Lost in Space was a beloved science fiction television series that aired from 1965 to 1968. Since the end of the original series, the program has revived in various forms, including a 1998 film and a recent Netflix reboot series. However, nothing quite beats the original! Part of the charm of the original series it’s cast, and many of the show’s former stars are still around today! Join Facts Verse as we take a look at the Lost in Space cast then and now.
Guy Williams as Dr. John Robinson
Guy Williams the star tasked with playing the lead character on the original Lost in Space series. That character was Dr. John Robinson. John was the commander of the Jupiter 2 ship, which was the spaceship that crashed and caused all of the show’s characters to become “lost in space”. While John initially conceived as the series’ main character, he started being pushed aside by the writers in later episodes to make room for more popular characters, such as son Will Robinson and comic relief character Dr. Zachary Smith. Still, the character of John remained a beloved fixture on the series over the course of it’s run.
Guy Williams’ role on Lost in Space as the cast was far from the actor’s first notable turn on television. In 1957, Guy rose to prominence as the actor tasked with bringing to life the titular character on the Disney series Zorro. Guy got the gig as a result of his fencing skills, which he had picked up from his father at a young age. The titular lead on Zorro proved a big break for Guy, who had been struggling to make it in the entertainment industry for over a decade prior.
Like Lost in Space, Zorro lasted for only three seasons but remains a cult success to this day. Zorro became particularly successful in Argentina after the initial run, where Guy Williams retired to after giving up acting in the mid-1970s. After Zorro and prior to taking his gig on Lost in Space, Guy Williams could seen in a handful of episodes of Bonanza.
After retiring to Argentina, little was seen or heard from Guy Williams until his death in 1989. One of the actor’s last notable appearances was on the game show Family Feud, where he joined other former castmembers from Lost in Space to compete against members of similarly classic television series Batman and Gilligan’s Island. At the time of Guy Williams’ death, the beloved actor was 65 years old.
June Lockhart as Dr. Maureen Robinson
June Lockhart was the actress that played the cast character of Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space. Of course, Maureen was the husband of John Robinson, and functioned as Jupiter 2’s biochemist before the ship crashed. Over the course of the series, Maureen functions predominantly as a traditional housewife to her husband and children.
As with Guy Williams, June Lockhart was already a seasoned television actor before joining the cast of Lost in Space in 1965. The actress had been born in 1925, and received a starring role in the feature She-Wolf of London at the age of only 20. June had been working for over two decades when she received her iconic role on the 1950s television series Lassie. June played Ruth Martin, who was the mother of main character Timmy.
Thanks to her role on Lassie, television audiences already largely familiar with June Lockhart before she was given the part of Dr. Maureen Robinson on Lost in Space. Amazingly, the actress is still around today at the age of 96. The actress even continues to make appearances on television. In fact, June’s most recent role on the recent Lost in Space reboot series, which premiered on Netflix in 2018. June provided a voiceover role on the series in 2021.
Thanks to her role as biochemist Dr. Maureen Robinson, June Lockhart has come to considered somewhat of an icon amongst aspiring female scientists and astronauts. The actress boasts two separate stars on the Hollywood walk of fame, and, for some strange reason, has an open invitation to the White House to attend press briefings. At the age of 96, June Lockhart looks nearly as stunning as ever, so it seems that she’s been taking pretty good care of herself since her days on the beloved series Lost in Space.
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Mark Goddard as Major Don West
On the Lost in Space cast, Mark Goddard the actor tasked with playing the character of Major Don West. Unlike the characters played by the two aforementioned stars, Don didn’t have any medical background. Instead, Don’s background was in the military. This made Don a necessary part of the crew and the toughest character on the show.
Prior to playing the character of Don on Lost in Space, Mark Goddard had played one of the main characters on the television series Johnny Ringo. That television series has become historically notable for being the very first production of legendary television producer Aaron Spelling. Besides the role of Don on Lost in Space, another one of Mark’s most iconic television roles was on the series The Detectives, where he played the character of Sgt. Chris Ballard.
