We have sad news to report on this Friday evening.
Mark Goddard, best known for his work on Lost in Space, has died.
He was 87.
Goddard died Tuesday in Hingham, Massachusetts, his wife Evelyn Pezzulich told The Hollywood Reporter.
The actor’s impressive TV career kicked off in 1959 on Johnny Ringo, appearing in 38 episodes over a year.
He followed that up with The Detectives, where he starred as Detective Sergeant Chris Ballard.
He appeared in 64 episodes between 1960-62.
Additional TV credits include The Rifleman, The Bill Dana Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, Gunsmoke, Perry Mason, The Fugitive, and Many Happy Returns over the next three years.
His big break came in Lost in Space, where he played Major Don West, the pilot of Jupiter 2.
He appeared in all three seasons of the CBS comedy.
Lost in Space followed the adventures of the Robinsons, a pioneering family of space colonists who struggle to survive in the depths of space.
The first season was filmed in black and white, with seasons 2 and 3 switching to filming in color.
The iconic series had a legion of fans that tuned in as Goddard starred opposite Guy Williams, June Lockhart, Marta Kriste, Bill Mumy, Angela Cartwright, Jonathan Harris, Bob May, and Dick Tufeld.
Goddard opened up about how he became involved with the series, revealing in an interview for Tom Weaver’s book They Fought in the Creature Features (2005) that his agent brought the idea to him.
“This is about a family going into space, and there’s gonna be a lot of adventures, earthquakes …” he recalled.
“I said, ‘Gee, I don’t know, I’m not sure, because of the subject matter.'”
“And [Goddard’s agent] said, ‘Well, listen, you just do it and don’t worry about it. Take the money. Because nobody’s gonna see it and it’ll never sell.’ “
After the conclusion of Lost in Space, he and several cast members made cameos in the 1998 movie adaptation.
Following the show’s 1968 series finale, Goddard went on to appear on The Mod Squad, Adam-12, Benson, and The Doctors.
He was also well-known for appearing on One Life to Live and General Hospital.
May Mark Goddard rest in peace.
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Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
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