Lassie (1954 TV series) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Lassie
Title screen of Lassie (seasons 1–4)
Genre	Family Adventure/Drama
Created by	Robert Maxwell
Starring	Tommy Rettig Jan Clayton George Cleveland Jon Provost Cloris Leachman Jon Shepodd June Lockhart Hugh Reilly George Chandler Robert Bray Jack De Mave Jed Allan Clyde Howdy Ron Hayes Larry Wilcox Richard Garland Pamelyn Ferdin Lassie (various dogs)
Theme music composer	Les Baxter
Opening theme	Whistle
Composer(s)	Raoul Kraushaar
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
No. of seasons	19
No. of episodes	591 (list of episodes)
Production
Producer(s)	Robert Golden Robert Maxwell Dusty Bruce Rudolph E. Abel Bonita Granville Leon Fromkess
Production location(s)	California
Running time	26 minutes
Production company(s)	Lassie Television Robert Maxwell Associates Jack Wrather Productions
Release
Original network	CBS (1954–1971) Syndication (1971–1973)
Original release	September 12, 1954 (1954-09-12) – March 24, 1973 (1973-03-24)
Chronology
Related shows	Lassie's Rescue Rangers The New Lassie

Lassie is a famous American television series about a brave female Rough Collie dog named Lassie. The show follows her many adventures with different human and animal friends. It was created by producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax.

The Lassie TV show aired for a very long time, from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973. It ran for 17 seasons on the CBS network. Then, it continued for two more seasons in syndication, meaning it was shown on different local channels. This makes it one of the longest-running scripted TV shows in U.S. history! The first episodes were filmed in black and white, but the show switched to color in 1965.

Making the Lassie Show

Who Wrote and Narrated?

Bonita Granville Wrather, who helped produce the show, often narrated episodes. She would usually introduce or wrap up stories, especially those that had multiple parts.

Many early episodes were written by Robert Maxwell himself. Later, a writing team named Robert Schaefer and Eric Freiwald wrote over 150 episodes. They also came up with the idea for Lassie to live with a forest ranger.

Lassie's Theme Music

The Lassie show used several different theme songs over its many years.

• For the first season, the theme was "Secret of the Silent Hills." It was an orchestral song originally from a radio show.
• In seasons two and three, a slightly changed version of this theme was used.
• The third theme was an orchestral part from an opera called Faust.
• The most famous Lassie theme song appeared in the fifth season. It's known as "The Whistler" because the melody is whistled by Muzzy Marcellino. This tune became very popular and was used for many years.
• When Lassie started living with the forest rangers, an orchestral version of "The Whistler" was used.
• In the later seasons, especially when Lassie traveled alone, the theme changed to a traditional folk song called Greensleeves.

Nathan Scott composed the music for almost every episode between 1963 and 1973.

Lassie's Adventures and Stories

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  Original series stars Jan Clayton (as Ellen Miller - top left), George Cleveland (as Gramps - top right), and Tommy Rettig (as Jeff Miller - at bottom with Lassie)

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  From left to right - George Chandler (as Uncle Petrie), Jon Shepodd (the original Paul Martin), Jon Provost (as Timmy Martin) and Cloris Leachman (the original Ruth Martin) during season 4 when the show transitioned from the Millers to the Martins.

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  Hugh Reilly and June Lockhart would take over as Paul and Ruth Martin from 1958-1964 (seasons 5-10)

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  After 10 seasons on the farm with the Millers and the Martins, the series shifted to Lassie's adventures with the U.S. Forest Service during seasons 11-16, the bulk of that time featuring Robert Bray as Ranger Corey Stuart.

• 

  Season 17 - the final CBS season - saw Lassie on her own, getting into different adventures each week. In seasons 18 and 19 (with the series airing in syndication), Lassie settled in at the Holden Ranch to close out the show's run.

The show's stories changed over the years, but Lassie was always the hero!

Life on the Farm: The Miller and Martin Families

For the first 10 seasons, Lassie lived on a farm.

• The Miller Family (Seasons 1-3): Lassie first lived with the Miller family. This included Jeff, his mom Ellen, and his grandpa George, who Jeff called "Gramps." Many stories were about Jeff and Lassie getting into adventures and Lassie helping him out of trouble.
• The Martin Family (Seasons 4-10): In season 4, a young orphan boy named Timmy came to live with the Millers. Sadly, Gramps passed away (this was written into the show because the actor, George Cleveland, died in real life). The Millers then moved away, but Timmy and Lassie stayed on the farm with his new foster parents, Paul and Ruth Martin. These years focused on "a boy and his dog" adventures, with Timmy often getting into tricky situations and Lassie coming to the rescue.

