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{{short description|American television series (1954–1973)}}
{{refimprove|Date=April 2008}}
{{Infobox television
{{Dablink|This article is about the American TV series of 1954–1973, later syndicated as "Jeff's Collie" and "Timmy and Lassie". For other Lassie TV shows and movies, see ]}}
| image = Lassie title screen.jpg
{{Infobox Television
| caption = Title screen of ''Lassie'' (seasons 1–4)
| show_name = Lassie
| alt_name = {{Plainlist|
| image = ]
* ''Jeff's Collie'' (episodes 1–116)
| caption = Title screen of ''Lassie'', seasons 1-10
| show_name_2 = Jeff's Collie (episodes 1-116), Timmy and Lassie (episodes 116-352) * ''Timmy & Lassie'' (episodes 117–352)
| genre = ]s
| creator = Robert Maxwell
| starring = ]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]<br>]
| theme_music_composer = Les Baxter
| opentheme = Whistle
| composer = ]
| country = {{USA}}
| language = ]
| num_seasons = 19
| num_episodes = 588
| list_episodes = List of Lassie episodes
| executive_producer = ]<br />]<br />]
| co_exec =
| producer = ]<br />]<br />]<br />]
| asst_producer = ]<br />]<br />]<br />]
| location = ]
| runtime = 26 minutes
| network = ]
| picture_format = ] (seasons 1-10), color ] (seasons 11-19)
| audio_format = ] sound
| first_aired = ], ]
| last_aired = ], ]
| related = '']'', ]
| imdb_id = 0046617
| tv_com_id = 1110
}} }}
| genre = {{Plainlist|

* Family
'''''Lassie''''' is an ] ] about an intelligent female ] named Lassie. One of the longest running dramatic series on television, ''Lassie'' was originally broadcast from ], ], to ], ]. The show saw seventeen seasons on ] before entering ] for its final two seasons. The show was filmed initially in black-and-white and transitioned to color during the 1960s.
* ]/]

}}
The show's first ten seasons follow Lassie's adventures in a small farming community with two boys: Jeff Miller (1954-1957) and Timmy Martin (1957-1964). When her exploits on the farm end in the eleventh season, Lassie finds new and sometimes dangerous adventures in the American wilderness with forestry service workers Corey Stuart, Bob Erickson, and Scott Turner. Following an unexplained year alone (1970), Lassie finally settles at a children's home for her final syndicated seasons.
| creator = ] and ]

| starring = {{Plainlist|
''Lassie'' found critical favor from its inception and won two Emmy awards in its first years. Ancillary merchandise produced during its run included books, Halloween costumes, clothing, toys, and other items. Campbell's Soup offered two premiums (a Lassie portrait ring and a Lassie portrait wallet), and distributed thousands to the show's fans. A multi-part story was edited into the feature film, ''Lassie's Great Adventure'' and released in 1963. A spin-off series, '']'' (1989) brought Jon Provost back to television as Steve McCullough, a man denying his identity as Timmy Martin after learning Ruth and Paul Martin did not properly adopt him. Though ''Lassie'' has never been released in its entirety on video or DVD, selected episodes are available.
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ]
* ] (various dogs)
}}
| theme_music_composer = ]
| opentheme = Whistle
| composer = ]
| country = United States
| language = English
| num_seasons = 19
| num_episodes = 591
| list_episodes = List of Lassie (1954 TV series) episodes
| producer = {{Plainlist|
* Robert Golden
* ]
* Dusty Bruce
* ]
* ]
* Leon Fromkess
}}
| company = {{Plainlist|
* Lassie Television
* Robert Maxwell Associates
* Jack Wrather Productions
}}
| location = ]
| runtime = 26 minutes
| network = {{Plainlist|
* ] (1954–1971)
* ] (1971–1973)
}}
| first_aired = {{Start date|1954|09|12}}
| last_aired = {{End date|1973|03|24}}
| related = {{Plainlist|
* '']''
* '']''
}}
}}
'''''Lassie''''' is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female ] dog named ] and her companions, both human and animal. The show was the creation of producer ] and animal trainer ] and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973, making it the ]. The show ran for 17 seasons on ] before entering ] for its final two seasons. Initially filmed in black and white, the show transitioned to color in 1965.


==Production== ==Production==
===Narration===
In the 1940s, the ] ] became a household name after starring in a series of six ]s produced by ], beginning with '']'', which was based on a ] by ]. In lieu of back pay owed to him, Lassie's owner and trainer ] took all rights of the trademark, and of course the small collie named ] who played Lassie. They left Hollywood and did shows at fairs and rodeos for two years until producer ] sold Weatherwax on the concept of television series starring Lassie.<ref name="Collins">{{cite book |last=Collins |first=Ace |title=Lassie: A Dog's Life |date=1993-10-01 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=New York |isbn=978-0140231830|oclc=29878000 }}</ref> Two pilots were quickly produced, with Maxwell and Weatherwax agreeing that the series needed to be centered on "a boy and his dog." CBS executives gave the show a full-year contract and ''Lassie'' went into production, debuting on Sunday, ], ]. <ref name="Collins2">{{cite book |last=Collins |first=Ace |title=Lassie: Celebrating 50 Years of Love guide book (included with DVD set) |year=2004 |publisher=Classic Media }}</ref>
Wrather's wife, ], who was the series' associate producer, narrated numerous episodes throughout the run of the series, usually the beginning and/or ending of multi-part episodes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://episodes.lassieweb.org/lassie08.htm|title=Wrather narration|publisher=Lassie Web|access-date=2014-07-26}}</ref>

The show would continue to rule its time slot for another three years, however Maxwell and Weatherwax were concerned the run would soon be over as they wondered how many more stories about a boy and his dog could be written. ], who owned the hit western '']'' purchased the Lassie trademark and the show's production company in 1957. Though Maxwell left, Weatherwax agreed to stay for however long the show lasted.<ref name="Collins2" />


===Writers===
In 1964, Jon Provost was fourteen years old and tired of having to play a child. An earlier episode which had teamed Lassie with a Forest Ranger named Corey Stuart had received a lot of praise and high viewer response, so executive producer Bonita Granville Wrather made the choice to change the format of the show to have Lassie reunite with Stuart.<ref name="Collins2" /> Despite the change, ''Lassie'' remained popular.<ref name="Collins2" /> In 1970, however, Lassie inexplicably became a loner, with no regular human leads for a year.<ref name="Collins2" /> With new FCC rulings regarding primetime, CBS decided to cancel the show at the end of Lassie's solo season. The show then went into first-run syndication.
Many early episodes were written by ] under the pseudonym Claire Kennedy.<ref>{{cite book |date=January–June 1954 |title=Catalog of Copyright Entries |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NDQhAQAAIAAJ&q=lassie+%22claire+kennedy%22+%22robert+maxwell%22&pg=RA1-PA43 |publisher=The Library of Congress |page= 43 |series=Third Series |volume=8, Part 2, Number 1}}</ref> In later years, the writing partnership of Robert Schaefer and ] was responsible for over 150 episodes. They were also responsible for developing the idea of having Lassie with a forest ranger.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://claytonmoore.tripod.com/freiwald.htm |title=Eric Freiwald |last=Jensen |first=Steve |access-date=2020-07-13}}</ref>


===Theme music=== ===Theme music===
''Lassie'' used several pieces of theme music during its long broadcast history. For the first season, "Secret of the Silent Hills (Theme from the Lassie TV Series)," is used for both the opening and ending theme. Composed by ], the orchestral theme was originally created for the 1940 radio show '']''. For the second and third season, a variation of this theme, titled simply "Lassie Main & End Title", was used for the opening and ending theme. ], the music director for the series, is the listed composer for the theme, however the changes he made to the original are so slight that only a trained ear can tell the difference. The third theme used for the series is the ] "Dio Possente" (Even Bravest Hearts May Swell) from ]'s opera '']''. The exact time this theme started being used is uncertain due to conflicting records, however it is agreed that it was the third series, and used for at least part of season 4 for the change of ownership of Lassie.<ref name="ClassicThemes" /> ''Lassie'' used several pieces of theme music during its long broadcast history. For the first season, "Secret of the Silent Hills (Theme from the Lassie TV series)", is used for both the opening and ending theme. Composed by ], the orchestral theme was originally created for the 1940 radio show ''The Courageous Dr. Christian''.<ref name="Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie">Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie</ref>


