by James Coburn – staff writer

Laughter is great therapy. Epworth at Home Hospice has discovered a way to brighten up the days of hospice patients receiving palliative care, said Hope Knight, a registered nurse with the Epworth at Home Hospice team in Oklahoma City.
Seniors receiving hospice care or home health care from Epworth at Home will often find humor and a glimpse of nostalgia by therapeutic cardboard cut-outs of classic movie stars. Carol Burnett, John Wayne, Audrey Hepburn, and Elvis Presley have made steady appearances. A cut-out of actor Will Smith will soon join the collection of stars.
Patients get a ray of sunshine, something that makes them smile, Knight said. Hospice is a ministry, said Knight, who has been a nurse for 30 years and a hospice nurse for nearly six years. Her history includes emergency room and intensive care nursing.
“We’ll place it in a common area of their room. We will just see smiles and maybe they will point at them. We don’t know what’s going on in their head a lot of times, but we can see some joy in their faces,” Knight said.
The idea clicked in the mind of Community Liaison Shelley Stutchman just before an open house in May. She had been storing the cardboard inspirations in her office and wondered what to do with them. (story continues below)

“Even though John, Elvis, Carol, and Audrey were only cardboard, we could imagine them smiling as our guests took selfies with their favorites of the group,” Stutchman said.
Her role includes visiting with patients in the skilled nursing unit. She said there have been a few home health and hospice patients who have chosen hospice care. She will inform them about hospice and home health options when applicable.
One day she greeted a woman who was feeling a little depressed about her health. She looked at Stutchman and said she gets always feels more courageous and stronger after watching a John Wayne movie.
“How about I have John Wayne come visit you?” Stutchman said.
The woman thought Stutchman was joking, knowing the actor had died in 1979. Stutchman said she needed an hour to prepare her surprise.
“The patient just laughed and went to the therapy gym,” she said. “I attached a personalized note to the John Wayne cutout and snuck it into the patient’s room while she was in therapy. When the patient came back, she lit up like a Christmas Tree.”
The woman came from a hospital after having a leg amputation and felt blue. But soon she was texting photos to family and friends and laughed about how Duke Wayne startled a nurse who came in her room that night. Wayne was standing at the head of her bed holding a gun at his side. Her life was falling apart, but the therapy cut-out changed her attitude.
Knight said hospice families love taking pictures of the cut-outs with their loved ones. People smile as she carries Elvis, Carol, Audrey, or John Wayne down the hall. Ladies will prepare for a visit by Elvis in the rehab unit. They will fix their hair and put on their lipstick, so they will look nice for their photo with Elvis.
“It motivates them therapy-wise to take care of themselves,” Stutchman said.
Another patient said one of the ladies told her she had the personality of Carol Burnett. When the cut-out was brought for an overnight visit to the woman’s room, it became a source of laughter during her visit with her son. They began talking about the old Carol Burnett shows they saw together when her son ways a little boy. Mother and son talked for almost two hours — something they had never done before.
“She said she was forever grateful for the Carol Burnett therapy cardboard,” Stutchman said.
Family members appreciate being able to share joy during their loved one’s hospice care, Knight said.
“It brings back good memories. We’re all about memories in hospice,” she said. “That’s all we’ve got when people pass.”
Even hospice patients living with dementia will interact with the therapeutic cut-outs. Older memories are more intact with dementia. And, even if a hospice patient does not have dementia, they will oftentimes pull back into their younger selves, Knight said.
“They will pull away from the world as they are transitioning from this life to the next. And so many times they just don’t want to talk with people — they don’t want to interact because they’re pulling back and readying their spirit for when they pass on,” Knight said.
Many nurses in general don’t deal well with people passing away because they want to make them better, Knight said.
“But then, there are some of us that say sometimes we don’t make them better, so let’s make this transition the best it can be. Let’s help them have the best life possible in as many days that they have.”
For more information visit: www.epworthathome.org or call (405) 767-9033.

