June Lockhart

Early life

Born on June 25, 1925, in New York City, Lockhart is the daughter of Canadian-born actor Gene Lockhart, who came to prominence on Broadway in 1933 in Ah, Wilderness!, and English-born actress Kathleen Arthur Lockhart. Her grandfather was John Coates Lockhart, "a concert-singer."

She attended the Westlake School for Girls in Beverly Hills, California.

Film

Lockhart made her film debut opposite her parents in a film version of A Christmas Carol, in 1938. She also played supporting parts in films including Meet Me in St. Louis, Sergeant York, All This, and Heaven Too and The Yearling. She starred in She-Wolf of London (1946).

Stage

Lockhart debuted on stage at the age of eight, playing Mimsey in Peter Ibbetson, presented by the Metropolitan Opera. In 1947, her acting in For Love or Money brought her out of her parents' shadow and gained her notice as "a promising movie actress in her own right." One newspaper article began, "June Lockhart has burst on Broadway with the suddenness of an unpredicted comet."

In 1951, Lockhart starred in Lawrence Riley's biographical play Kin Hubbard opposite Tom Ewell.

Television

In 1955, Lockhart appeared in an episode of CBS's Appointment with Adventure. About this time, she also made several appearances on NBC's legal drama Justice, based on case files of the Legal Aid Society of New York. In the late 1950s, Lockhart guest-starred in several popular television Westerns including: Wagon Train and Cimarron City (in the episode "Medicine Man" with Gary Merrill) on NBC and Gunsmoke, Have Gun – Will Travel, and Rawhide on CBS.

In 1958, she was the narrator for Playhouse 90 's telecast of the George Balanchine version of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker, featuring Balanchine himself as Drosselmeyer, along with the New York City Ballet.

Lockhart is best known for her roles as TV mothers, first as Ruth Martin, the wife of Paul Martin (portrayed by Hugh Reilly), and the mother of Timmy Martin (played by Jon Provost) in the 1950s CBS series, Lassie (a role that she played from 1958–64). She replaced actress Cloris Leachman, who, in turn, had replaced Jan Clayton - who had played a similar character earlier in the series. Following her five-year run on Lassie Lockhart made a guest appearance on Perry Mason as defendant Mona Stanton Harvey in "The Case of the Scandalous Sculptor." Lockhart then starred as Dr. Maureen Robinson in Lost in Space, which ran from 1965-1968 on CBS, opposite veteran actors Guy Williams and Jonathan Harris.

In 1965, Lockhart played librarian Ina Coolbrith, first poet laureate of California, in the episode "Magic Locket" of the syndicated western series, Death Valley Days, hosted by Ronald W. Reagan. In the storyline, Coolbrith develops a tenuous friendship with the teenaged "Dorita Duncan" (Kathy Garver), later the dancer Isadora Duncan. The two have identical portions of a broken locket. Sean McClory played the poet Joaquin Miller, author of Songs of the Sierras.

Lockhart would then appear as Dr. Janet Craig on the final two seasons of the CBS sitcom Petticoat Junction (1968–1970), her character being brought in to fill the void created after Bea Benaderet died during the run of the show; she was a regular in the ABC soap opera General Hospital during the 1980s and 1990s, and was also a voice actor, providing the voice of Martha Day, the lead character in the Hanna-Barbera animated series These Are the Days on ABC during the 1970s.

Lockhart appeared as a hostess on the "Miss USA Pageant" on CBS for six years, the "Miss Universe Pageant" on CBS for six years, the "Tournament of Roses Parade" on CBS for eight years and the "Thanksgiving Parade" on CBS for five years.

In 1986, she appeared in the fantasy film, Troll. The younger version of her character in that film was played by her daughter, Anne Lockhart. They had previously played the same woman at two different ages in the "Lest We Forget" episode of the television series Magnum, P.I. (1981). In 1991, Lockhart appeared as Miss Wiltrout, Michelle Tanner's kindergarten teacher on the TV sitcom Full House. She also had a cameo in the 1998 film Lost in Space, based on the television series she had starred in thirty years earlier. In 2002, she appeared in two episodes of The Drew Carey Show as Lewis's mother, Misty Kiniski, alongside fellow TV mom Marion Ross, who played Drew's mother.

In 2004, she voiced the role of Grandma Emma Fowler in Focus on the Family's The Last Chance Detectives audio cases. Lockhart starred as James Caan's mother in an episode of Las Vegas in 2004. Lockhart has since guest-starred in episodes of Cold Case and Grey's Anatomy, in the 2007 ABC Family television film Holiday in Handcuffs, and in the 2007 feature film Wesley.

In February 2013, Lockhart began filming for Tesla Effect, a video game that combines live-action footage with 3D graphics, which was released in May 2014.

Recognition

In 1948, Lockhart won a Tony Award for Outstanding Performance by a Newcomer (a category that no longer exists) for her role on Broadway in For Love or Money. She has two stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, one for motion pictures (6323 Hollywood Boulevard) and one for television (6362 Hollywood Boulevard). Both were dedicated on February 8, 1960.

Personal life

In 1951, Lockhart married Dr. John F. Maloney. They had two daughters, Anne Kathleen Lockhart, born September 6, 1953, and June Elizabeth Lockhart, born two years later. The couple divorced in 1959. She married architect John Lindsay that same year, but they divorced in October 1970 and she has not remarried since.

Anne has taken her mother's maiden name for her stage name, and has appeared in films and television programs. June is marketing manager/art director for an international luxury furniture manufacturer headquartered in California, with showrooms around the world.