Tommy Rettig

“Becoming a programmer was like being reborn. I could build things, and that was incredibly satisfying.”

“I found a new passion in computers. It was a world where my past didn't matter, only what I could create.”

“Lassie was nice, but she was a dog. It's an interesting life, but not what I would have chosen.”

“Fame as a child is a very isolating experience. Everybody knows who you are, but nobody really knows you.”

“I was a normal kid who was famous. It's a weird way to grow up.”

“The drug scene was a way for me to rebel. To say, 'I'm not that little boy from Lassie anymore'.”

“After 'Lassie', I was typecast. It was hard to get people to see me as anything other than Jeff.”

“I don't regret my time as an actor. It opened doors, but it also closed a lot of them.”

“I went from being a household name to a complete unknown. It's a very humbling experience.”