Provost Comes Home

From 1957 through 1964, Jon Provost enjoyed television stardom as Timmy Martin, young master of the collie Lassie in the classic CBS series of the same name.

Last year, when he discovered that MCA-TV was planning an updated, syndicated version of the show, he contacted “The New Lassie” producer Al Burton to offer his services as a consultant--and wound up instead with a recurring role as Steve McCulloch, uncle to Lassie’s current 10-year-old owner, Will McCulloch. In Los Angeles, the show airs Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. on KCAL Channel 9.

For Provost, who turned 40 last month, the role meant not only a return to the show but to acting as well. Having begun his career at age 2 1/2 in the feature “So Big,” he had decided, after the 1969 Disney film “The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes,” to forsake show business in favor of attending Sonoma State University. Now a real estate salesman, he lives in Santa Rosa with his wife and two children.

“Coming back to L.A. to do the show was incredible--after 15 minutes on the set in hair and makeup, it was like I’d never left the place,” he recalls. “The really strange part was seeing Bob Weatherwax (whose late father, Rudd, was owner and trainer of the original Lassie). He has Lassie now, and he’s almost the identical image of his dad.

“Will Nipper, who plays my nephew, asked if I could give him some tips,” Provost adds. “I said, ‘The best advice I can give you is to have fun and enjoy what you’re doing.’ I really enjoyed what I did, even though it was hard work.”

Thanks to reruns, Provost has remained closely identified with the original series throughout his quarter-century “Lassie” hiatus. He has also maintained an active involvement with animals, working on behalf of humane societies and serving on the board of governors of Canine Companions for Independence, an organization which provides dogs to aid people with disabilities.

Last year, the Smithsonian Institution asked Provost to donate “Lassie” memorabilia for its exhibit on television’s 50th anniversary. “My mom sent over the outfit I’d worn as Timmy. When I opened the box and pulled it out--well, that was serious deja vu ,” he says. “My son really wanted to keep the tennis shoes.”