Olympian Rafer Johnson, Stacy Keach Sr., Marie Windsor, Dick Foran, Tod Griffin, Jane Darwell, Denver Pyle, Fuzzy Knight, Harry Carey, Jr., William Schallert, Stephen Talbot, Ellen Corby, and Karl Swenson. During its first four years, Lassie received very decent ratings. However, at the end of the 1958–1959 season, the ratings had fallen from the top 30, likely due to the constant turnover in the cast. Once viewers began to warm to Lockhart and Reilly as Timmy's parents, the Martin family was accepted and embraced by the public. As a result, between 1960 and 1964, Lassies ratings greatly improved and by the spring of 1964, it received its highest rating ever, ranking at #13. In 1964, Provost declined to renew his contract. Producers decided to broaden the show's demographics to appeal to older viewers and, to that end, dropped the boy and his dog theme for a plot featuring a Forest Service Ranger. Robert Bray, a former Marine and Gary Cooper look-alike was cast as Corey Stuart. During Bray's first year, the show transitioned to color filming and spectacular scenic locations across America were exploited as settings for the show. Eventually, Bray's long battle with alcoholism forced him from the show, and Jack De Mave and Jed Allan were hired to replace him. Guest stars during the Ranger years included Ken Osmond, Paul Petersen, Suzanne Somers, Victor French, Leo Gordon, and Morgan Brittany. When the Forest Service years came to an end, Lassie wandered the country on her own for a season then settled at the Holden ranch for her final two syndicated seasons with costars Ron Hayes, Larry Pennell, Skip Burton, Larry Wilcox, Sherry Boucher, and Pamelyn Ferdin. 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. Novelist Inez Asher was among those who wrote for the series, while other scripts were produced by writers blacklisted during the heyday of McCarthyism and the House Un-American Activities Committee. These writers included Robert Lees (credited as J. E. Selby) and Adrian Scott, one of the