16 October: Lost in Space

On the TV show Lost in Space, which ran from 1965 to 1968, 16 October 1997 was the launch date of the Jupiter 2. 10 things you might not know about Lost in Space:

1. The creator of the series, Irwin Allen, didn't originally conceive it as a space adventure. He wanted to make a live action version of The Swiss Family Robinson. However, since the space programme was big news at the time he first pitched the idea, he was persuaded by the network to re-work it into a story about a family of astronauts.
2. There was a comic book published by Gold Key Comics in 1962 which featured a space-faring family called Robinson, who were also lost in space but lived on a space station. Irwin Allen was unaware of the comic's existence, but needless to say, Gold Key Comics were all set to sue for copyright infringement. A deal was reached, however, which is why the show is called Lost in Space rather than any title including the name Robinson.
3. The Robinson family were chosen from two million volunteers for the pioneering mission, which was to investigate the possibility of colonising a planet orbiting Alpha Centaurai. The family consists of: Dr John Robinson, played by Guy Williams. He is not only a pilot but an astrophysicist specialising in applied planetary geology; his wife, Dr. Maureen Robinson, played by June Lockhart, a biochemist, but this is rarely mentioned in the show and she is relegated, in true 1960s style, to preparing meals and motherhood; Judy Robinson, their oldest child, played by Marta Kristen, aged 19. She had planned a career in musical theatre, but chose to go into space with her family instead; Penny Robinson, played by Angela Cartwright, aged 13 who has an IQ of 147 and an interest in zoology. She soon acquires an alien pet called Debbie, with pointy ears which says "bloop" (actually played by a chimpanzee named Judy); and Will Robinson, played by Billy Mumy, aged 9, a child prodigy in electronics and computer technology. Also part of the crew is Major Don West, played by Mark Goddard, a military pilot and potential love interest for Judy.
4. And then there is Dr. Zachary Smith, played by Jonathan Harris. He is a Doctor of Intergalactic Environmental Psychology and an expert in cybernetics. He's also a foreign spy for an unspecified country, charged with sabotaging the mission by sneaking on board the ship to reprogram the robot so it will destroy the ship. However, something goes wrong and he finds himself trapped on board when the ship launches. The cowardly Dr Smith is unwilling to sacrifice himself for the mission and so wakes the crew early from their suspended animation. They save the ship, but a meteor storm damages it, resulting in them being lost. He soon becomes the unintentional star of the show with his cowardly antics and exchanges with the robot. Jonathan Harris, incidentally, became the first actor to be billed on a TV show as a Special Guest Star. The original pilot episode, which never aired, didn't feature Dr. Smith at all. He was added because the network thought the family should have an antagonist. This meant Harris appeared last in the billing, and he wasn't happy about that. Smith was intended to be a temporary villain who would be killed off after a few episodes. However, Harris wanted to stay on the show and helped redefine his character into a self-centered, incompetent foil who causes most of the conflict and misadventures. He achieves a certain amount of redemption, however, in a later episode when he travels back in time to change his fate and not get trapped on the ship. However, he learns that without his extra weight on board, the ship will crash into an uncharted asteroid, killing everyone anyway. So Smith chooses to get on the ship again, saving everyone's lives.
5. The Robot is a "Class M-3 Model B9, General Utility Non-Theorizing Environmental Control Robot". The Robot is never given a name, although the above wording on his delivery crate suggests if he had one, it would be "Gunter". The Robot was played by Bob May in the robot suit and voiced by Dick Tufeld. The Robot was designed by Robert Kinoshita, who also designed Robby the Robot for Forbidden Planet. The Robot's function was to run tests on the air and soil on the destination planet. It can detect smells. It is also very strong, able to detect threats, discharge strong electrostatic charges from its claws or produce a smoke screen as a defence mechanism, reproduce small objects and read minds by translating thought waves into words.
6. The Robot provided the most popular catchphrase for the show: "Danger, Will Robinson!" Although those exact words were only ever uttered once in all the 83 episodes. Usually, the Robot would simply say "Danger! Danger!" The second most popular catchphrase was provided by Dr Smith: "Oh! The pain! The pain!"
7. The Robot wasn't the only technology the Robinsons had on board. Some of the technology they had would later come into use in real life, such as pills or sticks which could substitute for real food in an emergency and silver reflective blankets. We are still waiting, however, for the machine that could wash, iron and fold laundry in seconds.
8. The soundtrack and theme tune were composed by John Williams, though he was credited at the time as Johnny Williams.
9. Jupiter 2 crash landed on a planet which the family called Preplanis. They stayed there, overcoming challenges presented by the environment and visiting aliens, for the whole of the first series. At the start of the second, they manage to take off and leave to avoid being killed by severe quakes threatening to destroy the planet. They crash on a different planet and spend the second series there. In the third series, they are able to explore a little further using a space pod.
10. While there was talk of a fourth series, it never happened. It's not known for sure why. It might have been because it was getting too expensive to produce, because ratings were falling, or because network executives simply didn't like it. There was some dissension among the cast as well. While Bill Mumy has said that Will Robinson was his favourite role ever, Guy Williams was well peed off that his role was somewhat sidelined; that the show had evolved into a rather campy "Dr. Smith/Will Robinson/Robot" show. Jonathan Harris had had a big falling out with Bob May (the man in the Robot suit) and refused to share a dressing room with him. After the show ended, though, Harris and Mumy remained friends. Mumy as an adult appeared in the TV series Babylon 5. Guy Williams, however, gave up acting and retired to Argentina.