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June Lockhart, the beloved actress whose career spanned the Golden Age of Hollywood to modern television, has died at the age of 100. She passed away peacefully on Thursday, October 23, at 9:20 p.m. local time in Santa Monica, California, surrounded by her daughter, June Elizabeth, and her granddaughter, Christianna. Lockhart’s family confirmed that she died of natural causes. The actress, whose name became synonymous with warmth, strength, and maternal grace on screen, will be remembered in a private funeral. In lieu of flowers, her family has requested donations be made to The Actors Fund, ProPublica, and International Hearing Dog, Inc., honouring causes close to her heart. Lockhart was born in 1925 in New York City to actor parents Gene and Kathleen Lockhart. Her first stage appearance came at just eight years old in a Metropolitan Opera production of Peter Ibbetson. She made her film debut a decade later in A Christmas Carol (1938), sharing the screen with her parents. Reflecting on the experience years later, she recalled, “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.” She also fondly remembered performing the story at home with her family, laughing at the memory of her first lines: “I know, I know — sausages.” Lockhart went on to appear in early films including All This, and Heaven Too, Adam Had Four Sons, Sergeant York, She-Wolf of London, and Meet Me in St. Louis (1944). She also had notable Broadway roles in For Love or Money (1947), for which she won the Tony Award for outstanding performance by a newcomer, and The Grand Prize (1955). Speaking about her craft, she once said, “I like it all, but I think the hardest to do is theater. Television is fun. But theater is night after night after night.” Television audiences first embraced her in 1949 through guest appearances on shows such as Hallmark Hall of Fame, Shirley Temple’s Storybook, Wagon Train, and Gunsmoke. She became a household name as Ruth Martin in Lassie (1958), taking over from Cloris Leachman and forming a lasting bond with co-star Jon Provost. She earned Emmy nominations for the series in 1953 and 1959. Lockhart later starred as the mother in the sci-fi classic Lost in Space (1965–1968), inspiring future scientists with her portrayal of the intrepid spacefaring mother. She reprised a voice cameo in the 2021 Netflix adaptation. Her television career continued with roles on Petticoat Junction, Marcus Welby, M.D., Magnum, P.I., Knots Landing, Murder, She Wrote, Full House, General Hospital, Grey’s Anatomy, Babylon 5, and Roseanne, where she described her role as Martin Mull’s mother as “the highlight of my career.” Across her lifetime, she amassed over 150 film and television credits. Despite often playing nurturing figures on screen, Lockhart led an adventurous life off-screen. “I love rock ‘n’ roll and going to concerts,” she told the Chicago Tribune in 1994. “I have driven army tanks and flown in hot-air balloons, and I go plane-gliding — the ones with no motors. I do lots of things that don’t go hand-in-hand with my image.” She also voiced characters for animated shows like Ren and Stimpy, which she called her favorite. Lockhart was honoured with two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960, one for movies and one for television. Her love of space and science earned her the NASA Exceptional Public Achievement Medal in 2014, recognizing her decades-long advocacy and support for the agency. She was also an avid follower of U.S. politics, having met President Harry Truman in 1948 and holding a lifetime press pass that allowed her to attend briefings for 47 years. In her personal life, Lockhart married John F. Maloney in 1951, with whom she had two daughters, Anne and June Elizabeth. The couple divorced in 1959.