The most famous of the Lassie theme songs, appeared at the start of the fifth season. Copyrighted as "Lassie Main & End Title", the song was created by ], with the whistling itself performed by ]. Nicknamed "Whistle," it remained the series theme for the rest of the Martin Years. With the coming of the Ranger Years, the opening and ending theme is changed to ]'s arrangement of the traditional folk tune '']''. "Whistle" returned as the series theme during the thirteenth season for the seven part "Voyager" arc, and would remain the series theme for the rest of its run.<ref name="ClassicThemes">{{cite web |url=http://www.classicthemes.com/50sTVThemes/themePages/lassie.html |publisher=The Media Management Group |work=ClassicThemes.com |title=Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie |accessdate=2008-02-16 }}</ref> For the second and third season a variation of this theme, titled simply "Lassie Main & End Title", was used for the opening and ending theme. ], the music director for the series, is the listed composer for the theme; however the changes he made to the original are so slight that only a trained ear can tell the difference. The third theme used for the series is an orchestral rendition of the ], "Dio Possente" (Even Bravest Hearts May Swell) from ]'s opera, '']''. The exact time this theme started being used is uncertain due to conflicting records; however it is agreed that it was the third series, and was used for at least part of season four for the change of ownership of Lassie.<ref name="Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie" />


The most famous of the Lassie theme songs appeared at the start of the fifth season. Copyrighted as "Lassie Main & End Title", the composer credit has never been definitively claimed to this day. The melody is whistled by ]. Nicknamed "The Whistler," it remained the series theme for the rest of the "Martin years". With the coming of the "Ranger years", the opening and ending theme was changed to an orchestral version of "The Whistler". Beginning in season 17 (where Lassie traveled alone), and continuing throughout the Holden Ranch era, the theme was changed again, this time to ]'s arrangement of the traditional folk tune '']'', which became the series theme song for the rest of its run. For the final two seasons, the familiar closing visual of Lassie standing on a hill and lifting her paw, was replaced by the credits on a green background, and flashing from one slate to the other instead of scrolling as in most of the series run.<ref name="Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie" /> Television composer ] scored the music to nearly every episode between 1963 and 1973,<ref name=variety>{{cite news|first=Jon|last=Burlingame|title=Nathan Scott, 94, scored TV shows&nbsp;– Composer's credits included 'Dragnet,' 'Lassie' |url=https://variety.com/2010/scene/news/nathan-scott-94-scored-tv-shows-1118016005/ |magazine=]|publisher=]|date=March 3, 2010 |access-date=March 10, 2010}}</ref> except for four episodes.<ref name=latimes>{{cite news|first=Dennis|last=McClellan|title=Nathan Scott dies at 94; film and TV composer, arranger and conductor |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-mar-04-la-me-nathan-scott5-2010mar05-story.html |newspaper=]|date=March 4, 2010 |access-date=March 13, 2010}}</ref>
===Sponsor===
]


==Plot and themes==
] sponsored the entire run of ''Lassie''. In 1956, the company sponsored a "Name Lassie's Puppies" contest with the grand prizes being Lassie's pups and $2,000. Company executives hand delivered puppies to the winner's homes. The company offered two premiums during the show's first ten seasons. One was the friendship ring from the fourth season episode, "The Ring" (1957); the company mailed 77,715 rings to viewers. In 1959, the company offered a wallet "made of rich brown plastic" and emblazoned with a picture of Lassie in conjunction with the episode, "Old Henry"; 1,343,509 wallets were mailed to viewers who sent in five different labels from Campbell products. The labels represented 6.5 million cans of Campbell's products sold. The company asked that their products be visible on the set and so, in episode after episode, Campbell's products are seen in background shots.<ref name="Collins" />
<gallery mode=packed heights=220px>
Lassie cast 1955.jpg|Original series stars ] (as Ellen Miller - top left), ] (as Gramps - top right), and ] (as Jeff Miller - at bottom with Lassie)
Lassie cast 1957.jpg|From left to right - ] (as Uncle Petrie), ] (the original Paul Martin), ] (as Timmy Martin) and ] (the original Ruth Martin) during season 4 when the show transitioned from the Millers to the Martins
Lassie 1960 cast photo.JPG|] and ] would take over as Paul and Ruth Martin from 1958-1964 (seasons 5–10).
Robert Bray Lassie 1967.JPG|After 10 seasons on the farm with the Millers and the Martins, the series shifted to Lassie's adventures with the ] during seasons 11–16, the bulk of that time featuring ] as Ranger Corey Stuart.
Lassie portrait 1968.JPG|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.
</gallery>


The first 10 seasons of the series saw Lassie living on a farm, first with the Miller family (Jeff, his mother Ellen, and her father George - who was called "Gramps" by Jeff). Season 4 saw the Millers taking in young orphan Timmy, who then lived with them on the farm, as well as the unexpected death of Gramps, (reflecting the real life death of actor ], who played the character), and with that the Millers moved off the farm, but Timmy and Lassie would stay behind with his new foster parents, Paul and Ruth Martin, who also took over the farm. All 10 of the Miller/Martin farm seasons would for the most part focus on "boy and his dog" adventures with Jeff or Timmy getting involved in some sort of trouble, and Lassie eventually coming to the rescue.
Lassie was spokesdog for Recipe Dog Food, a Campbell's product introduced in 1969, which was reportedly based on the homemade stew mixture Weatherwax prepared for Lassie. Printed advertisements for the product announced, "Now all dogs can come home to the dinner Lassie comes home to." In its first year, Recipe earned $10 million for Campbell's, and, in its third year, $40 million. To help boost sales, Campbell's paid Weatherwax to write a dog-training manual called ''The Lassie Method'' which the company used as a premium offer.<ref name="Collins" />


Seasons 11–16 were the "Ranger years" of the series, as Lassie (because she was not able to go to Australia with the Martins when Paul got a job teaching agriculture there) was taken in by U.S. Forest Ranger ] (who appeared in a few episodes of season 10) and began to work with the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://episodes.lassieweb.org/lassie11.htm|title=Lassie season 11|publisher=Lassie Web|access-date=2014-03-23}}</ref> ] was exploited during the Ranger years with Lassie and her friends sent to exotic locations such as ] and ], creating mini-] for viewers. Other rangers would be featured during the latter part of this era when ] (who played Stuart) left the series.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://episodes.lassieweb.org/lassie15.htm|title=Lassie season 15|publisher=Lassie Web|access-date=2014-03-23}}</ref>
== Characters and cast ==
''Lassie'' has a large and varied human and animal cast with adult and child actors filling both primary and secondary roles in the first ten seasons. Animals appear frequently in both one-shot and recurrent roles. Child actors make fewer appearances thereafter; some episodes feature only Lassie and other animals. Child actors reappear in the last two syndicated seasons when the show's setting becomes a children's home.


For season 17, the program shifted gears again and became essentially an ], with Lassie traveling on her own, getting into different adventures each week (similar in format to '']'' and, later, to '']''). No explanation was given as to why Lassie was no longer with the Forest Service.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://episodes.lassieweb.org/lassie17.htm|title=Lassie season 17|publisher=Lassie Web|access-date=2014-03-23}}</ref> Some episodes during this final CBS season were animals only.
Lassie appears in every episode of the series. Her principal function through the first ten seasons is guardian and playmate of boys. When her cozy days on the farm end (1964), she becomes the companion of men, following them into the wilderness. She manages capably for a year on her own (1970) before settling at Holden Ranch. Unlike other dogs, Lassie has a very keen understanding of human vocabulary, motives, and emotions, and sometimes exhibits unnatural canine behavior. In "The Odyssey", for example, she is lost and hungry and, when the opportunity to kill and devour a rabbit presents itself, her good heart will not permit her to do so. In other episodes, she protects baby animals that would naturally be harassed and worried by a dog.


