Charles William "Bill" Mumy, Jr. (pronounced /ˈmuːmi/; born February 1, 1954), is an American actor, musician, pitchman, instrumentalist, voice-over artist and a figure in the science-fiction community. He is known primarily for his roles in movies and television, character-type roles, and who also works in television production.
The red-headed Mumy came to prominence in the 1960s as a child actor, most notably as Will Robinson, the youngest of the three children of Prof. John and Dr. Maureen Robinson (Guy Williams and June Lockhart) and friend of the nefarious and pompous Dr. Zachary Smith (Jonathan Harris), in the cult 1960s CBS sci-fi television series Lost in Space.
He later appeared as a lonely teenager, Sterling North, in the 1969 Disney movie, Rascal, and as Teft in the 1971 film Bless the Beasts and Children. In the 1990s, he had the role of Lennier in the syndicated sci-fi TV series Babylon 5, and he also served as narrator of A&E Network's Emmy Award-winning series, Biography. He is also notable for his musical career, as a solo artist and as half of the duo Barnes & Barnes.
Life
Early life and career
Mumy was born in San Gabriel, California, the son of Muriel Gertrude (née Gould) and Charles William Mumy, Sr., a cattle rancher.[1] He began his professional career at the age of six, and has worked on over 400 television episodes, 18 motion pictures, various commercials, and scores of voice over work, as well as working as a musician, songwriter, recording artist and writer.
Television career
Billy Mumy as Will Robinson in the television show
Lost in Space.
He is well known as a player in the original Twilight Zone (1959 to 1964), especially in the episode "It's a Good Life" (November 1961), where he played the all-powerful and evil child Anthony, who completely dominates and terrorizes his town. Mumy also played the character of young Pip, a boy who enjoyed playing with his father but was always ignored, in the episode "In Praise of Pip" (September 1963), and the character of Billy Bayles, a boy who talks to his dead grandmother through a toy telephone, in the episode "Long Distance Call" (March 1961). He later played an adult Anthony, whose daughter (played by his daughter, Liliana Mumy) has similar powers, in episode "It's Still a Good Life" (February 2003) of the second revival of The Twilight Zone.
In 1963, at the age of eight, he appeared in Jack Palance's ABC circus drama The Greatest Show on Earth.
In 1964 he appeared as (1) David Janssen's nephew in ABC's The Fugitive in the fifteenth episode entitled "Home Is The Hunted", (2) as Barry in the episode entitled "Sunday Father" of the NBC medical drama The Eleventh Hour, (3) as Billy (himself) three times in the ABC sitcom The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet, (4) co-starring with Michael McGreevey and Roger Mobley in the Disney film For the Love of Willadena, and (5) as a troubled orphan taken home with Darrin and Samantha Stephens in the Bewitched first season episode entitled "A Vision of Sugarplums" (December 1964).
Mumy was the first choice for the 1964 role of Eddie Munster, but his parents objected because of the extensive make-up, and the role went to Butch Patrick; Mumy did appear in one episode as a friend of Eddie.
In 1973 he played a musician friend of Cliff DeYoung in the TV movie Sunshine, and later reprises the role in Sunshine Christmas.
He is well known as starring cast member Will Robinson from the 1965–1968 television series Lost in Space, and as ambassadorial aide Lennier from the 1990s syndicated series Babylon 5 (1994–1998). Mumy has garnered praise from science fiction fandom for his portrayal of these two characters.
He played a Starfleet member in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "The Siege of AR-558" (November 1998). To his delight, he plays a human character who assists Ezri Dax in turning cloaked Dominion mines against an army of Jem'Hadar.
Recent acting performances can be seen in a 2006 episode of Crossing Jordan and the Sci Fi original film A.I. Assault.
Voice-over career
Mumy has narrated over 50 episodes of the Arts & Entertainment Channel's Biography series, as well as hosting and narrating several other documentaries and specials for A & E, Animal Planet network, The Sci Fi Channel, and E!. His voice over acting talents can be heard on animated shows like Ren and Stimpy, Scooby Doo, Batman: The Animated Series, Steven Spielberg's Animaniacs, Little Wizard Adventures, The Oz Kids and Disney's Buzz Lightyear of Star Command. He also voices dozens of national commercials, such as Farmers Insurance, Ford, Bud Ice, Blockbuster, Twix, Oscar Mayer, and McDonald's.
Music career
Billy Mumy at a signing event in 1990, posing with
Paul Howley.
Mumy is an accomplished[citation needed] musician who plays guitar, bass, keyboards, banjo, mandolin, harmonica, and percussion. Among his various musical credits, Bill has recorded and written songs with America, toured with Shaun Cassidy, and played in Rick Springfield's band in the film, Hard to Hold. He also created the band The Be Five with other Babylon 5 actors. Along with comic book artists who also are musicians, he'll perform at SDCC in a band called Seduction of the Innocent[citation needed].
Mumy has released a number of solo CDs, including Dying to Be Heard, In the Current, Pandora's Box, After Dreams Come True, Los Angeles Times, and Ghosts, as well as nine albums with partner Robert Haimer as Barnes and Barnes. Their most famous hit is the song "Fish Heads", which was named as one of the top 100 videos of all time by Rolling Stone magazine.
Friendship with Jonathan Harris
At age 11, in 1965, Mumy began working with Jonathan Harris on Lost in Space, and the two became close friends, both on and off set. He would also spend time with Harris's family, while not working on "Space" or taking a hiatus from the show. In 1996, it was mentioned that Mumy was also reunited with Harris, again, at a Walt Disney convention in Orlando, Florida, before Mumy worked with Harris on Lost In Space: Forever, a couple of years later, where Mumy wrote the script and Harris rewrote the lines. This was done one year after the rest of the cast (including both Mumy & Harris) appeared inside TV Guide and said that the Sci Fi Channel had planned to do a Lost in Space marathon while promoting a new movie. Harris was involved in the movie, Lost in Space: The Journey Home, with him, but died before production started in 2002, and Mumy attended his series' star's funeral, where he read the eulogy. After Harris's death on November 3, 2002, Mumy was asked to narrate his longtime friend's life on A&E Biography, that same year.
Personal life
Unlike many child actors, Mumy entered the profession at his own insistence, and his parents took pains to make sure he matured properly in his job. His father, who was a cattle rancher, carefully invested his son's income, and thereby avoided problems encountered by other child actors of his period.
He currently lives in Hollywood Hills, California, with his wife, Eileen, and their two child-actor children, Seth and Liliana.
Filmography
Quotations
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I get bored doing one thing only. I've been very lucky to explore a lot of different artistic territory, and I don't see why I won't continue on that path. |
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