Spencer Milligan dead at 86: Land of the Lost actor passes away in Wisconsin as his on-screen children pay loving tribute

Actor Spencer Milligan has died aged 86.

The Land of the Lost actor passed away on in Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin on April 18 - with his on-screen children Wesley Eure and Kathy Coleman paying a loving tribute to him on Tuesday.

Milligan was best known for the role of Rick Marshall, the father of Will and Holly Marshall (played by Eure and Coleman), on the first two seasons of the iconic 1970s children's sci-fi television series. 

Milligan is survived by his wife, Kathy and  godchildren Andee, Hilary and Spencer. 

Eure, 72, captioned his video: It is so hard saying goodbye to our friend and TV dad, Spencer Milligan. We love you Spencer.

He said: 'This is a video we didn't want to have to make. We heard rumors, and finally it was confirmed. Not an easy day.' 

Land of the Lost actor Spencer Milligan has died aged 86

Milligan was best known for the role of Rick Marshall, the father of Will and Holly Marshall (played by Wesley Eure and Kathy Coleman), on the first two seasons of the iconic 1970s children's adventure television series

Coleman, 62, added: 'I’m a little speechless. He was a true father to us all. Thank God we got to see him one last time and spend some really beautiful moments with him. He was a great man. I really truly believe that. He will be missed.'

Milligan starred on Land of the Lost from 1974-1975 but left after the second season due to a dispute with producers over merchandising profits and royalties from the show.

He was replaced by Ron Harper - who portrayed Rick's brother Jack - for the show's third and final season.

In a 2009 interview with the Associated Press, Milligan said of the drama: '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.'

'I did love working with the kids. I did enjoy spending time with them. We had a lot of fun.'

He reunited with Eure and Coleman at the 2018 Pop Con in Milwaukee. 

Milligan met wife Kerry in 1991 in Sturgeon Bay and the pair married in December 2002 - he would describe their meeting as the 'defining moment of his life.'

He was born September 10, 1937, in Oak Park, Illinois and began his entertainment career performing magic tricks in grade school.

Milligan is pictured with his onscreen kids at a Land of the Lost reunion in 2018 at the Pop Con in Milwaukee

Milligan starred on Land of the Lost from 1974-1975 but left after the second season due to a dispute with producers over merchandising profits and royalties from the show

Eure, 72, captioned his video: It is so hard saying goodbye to our friend and TV dad, Spencer Milligan. We love you Spencer'

The cast are pictured posing together in another reunion with Milligan

He enlisted in the Army but was honorably discharged in 1966. 

before he enlisted in the Army. Following his discharage in 1966. He then trained at the Goodman Theatre in Chicago, the Joan Darling Actors Workshop in LA, and the Lee Strasberg Senior Workshop in New York. 

He guest-starred on shows including Police Squad, The Bionic Woman, Gunsmoke and Yellow Rose. 

His last known screen performance was a seven-episode stint on General Hospital in 1987.  

In his later years he turned his attention to theater directing and teaching. He  taught classes and directed plays at Third Avenue Playworks (TAP), per his obituary.