story and photo by James Coburn, Staff Writer

Seniors wanting to live their lives in community can be confident in the lifestyle options available at Epworth Villa, a retirement community in Oklahoma City.
“If you stop and think about it, the pandemic has highlighted for us the importance of community,” said Epworth Villa CEO and president Ron Kelly.
The pandemic has interrupted the daily life of Americans in many ways. People have not been able to be as close to one another as in the past. Epworth Villa has met the challenge by preserving community when COVID moved through virtually every segment of society.
Epworth did a lot of shutting things down last year during the height of the pandemic. It joined everyone else in trying to understand how to minimize the risks of COVID-19. Testing and screening protocols were implemented for best practices.
Oklahoma is experiencing a resurgence with the Delta variant as scientists unravel the mystery of the disease with vaccinations available to keep the virus at bay. Kelly said Epworth has done fairly well in minimizing the impact. It’s important to be transparent, he said. (story continues below)

“Did we have cases? Yes, we did. We had a few folks that passed away actually that were in our upper levels of care,” he said. “It was very sad for us — but from what I saw — what others experienced, that was well above what others were experiencing.”
Some people enjoyed the neighborly aspects of greeting friends from their balconies and other measures during a time when the public didn’t feel very safe being indoors together.
“There was a friendship tree that came out of that in our cottage area where we have independent homes,” Kelly said.
People in the neighborhood would come to a large shade tree to gather at a safe distance in front of one of those homes. That spirit has continued at Epworth.
To this day, people still want to receive the daily community videos that Kelly produces for residents. Kelly now distributes the videos three days a week. He provides updates on the Delta variant and the possible impact it may or may not bring to daily life. Guidance from the CDC is presented in the videos as to whether a change of protocols should be updated to offer the best protection for the residents.
“So, I think people have really appreciated staying informed with what’s going on,” he said. “They’ve taken advantage of every opportunity to keep community going. That has been huge in terms of the thriving of our residents and our staff.”
Another area of improvement is creating more options for enriching life at home. Dining venues reopened when Epworth felt confident it was safe.
About 99 percent of Epworth residents have been vaccinated, Kelly said. There have been adjustments, but the community has been able to adapt and thrive since February.
Epworth’s nursing staff is one to admire. They have shown a lot of courage, Kelly continued. Folks were happy to be able to adapt to wearing protective equipment. There was greater risk for both staff and residents early in the pandemic.
“We had some staff that tested positive. I’m sure when that happens it rattles you, but they were courageous. Our director of nursing (Mia Owen) led the way. She showed the staff herself. She put on the equipment — did it herself. She went into areas where we had a COVID-positive resident,” Kelly explained. “She showed them and demonstrated that for them. That was the kind of leadership we needed. We needed our director of nursing when there was uncertainty. That courage and that leadership is why I call those folks heroes.”
Epworth offers residents the options and amenities of a seamless living environment on its spacious campus.
There are three levels of living including independent living with apartments and cottages. There is assisted living care with a memory care component. Health services at Epworth provides a short-term rehab for people transitioning from a hospital to home. Skilled inpatient and outpatient care is provided.
“We offer that to the broader community outside of Epworth as well,” he said.
Epworth at Home is a hospice and home health care to serve the campus and the community at large.
“What I love about it is not only how the staff has served the residents that live here, but how the residents serve one another,” Kelly said. “That’s the kind of community I see.”
Friends encourage one another when they see progress resulting from health care.
“That really uplifts people, not only in those times of need, but in general,” Kelly said.
For more information visit: https://epworthvilla.org or 14901 N. Pennsylvania Avenue in Oklahoma City.

