Lassie is best known as a very popular and long running TV series which aired from 1954-1973. Most are not aware that Lassie was also a radio show airing between 1947-1950, years before the award winning television show. Sponsored by the Red Heart dog food and treat companies, the radio series was quite unlike the Television version as well. The radio version was more of an anthology and each week, Lassie as the star, would “portray” a completely different dog in one heroic adventure or another. Some critics really enjoy the series claiming that each adventure offers a dog gone good time with such dramatic plots as:
- “Jumpy” the heroic dog can save a baby from a big one-eyed cat and helping lock the vicious animal in “the jug”,
- “Tramp” despite being afraid of the water from being thrown in the river as a pup, he saves a boy from overflowing river
- Brave, injured and starving “Laddy” fights off a bear for food then after long travels, returns safely to his mistress’ home.
The fictional character of Lassie was actually created by English American author Eric Knight in Lassie Come-Home, first published as a short story in The Saturday Evening Post in 1938 and later as a full-length novel in 1940. Set in the Depression-era England, the novel depicts the lengthy journey a rough collie makes to be reunited with her young Yorkshire master after his family is forced to sell her for money. In 1943, the novel was adapted into a feature film, Lassie Come Home, by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) that starred Roddy McDowall and Elizabeth Taylor. The movie was a hit and enjoyed favorable critical response. MGM followed this with several additional films, including a sequel entitled Son of Lassie (1945), starring Peter Lawford and June Lockhart, and Courage of Lassie with Elizabeth Taylor. To capitalize on the popularity of the motion pictures the radio series was created. Each program ran for about 15 minutes. For the last few weeks the REPS SHOWCASE team have been looking over some of the original radio scripts which were produced for the National Broadcasting Company with the task of finding one which could be dramatized Saturday April 22nd at the REPS SHOWCASE. Once the script was selected, who was to star with Lassie in her return to radio? Enter Jon Provost! Jon portrayed Timmy on the Lassie TV series for seven season ( 1957-1964) and will appear in the SHOWCASE reenactment of the Lassie radio show. This should be a real treat!
Provost was born in Los Angeles. At the age of four, Provost was cast in the film The Country Girl (1954), starring Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly. He then appeared in Back from Eternity (1956) with Anita Ekberg and Escapade in Japan (1957), with Teresa Wright, Cameron Mitchell, and an unknown and uncredited Clint Eastwood.
In 1957, Provost won the role of Timmy Martin in the CBS television series Lassie.
