EDUCATION MATTERS: Steve Brown's guest is Jon Provost, who starred in "Lassie," on CBS Television from 1957-1964

EDUCATION MATTERS: Steve Brown's guest is Jon Provost, who starred in "Lassie," on CBS Television from 1957-1964.

Jon's website is: JonProvost.com

Also, check out:

ProvostPets.com  and

CCI.Org  

Jon Provost is a national treasure.  The check shirt and jeans he wore for seven years as Timmy on “Lassie” hang in The Smithsonian next to Archie Bunker’s chair.  “Lassie” continues to air in 50 countries and Jon receives letters and email from fans of all ages around the world.

Jon was already a seasoned professional when he won the role of Timmy at age seven.  He was not even three when cast as Jane Wyman and Sterling Hayden’s son in “So Big”.  During his career as a child actor and teen heart throb, he worked with some of the biggest stars in Hollywood:  Grace Kelly and Bing Crosby in “The Country Girl”, Natalie Wood and Robert Redford in “This Property is Condemned”, Rod Steiger and Anita Ekberg in “Back From Eternity”, Clint Eastwood in “Escapade in Japan”, Kurt Russell in “The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes” and on television with Kim Novak, Jack Benny, James Garner and even with that famous talking horse, Mr. Ed.

By the time Jon Provost was nineteen, he’d worked in film and television for over sixteen years.  With a strong desire to try something new, he headed for Northern California and college. The beauty of the wine country seduced him; and Jon never returned to L.A., preferring eventually to raise a family in Sonoma County.  Of his many accomplishments, he is most proud of his children, Ryan and Katie; and he is over the moon about his grandchildren, 10-year-old Juliana, 5-year-old Lucas and 2-year-old Connor.

Jon has also earned a nationwide reputation as a philanthropist, giving his time to: children’s hospitals, animal shelters, and humane societies. For 25 years, he served on the Board of Governors for Canine Companions for Independence which provides free service dogs to the handicapped. He is also an advocate for US military K-9 teams.

Throughout his career, Jon has received many awards, among them, The Motion Picture Council’s award for Outstanding Contribution as a Humanitarian for his dedication in helping the physically challenged, the Allen Ludden Humanitarian Award presented by Betty White and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Youth in Film Association.  In 1994, Jon was honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Jon returned to television as Timmy all grown up in “The New Lassie” with Dee Wallace in 1990; and received a Genesis Award for Outstanding Television in a Family Series for a story he penned for the show focusing on the inhumane treatment of research animals. Jon celebrated his 50th anniversary as Timmy with the release of his autobiography, TIMMY’S IN THE WELL. An updated edition was released in December, 2023.



In recent years, he played real-life senator Don Vaughn in the film “Susie’s Hope,” a true story of animal abuse; the voice of a robot in the sci-fi thriller, “Colonials”; and he directed and hosted short videos about dogs and cats for a Purina website. Jon’s love for dogs has led him to create Provost Pets, a new line of pet products. The first product launches in 2025 – a CBD spray to help alleviate separation anxiety called Spray, Mix ‘N Go!  When it comes to Jon’s love for animals, it was never an act.  www.provostpets.com

Says Jon, “Wherever I am, when people realize I was Timmy, they travel right back to that warm, happy time where, for thirty minutes every week, they were transported by the adventures of a boy and his dog; and I am greeted with warm smiles, hugs, and even some tears along with many stories about what it all meant to them…I could never possibly have imagined what my work would mean to people over the years.”