I'm know I'm not breaking new ground here and I'm sorry for those it bothers, but I just saw some interview with Nichelle Nichols and, of course, she had to make the required comment about Shatner being a dick every cast member seems obligated to make when do an interview or writing a book.
First of all I freely admit William Shatner is a self centered diva who has stepped on many people's toes in his quest to be the main man and he can be very callous and unaware of other people's feelings around him. He also is at some times his worst enemy with some of the things he says. And when he got the chance to call the shots in TFF the Star Trek series hit one of its low points.
But I am GD tired of all crying the TOS supporting cast, except De Kelley, has or had done about him over the years and seem determined to continue until their dying day. As well as the many fans who won't ever give the guy a break no matter what he does.
First of all, the TOS supporting cast don't seem to understand, even to this day, that in pretty much every TV show and film there are the "stars" of the show and then there are the "supporting" cast members. And in many shows there is one person who is the "main star". This has pretty much been SOP since films started being made. In the case of Star Trek William Shatner was the "star", Nimoy and later Kelley were the "co-stars" and the other four were supporting characters. Shatner didn't break arms and burn down producers houses to be come the star, they chose him. Did he often abuse that star power at the expense of others....yes but he's hardly the first or last actor to do that.
Let's look at Shatner a little more closely. First he went into acting because he loved the craft of acting, not just because he was some good looking guy who wanted to be in films to make money, be on screen and live a Hollywood lifestyle. He studied acting in college, he trained in Shakespeare, he put in many years on stage and in small TV roles until he finally got his big break. Say what you wanted but he earned what he got the HARD way, not like losers like Tori Spelling, Gwyneth Paltrow, Shia LeBeouf and Nicholas Cage (whose birth name is Nicholas Coppola....yep the nephew of that Coppola) who can't act worth shit and just happened to know big time players who could get their "acting" careers rolling.
Also he has been very candid and open at times about his personality and has shown willingness to make fun of himself and his perceived shortcomings. That's something that a lot of people with lousy qualities could never do and it takes a certain amount of guts to be willing to be the butt of your own jokes. He also does a lot of charitable work and has been generous with his time to many groups, and he never seeks out publicity for it. I've heard mixed reviews about his interactions with fans, some rave, some say he's a dick so I think it's the mood he is in that day.
So yeah he's not the sci-fi version of Mother Theresa, but I think there are MANY bigger jerks in Hollywood, they just do a better job of hiding it than Shatner, who wears his heart his heart on his sleeve, does.
Well I hate to share this but the supporting case members have hardly been beacons of gratitude and graciousness with their behaviors. All of them, except Kelley, have seemed to go out of their way at some point or another to bag on some element of Star Trek, usually involving Shatner, when basically everything they have is because of that show and its star(s). I think Kelley never got into these piss and moan sessions because he'd been doing bit roles in the industry for so long that when he hit it big with "Star Trek" he realized how lucky he was and was grateful for it.
Worst was Nimoy. First the guy actually becomes a bigger star in many people's eyes than Shatner, it gives him great fame in the industry, which he eventually parlays into great wealth and power. So you think the guy would be "Wow, I played bit roles for years for almost nothing, I took this co-starring role and it succeeded beyond anything I could have imagined Damn I am one lucky SOB considering there are countless actors who will never have what I have and would change roles with me in a second."
Nope....first the guy pisses and moans about Roddenberry, Shatner and all kind of other things related to Star Trek. Then, for the better part of 15 years, he gets all whiny that he's cursed because people will only see him as Spock and won't remember him for his singing, po dunk plays he wrote, shitty poetry and his other acting gigs like the oh so memorable Parris the Magician on Mission Impossible. This would be like Michael Jordan openly whining for an extended period that people will only see him as a basketball player when he plays a mean game of chess too.
