The only main actors still alive from Buck Rogers in the 25th century

Pulp-influenced, space-faring comic book characters from Flash Gordon to Star-Lord can tip their hats to Buck Rogers, who debuted in the funny pages in 1929 and paved the way for the medium's future sci-fi heroes. Although Legendary and Skydance have developed their own dueling “Buck Rogers” projects in recent years, the character's pop culture presence isn't quite what it used to be. However, Roger got more than his fair share of attention back then. The character soon jumped from the page to a long-running radio series, a 1939 film starring Buster Krabs, who was also, funnily enough, a Flash Gordon actor at the time, and a short-lived 1950 TV show.

However, if you want to name a definitive live-action Buck Rogers, it's hard to beat “Buck Rogers in the 25th Century” by “Battlestar Galactica” creator Glenn A. Larson. The show started in 1979 with, frankly, a minor theatrical run that was actually a reimagined pilot and only ran for two seasons that were drastically different from each other. However, it did a good job of capturing the comic's unique soft charm and has more than earned its place in the hearts of those who enjoy sci-fi from the era. Let's find out which of the actors from this classic show are still with us and what they've been up to since Buck Rogers in the 25th Century ended in 1981.

“Buck Rogers in the 25th Century” is one of many canceled sci-fi shows that deserved a second chance, and much of it has to do with the amiable Mr. Rogers himself. Gil Gerrard portrays the time-displaced 1987 NASA pilot – full name Captain William “Buck” Rogers – to perfection. Behind the scenes, however, he really didn't like the show's tone, and he became especially jaded when the show suddenly turned into a pretty obvious “Star Trek” exposé after Season 1. In the interview he gave Starlog magazine before the sophomore season, he happily aired his complaints about the show's writing and direction, and told stories about the way he challenged the production:

“My philosophy has always been: No one will remember who made this show, who wrote it, who directed it, but they will definitely remember that I was there, and you're not going to put me out there. To 20 million people with this junk, I told that producers and writers because I felt it was my responsibility to at least try to make sure the audience was being fair.

Despite concerns about the quality of the show and its association with it, Buck Rogers remains Gerard's most recognizable role. After the show was cancelled, she appeared in a series of relatively low-profile TV movies before landing a new starring role in 1986-87. in the family crime drama series “Sidekicks”. Since then, he's been mostly content with smaller recurring daytime drama roles and increasingly in B-movies like Dinowolf and Reptisaurus (both 2009). You can also spot him in Shane Black's 2016 neo-noir The Nice Guys, in which he stars as Bergen Paulsen, a representative of Detroit car manufacturers.

Erin Grey's Colonel Wilma Deering bears similarities to the era's leading women in science fiction, such as Nichelle Nichols' Lt. Nyota Uhura from “Star Trek” and Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia Organa from Star Wars. Deera is a capable, no-nonsense officer who is such an integral part of the show that she and Rogers are the only characters to carry over to the drastically changed Season 2. In 2012, in an interview with WireGray explained that her unique chemistry with Gil Gerrard came from her audition, which she was asked to attend after a grueling day of filming, knowing nothing about the role:

“I came in kind of pissed off, and all the other female actors came in bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (..) I thought, 'Please, let's get it over with, I'd like to go home and sleep.' Thank you very much.' Of course, Gil was challenged (…) If you meet Gil, you will find that he is quite charming and funny, and he had this gloomy woman that he tried to make smile. And the more he worked, the darker I became, the more I became in his face (…) It ended up being a perfect dynamic for the test and the character.

After the show ended, Gray was busy. After a few small TV movies and guest-starring roles on shows like The Fall Guy (1982) and two episodes of Fantasy Island, she played Kate Summers on the 1982 sitcom Silver Spoons for its five-season run. After the show ended in 1987, she continued her prolific work as a guest star and supporting actor. In the mid-1990s, she appeared in several recurring roles, notably as the lead Monica Johnson on the landmark lifeguard drama Baywatch, Nicole Devlin on the ABC daytime drama Port Charles, and Karen Archer on the NBC procedural Profiler.

Eric Server voices the computer intelligence Dr. Theopolis in the series' first season, taking over from the pilot's Howard F. Flynn. The talking “Theo” is physically a stationary, round device, but uses the robot Twiki (Felix Silla and Patty Maloney with Mel Blanc and Bob Ely) to move around.

