The Passing of a Legend · 9:09pm Feb 27th, 2015
Just a few minutes ago, I learned that at age 83, veteran Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy has passed away.
For the two of you who don't know, Nimoy was best known for his role as Mr. Spock in The Original Series Star Trek, the movies and even a guest appearance on the Next Generation, and was the only original cast member to reprise his role in the recent reboot of the Star Trek movie universe.
I've always had a special fondness in my heart for the character of Spock and the Star Trek universe as a whole. Some of my earliest childhood memories, (not the earliest, but fairly early,) involve me coming home from school and watching Star Trek together with my mom, which was being shown in reruns on weekday afternoons on German TV at the time.
Most people can tell you exactly what they were doing when the 9/11 attacks happened. Well, I for one was watching an episode of Star Trek when the news boradcast cut in and continued for the rest of the day.
As I grew older, it was mostly the stories, deep issues and the characters that inhabited this universe which captured my imagination. (At least until the franchise bottomed out with Berman and Braga at the helm. But this isn't the time nor place for that.) I wouldn't consider myself a Trekkie, but it is certainly no stretch to say that Star Trek played a role in my wish to become a writer. Star Trek has had that ability over the years to make me laugh, to make me think or to make me cry. And I wanted to be able to do the same with my writing, bring emotions to my readers.
Leonard Nimoy, despite his character ironically having no emotions, was capable of instilling such emotions in his audience with his performances. He was one of those rare cases of an actor who did not simply play a role. He created the character Spock, and made him a cultural icon as a result. And yet it is only one of many achievments of such a talented actor, director and producer.
My current story "Spikes & Apples" has a lot of Star Trek references, based on which was basically a throw-away line in one of the recent IDW comics that mentioned Spike having gone to a Pony Trek convention. I could only imagine his reaction at this news.
You can expect me to work some kind of acknowledgement to Leonard Nimoy into one of the next chapters. I may only be a poor fanfiction writer, but I'd like to honor the memory of such an outstanding man in any small way I can manage.
Goodbye, Leonard Nimoy.
Or as he himself would probably say:
Live long, and prosper.
Wow... I'm not very familiar with Star Trek, but I have a lot of respect for the actors that helped bring the franchise to life, especially Leonard Nimoy. My heart goes out to his family and all the Star Trek fans.
First James Avery, then Robin Williams, now Leonard Nimoy. Man, that's depressing.
I wondered if the abundance of Trek references in Spikes & Apples reflected a special interest on your part, and thought about posting a comment about Nimoy there earlier. I decided it wasn't the place for it.
When I was a kid I watched a lot of Next Generation, but it was only later I got to appreciate Nimoy's brilliant career. He was a remarkable person, and he will be sorely missed
Live long and prosper. Hugs.
Yeah. It's still sinking in for me too
Heard it too. His voice, as Spock and especially as Xehanort. May he rest in peace.
I'll miss him, an icon of the series that we'll remember.
I never watched Star Trek, since he made cameo on The Simpsons of the Marge vs The Monorail, and voice of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde from The Pagemaster movie, and when I was playing Kingdom Hearts Birth By Sleep I did not know he did voice of Master Xehanort.
A true legend in Star Trek fandom. He will be missed.
*Insert obligatory "Why couldn't it have been someone I hated?!?!"*
They beamed him up, to be with all the other great Guys