Kathy Coleman and Wesley Eure ruled the TV airwaves for three seasons in the mid 1970s as the stars of your favorite Saturday morning kid’s show, the trippy, creature-packed Sid and Marty Krofft sci-fi masterpiece, “Land of the Lost.”
The pair, now all grown up, spoke about the classic show, that terrible bi- screen remake and what they’re up to today.
You remember the song? If not, don’t worry, they’ll sing it for you.
(Warning, there will be Sleestaks.)
Question: Do you ever get sick of singing that theme song?
Kathy Coleman: He never does.
Q: Do you?
KC: Yes. [laughs] [Wesley] can sing it over and over again because he gets to say, “I was the one who sang that song in the opening credits.”
Wesley Eure: I did.
Q: How long have you guys been doing autograph shows together?
WE: A couple years.
KC: We’ve just started getting together. Phil Paley, who was Chaka, does them with us too. They are fun when we do them altogether. It gives the fan a treat to see us all.
WE: When we do these shows, we don’t like to just sit behind the table. We bring our yellow raft to take pictures with people. We have a friend who is dressed like a sleestak to scare people. We sing. We want it to be fun.
Q: What is the strangest thing you’ve ever signed?
KC: A baseball for me. I kept telling the guy, “You know I don’t play baseball.”
WE: I’ve singed a very perky breast in my day. A lovely perky breast or two.
Q: How old were you guys when you made “Land of the Lost”?
KC: I was 12.
WE: I was actually 20, but I looked younger.
Q: Was the show your big break?
WE: I had been on “Days of our Lives” before “Land of the Lost.” I played “Doctor Mike” for nine years.
KC: For me it was.
Q: Did you have any idea at the time you were creating something that generation after generation of kids would love?
KC: No. I was 12 years old. I actually was just there for the fun of it. I don’t think anybody knew. We have a fan base that has been so loyal for 40 years. People still say that is was their favorite show.
Q: What do you think the appeal of the show is that makes it so popular even today?
WE: First of all, it was written by the “Star Trek” writers. So the writing was really good sci-fi. It never talked down to kids. And it was about a family. We lost our mom. It was just my dad, sister and me lost in this world. It was a real family drama. I think that people related.
Q: Did you guys continue acting after “Land of the Lost”?
WE: I was on “Days of Our Lives” for another seven years after “Land of the Lost.” I did a lot of TV. I hosted game shows for Nickelodeon [like] “Finders Keepers.”
KC: It was a difficult time when you are 15 in the business because they can get an 18-year-old to play a 15-year-old. The jobs started getting fewer and far between. I did some commercial work. Then I ended up getting married, having kids and starting a family. I moved out of California for a while and went in a different direction.
Q: Kathy, what did you do after you left acting?
KC: I went on a lot of adventures. Being on “Land of the Lost” probably got me addicted to them. I just went on adventure after adventure in my life. I was a pig farmer. A dairy farmer for five years.
Q: What did you guys think of the big screen remake of “Land of the Lost”?
WE: It wasn’t “Land of the Lost.” In the film, Holly was his assistant, not his daughter. All these amazing sci-fi writers who wrote our show — that was missing from the movie.
KC: And there was unnecessary groping with Chaka.
Q: What are you guys up to now?
WE: I just did a movie with Ally Sheedy called “Sins of Our Youth.” I played the police chief in it. I’m also producing. I just had a musical open in Seattle — a new Stephen Schwartz musical. He wrote “Wicked.” It’s a show called “Snapshot,” and we will be touring in the fall.
KC: I just released my book in April. It’s a memoir called “Lost Girl: The Truth and Noting But the Truth So Help Me Kathleen.” It’s available on Amazon and doing really well. I’m really proud of it.
“Lost Girl: The Truth and Noting But the Truth So Help Me Kathleen” is available at Amazon.com/Lost-Girl-Truth-Nothing-Kathleen/dp/1508688141.
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