Then he gets so bad that he's basically a dick to everyone who gave him his break and starts a decade long run of "I won't play Spock anymore.....ok I will play him for a film" "Now I want him killed off"..."Oh wait I want him brought back if I can direct".....You'd think playing Spock was the most painful thing in the world to him the way he carried on and treated people at Paramount. Yet in the end he was always there on screen and had no problem cashing the checks that went with it. Hell he ended up playing the role longer than any other TOS cast member, because I think he had an awaking in the mid 80's that this was his cash cow and he'd be a moron to kill it.
I'm sorry but it drives me CRAZY when an actor gets a role that brings him basically everything you could want and all you can do is cry about being typecast (Connery pulls this crap with 007 as well), especially considering the number of people who go into acting who NEVER make it and spend their careers going from bit role to bit role. To me this is like someone giving you a new Red Ferarri and you get upset because it isn't blue. No one is forcing you to do the role, if you don't like it walk away.
On the other hand Shatner, though I'm sure he's had his moments of frustration of being Kirk to everyone, has generally embraced the Kirk character, and seems appreciative of what it's given him. He also hasn't sat around upset about being Kirk no matter what he does. He did TJ Hooker, Airplane 2, Rescue 911, Boston Legal, recorded "Has Been" and many other projects. And I'm pretty sure he knew none of this would overshadow Kirk in people's minds, but he did them anyway because he wanted to and he enjoys the challenges.
Mark Hamill KNEW at age 21 he was going to be Luke Skywalker forever. Yet I have NEVER heard him utter a single word about how terrible it is to be known for one role. He's always seemed gracious and thankful to everyone and for the chance and he's found other ways to work in the industry, even if none of them were ever big roles.
Nimoy can kiss my ass for how ungrateful he's been. This is what is wrong with people, you get almost everything you could dream of, yet find the one negative to focus and obsess on. When people are out there working their asses off and barely making ends meet.
As for the other four, they're just as big of asses as Shatner for crying about his behavior for so long. I understand Doohan was a real life badass tough guy who didn't like having to cowtow to this Shakespeare actor and Takei, Koenig and Nicholls often had lines cut or their roles diminished because of Shatner's ego. But you know what.....part of the reason Star Trek became what it was was because of the chemistry between Shatner, Nimoy and Kelley on the show. If another actor had played Kirk and that chemistry hadn't worked, the show might have died been forgotten and you four would be playing bit roles forever, instead of being able to go to a convention, sign autographs and make 25 grand for three hours work, along with other financial opportunities that came your way because of Star Trek.
I'm sorry if Bill was so mean it meant you got 2 minutes less screen time or lost a few lines on episodes, but I think you'd feel damn lucky to be along for the ride of something so successful that it would balance those things out......But nope. Fame, fortune and success aren't enough. Shatner took out two of my lines and wasn't sensetive to me whaaaaaaaa.....life is so unfair. If you hated it, quit. But of course noone was lining up to make shows or films with them as the central character so it was better for them to stay, cash the checks and just complain about it for decades after the fact. If anyone on them had any guts they would have taken their last paycheck into Roddenberry's office, torn it up and say "I'm tired of taking Shatner's crap...I'm out of here". The next time someone uncovers evidence that something like this happened, it'll be the first. Way to stand up for your principles guys.
Christ the most ridiculous one was when Takei in his book actually talked about how upset he was that a scene that was originally in TWOK where Kirk informs him he's to command the Excelsior he didn't think Shatner took seriously enough and it was ultimately cut. So Takei was so upset that his fictional character, did get his fictional promotion to command of a fictional ship until Star Trek VI......good god. Did Paramount have some arrangement with the United States Navy that Takei would get command of an aircraft carrier in real like when he was named commander of the Excelsior in the film and he was screwed out command a real Navy ship?!?!
Again I'm sorry but 6 other actors on TOS had their lives dramatically changed for the better, due in some part to William Shatner. If he was a jerk along the way, that's unfortunate, but it's a small price to pay I think. Have your pissed off moments and move on, quit dredging this shit up until either you or he dies. And as for the Shatner the guy could have hung it up 30 years ago and sipped mint juleps and bred his horses for the rest of his life, yet he continues to work almost non stop on some project or another and he's 80. The country would be a far better place if more Americans were willing to work that hard.