Story by James Coburn, Staff Writer

Cori Roney helps patients live their lives as happy as they can be.
Her career as a registered nurse comforts lives as the director of nursing at St. Ann’s Skilled Nursing & Therapy, located in Oklahoma City.
There are many opportunities to learn about a myriad of modalities in patient care at St. Ann’s.
“One is their personalities, just like you get to know about your friends — what they like and what they dislike. Their ups and downs, what helps them relax. So even if I’m having a bad day, you still have your family here and they can bring you out of it. It ups your spirits because they are here.”
Her grandfather was in a nursing home. So, she empathizes with families on their journey into long-term care. It helps her to take pride in her work knowing families can take comfort in knowing their loved one is safe and secure when living at home is no longer the best option in care.
Roney began her career as a licensed practical nurse after graduating from the Western Technology Center in Burns Flat. She later graduated from Oklahoma City Community College with a nursing degree. She started in home health and progressed into wound care. Her RN license brought her to a totally skilled facility. She worked at a hospital but wanted to get to know her patients better so she ventured into a skilled rehab facility where she could see patients improve with smiles on their faces when returning home.
Teamwork is a story of success at St. Ann’s Skilled Nursing & Therapy. She accepted her new career challenge at St. Ann’s in January of 2020. A lot of the staff were new last year when the COVID pandemic emerged throughout Oklahoma. Roney is grateful to work where nurses radiate a caring spirit about the residents.
How St. Ann’s nursing staff responded to the pandemic touched Roney’s heart with grace. Families have been very supportive throughout all of life’s challenges. They are like family, too. Life is more of a celebration at St. Ann’s.
“We have birthdays, and our staff will go buy them birthday presents of what patients like. They enjoy seeing them happy,” she said. “Our nurses are really compassionate, and you can’t teach compassion. It’s a natural personality trait. It’s easy to train somebody their skills, but not to have compassion.”
Roney recalls a patient who had COVID. She had spent a month hospitalized and it was touch-and-go regarding her survival. The woman returned to St. Ann’s and is stronger than ever. Seeing someone’s health overcome dark struggles is one of the reasons to be a nurse, Roney said,
“Something that has changed my life, my perspective while being at this facility is the support that we have gotten from our families in the community during the hard times,” she continued.
The past year represents one thread of a career that flourished while helping others. As a child she would watch TV shows about medicine. The nurses portrayed seemed so awesome. She earned her CNA license when in high school. It was a natural fit for a teenager who enjoyed making other people feel better.
“I just like taking care of people. If I can make their day better, I feel like I’ve done my job,” she explained.
She has a lot of praise for certified nurse aides. They are the hardest workers, Roney said.
Having been a CNA deepened her understanding of the dignity of life. Being a nurse means more than taking care of a patient, she said. Patients are people with individualized needs.
“Some people prefer to have their hair fixed, smell good and to wear nice clothes,” she said. “That’s their preference and it is a dignity. Most of the geriatrics, when they grew up, they dressed to impress all the time.
That has helped me as a nurse when looking at the smaller things.”
Small things like wearing glasses, how residents rest in bed matter to them. And Roney said if she didn’t start out as a CNA that she might have missed that.
About 50 percent of CNAs become nurses at St. Ann’s, Roney said. But some of them don’t.
“They love what they do. That’s their calling.”
St. Ann’s offers a nursing scholarship through the Bridges program. Each employee also has an educational fund with options that Bridges will pay for.
“That’s what I feel like is really good about this facility is we’re home-grown and we like to grow people.”
For more information visit: www.stannsok.com.

