Timmy’s In The Well, Jon Provost’s autobiography, written with his wife Laurie Jacobson, is an amazing accomplishment. If you ever watched Jon as Timmy Martin in Lassie, you must get this book. Click here to see a complete episode of Lassie with Jon.
This is not a book for kids. Provost vividly evokes the sweeping social changes in America in the staid 50’s, through the psychedelic 60’s, and beyond. This is a real insider’s view of growing up in Hollywood, with many revelations about the life of a TV child star. All of the wild fun, the hard work, and the bitter pain, is told matter-of-factly, with total honesty and utter sincerity. There are many quotes and comments from colleagues and friends in the entertainment business, and although the photos are small, there are a lot of them, conveniently integrated into the text.
Jon Provost is appearing today at Canine Companions for Independence in Santa Rosa, California, where he lives. Santa Rosa is also home to the Charles M. Schulz Museum. Schulz’s widow Jeannie is a board member of Canine Companions for Independence.
“Timmy’s in The Well” is an incredible read! Despite some very bad things that happened, Jon’s keen sense of intuition kept him from some very bad situations. He was ALWAYS keenly aware of how his life as a child star was affecting his two older siblings. His parents were truly kind. It is interesting how his father distanced himself from the whole showbiz thing. Actually, that would be refreshing in this day and age of celebrity parents! Think: the dysfunctional Spears family (shudder).