June Lockhart, beloved mother figure from ‘Lassie’ and ‘Lost In Space,’ dies at 100

By Bob Thomas and Beth Harris Associated Press LOS ANGELES June Lockhart who became a mother figure for a generation of television viewers whether at home in Lassie or up in the stratosphere in Lost in Space has died She was Related Articles Kim Kardashian says she ll be a qualified California lawyer next month Stranger Things finale to hit theaters Netflix simultaneously Actor Jeremy Allen White completes high school diploma at - - Nashville actress Isabelle Tate dead at CNN s Christiane Amanpour says ovarian cancer has returned a rd time Lockhart died Thursday of natural causes at her home in Santa Monica family spokesman Lyle Gregory a friend of years revealed Saturday She was very happy up until the very end reading the New York Times and LA Times every day he declared It was very key to her to stay focused on the news of the day The daughter of prolific character actor Gene Lockhart Lockhart was cast frequently in ingenue roles as a young film actor Television made her a star From to she portrayed Ruth Martin who raised the orphaned Timmy Jon Provost in the popular CBS series Lassie From to she traveled aboard the spaceship Jupiter II as mother to the Robinson family in the campy CBS adventure Lost in Space Her portrayals of warm compassionate mothers endeared her to young viewers and decades later baby boomers flocked to nostalgia conventions to meet Lockhart and buy her autographed photos Offscreen Lockhart insisted she was nothing like the women she portrayed I must quote Dan Rather she noted in a interview I can control my reputation but not my image because my image is how you see me I love rock n roll and going to the concerts I have driven Army tanks and flown in hot air balloons And I go plane-gliding the ones with no motors I do a lot of things that don t go with my image Early in her career Lockhart appeared in numerous films Among them All This and Heaven Too Adam Had Four Sons Sergeant York Miss Annie Rooney Forever and a Day and Meet Me in St Louis She also made Son of Lassie the sequel to Lassie Come Home playing the grown-up version of the role created by Elizabeth Taylor New life on television When her movie career as an adult faltered Lockhart shifted to television appearing in live drama from New York and event and talk shows She was the third actor to play the female lead in Lassie on TV following Jan Clayton and Cloris Leachman Provost had replaced the show s original child star Tommy Rettig in Lockhart spoke frankly about her canine co-star I worked with four Lassies There was only one main Lassie at a time Then there was a dog that did the running a dog that did the fighting and a dog that was a stand-in because only humans can work hours a day without needing a nap Lassie was not especially friendly with anybody Lassie was wholly concentrated on the trainers After six years in the rural setting of Lassie Lockhart moved to outer space embarking on the role of Maureen Robinson the wise reassuring mother of a family that departs on a five-year flight to a faraway planet in Lost in Space After their mission is sabotaged by a fellow customer the nefarious Dr Zachary Smith Jonathan Harris the party bounces from planet to planet encountering weird creatures and near-disasters that required viewers to tune in the following week to learn of the escape Throughout the three-year run Mrs Robinson offered consolation and a slice of her space pie As with Lassie Lockhart enjoyed working on Lost in Space It was like going to work at Disneyland every day So smart quick and funny she filled her years with curiosity laughter and rock n roll Angela Cartwright who played her daughter on Lost in Space posted on Facebook I can only imagine she s feeling right at home as she moves off this planet and into the stars Bill Mumy who played her son in the film posted on social media A one of a kind talented nurturing adventurous and non compromising Lady She did it her way June will dependably be one of my very favorite moms In Lockhart joined the cast of Petticoat Junction for the rural comedy s last two seasons playing Dr Janet Craig A little bit of everything Lockhart remained working long after Lost in Space appearing often in episodic television as well as in recurring roles in the daytime soap opera General Hospital and nighttime soaps Knots Landing and The Colbys Her film credits included The Remake and the animated Bongee Bear and the Kingdom of Rhythm for which she provided the voice for Mindy the Owl She also used her own media pass to attend presidential news conferences narrated beauty pageants and holiday parades and toured in the plays Steel Magnolias Bedroom Farce and Once More with Feeling Her true passion was journalism Gregory commented She loved going to the White House briefing rooms Lockhart liked to tell the story of how her parents met saying they were hired separately for a touring production sponsored by inventor Thomas A Edison and decided on marriage during a stop at Lake Louise Alberta Their daughter was born June in New York City The family moved to Hollywood years later and Gene Lockhart worked steadily as a character actor usually in avuncular roles sometimes as a villain His wife Kathleen often appeared with him Young June made her stage debut at dancing in a children s ballet at the Metropolitan Opera House Her first film appearance was a small role in the A Christmas Carol playing the daughter of Bob Cratchit and his wife who were played by her parents She was married and divorced twice to John Maloney a physician father of her daughters Anne Kathleen and June Elizabeth and architect John C Lindsay Throughout her later career Lockhart was connected in the inhabitants mind with Lassie Even though she sometimes mocked the show she conceded How wonderful that in a career there is one role for which you are known Plenty of actors work all their lives and never have one part that is really theirs Bob Thomas a longtime Associated Press journalist who died in was the principal writer of this obituary