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| Nimoy, b. 3/26/31, d. 2/27/2015, and Shatner, b. 3/22/31. |
It’s Star Trek OG heroes’ week here on the blog, a time for those of us who are fans of The Original Series to honor two actors who made the franchise the success it was. Both William Shatner (who played Captain James T. Kirk) and Leonard Nimoy (who played Lieutenant Commander Spock) were born during this week in 1931—Shatner on March 22, Nimoy on March 26. Shatner celebrated his 91st birthday Tuesday in his usual flamboyant style. Nimoy, of course, passed away in 2015 from COPD.
Both men had a huge impact on hundreds of thousands (if not millions) of fans, myself included. As Spock, Nimoy spoke for many who felt alienated from the society they had been raised in, for the introverted, the nerdy, the conflicted. The actor had been born in Boston to Jewish immigrants who had made a harrowing escape from—wait for it—Ukraine. He recognized early on that acting was the only thing he wanted to do and, despite a three-year detour in the Army Reserve, he pursued that career with dedication through drama classes, bit parts in B-movies and TV shows and roles as villains and heavies. His Star Trek role as the Vulcan Spock was his breakout role.
Shatner was born to middle-class Jewish parents in Montreal (his father was a clothing manufacturer). He’s always said he knew he would be an actor when he made the audience cry during a summer camp performance about Jewish refugees when he was only six. His family, too, has a connection to Ukraine, though it’s another generation back; his grandparents on one side were immigrants from that country.
In some ways, Shatner’s career started on a more formal footing, with Shakespearean training at the Canadian National Repertory Theater in Ottawa and the Stratford Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Ontario. He was understudy to the great Christopher Plummer, and got his chance when Plummer fell ill, and Shatner took the stage. From there it was Broadway (in THE WORLD OF SUZIE WONG) and Hollywood (in THE BROTHERS KARAMAZOV, JUDGMENT AT NUREMBURG) before notable appearances in THE TWILIGHT ZONE and THE OUTER LIMITS.
As Kirk, Shatner may have been typecast, but it was largely because he made the character his own—resourceful, energetic, able to make quick, decisive judgments in the face of chaos, and, most of all, compassionate. Kirk, like all the best heroes, was not afraid to show his emotions, because he realized the value of human feeling. In the end, he even convinced his friend Spock of that value.
So, let’s lift a glass of Romulan ale or Saurian brandy or plain old Terran beer or wine or what-have-you, to the actors who helped create one of the greatest science fiction franchises of all time.
Happy birthday, Bill and Leonard!
Cheers, Donna
