Chandler Dietrich

"Lady, he's an international thief. He's a probable murderer! And what your dog probably had tattooed somewhere on his body is worth nothing if someone gets their hands on him! Now, if he's killed a person, is he going to stop at a little, brown dog?"

- Stelios to Mary about Chandler

Chandler Dietrich is the main antagonist of Joe Camp's 1977 film, For the Love of Benji.

He was portrayed by the late Ed Nelson.

Role in the film
While waiting to check-in, Mary, the children’s nanny, learns that the man behind her in line, Chandler, is also headed to Crete. Chandler then sneaks into the employee-only luggage area, snatches Benji’s carrier off a conveyor belt, drugs the dog, and imprints a code in his paw. Upon arrival in Crete, Chandler befriends Mary, while the family learns that Benji and Tiffany missed the connecting flight from Athens.

Meanwhile, Chandler pursues Benji in a sports car, but loses him. Alone again, Benji wanders to a hotel, where he spots Mary, Paul, and Cindy, but runs away when he sees Chandler. Procuring a Doberman named Calaga, Chandler tracks Benji to the ruins. Sometime later, in the city, a butcher feeds Benji in his shop. Benji takes a nap, but is awakened by Calaga barking. When Chandler enters the shop, Benji springs from a cupboard and escapes.

Returning to the butcher’s shop, Benji sees his friend talking to Stelios, but before Benji can get their attention, Chandler grabs the dog at gunpoint. However, Stelios and the butcher release the Calaga, whom Chandler tied up outside the shop, and Stelios follows Calaga to find Chandler and Benji. As Calaga leaps at Chandler, Benji escapes once more. Calaga chases Benji to the ruins, but the stray dog chases him away.

However, Stelios arrives to announce that he has to take Benji away for a few days. Before Stelios can explain, Chandler hits the man over the head with a gun, knocking him unconscious. Chandler then tells the family that he is a U.S. agent who must take Benji because the dog holds the key to important information. Instructing Mary to call the police and hold Stelios at gunpoint, Chandler leaves with Benji. Stelios awakens and tells Mary that Chandler is an impostor. The real Dietrich was found murdered in New Jersey and that this man is impersonating him for his own gain. Stelios explains he is a real secret agent, not Chandler, and he has orders to save the life of a top scientist and to preserve a project of worldwide significance. Mary is reluctant to believe him, though. Meanwhile, the man pretending to be Dietrich takes Benji to a yacht, where Ronald and Elizabeth are waiting. When the couple accuses the impostor of trying to double-cross them, he knocks them unconscious. As Benji escapes, the impostor Dietrich pursues the dog back to the hotel, which is now surrounded by police. Seeing that the impostor is holding Cindy at gunpoint in the car, Benji rushes at the man, knocks the gun to the ground, and rescues Cindy, as the police close in.

Trivia

 * Chandler's defeat is similar to the Kidnappers from Benji, Malcolm Bart from Oh! Heavenly Dog, and Terrance Muncy Hatchett from Benji: Off the Leash!, as they all got arrested.