During seasons 18 and 19 (with the series having moved to ]), Lassie was taken in by Garth Holden (played by ]) who was in charge of the Holden Ranch – a home for orphaned boys – which he ran with his college-age son and his friend. This (somewhat) brought the show back to its roots by giving Lassie a farm/ranch home base, which is where she settled in for the final two years of the series.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://episodes.lassieweb.org/lassie18.htm|title=Lassie season 18|publisher=Lassie Web|access-date=2014-03-23}}</ref><ref name="Collins">]:</ref>
Lassie is first portrayed by Pal, the MGM film Lassie, in the two pilots (1954) and thereafter by five of his male descendants. When Pal retired, his son Lassie Junior took the role, appearing through all three Jeff years (1954-1956) and two Timmy years (1957-1958). He retired in 1959 to battle cancer, recovered, but never worked the show again. His son Spook was rushed into the role but the dog never became comfortable on the set after an overhead light crashed to the floor on his first day. He appears briefly in season five (1958), in all of season six (1959), most of season seven (1960), and very briefly in season eight (1961). Baby, son of Lassie Junior and brother to Spook, shared Spook's thespian chores at the end of season seven (1960), the last Timmy years (1961-1963) and two of the Ranger years (1964-1965). Mire appears in the last Ranger years (1966-1969) and the Lassie alone year (1970). Hey Hey portrays Lassie during the two syndicated Holden Ranch years (1971-1972). <ref name="Collins" />


==Episodes==
]
{{Main|List of Lassie episodes}}
{{:List of Lassie episodes}}


==Characters and cast==
The series begins with Jeff Miller (], 1954-1957) bringing Lassie to the weatherbeaten farm where he lives with his war-widow mother Ellen Miller (], 1954-1957) and his grandfather, George "Gramps" Miller (], 1954-1957). Recurring characters include Jeff's friend Sylvester "Porky" Brockway (Donald Keeler, 1954-1957), telephone operator Jenny (Florence Lake, 1954-1964), veterinarian "Doc" Weaver (Arthur Space, 1955-1964), and Constable Clay Horton (Richard Garland, 1954-1957). Child actor ] (1957-1964) makes his debut in the fourth season as Timmy, a runaway given a foster home on the farm. Recurring animal characters include Domino, Jeff's stallion and Pokey (1954-1957), Porky's ]. The Miller years end in the fourth season when the farm is sold to Paul and Ruth Martin (played initially by Jon Shepodd and ] (1957) and, later, by Hugh Reilly and ] 1958-1964).
===Human leads===
] starred as Jeff Miller during the early years of the series (1954–1957), which were syndicated as ''Jeff's Collie''.]]
] starred as Timmy Martin during the middle years of the series (1957–1964), which were syndicated as ''Timmy & Lassie''.]]
] starred as Ranger ] during the majority of the Forest Service years of the series from 1964–1968.]]
] (left) and ] (right) starred as Rangers Bob Erickson and Scott Turner, respectively, during the later Forest Service years of the series from 1968–1970.]]
] (1971–1973).]]


====1954–1957: Miller Family (''Jeff's Collie'')====
]
* Ellen Miller – war-widowed farm woman (])
* Jeff Miller – Ellen's eleven-year-old son (])
* George "Gramps" Miller – Ellen's father-in-law and Jeff's paternal grandfather (])
* Sylvester "Porky" Brockway – a farm boy and Jeff's friend (] – using the stage name "Donald Keeler")
* Constable Clay Horton – the sheriff (])


====1957–1964: Martin Family (''Timmy & Lassie'')====
The Martins adopt Timmy and provide Lassie with a home. ] joins the cast in 1957 as Paul's uncle Petrie Martin but is dropped in 1958. In 1959, ] joins the cast as Cully Wilson, a grandfatherly pal for Timmy and remains through the first episodes of 1964. Boomer Bates (Todd Ferrell), a chubby pal for Timmy is created in 1958 but is dropped. Sheriff Miller (Robert Foulk), Timmy's schoolmate "Willy" Brewster (Linda Wrather), and schoolteacher Amy Hazlit (Sally Bliss) make semi-regular appearances. The Martin years feature special appearances by ], ], ], ] (]), and the show's associate producer ]. The Martin years end with the first episode of the 1964 season.
* Timmy Martin – a foster boy on the Miller farm (])
* Paul Martin – a young farmer, Ruth's husband and Timmy's adoptive father (] 1957–1958; ] 1958–1964)
* Ruth Martin – Paul's wife and Timmy's adoptive mother (] 1957–1958; ] 1958–1964)
* Uncle Petrie J. Martin – Paul's uncle (]) (1957–1959)
* Cully Wilson – a neighbor of the Martins, who was a farmer and nature lover (]) (1959–1964)
* Ralph "Boomer" Bates – a neighbor of the Martins who owned a dog named Mike and was Timmy's best friend (Todd Ferrell) (1958–1959)
* Scott Richards, another of Timmy's friends (]) (1958)


====1964–1970: ]====
Lassie's guardianship is transferred, first, to forestry service worker, Corey Stuart (], 1964-1968) and then to his co-workers Bob Erickson and Scott Turner (Jack De Mave and Jed Allan, 1968-1969). Teenager Mark Miranda appears in the recurring role of Neeka, an Aleut youth and friend of the rangers. ], ], and ] make guest appearances. Following her years with the forestry workers, Lassie wanders about with no regular human characters sharing her life until she settles on the Holden Ranch. Garth Holden (Ron Hayes, 1971), head of the ranch shares Lassie's care with his college-age son, Ron Holden (Skip Burton, 1971-1972), and Ron's friend, Dale Mitchell (], 1971-1972). Larry Pennell plays Keith Holden, Garth's brother. Dr. Sue Lambert (Sherry Boucher, 1971), is a veterinarian at a nearby animal sanctuary, and Lucy Baker (], 1971-1972), is a deaf child in the area.
* Forest Ranger Corey Stuart (]) (1964–1968)
* Assistant Forest Ranger Hank Whitfield (])<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/333334289/|title=Clyde Houdeshell Dies|work=]|location=]|date=October 8, 1969|access-date=July 15, 2022|page=15|via=]}} {{Closed access}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=10dXAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA134|title=Hollywood Stunt Performers, 1910s-1970s: A Biographical Dictionary, 2d ed.|pages=134–135|first=Gene|last=Scott Freese|date=April 10, 2014|publisher=McFarland|isbn=9780786476435|via=]}}</ref> (1964–1966)
* Forest Ranger Bob Erickson (]) (1968–1970)
* Forest Ranger Scott Turner (]) (1968–1970)


====1970–1971: Traveling on her own====
==Plot==
* No human leads
]


====1971–1973: Holden Ranch====
In the show's first episode (1954), Jeff Miller, an eleven year old boy living with his mother, Ellen, and grandfather, "Gramps", on a farm near the fictional town of Calverton, is bequeathed a ] named ]. Episodes during the first several seasons follow Jeff's adventures with Lassie on the farm and the neighboring vicinity. At the opening of the fourth season (1957), a tattered runaway named ] (]) is discovered hiding in the Miller barn. The Millers take a liking to the boy and provide him a foster home.
* Garth Holden – director of the Holden Ranch (])
* Ron Holden – Garth's son (Skip Burton)
* Dale Mitchell – Ron's friend (])
* Keith Holden – Garth's brother (])
* Lucy Baker – a deaf child living near the Holden Ranch (])


===Dog actors as Lassie===
Midway through the fourth season, "Gramps" dies, and Ellen and Jeff decide to move to Capitol City. The farm is sold to ] and ] who adopt Timmy. Before Jeff departs the farm, he leaves Lassie with Timmy, knowing the dog could never adjust to life in a busy city. The Martins are joined on the farm by Paul's uncle, Petrie J. Martin. Family friend, Cully Wilson, an elderly farmer and nature lover, plays a part in many episodes.
* ] (Pilot episodes)

* Lassie Junior (1954–1959)
The Martin years end with the first episode of the eleventh season ("The Wayfarers", 1964) when Paul, Ruth, and Timmy move to Australia. Lassie remains in the States due to Australia's quarantine restrictions and finds a home with Cully Wilson. Cully suffers a heart attack, and Corey Stuart (]), a ranger with the ], gives Lassie a home. When Stuart is seriously disabled fighting a forest fire, two of his fellow rangers, Scott Turner (Jed Allan) and Bob Erickson (Jack De Mave), befriend Lassie. Lassie's life with the rangers is one of wilderness adventure and perils. Near the end of the show's 17 year CBS run, Lassie strikes out on her own for a year with no explanation to the viewer regarding the whereabouts of her ranger friends. Her year alone becomes one of aiding the needy humans and animals she encounters during her rambles.
* Spook (1960)