Hi, Instagram! It’s Andrew. I have some, how should I say, personal news. But before I get into that, please “like” my page” and also follow me on YouTube, Twitter, Snapchat and TikTok. Oh, and I’ll have more details about this announcement on my podcast; so check that out too.
OK, here goes. As many of you know, I’ve been in the workforce for nearly six months. Well, if you don’t count the nine mental health days I took, then, yes, six months. And even though my company instituted a four-day work week and allows paid time off for dog grooming visits, I needed those days. Seriously, when my supervisor told me I had to be part of FOUR Zoom calls in a single day, well, that was just too much. And that’s what I’m live streaming this announcement.
As my 24th birthday dawns, a little voice inside my head has been getting louder. And it’s saying, “Drew, there’s more to life than work.” Now it’s time I start listening to that voice.
I mean, I’ve already accomplished all of my professional goals. I’ve made enough money to move out of my parents’ house. Well, I almost did, then COVID hit. So, yes, I’m still here, but living in my childhood bedroom, surrounded by my high school trophies, has made me realize that life is short. I don’t want to wake up when I’m 30 — hopefully in my own place — and realize how much I’ve missed.
So, I’ve made the decision to take some Andrew time. I’m not retiring. I’m just…recalibrating. And everybody has been so supportive, maybe with the exception of my dad who said, “What the hell does that mean? I’m 58 and you don’t see me re-whatever. I haven’t even calibrated yet.”
I can’t believe my dad still works. He could have retired by 30 if he just had the same values and goals as my generation.
It’s not like I won’t be making money. I can always become an influencer, monetize my YouTube channel or develop an app. My college roommate Darren created this AWESOME app that suggests which cannabis-infused edibles go best with microbrews. So, like, if you’re sipping a Belgian IPA, you just point your iPhone at the glass and the app tells you that a watermelon sativa gummy would go great with it.
It’s amazing! Darren submitted it to Apple 15 months ago and he’s still waiting to hear back; but when he does, he and I are going to be partying in Belize. First class, baby! Is there any other way to travel?
Plus, Dad doesn’t know anything about cryptocurrency. When is he going to learn that the only thing you need for financial independence is a decent internet signal and a Reddit account?
So, next Friday will be my last day. I’ve already told my co-workers that I don’t want a big party. Or a big virtual party since we’re all still working from home. I submitted my notice and the messages on my company group chat have been SUPER positive. Wait, here’s one now. I’ll read it aloud:
“Remind me again. Who are you?”
Um, that probably came from somebody who was hired after me. But see, this is my point. Once I’ve extricated myself from the workforce, I won’t have to respond to group chat messages. If I must work from home on my laptop at the local Starbucks, I want it to be work that fulfills ME, not somebody else. I’ve given my heart and soul to this organization ever since the day my dad’s golf buddy hired me. Those days are over.
So, that’s it. As of next week, I’ll be off the grid for a while. I plan to travel. Maybe hike or camp or just do something that feeds my soul. As long as Dogecoin stays stable, I’ll be fine.
Bye for now. Please like and subscribe.
(Greg Schwem is a corporate stand-up comedian and author of two books: “Text Me If You’re Breathing: Observations, Frustrations and Life Lessons From a Low-Tech Dad” and the recently released “The Road To Success Goes Through the Salad Bar: A Pile of BS From a Corporate Comedian,” available at Amazon.com. Visit Greg on the web at www.gregschwem.com.
You’ve enjoyed reading, and laughing at, Greg Schwem’s monthly humor columns in Senior Living News. But did you know Greg is also a nationally touring stand-up comedian? And he loves to make audiences laugh about the joys, and frustrations, of growing older. Watch the clip and, if you’d like Greg to perform at your senior center or senior event, contact him through his website at www.gregschwem.com)

Dear Savvy Senior, Who qualifies for Social Security survivor benefits? My ex-husband died last year, so I would like to find out if me or my 17-year-old daughter are eligible for anything? Divorced Survivor