Lassie with the Forest Rangers

Seasons 11-16 were known as the "Ranger years." The Martin family moved to Australia, and Lassie couldn't go with them. So, she was taken in by U.S. Forest Service Ranger Corey Stuart. Lassie then began to work with the Forest Service, helping rangers protect nature.

During these years, the show used color filming to show off beautiful places. Lassie and the rangers traveled to amazing locations like Sequoia National Forest and Monument Valley. This gave viewers a chance to see different parts of the country. Other rangers also appeared after Robert Bray (who played Corey Stuart) left the series.

Lassie's Solo Adventures

For season 17, the show changed again. Lassie traveled on her own, having a new adventure each week. The show didn't explain why she was no longer with the Forest Service. Some episodes during this time even focused only on animals, without human characters.

Life at the Holden Ranch

In seasons 18 and 19, Lassie found a new home at the Holden Ranch. This ranch was a home for orphaned boys, run by Garth Holden and his son. This brought the show back to its roots, with Lassie living on a farm-like setting for the final two years of the series.

Main Characters and Actors

Tommy Rettig starred as Jeff Miller during the early years of the series (1954–1957), which were syndicated as Jeff's Collie

Jon Provost starred as Timmy Martin during the middle years of the series (1957–1964), which were syndicated as Timmy & Lassie

Robert Bray starred as Ranger Corey Stuart during the majority of the Forest Service years of the series from 1964–1968

Jack De Mave (left) and Jed Allan (right) starred as Rangers Bob Erickson and Scott Turner, respectively, during the later Forest Service years of the series from 1968–1970

Lassie traveled on her own in the final CBS season (1970–71), getting into various adventures before settling in at the Holden Ranch for the final two seasons of the series once it moved to first-run syndication. (1971–1973)

Many actors played the human characters who cared for Lassie throughout the show's long run.

The Miller Family (1954–1957)

• Ellen Miller: A farm woman who was a war widow, played by Jan Clayton.
• Jeff Miller: Ellen's son, played by Tommy Rettig.
• George "Gramps" Miller: Ellen's father-in-law and Jeff's grandpa, played by George Cleveland.
• Sylvester "Porky" Brockway: Jeff's friend, played by Joey D. Vieira.

The Martin Family (1957–1964)

• Timmy Martin: A foster boy who lived on the farm, played by Jon Provost.
• Paul Martin: A young farmer and Timmy's adoptive father, played by Jon Shepodd (1957–1958) and then Hugh Reilly (1958–1964).
• Ruth Martin: Paul's wife and Timmy's adoptive mother, played by Cloris Leachman (1957–1958) and then June Lockhart (1958–1964).
• Cully Wilson: A neighbor and nature lover, played by Andy Clyde.

U.S. Forest Service (1964–1970)

• Forest Ranger Corey Stuart: Played by Robert Bray.
• Forest Ranger Bob Erickson: Played by Jack De Mave.
• Forest Ranger Scott Turner: Played by Jed Allan.

Holden Ranch (1971–1973)

• Garth Holden: The director of the Holden Ranch, played by Ron Hayes.
• Ron Holden: Garth's son, played by Skip Burton.
• Dale Mitchell: Ron's friend, played by Larry Wilcox.

The Dog Actors Who Played Lassie

Many different dogs played Lassie over the years, all related to the original dog, Pal.

• Pal (in pilot episodes)
• Lassie Junior (1954–1959)
• Spook (1960)
• Baby (1960–1966)
• Mire (1966–1971)
• Hey Hey (1971–1973)

Lassie's Broadcast History

The original Lassie show aired on CBS every Sunday evening. In 1971, CBS decided to change its schedule, and Lassie was canceled by the network. However, the show continued for two more years in first-run syndication, meaning it was sold directly to local TV stations. In total, 591 episodes were made!

More Lassie Shows and Movies

The popularity of Lassie led to several other TV shows and movies about the famous dog.

Animated Adventures

• Lassie's Rescue Rangers (1973): After the live-action series ended, ABC created an animated cartoon show about Lassie.

New Live-Action Series

• The New Lassie (1989): This was a sequel series that brought back Jon Provost as an adult Timmy Martin, who was now named Steve McCullough. June Lockhart also returned as Ruth Martin in one episode.
• Lassie (1997): A new version of the show debuted on the Animal Planet cable network. It was filmed in Canada and featured a boy named Timmy and his dog, Lassie.
• Lassie (2014-present): This animated series, also known as The New Adventures of Lassie, shows Lassie living with the Parker family in Grand Mountain National Park. Lassie's best friend is a boy named Harvey Smith.

DVD Releases

Many episodes of the Lassie series have been released on DVD, so new generations can enjoy her adventures.

Lassie Comics

The TV series was also turned into a comic book series by Dan Spiegle, published by Gold Key Comics.