Spencer Milligan, star of “Land of the Lost, ”dies at 86

Staff Author

26 June 2024 at 2:21 pm·2-min read

The actor played Rick Marshall for 2 seasons on the Saturday morning sensation.

Spencer Milligan, a prolific '70s TV actor best known for his role on Land of the Lost, died on April 18, according to his official obituary from Huehns Funeral Home in Sturgeon Bay, Wisc. He was 86.

Born on Sept. 10, 1937 in Oak Park, Ill., Milligan attended Lyons Township High School and then trained at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago. He received his first notice for an on-stage performance in Come Back, Little Sheba in 1960. After serving in the U.S. Army for six years, Milligan studied acting with icons like Lee Strasberg in New York and Joan Darling in L.A.

<p>Ron Tom/NBC/Getty</p> Spencer Milligan — Ron Tom/NBC/Getty
Spencer Milligan

His most famous role came on the Saturday morning show Land of the Lost, which combined live-action with stop-motion animation in its depiction of a family who find themselves in an alternate world populated by dinosaurs. Milligan played heroic father Rick Marshall, who accompanied his kids on their dangerous adventures.

The show's success led to Milligan's likeness getting plastered on lunchboxes and other Land of the Lost paraphernalia, but he left the show after two seasons when he didn't think the compensation for merchandise was fair.

"We had a difference of opinion, let's put it this way, on using my face for stuff," Milligan told the Associated Press in 2009. "I thought it was only fair that everyone should get their fair share."

Milligan also appeared on other popular TV shows of the era, including Gunsmoke, Baretta, McCloud, The Bionic Woman, Alice, The Dukes of Hazzard, Police Squad! and The New Mike Hammer.

Milligan spent his final decades in Sturgeon Bay, teaching acting and directing local theater productions. He is survived by his beloved wife Kerry Milligan and several godchildren.

Read the original article on Entertainment Weekly.

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