Dear Divorced,
If your ex-husband worked and paid Social Security taxes and you and/or your daughter meet the eligibility requirements, you may very well be eligible for survivor benefits, but you should act quickly because benefits are generally retroactive only up to six months. Here’s what you should know.
Under Social Security law, when a person who has worked and paid Social Security taxes dies, certain members of that person’s family may be eligible for survivor benefits including spouses, former spouses and dependents. Here’s a breakdown of who qualifies.
Widow(er)’s and divorced widow(er)’s: Surviving spouses that were married at least nine months are eligible to collect a monthly survivor benefit as early as age 60 (50 if disabled). Divorced surviving spouses are also eligible at this same age, if you were married at least 10 years and did not remarry before age 60 (50 if disabled), unless the marriage ends.
How much you’ll receive will depend on how much money (earnings that were subject to Social Security taxes) your spouse or ex-spouse made over their lifetime, and the age in which you apply for survivor benefits.
If you wait until your full retirement age (which is 66 for people born in 1945-1954 and will gradually increase to age 67 for people born in 1960 or later), you’ll receive 100 of your deceased spouses or ex-spouses benefit amount. But if you apply between age 60 and your full retirement age, your benefit will be somewhere between 71.5 – 99 percent of their benefit.
There is, however, one exception. Surviving spouses and ex-spouses that are caring for a child (or children) of the deceased worker, and they are under age 16 or disabled, are eligible to receive 75 percent of the worker’s benefit amount at any age.
Unmarried children: Surviving unmarried children under age 18, or up to age 19 if they’re still attending high school, are eligible for survivor benefits too. Benefits can also be paid to children at any age if they were disabled before age 22 and remain disabled. Both biological and adoptive children are eligible, as well as kids born out of wedlock. Dependent stepchildren and grandchildren may also qualify. Children’s benefits are 75 percent of the workers benefit.
You should also know that in addition to survivor benefits, a surviving spouse or child may also be eligible to receive a special lump-sum death payment of $255.
Dependent parents: Benefits can also be paid to dependent parents who are age 62 and older. For parents to qualify as dependents, the deceased worker would have had to provide at least one-half of the parent’s financial support.
But be aware that Social Security has limits on how much a family can receive in monthly survivors’ benefits – usually 150 to 180 percent of the workers benefit.
Switching Strategies
Social Security also provides surviving spouses and ex-spouses some nice strategies that can help boost your benefits. For example, if you’ve worked you could take a reduced survivor benefit at age 60 and switch to your own retirement benefit based on your earnings history – between 62 and 70 – if it offers a higher payment.
Or, if you’re already receiving retirement benefits on your work record, you could switch to survivors benefits if it offers a higher payment. You cannot, however, receive both benefits.
You also need to know that if you collect a survivor benefit while working, and are under full retirement age, your benefits may be reduced depending on your earnings – see SSA.gov/pubs/EN-05-10069.pdf.
For more information on survivor benefits, visit SSA.gov/benefits/survivors.
For more information on the program visit SSA.gov/payee.
Send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070, or visit SavvySenior.org. Jim Miller is a contributor to the NBC Today show and author of “The Savvy Senior” book.

Idaho artist, Cary Schwarz, will join some of the finest traditional cowboy artists for the 23rd Annual Traditional Cowboy Arts Exhibition and Sale at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, October 1-2, 2021.
Showcasing the best of saddlemaking, bit and spur making, silversmithing and rawhide braiding from the members of the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association, the exhibition will open to the public Friday, October 1, 2021, and the sale will take place on October 2. All pieces will remain on exhibit and available for purchase at the Museum through January 2, 2022. The sale will take place on October 2.
Each year the TCAA exhibition gives Schwarz the opportunity to reflect on his journey as a founding member. From the very earliest conversations about what would become the TCAA, to the elaborate education programs of today, it’s been a tremendous journey. Before the founding of the association, Schwarz would stumble into his peers and mentors in the saddle business every few years. Now he interacts with them on a weekly basis, offering a depth of support and advice to one another. To view the catalog, visit TCAA (nationalcowboymuseum.org). To sponsor the event or place a proxy bid for art, visit nationalcowboymuseum.org/tcaa. Proxy service is also available by contacting Trent Riley at (405) 839-7097 or triley@nationalcowboymuseum.org.

