Land Of The Lost: What Happened To The Cast Of The Cult Classic Kids' Show?

In the '70s show "Land of the Lost," a family of three falls through a mysterious portal that takes them to another dimension, a strange realm where dinosaurs and humanoid lizards roam about. The NBC series ended in 1976 after three seasons. Even though it was adapted into a Will Ferrell-led movie in 2009 and Netflix is working on a reboot, the original show remains a cult classic that's been lost to time. Have the actors also been lost to time?

Unlike other '70s TV shows that launched the careers of major stars, the main cast of "Land of the Lost" did not go on to become A-list actors — or even B-listers. The child stars from the Saturday morning series largely left acting behind once "Land of the Lost" ended. That's okay, though — we'll always have the memories (and the reruns) of them having adventures in the Land of the Lost. Here's what happened to the main cast of the show after it ended.

Born on September 10, 1937, in Oak Park, Illinois, Spencer Milligan got his start acting on the Chicago stage before making his screen debut in Woody Allen's 1973 movie "Sleeper." His biggest part by far came soon after, when he nabbed the lead role of Rick Marshall, father of Will and Holly, on "Land of the Lost." He left the show after two seasons over salary disputes, however. "We had a difference of opinion, let's put it this way, on using my face for stuff and paying me — lunch boxes, compasses — where they were selling them and I thought it was only fair that everyone should get their fair share," Milligan told The Associated Press in 2009.

Milligan continued acting on television after leaving the sci-fi series, albeit in smaller, usually one-off appearances like "McCloud," "The Bionic Woman," "The Dukes of Hazzard," and "Police Squad!" His last notable role was a stint as newspaper editor Ray Gibbons on "General Hospital" in 1987. For the last 20 years of his life, Milligan returned to the theater, directing and teaching at the Third Avenue PlayWorks in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin. Milligan died at his home on April 18, 2024, at age 86. He is survived by his wife, Kerry, who he married in 1991. Milligan said he never went back and watched "Land of the Lost." "That was then," he told the AP. "I don't think about it too much. You move on."

Wesley Eure, who was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on August 17, 1951, was quite busy in the mid-'70s. At the same time he was playing Will Marshall on "Land of the Lost," Eure was starring as Mike Horton on NBC's "Days of Our Lives." "'Days of Our Lives' made sure that all my scenes were filmed in the morning for three years," Eure told The Terror Trap in 2013. "And then I would race over to General Services Studio in Hollywood — and run from dinosaurs!"

Eure continued playing Mike well after "Land of the Lost" ended in 1977, appearing in more than 600 episodes of the soap opera until 1981. His other screen credits include a 1979 movie about a robot dog called "C.H.O.M.P.S." and the Nickelodeon game show "Finders Keepers." He began performing less once the '80s were over, and started authoring children's books like "The Red Wings of Christmas," instead. In the late-'90s, Eure helped create "Dragon Tales," an animated PBS fantasy series aimed at pre-schoolers. The two-headed dragon siblings, Zak and Wheezie, were his idea.

In 2009, Eure came out as gay in an interview with the now-defunct trade, After Elton. "It was a horrible time in Hollywood, being gay," Eure said, per the AP. For a time, Eure quietly dated Richard Chamberlain, star of the original "Shōgun" miniseries. In addition to touring the nostalgia convention circuit, Eure stays busy with philanthropy, and is heavily involved with many AIDS charities and support organizations.

Kathleen Coleman, who went by Kathy when she played Holly, didn't continue acting once the show ended when she was 14 in 1976. When she was 18, she married Robert Louis Bell, the then-19-year-old son of wealthy California congressman Alphonzo E. Bell Jr. Coleman and Bell had two children together, but the marriage turned abusive, as Coleman detailed in her memoir "Lost Girl: The Truth and Nothing But the Truth So Help Me." She divorced Bell when she was 24, though she remained close to her in-laws.

