Most random "Hey, I recognize him/her from Star Trek!" moments

[Christopher]

It doesn't quite fit the category, but I met Robert Duncan McNeill once; he was the celebrity guest at the opening of the Star Trek Federation Science touring exhibit when it was in my city, and I was one of the tour guides. The surprising thing was how incredibly tall he is. Somehow I hadn't realized that from watching him in the show.

 

[Forbin]

Penny Johnson is a regular on Castle, in case ya didn't know.

One episode in a previous season featured Armin Shimmerman as a sci fi geek who developed a working laser pistol, which was used in a murder at a sci fi convention.

 

[Christopher]

One episode in a previous season featured Armin Shimmerman as a sci fi geek who developed a working laser pistol, which was used in a murder at a sci fi convention.

And it also featured a William Shatner spoken-word song over the final scene. That episode was loaded with Star Trek and Firefly nods -- as well as Star Wars and Marvel stuff, since it's an ABC/Disney-owned show.

 

[Defcon]

Boston Legal was one giant Star Trek reunion show as well.

Beside the regular/recurring characters for Shatner, Laroquette & Auberjonois there were Shimerman, Forbes, Bakula, Ryan and Phillips.

 

[Captain Rob]

I think it was either Christmas Eve or the night of Christmas Day. But Syfy ran a 'Die Hard' marathon. Colm Meany was the pilot of the British jet that was crashed at the airport in "Die Hard Two". That plane had to die. It was full of blatant stereotypes.

 

[Greg Cox]

True story: The morning after watching the DS9 episode, "Tribunal," in which Fritz Weaver played the shifty Cardassian defense attorney, I stepped out of my apartment in the West Village--and saw Fritz Weaver walking down the sidewalk right outside the building.

That was kinda creepy!

As for Robert Duncan McNeill, both he and Roxann Dawson are working steadily as TV directors these days and not just for genre shows. It's not uncommon to spot their names in the credits of, say, a BONE or CASTLE episode.

Good for them!

 

[f14peter]

Kind of backwards as I became familiar with her before noticing her on TNG, but Lanei Chapman.

Came to know her well as Lieutenant Damphousse in SPACE: Above and Beyond before I noticed she played Ensign Rager in 4-5 episodes, working the conn.

 

[ManOnTheWave]

I never watched CHIPS, so I was not familiar with Michael Dorn when TNG was new. I saw him on a talk show out of make up talking about how he had worked steadily for years playing cops and boyfriends prior to being Worf. About a week later, I saw him do scene on Falcon Crest as a cop.

Sometimes he shows up on Castle as the police psychiatrist.

 

[JeffinOakland]

Tim Russ as the principle on iCarly. Brent Spiner as a dead nerd in Independence Day.

 

[The Old Mixer]

Give it up, Frakes...you're no match for Andy Griffith!

[yt]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=StuJ3fHfrCQ[/yt]

 

[The Old Mixer]

Marc Alaimo is supposed to be in the Wonder Woman episode that MeTV is airing as I write this (EST), if anyone currently on is interested.

ETA: Also, it's a two-parter, so he should be around next week as well.

ETA: Ike (Peter Preston) Eisenmann is also in the episode!

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Marc Alaimo is supposed to be in the Wonder Woman episode that MeTV is airing as I write this (EST), if anyone currently on is interested.

I just remembered: he was in The Last Starfighter back in the 80's. He plays the human-disguised alien assassin. His disguise is 'burned away' by the video game when he stands next to it. Linky

 

[The Old Mixer]

Now on MeTV: Captain Janeway visits Cheers.

 

[Timewalker]

Not sure if these qualify, but just caught an ancient episode of Dragnet AND and equally ancient episode of Bonanza, where Leonard Nimoy had roles...such a baby he was.

And, I was taken by surpise when I saw a Director credit for Robert Duncan McNeill. Apparently, he is a director of some note.

Also, loved Colm Meany in "Hell on Wheels"

I've been binge-watching Bonanza (part way through Season 7 now) and there are many Star Trek actors in that series. The Leonard Nimoy episode mentioned is from Season 1. There's a 3-episode story arc in which Adam meets and courts Laura, a widow played by Kathie Brown (Deela in "Wink of an Eye").

There's also a marvelous episode in which William Marshall (Dr. Daystrom in "The Ultimate Computer") plays an opera singer who performs in Virginia City.

I'll have to look up the names to confirm, but I just finished watching an episode in which I'm sure one of the guest actors is the young guy from "Patterns of Force" who was in the jail with Kirk and Spock.

I've spotted James Doohan in a couple of episodes (one of them also featured Majel Barrett), and Deforest Kelley was in a few of them as well.

ETA: Ike (Peter Preston) Eisenmann is also in the episode!

I first saw Ike Eisenmann in the Witch Mountain movies. He was also one of the stars of the TV series The Fantastic Journey.

Colm Meaney was in a Canadian miniseries called Random Passage.

 

[Trek Survivor]

I think it was either Christmas Eve or the night of Christmas Day. But Syfy ran a 'Die Hard' marathon. Colm Meany was the pilot of the British jet that was crashed at the airport in "Die Hard Two". That plane had to die. It was full of blatant stereotypes.

And it was William Sadler (Sloan in Ds9) who ordered that he die! No wonder O'Brien didn't like him.

 

[FormerLurker]

ETA: Ike (Peter Preston) Eisenmann is also in the episode!

I first saw Ike Eisenmann in the Witch Mountain movies.

Escape to Witch Mountain was Ike Eisenmann's second film, and second film for Disney. Before that he had only done television. Of interest is this; Tony Castaway, Ike's character in EtWM, is the younger brother to his sister Tia, while Ike himself is actually two years older than Paris Hilton's aunt Kim Richards, who played Tia.

 

[ManOnTheWave]

Marc Alaimo was one of the bank robbers in Seems Like Old Times, a movie I had seen many times. After years of watching DS9 I re-watched the film and the character went from being a faceless thug to being Gul Dukat.

He also played a thug in The Naked Gun 33 1/3. He wore a trucker hat with big foam boobs on it, and I remember wondering if that was supposed to be an in-joke about him playing forehead aliens.

 

[f14peter]

Also, loved Colm Meany in "Hell on Wheels"

Colm Meaney was in a Canadian miniseries called Random Passage.

Reminds me, Meaney as Jimmie Rabbitte's father in THE COMMITTMENTS

 

[Nerys Myk]

Also, loved Colm Meany in "Hell on Wheels"

Colm Meaney was in a Canadian miniseries called Random Passage.

Reminds me, Meaney as Jimmie Rabbitte's father in THE COMMITTMENTS

He was also in The Snapper and The Van, playing basically the same character. Rights issues forced the film makers to change the name.

 

[JonnyQuest037]

For a few years there, I thought that the actor who played Jose Tyler in The Cage:

was the same actor who played Rolf in The Sound of Music (the telegram boy who sings "16 Going On 17"):

I was very disappointed when I realized that they were two different guys.