Hosted his own local childrens TV series, "The Johnny Downs Show" in San Diego, California during the early 1950s. Set against the backdrop of an airport hanger and playing a former WWII pilot, "Johnny Jet" entertained and informed his studio audiences and his viewers in between reruns of "The Little Rascals" film comedies.
Performed as a member of 'Our Gang' from the age of eight. He later had success on the vaudeville circuit as a song-and-dance man before returning to film acting in the 1930's.