Coleman's second marriage was even more abusive, unfortunately. She wrote in her memoir that he "left me for dead several times." They divorced after six years, and Coleman was briefly homeless as she dealt with substance abuse issues. In more recent years, things have improved for Coleman, who now frequents fan conventions. She also wrote a second book, "Run, Holly, Run!" which focused more on her time making "Land of the Lost."

"It's certainly nice to come home to loving yourself," Coleman told Fox News in 2019. "It's much better today than it's ever been. I have an incredible husband who just adores me. It's just wonderful, really." Both Coleman and her on-screen big brother, Wesley Eure, filmed cameos for the 2009 "Land of the Lost" film adaptation, but they were cut from the final movie.

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Phillip Paley made his TV debut when he was 9 years old, appearing on "The Tonight Show" alongside Chuck Norris to teach Johnny Carson karate. That appearance led to him getting cast on "Land of the Lost" as Cha-Ka, a member of the ape-like Pakuni species who becomes friends with the Marshalls. By Season 3 of "Land of the Lost," Paley was ready to quit. "It was really hard work and all my friends were out doing stuff and I was a guy with a job," Paley told the Los Angeles Times. "I was getting up every morning, sitting through makeup, working hard."

His only credits after "Land of the Lost" were an episode of the '80s military show "Airwolf" and an obscure teen comedy called "Beach Balls." He went on to work as a paralegal and as a litigation support project manager at an L.A. law firm where he didn't tell too many people about his past. "It just changes the way people look at you, once people find out that you were Cha-Ka," he told the LA Times. After the 2009 movie came out, though, Paley said he was "appreciating all of it now more than ever." He has also appeared at a few fan conventions.

When Spencer Milligan left "Land of the Lost" after the second season, another member of the Marshall family went through a dimensional portal to replace him. Ron Harper played Uncle Jack, Rick's brother who had fallen into the Land of the Lost at about the same time Jack suddenly left. Harper was a prolific television actor, with early appearances in '60s Westerns like "Wagon Train" and "Laramie." By the time he joined the cast of "Land of the Lost," he'd already been the lead of five shows — "87th Precinct," "Wendy and Me," "The Jean Arthur Show," "Garrison's Gorillas," and the "Planet of the Apes" TV adaptation — that all ended after one season.

"I've done six series: Five primetime series. Not one hit ... and 'Land of the Lost.'" Harper said in an interview for a box set DVD release of the series. "And I've got to tell you, I am best known for 'Land of the Lost' than for all the other five put together." Harper looked back fondly at his time in "Land of the Lost," and continued acting for decades afterwards. He was in more than 60 episodes of the NBC soap opera "Generations," and some of his later roles include appearances on "Beverly Hills, 90210," "Boy Meets World," and "The West Wing." Harper died of natural causes at his West Hills, Los Angeles home on March 21, 2024. He was 91.

Enik, the Altrusian who made his debut in an episode written by Walter Koenig of "Star Trek" fame, wasn't a member of the Marshall family, but he appeared in several episodes of "Land of the Lost." Walker Edmiston, a voice actor and puppeteer, was inside the yellow reptilian suit in all these appearances. By the time he joined the "Land of the Lost" cast in 1974, he was already well-established. In the '50s and '60s, he was the host of his own Los Angeles children's program, "The Walker Edmiston Show," using puppets he created. He had voice roles on "H.R. Pufnstuf," which was also made by "Land of the Lost" creators Sid and Marty Krofft, and ultimately led to his tenure as Enik. Edmiston even sculpted the costume himself.

After "Land of the Lost" ended, he made live-action appearances in TV shows like "Little House on the Prairie," and "The Dukes of Hazzard." Superhero fans, however, might recognize his voice from some of his animated roles. Among his credits are Magneto and Kingpin in the '80s "Spider-Man" cartoons, Whizzer in the '90s "Spider-Man," Sir Thornberry in "Adventures of the Gummi Bears," and the Autobot Inferno in "The Transformers." The star was called in to audition to voice Yoda in "The Empire Strikes Back," but Frank Oz ultimately got the part. Edmiston died of cancer on February 15, 2007, at age 81.