View from the Cheap Seats is kind of an extension of the newsroom. Whenever our three regular reporters, Calvin Daniels, Thom Barker and Randy Brenzen are in the building together, it is frequently a site of heated debate. This week: Reflections on the death of Leonard Nimoy.
More than Spock
All of geekdom let out a collective wail of mourning last week with the death of Leonard Nimoy. Few characters in the history of science fiction have reached the height of icon status as Nimoy’s Mr. Spock.
Spock, the intensely logical foil to William Shatner’s emotional Captain James Tiberius Kirk, appealed to our highest aspirations of reason, but also the better parts of our humanity.
Along the way, he gave us the trademark Vulcan salute, “live long and prosper” and the characteristic one-eyebrow raise. Those things, by the way, were all Nimoy.
Of course, in his 83 years, Nimoy was much more than Mr. Spock.
He was a serious and accomplished photographer; a poet, songwriter and singer; he had a full career in film and television on both sides of the camera outside of Star Trek, and a husband (twice).
All of that was overshadowed by the larger-than-life spectre of that singular role that at once made both the man and the character beloved by all. And, he never became bitter about the type-casting, always affable with and grateful to his fans.
Trekkers almost unanimously agree that Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan was the best of the original cast Star Trek movies. In that film Spock dies saving the rest of the crew and delivers the now immortal lines “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few,” and, “I have been, and always shall be, your friend.”
I cannot think of a better way to send Leonard Nimoy off than by quoting the words Captain Kirk uses to eulogize Spock at the end of Wrath of Khan:
“Of my friend, I can only say this: of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most... human.”
RIP Leonard Nimoy.
—Thom Barker
Scifi sage
Leonard Nimoy, a name forever in my mind simply as Spock.
When he died last week a man who had some small role in me becoming who I am left this world.
You see Star Trek, the old, now very campy, television series was part of my youth. The series ran only three years 1966-’69, and I doubt I saw it in first run. I would have been only six at the time it launched, and stuck in a one channel TV world, CBC, and in black and white to boot.
But, those shows would see reruns, and I would be there watching them, becoming a bigger and bigger fan of science fiction with each episode.
And while I admit to liking the accent of engineer Scotty, and having something of a crush on Uhura, it was Spock who captured my fascination.
Maybe it was the ears, because at first viewing, I doubt I fully understood the relevance of his logic-based, emotionless, view of the world around him.
Spock was of course only half Vulcan, the other half human, and that too made him both relatable on one hand, and enticingly different on another.
In later life I marvelled at the fact the Spock character was at first rejected by network executives, who were worried his vaguely ‘Satanic’ appearance (those pointy ears) might prove upsetting to some viewers, and “(according to Leonard Nimoy) they repeatedly urged Roddenberry to “drop the Martian”,” notes Wikipedia.
Fortunately for the Star Trek franchise Roddenbury would stand steadfast to keep the Vulcan. Nimoy would win thousands of loyal followers as Spock, and I would learn to see wonder in a starlight sky, knowing somewhere out there Where No Man Has Gone Before exist strange new worlds with new life and new civilizations, and that it was all right to dream of boldly going where no man has gone before.
Thank you Leonard Nimoy. May your legacy to dream continue in reruns for decades to come.
—Calvin Daniels
A man as any other
Unless you’ve been living under a rock these past few days, you’d know that recently, legendary actor Leonard Nimoy, the man who portrayed Spock, the half Vulcan/half human character on Star Trek, passed away at age 83.
For many people this is huge news. After all, Nimoy played a large part in generating the popularity that Star Trek has gained throughout the years.
However if you’re me, his death, while sad, doesn’t really register on the emotional radar.
‘Why?’ you may ask. Well, it’s simple, really. I’m not a Star Trek fan.
Sure, Nimoy has done many things outside his role as Spock. He’s done photography, voice acting, music, writing and directing.
However, the main thing he’ll be remembered for is playing a half alien on a long running television show, as well as several movies.
I definitely respect the man for what he has done throughout his career. His career spanned over six decades, from 1951-2013, and throughout that entire time he had managed to remain respectable; something nearly impossible for celebrities nowadays to do in a tenth of that time.
But I also believe that his death shouldn’t be as big of a deal as many are making it out to be.
The man was 83. He was old.
Old people die. It’ll happen to me, it’ll happen to you.
He enjoyed his life. If anything, that’s what we should remember him for. Not for his role as Spock, but for the amount of things he has accomplished and the amount of enjoyment he had in his life.
—Randy Brenzen