* Baby (1960–1966)
Following Lassie's year alone, the show was cancelled on CBS. ''Lassie'' continued however, in first run ]. The syndicated series picked up where the CBS series left off: Lassie is still on her own when two young hikers pull her from a river and take her to Holden Ranch, a home for troubled boys. It is there that Lassie finds a new home and new adventures. After two syndicated seasons on the Holden Ranch, ''Lassie'' ended its run.
* Mire (1966–1971)
* Hey Hey (1971–1973)


==Media information== ==Media information==
===Broadcast history === ===Broadcast history===
''Lassie'' was originally televised ], ], to ], ]. Its first seventeen seasons aired on CBS Sunday evenings at 7:00 P.M. EST. In 1971, in order to promote community-related programming among local affliates, the ] moved prime time Sundays to 8:00 p.m. ]. CBS executives felt ''Lassie'' would not be well received in a time slot other than its seventeen-year held 7:00 P.M. slot, and, with the network's other family programs set, the decision was made to cancel the show.<ref name="Collins" /> First-run ''Lassie'' was televised September 12, 1954 to March 24, 1973 with its first 17 seasons airing on CBS Sundays at 7:00&nbsp;p.m. ]. In 1971, in order to promote community-related programming among local affiliates, the ] moved ] Sundays to 8:00 P.M. EST with the institution of the ]. CBS executives felt ''Lassie'' would not be well received in a time slot other than its traditional 7:00&nbsp;p.m. slot, and, with the network's other family programs set, the show was canceled.<ref name="Collins"/> (''Lassie'' was among several shows that CBS canceled during this time period as part of a ].) ''Lassie'' then entered first-run syndication with Jack Wrather and Campbell's Soup still on board, and remained on the air for another two years with its final episode airing in March 1973. All totaled, 591 episodes were produced.


An animated reworking, '']'', followed in fall 1973, immediately after the original series ended (the ] aired in 1972 while the live-action series was still on the air). ''Lassie's Rescue Rangers'' was denounced by both Weatherwax and the ], the latter of which made note of the animated series' "violence, crime and stupidity."<ref name=Erickson>{{cite book |last1=Erickson |first1=Hal |title=Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 |date=2005 |edition=2nd |publisher=McFarland & Co |isbn=978-1476665993 |pages=487–488}}</ref>
''Lassie'' then entered first-run syndication with Jack Wrather and Campbell's Soup still on board, and remained on the air for another two years at 7:30 p.m. EST.<ref name="Collins2" /> The final episode of the series aired on ], ]. After nineteen seasons, 588 episodes, and six Lassie generations, the ''Lassie'' television series came to an end.


===Later series===
The series continued to air in rerun syndication, off and on, for another fifty years. In syndication, the episodes in which Lassie was paired with the Miller family were often aired under the name ''Jeff's Collie'', while the years with the Martin family were sometimes aired under the name ''Timmy and Lassie.'' ] currently owns the rights the entire ''Lassie'' television series, as well as the Lassie trademark.
In 1973, ABC created an animated Saturday-morning ] program called '']'' produced by ].<ref name="Collins"/>


In 1989, what was essentially a sequel series, '']'' – featuring Jon Provost as Steve McCullough – aired in first-run syndication. In its seventh episode ("Roots"), June Lockhart reprised her Ruth Martin role when Steve McCullough is revealed to be the adult Timmy Martin. It is revealed that Timmy was never properly adopted by the Martins and consequently was forced to remain in the U.S. when Ruth and Paul emigrated to Australia. Timmy was then subsequently adopted by the McCullough family and began going by his middle name Steven. In 1992, Tommy Rettig made a guest appearance in the final episode, "The Computer Study". This would be his last television appearance prior to his death in 1996.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0720568/|title=Tommy Rettig|website=]|publisher=]|access-date=May 9, 2010}}</ref>
=== Marketing and merchandise ===
''Lassie'' generated considerable merchandise for the juvenile market during its heyday. Items included ''Lassie''-themed clothing (pyjamas, bathrobes, shirts, sneakers), Campbell's Soup premiums distributed during the "Timmy" years of the show (Lassie friendship ring and Lassie wallet), and Lassie Halloween costumes. Comic books, coloring books, paint books, punch out books, Whitman novels, Tell-a-Tale storybooks, Big Little Books, and other printed materials were published.<ref name="Collins" /> Promotional photographs and studio materials, Lassie and Lone Ranger tie-ins from the episode "Peace Patrol", and props and costumes with documented provenance from the show also attract collectors. In 2005, Karen Pfeiffer released ''The Legacy of Lassie: an unauthorized information & price guide on Lassie collectibles'' (ISBN 978-0975887066).


In 1997, a modified remake – also called '']'' – debuted, airing in the U.S. on the then new ] cable network. This show (which was filmed in Canada and set in ]) also revolved around a boy named Timmy and his dog, though differences in setting and character circumstances precluded it from being an exact remake of the original series.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0118380/locations|title=Filming locations for "Lassie" (1997)|website=IMDb|publisher=Amazon|access-date=May 9, 2010}}</ref>
===Spin-offs===
In 1973, CBS produced a Saturday morning Lassie cartoon version called '']''. In the animated series, Lassie is a super-dog. The show earned Rudd Weatherwax's deep disdain. "That's not Lassie," he commented, "That's trash."<ref name="Collins" />


From 2014-present, a new animated series called '']'' or ''The New Adventures of Lassie'' was aired. Lassie lives with the Parker family, 10-year-old red-headed Zoe and her family, Ranger Graham Parker and Dr. Sarah Parker (a veterinarian), in the Grand Mountain National Park. Her best friend is Harvey Smith, whose mother Beth works in the park visitor center. Harvey's late father was a mountain climber. The children's antagonist is a snooty rich girl named Samantha Humphrey. Two seasons were done, the first with traditional drawn animation and the second season with computer-generated animation.
In 1989, a new Lassie television series began airing in first-run syndication. Produced by Palladium Entertainment, '']'' was a modern retake of the old Lassie series, with Lassie paired with the McCullough family. Though the family is expanded to have a boy and a girl, it still maintained the basic formula of being about a boy and his dog. The series also made several connections to the original series. Jon Provost co-stars in the series as Steve McCullough. June Lockhart makes a guest appearance in the seventh episode, reprising her role as Ruth Martin, who comes to claim Lassie and in doing so reveals that Uncle Steve was actually Timmy Martin. According to that episode, when the Martins tried to move to Australia at the end of the original series, they learned they had not properly adopted Timmy and he was taken from them. Bitter and feeling he'd been abandoned, Timmy began going by his middle name of "Steven" when he was adopted by the McCulloughs.<ref name="TNL Ep07">{{cite episode |title=Roots |episodelink= |series=The New Lassie |serieslink=The New Lassie |credits=Director: Alan Cooke, Writer: Bud Wiser |airdate=1989-10-21 |season=1 |number=7}}</ref> Tommy Rettig also makes guest appearances as Jeff Miller, who is a professor and computer specialist.

Another Lassie series aired in 1997, also titled '']'', however it made no connections to the original series except for a single episode in which we learn that Lassie's veterinarian Doc Stewart had written a book about Timmy and Lassie's adventures, rather than the memoirs he'd regularly mentioned in the original series.

In 2001, ], author of a series of dog-centered ] series, released a two volume manga series entitled '']'' that was inspired by the television series.

