-
Difficulty:
-
-
Terrain:
-
Size: 
(small)
Please note Use of geocaching.com services is subject to the terms and conditions
in our disclaimer.
The cache is not at the posted coordinates! It is somewhere lost in space! Solve the puzzle below to find the true location.
Sunrise to sunset caching only!
One of my favorite science fiction shows when I was a kid was "Lost in Space". Although I was a fan of "Star Trek" too, "Lost in Space" was not nearly as cerebral, and it was more family-oriented. Plus, I thought Judy Robinson was hotter than any of the alien babes that Captain Kirk was always chasing around on "Star Trek".
The show premiered in September of 1965 and ran for three seasons, before increasing production costs and decreasing ratings finally caused its cancellation. By the time I started watching it, the series was already in syndication, but it always seemed brand new to me. The show featured the Robinson family, along with pilot Don West and accidental stowaway/saboteur Dr. Zachary Smith, as they journeyed through space and visited random planets, ultimately trying to complete their mission and reach Alpha Centauri.
Their space ship was a saucer type design called the Jupiter 2. It blasted off into space on October 16, 1997. Dr. Smith originally tried to destroy the mission, but accidentally got trapped onboard the ship, causing it to go off course slightly, due to his additional weight. This sent the ship into a meteor shower and forced him to awaken the crew from their cryogenic sleep. By the end of the series, Dr. Smith had become an unofficial part of the "Space Family Robinson", even though he continually betrayed them in almost every episode. And who could forget the robot calling out "Danger! Danger! Will Robinson!"?
See how well you can remember the series, and how well you know the actors who portrayed the wandering members of the Space Family Robinson. This quiz may be a little tougher than you think!
The cache can be found at the following coordinates:
N 41° 36.ABC W 080° 57.DEF
A. The Cast
Many of the actors in the cast of "Lost in Space" had well-known roles before joining the series. Guy Williams (John Robinson) had starred as the titular character in the Disney series "Zorro". June Lockhart (Maureen Robinson) was famous for playing Lassie’s "mom". Angela Cartwright (Penny Robinson) had starred as Brigitta, one of the von Trapp children in the film “The Sound of Music”. After the series was over, Bill Mumy (Will Robinson) formed the musical duo Barnes & Barnes, and had a novelty hit record with the song "Fish Heads".
Norwegian-born Marta Kristen (Judy Robinson) had a role in a Frankie and Annette beach movie. What character did she play?
5) Athena the interstellar alien
0) Carla the Shake Shoppe waitress
8) Inga the Swedish swimsuit model
2) Lorelei the Mermaid
B. Theme Music
"Lost in Space" featured two different opening theme songs. For the first and second seasons, the music had a tense, herky-jerky feel to it, and the opening credits featured a cartoon with the cast members in space suits on a space line. When Bill Mumy's name appeared on the screen, you would see his cartoon character tangled up in the line, as his curiosity was always getting him into trouble on the show. During the final season, the theme song changed to have a more adventurous sound to it. The actual faces of each cast member were shown in small windows on the screen as the theme song played.
The composer of both of these theme songs went on to write music for many other science fiction and fantasy projects. His name was presented as a nickname in the credits. Who is he?
9) Alexander “Sandy” Courage
1) Jerry “Jer” Goldsmith
3) “Evan” Vangelis
6) John “Johnny” Williams
C. Guest Stars
If you watch each episode of "Lost in Space" closely, you may see some guest actors who look quite familiar. The show featured many actors who went on to become very famous faces, and some even became major stars. Michael Rennie, who starred in the science fiction classic “The Day the Earth Stood Still” had a guest spot on the show. Al Lewis who played Grandpa on “The Munsters” also appeared in an episode. Believe it or not, even Werner Klemperer, who played Colonel Klink on Hogan's Heroes had a guest role on the show.
Which of the following was not a guest star on "Lost in Space"?
9) Ted Cassidy
7) Michael Conrad
4) Gene Hackman
6) Mickey Manners
8) Robby the Robot
1) Kurt Russell
D. Dr. Zachary Smith
Dr. Smith started out as an agent for (possibly) a foreign government, who tried to sabotage the mission of the Jupiter 2 by programming the robot to destroy the ship at a predetermined time. After inadvertently getting trapped aboard the ship, he eventually became another member of the crew, while always scheming to try to get them to head back to Earth. Jonathan Harris, who played Dr. Smith, decided to purposely make the character more campy, especially as the show itself became less about space and more about strange storylines. Remember the episode with the space hippies or the giant carrot man who tried to turn the Robinsons into flowers and vegetables? Although Dr. Smith seemed to be completely self-centered and was constantly plotting against the Robinsons, in the end he redeemed himself and showed how much he actually had come to care for them. Check out the episode "Time Merchant" to see a very poignant version of Dr. Smith when he realized how he could ultimately affect their fate.
Which of the following was not one of the phrases that Dr. Smith often exclaimed?
6) Make it so. Energize!
4) Never fear, Smith is here.
3) Oh the pain . . . the pain.
1) You bubble-headed booby!
E. The Jupiter 2
The Robinsons' space ship resembled a typical flying saucer, and was even mistaken for one during an episode when they traveled back in time to an Earth of the past. It was never really explained how the ship always had gravity, or where they stored the space pod and the chariot when they were not being used. Shortly after takeoff from Earth, the ship encountered a meteor shower that it normally would have avoided had it not been for the extra weight of stowaway Dr. Smith.
If Dr. Smith had not stowed away aboard the ship and had not programmed the robot to destroy it, where would the Jupiter 2 and its occupants have ended up?
3) A planet in the Alpha Centauri system
2) Back on Earth
1) Destroyed by an uncharted asteroid
0) The Crab Nebula
F. The Episodes
The early episodes of "Lost in Space" were in black and white, and focused mostly on space or whatever planet the Jupiter 2 might be marooned on for a short while. Some of these episodes were so intense that they actually frightened me when I was a kid. Later as the show transitioned into color and became more and more campy, my interest began to wane, but there was one episode that instantly got me interested again. "Trip Through the Robot" featured the robot growing into the size of a small house, while Will Robinson and Dr. Smith make their way inside of it to try and restore the robot's power and bring it back to normal size. As the robot begins to shrink rapidly, Will and Dr. Smith must try to get out before the opening they used to climb inside becomes too small. Will they make it out in time?? Danger! Danger! Will Robinson!
What part of the robot's "anatomy" do both Will and Dr. Smith handle to try to keep the robot from "dying"?
0) Cybernetic Processor (brain)
3) Diode Timer (heart)
7) Exhaust Manifold (lungs)
9) Optic Sensors (eyes)
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Ybfg va Fcnpr ng gur onfr bs n gerr