Tweeki eventually outdid his master and followed Buck Rogers and Wilma Deer into Season 2 with research while Dr. Theopolis was quietly written off the show and Server continued on to other things. In 1981, the actor made a physical appearance on the trucker-chimp adventure show BJ and the Bear, joining the series in Season 3 as Lt. Jim Steiger, the main character, after playing two other roles in the previous seasons. . It would be his biggest role in terms of screen time, but that doesn't mean the server has had a hard time working. On the contrary, he is a hard-working roadie who can be seen in many high-profile shows of the 1980s and 1990s, including Hill Street Blues, Knight Rider, The A-Team, Murder, She Wrote. ”, by TJ Hooker and Matlock. His most recent role is from 2014, when he played “Frightened Man” in the Erwin Brothers comedy. “Mother's evening”.

Pamela Hensley's Princess Ardala, despite her outfits, is a powerful villain who seeks to conquer Earth and, while she's at it, marries Buck Rogers to secure her claim to the throne of the Draconian Empire. Hensley only appears in the pilot and four episodes of Season 1, but Ardala remains perhaps the show's most memorable antagonist.

Like many of the Buck Rogers 25th Century actors, Hensley was already on the map when she appeared on the series, appearing in projects ranging from the dystopian sci-fi film Rollerball to the legendary action drama The Six Million Dollar Man. ” She also had previous experience on successful shows, having starred as Janet Blake in the Emmy Award-winning medical drama Marcus Welby, MD.

Right after Buck Rogers, Hensley joined another iconic franchise when she played Agent 36 in the sequel to Get Smart, The Nude Bomb (1980). In 1982, she achieved greater success as CJ Parsons, one of the main characters in the three-season crime drama Matt Huston. The show, which ended in 1985, was Hensley's last acting stint. In 1982, she married Aaron Spelling's producing partner, E. Duke Vincent, and the two remained together until Vincent's death in February 2024.

Perhaps the most recognizable name on this list to modern audiences is Dennis Haysbert, who didn't have much of a role in Buck Rogers in the 25th Century. He played a variety of minor characters over the course of the show's two seasons, including no fewer than five different characters in five separate episodes. However, Haysbert would soon move on to bigger things.

After a strong resume of guest appearances and solid recurring character roles, the actor began landing increasingly prominent roles, such as Pedro Cerrano in the 1989 baseball comedy Major League and its sequels, and Don Breeden in Michael Mann's Heat. (1995). His real breakthrough came in 2001 when he played David Palmer in the Kiefer Sutherland drama “24”. Haysbert's canny politician, who eventually becomes the president of the United States, is one of the leading characters in the show's first four seasons, and the actor was able to translate his increased recognition into future leading roles, such as Jonas Blaine, the series' main character. CBS Delta Force drama “The Unit” (2006-2009).

Haysberd remains in high demand to this day, both as a screen performer and as a voice actor. As for how much weight he continues to carry… well, let's just say that when the folks behind the supernatural drama Lucifer had to put God himself in 2020, they knew exactly who to call.

Like Dennis Haysbert, Alex Hyde-White is an actor whose post-Buck Rogers career has far outpaced his time on the show. Like Haysbert, he specialized in portraying various minor ensigns and tech guys on the show, appearing in four episodes of Season 2. His father, Wilfrid Hyde-White, starred as Dr. Goodfellow.

After the show ended, Hyde White spent the 1980s following the typical career path of a new movie actor, taking on a smaller resume in search of bigger breaks. In 1986, he starred in the time-travel adventure Biggles as Jim Ferguson, a modern-day everyman who can temporarily switch places with World War I fighter ace James Bigglesworth (Neil Dixon). Another big showcase came in 1989 when Hyde White played Indiana Jones' father — the younger version of Henry Jones Sr. (Sean Connery) — in the flashback scenes of Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade.

Roles in such success stories as “Pretty Woman” and smaller fares followed. In 1994, Hyde White became part of a truly unique superhero film – Roger Corman. the deliberately disastrous and unreleased Fantastic Four movie.in which he plays none other than the flexible Reed Richards himself. While the difficult circumstances of the film understandably prevented it from setting the world on fire, it didn't hurt Hyde White's career. He has since starred in major projects such as Steven Spielberg's 2002 gangster film Catch Me If You Can and Jordan Peele's 2022 horror film No. He has also amassed an impressive number of guest roles on shows such as Bones, NCIS, The Mentalist, Dexter, Shameless and This Is Us.