Story by Darl DeVault contributing editor

Renowned Oklahoma Osage sculptor Shan Gray died in September at age 65, but his legacy as the most prolific artist of the Oklahoma Centennial Commemoration will live on in the state with his iconic bronze masterpieces of public art.
Gray was hitting his stride as a prolific figurative portrait sculptor when Oklahoma planned its Centennial Commemoration for 2007— a statewide, multiyear celebration of the state’s 100th birthday. Commemoration organizers Lee Allan Smith and Blake Wade drafted Gray into sculpting multiple, larger-than-life public art projects, which became a legacy to his talent.
“Gray’s sculpture of the Shannon Miller statue in Edmond is truly the Oklahoma standard for excellence,” said Joel Randell, Gray’s sculpting protege. Gray’s Warren Spahn statues and award put his contribution to Oklahoma art at the level of Paul Moore’s Centennial Land Run Monument masterpiece and Harold Holden’s legacy, Randell added, and his Billy Vessels and James Garner bronze sculptures in Norman illustrate some of the state’s best of the human form in motion. (story continues below)

Completing eight bronze sculpting projects for the 2007 celebration, Gray was the most prolific of the individually commissioned Oklahoma Centennial artists. He collaborated with John Free Jr. in the casting of his heroic statues at Free’s Bronze Horse Foundry in Pawhuska.
The largest of Gray’s public art creations is the Cleveland County Veterans Memorial near the southwest corner of Reaves Park in Norman. A striking and complex memorial, the work accentuates the clean lines of an obelisk topped by an oversized eagle landing with an American flag.
The statue of the University of Oklahoma’s first Heisman Trophy winner, Billy Vessels, is displayed in Heisman Park just east of Jenkins Avenue and the football stadium. Also in Norman, his bronze likeness of famous Norman son and movie star James Garner enhances the downtown area on East Main Street at the railroad tracks.
“For all of these works,” Gray said at the dedication of the Garner statue, “I was striving to accurately capture the detail and dynamics of the spirit or movement in the human figures in the unmoving bronze to carry off the illusion of bringing the monument to life. I have always said my sculpting style is rooted in the classical tradition.”
A cluster of Gray’s efforts is outside the Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in downtown Oklahoma City, including the nine-foot-tall bronze depiction of Warren Spahn in his famous high-kicking windup. Spending his final decades in Tulsa, Spahn is the winningest lefty pitcher in major league history. Gray’s busts of other Oklahomans—New York Yankee pitcher Allie “Super Chief” Reynolds and St. Louis Cardinal Pepper Martin—are near the third-base gate at the ballpark.
Gray’s works include a tribute to the three former Miss Americas who attended Oklahoma City University. At the southeastern entrance to the OCU campus, Jane Jayroe, Susan Powell and Shawntel Smith beam in their pageant evening gowns.
The Nazih Zuhdi Transplant Institute on the campus of Baptist Integris Hospital displays a bust of its namesake medical inventor and heart surgeon. The sculpture is on the ground floor of the main hospital building.
In Edmond’s Shannon Miller Park, Gray’s bronze sculpture honors the seven-time Olympic medalist from Edmond. The 19-foot bronze was the largest statue of a woman athlete in America at its completion.
In Edmond’s J.L. Mitch Park, Gray erected a bronze Girl Scout statue titled ‘95 Years and Planting.’ It depicts a small girl planting a tree in the park.

COVID-19 Oklahoma Test Results

*Includes 22 hospitalizations in pediatric beds.
**Focus, Rehabilitation and Tribal Facilities numbers are not assigned to a specific region as their patient populations reside across the state. Information provided through survey of Oklahoma hospitals as reported to HHS as of the time of this report. Response rate affects data. Facilities may update previously reported information as necessary.
Data Source: Acute Disease Service, Oklahoma State Department of Health. *As of 2021-09-28 at 7:00 a.m.