Here endeth the lesson.
First of all I freely admit William Shatner is a self centered diva who has stepped on many people's toes in his quest to be the main man and he can be very callous and unaware of other people's feelings around him. He also is at some times his worst enemy with some of the things he says. And when he got the chance to call the shots in TFF the Star Trek series hit one of its low points.
But I am GD tired of all crying the TOS supporting cast, except De Kelley, has or had done about him over the years and seem determined to continue until their dying day. As well as the many fans who won't ever give the guy a break no matter what he does.
First of all, the TOS supporting cast don't seem to understand, even to this day, that in pretty much every TV show and film there are the "stars" of the show and then there are the "supporting" cast members. And in many shows there is one person who is the "main star". This has pretty much been SOP since films started being made. In the case of Star Trek William Shatner was the "star", Nimoy and later Kelley were the "co-stars" and the other four were supporting characters. Shatner didn't break arms and burn down producers houses to be come the star, they chose him. Did he often abuse that star power at the expense of others....yes but he's hardly the first or last actor to do that.
Let's look at Shatner a little more closely. First he went into acting because he loved the craft of acting, not just because he was some good looking guy who wanted to be in films to make money, be on screen and live a Hollywood lifestyle. He studied acting in college, he trained in Shakespeare, he put in many years on stage and in small TV roles until he finally got his big break. Say what you wanted but he earned what he got the HARD way, not like losers like Tori Spelling, Gwyneth Paltrow, Shia LeBeouf and Nicholas Cage (whose birth name is Nicholas Coppola....yep the nephew of that Coppola) who can't act worth shit and just happened to know big time players who could get their "acting" careers rolling.
Also he has been very candid and open at times about his personality and has shown willingness to make fun of himself and his perceived shortcomings. That's something that a lot of people with lousy qualities could never do and it takes a certain amount of guts to be willing to be the butt of your own jokes. He also does a lot of charitable work and has been generous with his time to many groups, and he never seeks out publicity for it. I've heard mixed reviews about his interactions with fans, some rave, some say he's a dick so I think it's the mood he is in that day.
So yeah he's not the sci-fi version of Mother Theresa, but I think there are MANY bigger jerks in Hollywood, they just do a better job of hiding it than Shatner, who wears his heart his heart on his sleeve, does.
Well I hate to share this but the supporting case members have hardly been beacons of gratitude and graciousness with their behaviors. All of them, except Kelley, have seemed to go out of their way at some point or another to bag on some element of Star Trek, usually involving Shatner, when basically everything they have is because of that show and its star(s). I think Kelley never got into these piss and moan sessions because he'd been doing bit roles in the industry for so long that when he hit it big with "Star Trek" he realized how lucky he was and was grateful for it.
Worst was Nimoy. First the guy actually becomes a bigger star in many people's eyes than Shatner, it gives him great fame in the industry, which he eventually parlays into great wealth and power. So you think the guy would be "Wow, I played bit roles for years for almost nothing, I took this co-starring role and it succeeded beyond anything I could have imagined Damn I am one lucky SOB considering there are countless actors who will never have what I have and would change roles with me in a second."
Nope....first the guy pisses and moans about Roddenberry, Shatner and all kind of other things related to Star Trek. Then, for the better part of 15 years, he gets all whiny that he's cursed because people will only see him as Spock and won't remember him for his singing, po dunk plays he wrote, shitty poetry and his other acting gigs like the oh so memorable Parris the Magician on Mission Impossible. This would be like Michael Jordan openly whining for an extended period that people will only see him as a basketball player when he plays a mean game of chess too.
Then he gets so bad that he's basically a dick to everyone who gave him his break and starts a decade long run of "I won't play Spock anymore.....ok I will play him for a film" "Now I want him killed off"..."Oh wait I want him brought back if I can direct".....You'd think playing Spock was the most painful thing in the world to him the way he carried on and treated people at Paramount. Yet in the end he was always there on screen and had no problem cashing the checks that went with it. Hell he ended up playing the role longer than any other TOS cast member, because I think he had an awaking in the mid 80's that this was his cash cow and he'd be a moron to kill it.
