uggie, my story." thank you so much for bringing it to us.