Marta Kristen is a Norwegian-born American actress. Kristen is best known for her role as Judy Robinson, the oldest child of Professor John Robinson and his wife, Maureen, in the television series ''

Lost in Space ''Lost in Space'' is an American science fiction television series, created and produced by Irwin Allen, which originally aired between 1965 and 1968 on CBS. The series was inspired by the 1812 novel ''The Swiss Family Robinson.'' The series fo ...

'' (1965–1968). Her character was a young adult, around 20 years of age.

Early life

Kristen was born Birgit Annalisa Rusanen in

Oslo Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

, Norway, to a Finnish mother and a German soldier father who was killed during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. She spent her first years in an orphanage in Norway, and was then adopted in 1949 by a couple from

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, Harold Oliver Soderquist, and his wife, Bertha, who renamed her Martha Annalise Soderquist. Her adoptive father was a professor of education at

Wayne University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

, Detroit. Kristen has a brother whom her parents adopted. In 1959, Kristen moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

when her father was on a sabbatical. She remained there, with a guardian, and is a graduate of

Santa Monica High School Santa Monica High School, officially abbreviated to SaMoHi, is located in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1891, it changed location several times in its early years before settling into its present campus at 601 Pico Boulevard. It is a part o ...

Career

Reflecting her Scandinavian heritage, Kristen adopted the more European-sounding "Marta" and used Marta Kristen as her stage name. She first appeared in a 1961 episode of ''

Alfred Hitchcock Presents ''Alfred Hitchcock Presents'' is an American television anthology series created, hosted and produced by Alfred Hitchcock, aired on CBS and NBC between 1955 and 1965. It features dramas, thrillers and mysteries. Between 1962 and 1965 it was ren ...

'', "Bang! You're Dead", alongside

Billy Mumy Charles William Mumy Jr. (; born February 1, 1954) is an American actor, writer, and musician and a figure in the science-fiction community/comic book fandom. He came to prominence in the 1960s as a child actor, which included television appeara ...

, who later co-starred with Kristen in ''Lost in Space''. In 1963, she starred with

Tony Dow Anthony Lee Dow (April 13, 1945 – July 27, 2022) was an American actor, film producer, director and sculptor. He portrayed Wally Cleaver in the iconic television sitcom '' Leave It to Beaver'' from 1957 to 1963. From 1983 to 1989, Dow repri ...

in "Four Feet in the Morning," an episode of '' The Eleventh Hour''. Kristen's first film role was in the 1963 Walt Disney production of '' Savage Sam''. She played the role of Lorelei in the 1965 movie ''

Beach Blanket Bingo ''Beach Blanket Bingo'' is a 1965 American beach party film directed by William Asher. It is the fifth film in the Beach Party film series. The film stars Frankie Avalon, Annette Funicello, Linda Evans, Deborah Walley, Paul Lynde, and Don Rickl ...

''. Kristen starred in ''Lost in Space'' from its beginning in 1965 until its cancellation in 1968. Afterwards, she had a daughter, born in 1969, and appeared in more than forty television commercials as well as making numerous guest appearances on television shows. She also appeared in the A&E

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just the basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or ...

Jonathan Harris Jonathan Harris (born Jonathan Daniel Charasuchin, November 6, 1914 – November 3, 2002) was an American character actor whose career included more than 500 television and film appearances, as well as voiceovers. Two of his best-known roles we ...

: Never Fear, Smith Is Here'' in 2002. She also made the occasional film appearance in movies such as ''

Terminal Island Terminal Island, historically known as Isla Raza de Buena Gente, is a largely artificial island located in Los Angeles County, California, between the neighborhoods of Wilmington and San Pedro in the city of Los Angeles, and the city of Long Be ...

'' (1973), ''

Once Once means a one-time occurrence. Once may refer to: Music * ''Once'' (Pearl Jam song), a 1991 song from the album ''Ten'' * ''Once'' (Roy Harper album), a 1990 album by Roy Harper * ''Once'' (The Tyde album), a 2001 debut album by The Tyd ...

'' in 1974, appearing as a bare breasted 'Humanity', and the science-fiction film ''

Battle Beyond the Stars ''Battle Beyond the Stars'' is a 1980 American space opera film produced by Roger Corman, directed by Jimmy T. Murakami, and starring Richard Thomas, Robert Vaughn, George Peppard, John Saxon, Sybil Danning and Darlanne Fluegel. Intended as ...

'' (1980); and had a cameo role in the 1998 movie ''

''. Kristen also provided voice work for the 2009 animated theatrical short "

The Bolt Who Screwed Christmas ''The Bolt Who Screwed Christmas'' is an independent animated short film and a parody of ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas!'' written and directed by John Wardlaw and animated by Adny Angrand. The film features the final performance of actor Jonat ...

" which also included voice work from her ''Lost in Space'' co-stars Harris, Mumy, and

Angela Cartwright Angela Margaret Cartwright (born September 9, 1952) is a British actress primarily known for her roles in movies and television. On television, she played Linda Williams, the stepdaughter of Danny Williams (played by Danny Thomas) in the long- ...

Personal life

Kristen has been married twice. Her first marriage was to Terry Treadwell, a psychologist. She met her second husband, Kevin P. Kane, in 1974 and they married on November 18, 1978. They lived in

Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...

, with two

rescue dog Pet adoption is the process of transferring responsibility for a pet that was previously owned by another party such as a person, shelter, or rescue organization. Common sources for adoptable pets are animal shelters and rescue groups. Some or ...

s until 2016, when Kristen announced on her

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

page that Kane had died.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kristen, Marta Living people American film actresses American television actresses Norwegian emigrants to the United States American adoptees 20th-century American actresses 21st-century American actresses American people of Finnish descent American people of German descent Actresses from Los Angeles Actresses from Santa Monica, California 20th-century Norwegian women Year of birth missing (living people)