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Veteran American actress June Lockhart, best known for her roles in the classic television series Lassie and Lost in Space, passed away on October 23, 2025. She died at the age of 100.
The beloved actress, whose career spanned over eight decades, reportedly died of natural causes at her home in Santa Monica, California. At the time of her passing, she was surrounded by her daughter, June Elizabeth, and granddaughter Christianna.
June Lockhart was married and divorced twice. She was first married to physician John F. Maloney in 1951, with whom she had two daughters, Anne Kathleen and June Elizabeth. The couple divorced in 1959. Later that same year, she married architect John C. Lindsay, but the marriage ended in divorce in 1970.
At the time of her death, Lockhart’s net worth was estimated at $5 million (as per Celebrity Net Worth website)
A family spokesman, Lyle Gregory, announced the news of June Lockhart’s death on a October 23 and described her final days as peaceful
“She was very happy up until the very end, reading the New York Times and LA Times every day…it was very important to her to stay focused on the news of the day,” Gregory said in his statement ( as per Sky News)
June Lockhart’s daughter, Elizabeth, also gave a statement where she reflected warmly on her mother’s deep intellectual curiosity and wide-ranging interests.
“Mommy always considered acting as her craft, her vocation, but her true passions were journalism, politics, science and NASA,” Elizabeth said (as per New York post)
She also recalled how much her mother treasured her role in the science-fiction series Lost in Space. According to Elizabeth, Lockhart was especially proud that her work had inspired real-world professionals in space exploration.
“She cherished playing her role in ‘Lost in Space’ and she was delighted to know that she inspired many future astronauts, as they would remind her on visits to NASA. That meant even more to her than the hundreds of television and movie roles she played,” she explained (as per New York post)
More about June Lockhart
June Lockhart, beloved for her roles in Lassie and Lost in Space, lived a life deeply intertwined with Hollywood’s golden age.
Born on June 25, 1925, in New York City, she came from a family of actors; her father, Gene Lockhart, and her mother, Kathleen Lockhart, were both established performers. Lockhart’s career began when she was just eight years old. She appeared in the 1933 stage production of Peter Ibbetson at the Metropolitan Opera House.
Only five years later, she made her film debut as Belinda Cratchit in MGM’s A Christmas Carol (1938), starring alongside her parents.
Reflecting on her first on-screen experience, Lockhart once told The Ames Tribune in 2014:
“I thought my parents were wonderful as the Cratchits, and it was just great fun to see how a film was made. I loved the Victorian costumes…We used to perform it every Christmas at home for our dinner guests… So I had already appeared in it, with my parents, in our living room for many years prior to doing it for MGM”
After her breakout role, Lockhart’s screen presence grew rapidly. She appeared in acclaimed films including All This, and Heaven Too, Meet Me in St. Louis, The Yearling, and Sergeant York.
Between 1958 and 1964, Lockhart became a household name as Ruth Martin, the warm, steady mother to Timmy (Jon Provost), in the classic family series Lassie. The show centered around the adventures of a loyal Rough Collie, and ran for more than 200 episodes.
Speaking about her time on Lassie, Lockhart often approached the subject with a mix of humor and candor.
“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 14 hours a day without needing a nap,” she once said (as per Sky News).
She also admitted that while the famous collie wasn’t exactly affectionate, he was a consummate professional, and “wholly concentrated on the trainers.” Despite occasionally teasing the show’s sentimentality, Lockhart expressed gratitude for the role that defined her to millions.
“How wonderful that in a career there is one role for which you are known. Many actors work all their lives and never have one part that is really theirs,” she reflected (as per Sky News).
Following Lassie, Lockhart continued to work steadily across television. She appeared in Petticoat Junction, General Hospital, Beverly Hills, 90210, etc. She also made guest appearances on a wide range of popular series, including The Beverly Hillbillies, Knots Landing, Full House, Roseanne, and Grey’s Anatomy.
In 1965, Lockhart joined another landmark show: Lost in Space. For 80 episodes between 1965 and 1968, she portrayed Maureen Robinson. This character was a compassionate matriarch of a family marooned on a doomed space expedition aboard the Jupiter II.
As viewers followed the Robinsons’ weekly struggles against strange creatures, Lockhart embraced the imaginative energy of the production. For her the show “was like going to work at Disneyland every day.” (As per Sky News)
Her association with Lost in Space continued even decades later. She made cameos in both the 1998 film adaptation and Netflix’s 2021 reboot. Off-screen, her passion for science and exploration found a real-world outlet as she became a NASA spokesperson and advocate for space education.
Lockhart’s work with NASA was recognized in 2013 when she received the agency’s Exceptional Public Achievement Medal. In an interview with The Denver Gazette, June Lockhart expressed deep pride in the recognition:
“I’ve been to two space shuttle launches and worked with NASA since the 1970s, addressing their employees and traveling on NASA’s behalf to promote the agency. So I’m absolutely thrilled by this recognition. No other actress has received this honor.”
Her dedication to her craft earned her two Emmy nominations, including one for Best Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Series for Lassie in 1959. She was also awarded two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures and one for television.
Looking back on her early Hollywood years, June Lockhart once spoke about having acted in numerous Westerns.
In 2015, she told the Burlington County Times that she adored the artistry of the genre. She explained that she “loved the period costumes with the long gowns and their cinched-in waists” and the stories of those movies were “marvelously written and could be quite provocative for their time.”
In place of flowers, June Lockhart’s family requested that donations be made to The Actors Fund, ProPublica, and International Hearing Dog, Inc. The family also shared that funeral services for the beloved actress will be held privately.