===Feature Film===
During Thanksgiving week 1962, a story was filmed in the High Sierras called "The Journey".<ref name=Provost>{{cite book |last=Provost |first=Jon |authorlink=Jon Provost |co-author=Jacobson, Laurie|title=Timmy's in the Well: The Jon Provost Story |date=2007-11-01 |publisher=Cumberland House |location=Nashville, Tennessee |isbn=978-0140231830 |oclc=154674404}}</ref> First broadcast in February and March 1963, the five part story follows Timmy and Lassie as the two are swept away in a hot air balloon that eventually comes to rest in the Canadian wilderness, forcing the travelers to face many perils before being rescued by the ]. Richard Simmons, star of another Jack Wrather property, '']'', made an appearance<ref name="Provost" /> while ''Lassie'' star, Jon Provost, performed his own whitewater stunts.<ref name="Provost" /> The show's sponsor, Campbell's Soup, objected to multi-part stories, believing viewers would not want to tune in week after week to find out what happens from one episode to the next, but three of the five episodes hit the top ten for the weeks in which they aired.<ref name="Collins" /> The five episodes were quickly edited into a feature length film and released in August 1963 through Twentieth Century&ndash;Fox as ''Lassie's Great Adventure''.<ref name="Collins" /> The film is 73 minutes in length and was filmed in color &ndash; the only Timmy and Lassie color episodes. The film is available on DVD.


===DVD releases=== ===DVD releases===
The series was released to DVD between 2001–2007.
{| class="wikitable"

!style="background: #CCCCFF"|DVD Name
{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto;"
!style="background: #CCCCFF"|# Ep
!style="background: #CCCCFF"|DVD Name
!style="background: #CCCCFF"|# Ep
!style="background: #CCCCFF"|Release Date !style="background: #CCCCFF"|Release Date
|- |-
| Lassie's Great Adventure | Lassie's Great Adventure
| 5 | 5
| ], ] | June 26, 2001
|- |-
| Lassie: Best of the Lassie Show | Lassie: Best of the Lassie Show
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | November 25, 2003
|- |-
| Lassie: Lassie's Christmas Stories | Lassie: Lassie's Christmas Stories
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | November 25, 2003
|- |-
| Lassie: Best of Jeff's Collie | Lassie: Best of Jeff's Collie
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | November 25, 2003
|- |-
| Lassie: Lassie's Birthday Surprise | Lassie: Lassie's Birthday Surprise
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | November 25, 2003
|- |-
| Lassie: Lassie's Gift of Love | Lassie: Lassie's Gift of Love
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | November 25, 2003
|- |-
| Lassie: 50th Anniversary Collection | Lassie: 50th Anniversary Collection
| 24 | 24
| ], ] | September 14, 2004
|- |-
| Lassie: Flight of the Cougar | Lassie: Flight of the Cougar
| 3 | 3
| ], ] | March 6, 2006
|- |-
| Lassie: A Mother's Love | Lassie: A Mother's Love
| 4 | 4
| ], ] | May 1, 2007
|-
| Lassie's Greatest Adventures Collection<br>{{small|(similar release of Lassie: 50th Anniversary Collection)}}
| 18
| September 17, 2019
|} |}

==Comics==
The TV series was adapted into a comic book by ], distributed by ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lambiek.net/artists/s/spiegle_d.htm|title = Dan Spiegle}}</ref>


==Reception== ==Reception==
===Ratings===
Every year of its 17 year run on CBS, ''Lassie'' placed first in its time slot, Sundays at 7:00 p.m. EST. Additionally, the series often ranked among the top twenty-five shows on television. Though the Miller years are critically regarded as the best years of the show, the show's highest ranking years in the ] were the Martin family years when the show placed #24 in 1957, #22 in 1958, #15 in 1959, #15 in 1961, #21 in 1962, #13 in 1963, and #17 in 1964. The only Martin year ''Lassie'' did not climb into the top twenty-five was 1960, when it ran opposite '']'' on ] and '']'' on ]. With the departure of the Martin family in the first episode of the eleventh season, the show began a steady decline in ratings.<ref name="Collins" />
Every year of its 17-year run on CBS, ''Lassie'' placed first in its time slot, Sunday 7:00 P.M. EST, and often ranked among the top 25 shows on television. The show's highest ranking years in the ] were the Martin years when the show placed #24 in 1957, #22 in 1958, #15 in 1959, #15 in 1961, #21 in 1962, #13 in 1963, and #17 in 1964. The only Martin year ''Lassie'' did not climb into the top twenty-five was 1960, when it ran opposite '']'' on ] and '']'' on ].<ref name="Col166">] 1993, p.166</ref> However, ''Lassie'' still ran opposite Disney when the ] moved to NBC in 1961, and still managed to climb into the Top 25. With the advent of the Forest Service seasons, the show began a steady decline in ratings.<ref name="Jenkins">]</ref>


{| class="wikitable"
{{quote|… The series' rural setting offered a nostalgic conception of national culture at a time when most Americans had left the farm for the city or suburbia. Lassie's ownership shifted from the original Jeff Miller to the orphaned Timmy Martin, but the central themes of the intense relationship between boys and their pets continued. Lassie became a staple of Sunday night television, associated with "wholesome family values," though, periodically, she was also the subject of controversy with parents groups monitoring television content. Lassie's characteristic dependence on cliff-hanger plots in which children were placed in jeopardy was seen as too intense for many smaller children; at the same time, Timmy's actions were said to encourage children to disobey their parents and to wander off on their own. |]|]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/L/htmlL/lassie/lassie.htm |title=Lassie |publisher=]|first=Henry |last=Jenkins| accessdate=2008-04-05}}</ref>}}
|-
! Season !! Rank
|-
| 1954–1955 || rowspan="2" | Not in the Top 30
|-
| 1955–1956
|-
| 1956–1957 || #24
|-
| 1957–1958 || #22
|-
| 1958–1959 || Not in the Top 30
|-
| 1959–1960 || #29
|-
| 1960–1961 || Not in the Top 30
|-
| 1961–1962 || #15
|-
| 1962–1963 || #19
|-
| 1963–1964 || #12
|-
| 1964–1965 || #17
|-
| 1965–1966 || #27
|-
| 1966–1967 || #33
|-
| 1967–1968 || #30
|-
| 1968–1969 || rowspan="3" | Not in the Top 30
|-
| 1969–1970
|-
| 1970–1971
|}


===Awards=== ===Awards and honors===
(All awards listed given during the time of, or specifically related to the TV series)
''Lassie'' won ] Awards for Best Children's Program in 1955 and for Best Children's Series in 1956.<ref name="CBS">{{cite web |url=http://www.cbs.com/specials/cbs_75/timeline/1950.shtml |publisher=] |title=CBS at 75: 1950s |accessdate=2008-02-22 }}</ref> Jan Clayton was nominated for two Emmys in 1957 and 1958 for her portrayal of Ellen Miller, while June Lockhart was nominated for an Emmy in 1959 for her role as Ruth Martin. The show received another Emmy nomination in 1960 for Outstanding Achievement in the Field of Children's Programming. The show was awarded a ] in 1956.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.peabody.uga.edu/winners/PeabodyWinnersBook.pdf |title=Peabody Winners Book |format=pdf |publisher=Peabody Awards |accessdate=2008-02-14}}</ref> Honors for the show were also received from the PTA, the National Association for Better Radio and Television, Gold Star, and ''Billboard''.<ref name="Collins" /> In 2003, Jon Provost was nominated for ]'s Favorite Pet-Human Relationship Award (Timmy and Lassie).
* Two-time ] winner for Best Children's Program (1955, 1956)<ref>]</ref>
* 1956 ]<ref>]</ref>
* Three stars on the ] (Lassie – 1960, June Lockhart – 1960 for television, Jon Provost – 1994)
* 1967 ] Conservation Award (awarded to Lassie for promoting conservation during the series' Forest Service era)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lassie.net/awards.htm |title=Lassie Awards |publisher=Lassie.net |access-date=2014-03-23 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130714031851/http://www.lassie.net/awards.htm |archive-date=2013-07-14}}</ref>
* Timmy Martin's shirt, jeans, and Keds displayed at the ]


