Iconic television actress June Lockhart dead at 100 years old

June Lockhart, the beloved actress best known for her iconic roles in “Lassie” and “Lost in Space,” He died. It was 100.

Fox News Digital has learned that Lockhart died of natural causes at her home in Santa Monica, California, and her daughter, June Elizabeth, and her granddaughter, Christiana, were by her side.

Legendary and celebrated actress of stage and screen, June Lockhart, has died, leaving behind a legacy of nearly 90 years of work. History of American Entertainment“, her rep shared.

Lockhart was born in New York City on June 25, 1925. She made her stage debut when she was only 8 years old in the 1933 production of “Peter Ibbetson” at the Metropolitan Opera House. By the age of thirteen, she had already appeared on the silver screen, joining her parents, Jane and Kathleen Lockhart, in MGM’s 1938 adaptation of “A Christmas Carol.”

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Famous television actress John Lockhart dies at the age of 100. (Getty Images)

She was soon sharing scenes with Hollywood legends, appearing in All This and Heaven Too with Bette Davis and Charles Boyer, and in 1941, playing Rosie, the sister of Gary Cooper’s character, in Sergeant York, directed by Howard Hawks.

By the age of 19, Lockhart was under contract with MGM, and achieved great fame as Lucille Ballard in Vincente Minnelli’s “Meet Me in St. Louis.”

In 1947, Lockhart made her Broadway debut in For Love or Money, for which she received a TONY Award—then called the Antoinette Perry Award—for “Best Newcomer.” She made history as the first to ever receive this honor. At that time, the American Theater Wing gave the men lighters and the women small gold medals.

In the 1950s, she won hearts as the sweet, soft-voiced mother in “Lacey.” (Getty Images)

The special Lockhart Medal — the first ever presented by TONY — was donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 2008, where it remains part of the museum’s permanent entertainment archive.

Lockhart’s warmth and grace translated perfectly to television, where she became one of America’s most beloved mothers.

In the 1950s, she won hearts as the sweet, smooth-voiced mother in “Lassie,” often working from scripts by writers blacklisted during the Red Scare period. In the 1960s, she boldly moved from the family farm to the stars, playing Maureen Robinson – the resilient “space mom” in “Lost in Space.”

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“The premise of the series [intrigued me]“Lockhart told Fox News Digital in September 2024 about her involvement in Lost in Space.

“It was a vision of the family dynamics of a group of distressed scientists and two children, and how they survived,” she said. “It was ‘Space Family Robinson’, a play on ‘Swiss Family Robinson’. . . . Every one of the actors was a great professional. It was a very happy group with lots of laughter and genuine affection between us.”

Pictured is John Lockhart who portrays Ruth Martin on the CBS series Lassie. 1964. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images) (Getty Images)

Lockhart also told Fox News Digital that it’s “awesome” that so many still consider her their favorite TV mom.

Although there was a secret rebellious side on set, she was always proud of her clean-cut image. She has never been tempted to take on a sexy role in Hollywood, and has never felt pressure over the years to look a certain way.

“I wasn’t offered those parts,” she said. “[And] I always eat carefully. . . In that silver suit, you better look good.”

Later, she joined “Petticoat Junction” as Dr. Janet Craig, and also lent her voice to the Nickelodeon favorite “Ren & Stimpy,” showing her range and sense of humor that has spanned multiple generations.

While Lockhart shined on screen, her passion extended beyond Hollywood. With two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame – and five stars for the Lockhart family – she has also become a beloved figure in the space community.

American animal actor Bebe as Lassie, actresses June Lockhart as Ruth Martin, and Jean Provost as Timmy, reading the book “Lassie” for the TV series of the same name, 1960. ((Photo by CBS Picture Archive/Getty Images))

She was passionate about science all her life, and was a NASA spokesman He attended countless launches and landings, often standing alongside astronauts Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin.

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In 2013, NASA honored her with the Exceptional Public Achievement Medal, in recognition of her decades-long advocacy for human rights. Space exploration. Her daughter, June Elizabeth, said this honor meant more to her than any honor in Hollywood.

Her daughter said: “Her mother always considered acting to be her craft, her calling, but her real passion was journalism, politics, science and NASA.” “She cherished playing her role in Lost in Space, and was happy to know that she had inspired so many future astronauts, as they reminded her of her visits to NASA. This meant more to her than the hundreds of television and film roles she played.”

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Astronauts even carried her father’s 1921 composition “The World Waits for the Sun to Rise” aboard the International Space Station.

Her father’s activism—as a founding member of the Screen Actors Guild in the 1930s—also shaped her lifelong belief in fair working conditions. Lockhart joined AFRA (later AFTRA) in 1938 and SAG in 1940, eventually receiving the union’s prestigious Founders Award in 2018.

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Her adventurous spirit has never faded. Encouraged by her dear friend, architect and environmentalist Harry Gesner, Lockhart embraced every opportunity life had to offer — starting with singing on stage with… Willie Nelson To attend White House press conferences dating back to the Eisenhower administration.

Her energy and sense of humor were “endless,” her family said.

Fox News Digital’s Stephanie Nolasco contributed to this report.