Long before he was telling the Robot what to do on Lost in Space, Bill Mumy was a kid in a Zorro costume jumping off beds in his living room.
Now 72, the actor, songwriter, and musician sat down with CBS News correspondent Jim Axelrod for a Sunday Morning profile that's resonating far beyond the nostalgia crowd - because what Mumy says about life, fame, and what actually matters is hard to argue with.
Mumy first became known for his childhood appearances on classic series such as The Twilight Zone and later as Will Robinson on Lost in Space. But the CBS feature, titled "It's a Good Life," wasn't really about those shows. It was about how he came out the other side of Hollywood childhood intact - something many of his peers never managed.
For the nearly 60 years since Lost in Space wrapped, Mumy has performed with his own bands, toured with the group America, and earned an Emmy nomination as a songwriter. At 72, he just released a new album titled Will Power and continues to act and do voiceover work.
But in the interview, Mumy is clear about what kept him grounded. It wasn't the Gold Records. It wasn't the residuals. "It's my family," he said on CBS. "This is the good stuff right here. This is the A-Roll!"
From the extended interview, Mumy put it even more plainly: "In the big picture, I'd much rather be me and have a wonderful relationship with my wife and my son and my daughter and my grandchildren than have more gold records and two divorces and unhappiness."
Mumy has captured something that eluded many others touched by fame at an early age - an understanding that the only applause that truly matters is for how he does as a husband, father, and grandfather.
For a man raised in the Presbyterian faith - his Sunday school teacher was Gloria Stewart, wife of the legendary Jimmy Stewart, a man Mumy describes as the finest professional he ever worked with - that kind of quiet wisdom feels less like a Hollywood talking point and more like a life genuinely well-lived.
At 72, Will Robinson is not lost. He knows exactly where he is.
Watch the Full Interview here: Extended interview: Bill Mumy