===Cultural impact=== ===Cultural impact===
] in a promotional photo for his autobiography ''Timmy's in the Well!'' (essentially portraying "Timmy" reading to "Lassie")]]
In 1960, Lassie became one of only three animal actors to receive a star on the ].<ref>{{cite web | title=Lassie (History timeline) | publisher=Classic Media | year=2005 | url=http://www.lassie.com/lassie_star.html | accessdate=2007-10-29 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Hollywood Walk of Fame: MP | publisher=Hollywood Chamber of Commerce |url=http://www.tibp.com/cgi-bin/foxweb.dll/wlx/dir/wlxdirecatn?catid=5&Client=WOFAME&lcTemplate=DIRENAME.HTM&CITY= | accessdate=2008-02-14 }}</ref> One of Timmy's gingham checked shirts hangs in the ]. Lassie and the show's stars have appeared on nine '']'' covers.<ref name="Collins" /><ref name="Provost" />
Jon Provost called his autobiography ''Timmy's in the Well!'' because a well was the one place Timmy never fell into—abandoned mine shafts, off cliffs, into rivers, lakes, and quicksand, but never a well.<ref name="Provost">]:</ref><ref></ref>
In 1967, in conjunction with Lassie's unofficial role with the United States Forestry Service and her perception by many Americans as an environmental activist, Lassie was welcomed to the ] by ]. In January 1968, the President of the United States of America signed into a law a bill that targeted soil and water pollution unofficially called by many "the Lassie program". Lassie was honored with a luncheon in the Senate Dining Room on March 19, 1968 when a plaque recognizing her commitment to ] was presented her by senators ] and ].<ref name="Collins" />


'']'' parodied the show as "Lizzy", where it was revealed that the collie was actually a circus midget in a dog suit, while the real Lizzy was a dimwitted mutt.
In an episode of '']'' ("Dino Goes Hollyrock"), the character Dino wins an appearance on the smash hit TV show "Sassie" starring a heavily made-up and snobby girl dinosaur and her Lassie-like adventures.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.fandango.com/theflintstones:dinogoeshollyrock_v345322/plotsummary |title=Flintstones' Lassie takeoff |publisher=Fandango.com |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140202121546/http://www.fandango.com/theflintstones%3Adinogoeshollyrock_v345322/plotsummary |archive-date=2014-02-02 |access-date=2014-06-21 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

Belgian comics artist ] created his own version of the TV show with a collie named '']'' in 1954. Apart from the fact that his comic strip starred the same dog breed with a similar name, it had little to do with the series overall, since the comic was a Western comic.
{{clear}}
==References== ==References==
; Notes
;General
{{reflist|group=note}}
*"Lassie ... My Best Friend". ''Jack and Jill'', November 1959.

*"The Life and Times of Lassie". ''TV Guide'', July 4, 1959.
; Footnotes
{{reflist|2}}

; Works cited
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite news |author=Barron |first=James |title=At Lunch With June Lockhart, Jon Provost and Lassie |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/16/arts/television/16lass.html?_r=1&oref=slogin |work=] |date=September 16, 2004 |access-date=April 4, 2009}}
* {{cite web |url=https://www.cbs.com/specials/cbs_75/timeline/1950.shtml |publisher=] |title=CBS at 75: 1950s |access-date=February 22, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060505030928/http://www.cbs.com/specials/cbs_75/timeline/1950.shtml |archive-date=May 5, 2006}}
* {{cite book |last=Collins |first=Ace |title=Lassie: A Dog's Life |year=1993 |publisher=Penguin Books |location=New York |isbn=978-0-14-023183-0}}
* {{cite web |title=Hollywood Walk of Fame: MP |publisher=Hollywood Chamber of Commerce |url=https://www.tibp.com/cgi-bin/foxweb.dll/wlx/dir/wlxdirecatn?catid=5&Client=WOFAME&lcTemplate=DIRENAME.HTM&CITY= | access-date=February 14, 2008}}
* {{cite web |last=Jenkins |first=Henry |author-link=Henry Jenkins |url=https://museum.tv/eotv/lassie.htm |title=Lassie |publisher=] |access-date=April 25, 2008}}
* {{cite web |url=https://americanhistory.si.edu/exhibitions/small_exhibition.cfm?key=1267&exkey=143&pagekey=254 |title=Jon Provost's Keds sneakers |publisher= Smithsonian Institution}}
* {{cite web |title=Lassie (History timeline) |publisher=Classic Media |year=2005 |url=http://www.lassie.com/lassie_star.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060813111647/http://www.lassie.com/lassie_star.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 13, 2006 |access-date=October 29, 2007}}
* {{cite web |url=https://classicthemes.com/50sTVThemes/themePages/lassie.html |publisher=The Media Management Group |work=ClassicThemes.com |title=Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie |access-date=February 16, 2008}}
* {{cite web|url=https://www.peabody.uga.edu/winners/PeabodyWinnersBook.pdf |title=Peabody Winners Book |publisher=Peabody Awards |access-date=2008-02-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726163315/http://www.peabody.uga.edu/winners/PeabodyWinnersBook.pdf |archive-date=2011-07-26}}
* {{cite book |last=Provost |first=John |title=Timmy's in the Well |date=November 2007 |publisher=Cumberland House Publishing |isbn=978-1-58182-619-7}}
* {{cite episode |title=Roots |series=The New Lassie |series-link=The New Lassie |credits=Director: Alan Cooke, Writer: Bud Wiser |airdate=1989-10-21 |season=1 |number=7}}
* {{cite news |last=Stevens |first=Val |title=News of TV and Radio |date=February 9, 1964 |work=] |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1964/02/09/97169021.pdf |access-date=2009-11-03}}
{{refend}}


; Bibliography
;Specific
{{reflist}} {{refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Jenkins |first=Henry |year=2007 |chapter='Her Suffering Aristocratic Majesty': The Sentimental Value of ''Lassie'' |title=The WOW Climax: Tracing the Emotional Impact of Popular Culture |publisher=New York University Press |isbn=978-0-8147-4282-2}}
* {{cite journal |title=Lassie ... My Best Friend |journal=Jack and Jill |date=November 1959}}
* {{cite journal |title=The Life and Times of Lassie |journal=TV Guide |date=July 4, 1959}}
* {{cite journal |title=The Man with Dog Appeal |journal=TV Guide |date=August 14, 1965}}
{{refend}}


==External links== ==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{tv.com show|id=1110|title=Lassie}}
* {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20121205191803/http://www.lassie.com/|date=2012-12-05}}
* {{imdb title|id=0046617|title=Lassie (1954)}}
*
* {{IMDb title|0046617|Lassie}}


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Latest revision as of 18:52, 24 December 2024

American television series (1954–1973)
Lassie
Title screen of Lassie (seasons 1–4)
Also known as
  • Jeff's Collie (episodes 1–116)
  • Timmy & Lassie (episodes 117–352)
Genre
Created byRobert Maxwell and Rudd Weatherwax
Starring
Theme music composerLes Baxter
Opening themeWhistle
ComposerRaoul Kraushaar
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons19
No. of episodes591 (list of episodes)
Production
Producers
Production locationCalifornia
Running time26 minutes
Production companies
  • Lassie Television
  • Robert Maxwell Associates
  • Jack Wrather Productions
Original release
Network
ReleaseSeptember 12, 1954 (1954-09-12) –
March 24, 1973 (1973-03-24)
Related

Lassie is an American television series that follows the adventures of a female Rough Collie dog named Lassie and her companions, both human and animal. The show was the creation of producer Robert Maxwell and animal trainer Rudd Weatherwax and was televised from September 12, 1954, to March 25, 1973, making it the eighth longest-running scripted American primetime television series. The show ran for 17 seasons on CBS before entering first-run syndication for its final two seasons. Initially filmed in black and white, the show transitioned to color in 1965.

Production

Narration

Wrather's wife, Bonita Granville Wrather, who was the series' associate producer, narrated numerous episodes throughout the run of the series, usually the beginning and/or ending of multi-part episodes.

Writers

Many early episodes were written by Robert Maxwell under the pseudonym Claire Kennedy. In later years, the writing partnership of Robert Schaefer and Eric Freiwald was responsible for over 150 episodes. They were also responsible for developing the idea of having Lassie with a forest ranger.

Theme music

Lassie used several pieces of theme music during its long broadcast history. For the first season, "Secret of the Silent Hills (Theme from the Lassie TV series)", is used for both the opening and ending theme. Composed by William Lava, the orchestral theme was originally created for the 1940 radio show The Courageous Dr. Christian.

