For almost twenty years, the majority of us recollect watching the most well-known dog on television, Lassie, and her latest exploits.
From 1954 until 1973, this cherished Rough Collie dog and her human companions adorned our screens for 17 seasons. In the 1960s, they even made the switch from black and white to color.
Who could forget, though, the cute little kid who appeared on the show in its fourth season, Timmy Martin, who is seven years old, and his family, who adopted Lassie?
The actor who played Timmy, Jon Provost, has now turned 72 years old. He talks about the happiness he felt while filming with his four-legged companion and how, at the age of three, he was found by Hollywood.
The actor, who was born in Los Angeles, claimed that when he was three years old, his mother, a devoted follower of Jane Wyman, took him to an audition for a movie. But Jon made the cut from 200 kids who tried out for the role.
Jon’s career as an actor was far from certain. His father was an aeronautical engineer, thus he dealt with quite different things.
“My parents weren’t from the movie industry. Jon stated, “My mother is from Texas, and my father is from Alabama.”
He got a part in a Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby film when he was four years old.
“My agent was nonexistent. My acquisition of one resulted in additional films, including The Country Girl starring Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby. Before I started “Lassie,” I think I did around 12 movies,” he said to Fox News.
Three different Lassies
Jon reminisced on the relationships he forged with the three male canines who portrayed the female Lassie, stating that he grew the closest to the final dog.
“We were raised together. We saw each other five days a week and occasionally on the weekends for five years.
He continued, revealing the canine’s excellent behavior, saying, “The actors made more mistakes than the dog.” He chuckled, “They were more of a problem.
“My parents let me pretty much do what I wanted to do,” he said, noting that he never fell into the Hollywood child actor trap after leaving the program at the age of 14. He went on to star alongside Kurt Russell and Natalie Wood. I was spared from taking a job.
“I felt it was a good thing that I left Hollywood.”
Although Jon is no longer in the spotlight and resides in Northern California, he continues to get fan mail from his “Lassie” days. The actor was bestowed with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1994.
Meanwhile, the dog character Lassie gained so much popularity that she was the subject of an engrossing radio series called “Lassie.”
Jon Provost wife
Jon Provost and Sandy Goosens got married in 1979. Ryan and Katie were their two children together.
On December 20, 1993, the couple announced their divorce after 14 years of marriage.
When Jon Provost married renowned author and researcher Laurie Jacobson in 1999, he experienced love once more.
I was such a fan of the adventures this sweet duo got up to. And with a moral to every episode, it was the perfect show for kids.
Please share with all the “Lassie” fans you know.
