 A made-for-TV movie called The Courage of Kavik the Wolf Dog based on the book aired under the "Sunday Big Event" umbrella on NBC in 1979.Kävik, an Alaskan malamute sled dog, gets sold from Charlie One-eye to Mr. Hunter for $2,000 after winning the North American Sled-dog race and is loaded on a plane in an iron-barred cage.In the middle of the trip, something goes wrong and the plane crashes into the ground, killing pilot Smiley Johnson before he even has time to undo his seatbelt.