For the second and third season a variation of this theme, titled simply "Lassie Main & End Title", was used for the opening and ending theme. Raoul Kraushaar, the music director for the series, is the listed composer for the theme; however the changes he made to the original are so slight that only a trained ear can tell the difference. The third theme used for the series is an orchestral rendition of the aria, "Dio Possente" (Even Bravest Hearts May Swell) from Charles Gounod's opera, Faust. The exact time this theme started being used is uncertain due to conflicting records; however it is agreed that it was the third series, and was used for at least part of season four for the change of ownership of Lassie.

The most famous of the Lassie theme songs appeared at the start of the fifth season. Copyrighted as "Lassie Main & End Title", the composer credit has never been definitively claimed to this day. The melody is whistled by Muzzy Marcellino. Nicknamed "The Whistler," it remained the series theme for the rest of the "Martin years". With the coming of the "Ranger years", the opening and ending theme was changed to an orchestral version of "The Whistler". Beginning in season 17 (where Lassie traveled alone), and continuing throughout the Holden Ranch era, the theme was changed again, this time to Nathan Scott's arrangement of the traditional folk tune Greensleeves, which became the series theme song for the rest of its run. For the final two seasons, the familiar closing visual of Lassie standing on a hill and lifting her paw, was replaced by the credits on a green background, and flashing from one slate to the other instead of scrolling as in most of the series run. Television composer Nathan Scott scored the music to nearly every episode between 1963 and 1973, except for four episodes.

Plot and themes

  • 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) 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)
  • 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 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
  • Hugh Reilly and June Lockhart would take over as Paul and Ruth Martin from 1958-1964 (seasons 5–10). Hugh Reilly and June Lockhart would take over as Paul and Ruth Martin from 1958-1964 (seasons 5–10).
  • 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. 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. 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 first 10 seasons of the series saw Lassie living on a farm, first with the Miller family (Jeff, his mother Ellen, and her father George - who was called "Gramps" by Jeff). Season 4 saw the Millers taking in young orphan Timmy, who then lived with them on the farm, as well as the unexpected death of Gramps, (reflecting the real life death of actor George Cleveland, who played the character), and with that the Millers moved off the farm, but Timmy and Lassie would stay behind with his new foster parents, Paul and Ruth Martin, who also took over the farm. All 10 of the Miller/Martin farm seasons would for the most part focus on "boy and his dog" adventures with Jeff or Timmy getting involved in some sort of trouble, and Lassie eventually coming to the rescue.

Seasons 11–16 were the "Ranger years" of the series, as Lassie (because she was not able to go to Australia with the Martins when Paul got a job teaching agriculture there) was taken in by U.S. Forest Ranger Corey Stuart (who appeared in a few episodes of season 10) and began to work with the U.S. Forest Service. Color filming was exploited during the Ranger years with Lassie and her friends sent to exotic locations such as Sequoia National Forest and Monument Valley, creating mini-travelogues for viewers. Other rangers would be featured during the latter part of this era when Robert Bray (who played Stuart) left the series.

For season 17, the program shifted gears again and became essentially an anthology series, with Lassie traveling on her own, getting into different adventures each week (similar in format to The Littlest Hobo and, later, to Here's Boomer). No explanation was given as to why Lassie was no longer with the Forest Service. Some episodes during this final CBS season were animals only.

During seasons 18 and 19 (with the series having moved to first run syndication), Lassie was taken in by Garth Holden (played by Ron Hayes) who was in charge of the Holden Ranch – a home for orphaned boys – which he ran with his college-age son and his friend. This (somewhat) brought the show back to its roots by giving Lassie a farm/ranch home base, which is where she settled in for the final two years of the series.

Episodes

Main article: List of Lassie episodes
SeasonSettingEpisodesOriginally released
First releasedLast releasedNetwork
1Miller years
(Jeff's Collie)		26September 12, 1954 (1954-09-12)March 6, 1955 (1955-03-06)CBS
239September 11, 1955 (1955-09-11)June 3, 1956 (1956-06-03)
338September 9, 1956 (1956-09-09)May 26, 1957 (1957-05-26)
4Martin years
(Timmy & Lassie)		40September 8, 1957 (1957-09-08)June 8, 1958 (1958-06-08)
539September 7, 1958 (1958-09-07)May 31, 1959 (1959-05-31)
637September 6, 1959 (1959-09-06)May 22, 1960 (1960-05-22)
736September 11, 1960 (1960-09-11)May 28, 1961 (1961-05-28)
836September 10, 1961 (1961-09-10)May 27, 1962 (1962-05-27)
932September 30, 1962 (1962-09-30)May 19, 1963 (1963-05-19)
1029September 29, 1963 (1963-09-29)May 3, 1964 (1964-05-03)
11Ranger years33September 6, 1964 (1964-09-06)May 16, 1965 (1965-05-16)
1232September 12, 1965 (1965-09-12)May 1, 1966 (1966-05-01)
1330September 11, 1966 (1966-09-11)April 30, 1967 (1967-04-30)
1428September 10, 1967 (1967-09-10)March 24, 1968 (1968-03-24)
1528September 29, 1968 (1968-09-29)April 13, 1969 (1969-04-13)
1622September 28, 1969 (1969-09-28)March 8, 1970 (1970-03-08)
17On her own22September 20, 1970 (1970-09-20)March 21, 1971 (1971-03-21)
18Holden Ranch years20October 7, 1971 (1971-10-07)March 10, 1972 (1972-03-10)Syndication
1924September 16, 1972 (1972-09-16)March 24, 1973 (1973-03-24)

Characters and cast

Human leads

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).

1954–1957: Miller Family (Jeff's Collie)

  • Ellen Miller – war-widowed farm woman (Jan Clayton)
  • Jeff Miller – Ellen's eleven-year-old son (Tommy Rettig)
  • George "Gramps" Miller – Ellen's father-in-law and Jeff's paternal grandfather (George Cleveland)
  • Sylvester "Porky" Brockway – a farm boy and Jeff's friend (Joey D. Vieira – using the stage name "Donald Keeler")
  • Constable Clay Horton – the sheriff (Richard Garland)

1957–1964: Martin Family (Timmy & Lassie)

  • Timmy Martin – a foster boy on the Miller farm (Jon Provost)
  • Paul Martin – a young farmer, Ruth's husband and Timmy's adoptive father (Jon Shepodd 1957–1958; Hugh Reilly 1958–1964)
  • Ruth Martin – Paul's wife and Timmy's adoptive mother (Cloris Leachman 1957–1958; June Lockhart 1958–1964)
  • Uncle Petrie J. Martin – Paul's uncle (George Chandler) (1957–1959)
  • Cully Wilson – a neighbor of the Martins, who was a farmer and nature lover (Andy Clyde) (1959–1964)
  • Ralph "Boomer" Bates – a neighbor of the Martins who owned a dog named Mike and was Timmy's best friend (Todd Ferrell) (1958–1959)
  • Scott Richards, another of Timmy's friends (Kelly Junge Jr.) (1958)

1964–1970: U.S. Forest Service

  • Forest Ranger Corey Stuart (Robert Bray) (1964–1968)
  • Assistant Forest Ranger Hank Whitfield (Clyde Howdy) (1964–1966)
  • Forest Ranger Bob Erickson (Jack De Mave) (1968–1970)
  • Forest Ranger Scott Turner (Jed Allan) (1968–1970)

1970–1971: Traveling on her own

  • No human leads

1971–1973: Holden Ranch

  • Garth Holden – director of the Holden Ranch (Ron Hayes)
  • Ron Holden – Garth's son (Skip Burton)
  • Dale Mitchell – Ron's friend (Larry Wilcox)
  • Keith Holden – Garth's brother (Larry Pennell)
  • Lucy Baker – a deaf child living near the Holden Ranch (Pamelyn Ferdin)

Dog actors as Lassie

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

Media information

Broadcast history

First-run Lassie was televised September 12, 1954 to March 24, 1973 with its first 17 seasons airing on CBS Sundays at 7:00 p.m. EST. In 1971, in order to promote community-related programming among local affiliates, the Federal Communications Commission moved primetime Sundays to 8:00 P.M. EST with the institution of the Prime Time Access Rule. CBS executives felt Lassie would not be well received in a time slot other than its traditional 7:00 p.m. slot, and, with the network's other family programs set, the show was canceled. (Lassie was among several shows that CBS canceled during this time period as part of a change in its target demographics.) Lassie then entered first-run syndication with Jack Wrather and Campbell's Soup still on board, and remained on the air for another two years with its final episode airing in March 1973. All totaled, 591 episodes were produced.