The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum is proud to host its annual quilt show during the entire month of October. The exhibit is open during normal hours of operation and there is no charge to see the special exhibit. The beautiful works of art on display include both heirloom quilts and modern quilts. The Cimarron Valley Quilt Guild and Pawnee Bill Quilt Guild members are instrumental in putting together this yearly event.
The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum is located at 1141 Pawnee Bill Road in Pawnee. Hours of operation are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday and Monday 1 to 4 p.m. For more information about the quilt show or other programs, please call 918-762-2513 or email pawneebill@okhistory.org.
The Pawnee Bill Ranch and Museum is a division of the Oklahoma Historical Society. The mission of the Oklahoma Historical Society is to collect, preserve and share the history and culture of the state of Oklahoma and its people. Founded in 1893 by members of the Territorial Press Association, the OHS maintains museums, historic sites and affiliates across the state. Through its research archives, exhibits, educational programs and publications the OHS chronicles the rich history of Oklahoma. For more information about the OHS, please visit www.okhistory.org.

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By Nick Thomas

If you were a child growing up during the 1960s and a fan of sci-fi television of the day, the nostalgic value of shows like “Lost in Space” can’t be overstated. Cast members Bill Mumy and Angela Cartwright recognize the connection many seniors may have to the series and have updated and expanded their 2015 “Lost (and Found) in Space” book into a new volume, released September 14 (see www.NCPBooks.com).
“The new book is now 350 pages and contains over 900 photographs,” said Bill Mumy, who played plucky junior astronaut Will Robinson in the series, from his home in Los Angeles. “The original was largely a scrapbook with a few captions, but this one contains a lot more stories about the show as well as the intertwining lives of Angela and me who have remained friends for over 50 years. Much of the credit for the expanded book goes to (the late producer, director, and screenwriter) Kevin Burns.”
Angela Cartwright (the show’s genial and imaginative space-teen Penny Robinson) says Burns called her after acquiring the CBS photo archives of the show.
“We were planning to update the book with maybe 50 additional pages, but it ended up so much more with all these never-before-seen photos,” she explained from her Los Angeles art studio. “Bill and I got on the phone and began writing down all the personal memories the photos brought back.”
“I was 10 when the show began,” recalled Bill. “Angela and I were at school together for 4 years, we went through puberty together, we became each other’s first loves, traveled the world together, and went on to have our own families. So it’s both a book on ‘Lost in Space’ and our long friendship.”
Why the show, and science fiction in general, remains so popular with audiences is no mystery to Mumy. “Sci-fi is just a canvass for the imagination. And because our show had children, kids watching could relate to those characters and go along on the space adventures with us each week.”
After the 3-season show ended in 1968, Mumy and Cartwright continued to act including cameos in the new Netflix “Lost in Space” series. But both have enjoyed successful careers beyond the screen in other artistic areas. Mumy is a respected musician and singer/songwriter (see www.billmumy.com) while Cartwright is a noted photographer and painter (see www.angelacartwrightstudio.com). However, the pair never distanced themselves from the iconic sci-fi series.
“The props, the cast, the stories – I loved every minute working on the show,” recalled Bill. “We’ve been living through a hard time on this planet lately, so a little nostalgia can take you back to a happy time. ‘Lost in Space’ even inspired people to go into the space program.”
“When we visited NASA to watch the Discovery liftoff, an experience I’ll never forget, that’s what technicians told us,” added Angela. “We just made this little show but it really captured the imagination of the youth of the day. Now, people in their 50s and 60s have introduced it to their children and grandchildren. In 30 or 40 years when we’re all no longer around, there will probably be new generations still watching it with fond memories. So we’re grateful for the fans and hope the book brings back a snippet of their childhood.”
And as the stars have aged, so have their fans. “That’s a special connection we have with them,” noted Angela. “They’ve even been very forgiving about my white hair!”
“We’ve told our story and told it honestly,” said Bill. “‘Lost in Space’ just makes people happy.”
Nick Thomas teaches at Auburn University at Montgomery, Ala., and has written features, columns, and interviews for numerous magazines and newspapers. See www.getnickt.org.