After Lost in Space came to an end in 1968, Mark Goddard’s acting roles came much more sparingly. One of the actor’s few standout roles following Lost in Space was a guest appearance on the series CHiPs. In 1998, Mark made a cameo appearance in the blockbuster film Lost in Space, which was a more serious adaptation of the series. In the film, Friends’ Matt LeBlanc played the character of Don.
Around the time that Lost in Space on the air, Mark Goddard could often heard denigrating the show because of how campy it had gotten during it’s later episodes. Still, Mark holds a largely positive view of the series nowadays. Mark is still around today at the age of 85. Besides Mark’s accomplishments on the screen, the actor also notably holds an education degree and teaches special education courses.
Jonathan Harris as Dr. Zachary Smith
Dr. Zachary Smith started out as a villainous character on Lost in Space. In fact, it was he who caused Jupiter 2 to crash! If it weren’t for Dr. Smith, the show would’ve had no conflict. However, the character turned around soon after the beginning of the series and became a good guy.
After becoming a good guy on the series, Dr. Smith’s role on Lost in Space was predominantly that of a comic relief character. The character played by Jonathan Harris, who listed in the credits of the series as a “Special Guest Star”. Because of this, Jonathan constantly worried that his character going to be written off.
With fears that his character could be written off at any moment, Jonathan Harris did his best to make the character of Dr. Smith engaging and memorable. As a result, Jonathan ended up portraying the character for all of the show’s three seasons. In fact, as the show went on, Jonathan given an increased role on the series due to his character’s appeal.
Jonathan Harris had been working in the entertainment industry for years prior to receiving his role on Lost in Space. One of his most notable appearances on the screen prior to the show was in the classic film The Third Man. Following his work on Lost in Space, Jonathan became the host of the children’s program Uncle Croc’s Block during the 1970s.
One of Jonathan Harris’ last roles was in the 1998 Pixar film A Bug’s Life, in which he provided the voice of a praying mantis by the name of Manny. Several years after working on the film, Jonathan passed away. His death occurred in 2002, and he was 87 years old at the time.
Marta Kristen as Judy Robinson
She played Judy Robinson, who was the eldest daughter of the Robinsons. Marta was a Norwegian orphan before being brought to Hollywood by her adoptive parents and forced into the entertainment industry. Many children might’ve had bad feelings about such a situation, put Marta apparently always wanted to be a star. She always enjoyed acting, and continued doing so after coming of age. Marta is now 77 years old, and lives in California with two dogs.
Angela Cartwright as Penny Robinson
Angela Cartwright played Penny Robinson, who was the younger sister of Judy Robinson and the middle child of the three Robinson kids. At the time that Lost in Space began, Angela was around 13 years old. The actress had gotten her start in the industry on The Danny Thomas Show, but rose to prominence with her turn as Brigitta in The Sound of Music. It was this role that got her cast on Lost in Space. Angela is still alive today at the age of 69, and even continues to work! Angela had a fairly large role on the recent Lost in Space Netflix series, but her true passion nowadays is photography.
Bill Mumy as Will Robinson
Finally, Bill Mumy was the child star that played Robinson son Will, who was the youngest of the three Robinson children. Will became a fan-favorite character amongst Lost in Space’s audience, with him becoming a more central part of the show as it went on. The character of Will could often seen going on adventures alongside both his robot companion and the aforementioned Dr. Smith, with the latter two characters’ banter providing plenty of comic relief.
Bill Mumy got his start in the entertainment industry at the age of only three years old. His earliest appearances included roles in a few Walt Disney features, including Sammy, the Way-Out Seal. Nowadays, most of Bill’s work comes in the form of narration. The former child star’s voice can heard in numerous television documentaries.
While a few castmembers of the original Lost in Space series have died since the series’ end in 1968, many of them are still alive and working! Now it’s time to hear from you: did you know that many of the former castmembers of the original Lost in Space are still around today, and that some of them have appeared in the show’s recent reboots? As always, like this video to show your support, and subscribe and hit the notification bell if you’d like to be among the first to know when more Facts Verse videos are on their way!