An animated reworking, Lassie's Rescue Rangers, followed in fall 1973, immediately after the original series ended (the pilot movie aired in 1972 while the live-action series was still on the air). Lassie's Rescue Rangers was denounced by both Weatherwax and the National Association of Broadcasters, the latter of which made note of the animated series' "violence, crime and stupidity."

Later series

In 1973, ABC created an animated Saturday-morning animated program called Lassie's Rescue Rangers produced by Filmation.

In 1989, what was essentially a sequel series, The New Lassie – featuring Jon Provost as Steve McCullough – aired in first-run syndication. In its seventh episode ("Roots"), June Lockhart reprised her Ruth Martin role when Steve McCullough is revealed to be the adult Timmy Martin. It is revealed that Timmy was never properly adopted by the Martins and consequently was forced to remain in the U.S. when Ruth and Paul emigrated to Australia. Timmy was then subsequently adopted by the McCullough family and began going by his middle name Steven. In 1992, Tommy Rettig made a guest appearance in the final episode, "The Computer Study". This would be his last television appearance prior to his death in 1996.

In 1997, a modified remake – also called Lassie – debuted, airing in the U.S. on the then new Animal Planet cable network. This show (which was filmed in Canada and set in Vermont) also revolved around a boy named Timmy and his dog, though differences in setting and character circumstances precluded it from being an exact remake of the original series.

From 2014-present, a new animated series called Lassie or The New Adventures of Lassie was aired. Lassie lives with the Parker family, 10-year-old red-headed Zoe and her family, Ranger Graham Parker and Dr. Sarah Parker (a veterinarian), in the Grand Mountain National Park. Her best friend is Harvey Smith, whose mother Beth works in the park visitor center. Harvey's late father was a mountain climber. The children's antagonist is a snooty rich girl named Samantha Humphrey. Two seasons were done, the first with traditional drawn animation and the second season with computer-generated animation.

DVD releases

The series was released to DVD between 2001–2007.

DVD Name # Ep Release Date
Lassie's Great Adventure 5 June 26, 2001
Lassie: Best of the Lassie Show 3 November 25, 2003
Lassie: Lassie's Christmas Stories 3 November 25, 2003
Lassie: Best of Jeff's Collie 3 November 25, 2003
Lassie: Lassie's Birthday Surprise 3 November 25, 2003
Lassie: Lassie's Gift of Love 3 November 25, 2003
Lassie: 50th Anniversary Collection 24 September 14, 2004
Lassie: Flight of the Cougar 3 March 6, 2006
Lassie: A Mother's Love 4 May 1, 2007
Lassie's Greatest Adventures Collection
(similar release of Lassie: 50th Anniversary Collection) 		18 September 17, 2019

Comics

The TV series was adapted into a comic book by Dan Spiegle, distributed by Gold Key Comics.

Reception

Ratings

Every year of its 17-year run on CBS, Lassie placed first in its time slot, Sunday 7:00 P.M. EST, and often ranked among the top 25 shows on television. The show's highest ranking years in the Nielsen ratings were the Martin years when the show placed #24 in 1957, #22 in 1958, #15 in 1959, #15 in 1961, #21 in 1962, #13 in 1963, and #17 in 1964. The only Martin year Lassie did not climb into the top twenty-five was 1960, when it ran opposite Walt Disney Presents on ABC and Shirley Temple Theater on NBC. However, Lassie still ran opposite Disney when the Disney anthology television series moved to NBC in 1961, and still managed to climb into the Top 25. With the advent of the Forest Service seasons, the show began a steady decline in ratings.

Season Rank
1954–1955 Not in the Top 30
1955–1956
1956–1957 #24
1957–1958 #22
1958–1959 Not in the Top 30
1959–1960 #29
1960–1961 Not in the Top 30
1961–1962 #15
1962–1963 #19
1963–1964 #12
1964–1965 #17
1965–1966 #27
1966–1967 #33
1967–1968 #30
1968–1969 Not in the Top 30
1969–1970
1970–1971

Awards and honors

(All awards listed given during the time of, or specifically related to the TV series)

Cultural impact

Jon Provost in a promotional photo for his autobiography Timmy's in the Well! (essentially portraying "Timmy" reading to "Lassie")

Jon Provost called his autobiography Timmy's in the Well! because a well was the one place Timmy never fell into—abandoned mine shafts, off cliffs, into rivers, lakes, and quicksand, but never a well.

Mad parodied the show as "Lizzy", where it was revealed that the collie was actually a circus midget in a dog suit, while the real Lizzy was a dimwitted mutt. In an episode of The Flintstones ("Dino Goes Hollyrock"), the character Dino wins an appearance on the smash hit TV show "Sassie" starring a heavily made-up and snobby girl dinosaur and her Lassie-like adventures.

Belgian comics artist Willy Vandersteen created his own version of the TV show with a collie named Bessy in 1954. Apart from the fact that his comic strip starred the same dog breed with a similar name, it had little to do with the series overall, since the comic was a Western comic.

References

Notes
Footnotes
  1. "Wrather narration". Lassie Web. Retrieved 2014-07-26.
  2. Catalog of Copyright Entries. Third Series. Vol. 8, Part 2, Number 1. The Library of Congress. January–June 1954. p. 43.
  3. Jensen, Steve. "Eric Freiwald". Retrieved 2020-07-13.
  4. ^ Lassie /Jeffs Collie /Timmy and Lassie
  5. Burlingame, Jon (March 3, 2010). "Nathan Scott, 94, scored TV shows – Composer's credits included 'Dragnet,' 'Lassie'". Variety. Reed Business Information. Retrieved March 10, 2010.
  6. McClellan, Dennis (March 4, 2010). "Nathan Scott dies at 94; film and TV composer, arranger and conductor". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
  7. "Lassie season 11". Lassie Web. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  8. "Lassie season 15". Lassie Web. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  9. "Lassie season 17". Lassie Web. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  10. "Lassie season 18". Lassie Web. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  11. ^ Collins:
  12. "Clyde Houdeshell Dies". The Signal. Santa Clarita, California. October 8, 1969. p. 15. Retrieved July 15, 2022 – via Newspapers.com. Closed access icon
  13. Scott Freese, Gene (April 10, 2014). Hollywood Stunt Performers, 1910s-1970s: A Biographical Dictionary, 2d ed. McFarland. pp. 134–135. ISBN 9780786476435 – via Google Books.
  14. Erickson, Hal (2005). Television Cartoon Shows: An Illustrated Encyclopedia, 1949 Through 2003 (2nd ed.). McFarland & Co. pp. 487–488. ISBN 978-1476665993.
  15. "Tommy Rettig". IMDb. Amazon. Retrieved May 9, 2010.
  16. "Filming locations for "Lassie" (1997)". IMDb. Amazon. Retrieved May 9, 2010.
  17. "Dan Spiegle".
  18. Collins 1993, p.166
  19. Jenkins
  20. CBS at 75
  21. Peabody
  22. "Lassie Awards". Lassie.net. Archived from the original on 2013-07-14. Retrieved 2014-03-23.
  23. Provost:
  24. Thriving Canine Radio
  25. "Flintstones' Lassie takeoff". Fandango.com. Archived from the original on 2014-02-02. Retrieved 2014-06-21.
Works cited
Bibliography
  • Jenkins, Henry (2007). "'Her Suffering Aristocratic Majesty': The Sentimental Value of Lassie". The WOW Climax: Tracing the Emotional Impact of Popular Culture. New York University Press. ISBN 978-0-8147-4282-2.
  • "Lassie ... My Best Friend". Jack and Jill. November 1959.
  • "The Life and Times of Lassie". TV Guide. July 4, 1959.
  • "The Man with Dog Appeal". TV Guide. August 14, 1965.

External links

Lassie Come-Home by Eric Knight
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