I'm sorry but it drives me CRAZY when an actor gets a role that brings him basically everything you could want and all you can do is cry about being typecast (Connery pulls this crap with 007 as well), especially considering the number of people who go into acting who NEVER make it and spend their careers going from bit role to bit role. To me this is like someone giving you a new Red Ferarri and you get upset because it isn't blue. No one is forcing you to do the role, if you don't like it walk away.
On the other hand Shatner, though I'm sure he's had his moments of frustration of being Kirk to everyone, has generally embraced the Kirk character, and seems appreciative of what it's given him. He also hasn't sat around upset about being Kirk no matter what he does. He did TJ Hooker, Airplane 2, Rescue 911, Boston Legal, recorded "Has Been" and many other projects. And I'm pretty sure he knew none of this would overshadow Kirk in people's minds, but he did them anyway because he wanted to and he enjoys the challenges.
Mark Hamill KNEW at age 21 he was going to be Luke Skywalker forever. Yet I have NEVER heard him utter a single word about how terrible it is to be known for one role. He's always seemed gracious and thankful to everyone and for the chance and he's found other ways to work in the industry, even if none of them were ever big roles.
Nimoy can kiss my ass for how ungrateful he's been. This is what is wrong with people, you get almost everything you could dream of, yet find the one negative to focus and obsess on. When people are out there working their asses off and barely making ends meet.
As for the other four, they're just as big of asses as Shatner for crying about his behavior for so long. I understand Doohan was a real life badass tough guy who didn't like having to cowtow to this Shakespeare actor and Takei, Koenig and Nicholls often had lines cut or their roles diminished because of Shatner's ego. But you know what.....part of the reason Star Trek became what it was was because of the chemistry between Shatner, Nimoy and Kelley on the show. If another actor had played Kirk and that chemistry hadn't worked, the show might have died been forgotten and you four would be playing bit roles forever, instead of being able to go to a convention, sign autographs and make 25 grand for three hours work, along with other financial opportunities that came your way because of Star Trek.
I'm sorry if Bill was so mean it meant you got 2 minutes less screen time or lost a few lines on episodes, but I think you'd feel damn lucky to be along for the ride of something so successful that it would balance those things out......But nope. Fame, fortune and success aren't enough. Shatner took out two of my lines and wasn't sensetive to me whaaaaaaaa.....life is so unfair. If you hated it, quit. But of course noone was lining up to make shows or films with them as the central character so it was better for them to stay, cash the checks and just complain about it for decades after the fact. If anyone on them had any guts they would have taken their last paycheck into Roddenberry's office, torn it up and say "I'm tired of taking Shatner's crap...I'm out of here". The next time someone uncovers evidence that something like this happened, it'll be the first. Way to stand up for your principles guys.
Christ the most ridiculous one was when Takei in his book actually talked about how upset he was that a scene that was originally in TWOK where Kirk informs him he's to command the Excelsior he didn't think Shatner took seriously enough and it was ultimately cut. So Takei was so upset that his fictional character, did get his fictional promotion to command of a fictional ship until Star Trek VI......good god. Did Paramount have some arrangement with the United States Navy that Takei would get command of an aircraft carrier in real like when he was named commander of the Excelsior in the film and he was screwed out command a real Navy ship?!?!
Again I'm sorry but 6 other actors on TOS had their lives dramatically changed for the better, due in some part to William Shatner. If he was a jerk along the way, that's unfortunate, but it's a small price to pay I think. Have your pissed off moments and move on, quit dredging this shit up until either you or he dies. And as for the Shatner the guy could have hung it up 30 years ago and sipped mint juleps and bred his horses for the rest of his life, yet he continues to work almost non stop on some project or another and he's 80. The country would be a far better place if more Americans were willing to work that hard.
Here endeth the lesson.
