Thoughts on Shatner

[1001001]

Whatever it must have been like being a co-star of Shatner's, I do distinctly remember all of the TOS cast saying that being DIRECTED by him, in ST V, was completely different. Strictly as a director, he was totally professional and treated the entire cast with 100% respect. There was none of the baggage that came with being a fellow *actor* during the original series.

My wife and I were at a convention two weeks ago in San Francisco. Both George Takei and Walter Koenig were there.

Both took time to comment on Shatner (as they usually do). But Koenig did in fact say that as the director of ST:V, Shatner was great.

In fact he did a little impression of him:

"Walter...that..........was GOOD!"

 

[A beaker full of death]

^ Nichols has a theory about that. She thinks that when he was unquestionably in charge, he stopped feeling like he had to prove something.

 

[bbailey861]

Speaking of Mr. Shatner, he will be at the US Navy's decommissioning ceremony for the USS Enterprise on Saturday:

http://tv.msn.com/tv/article.aspx?news=777338

I heard, in the end, that Shatner bailed on attending the decommissioning of the USS Enterprise. If this is true, it is unfortunate, but would not be surprising.

 

[JimZipCode]

A pre-Trek Bill takes off his shirt in the failed "Alexander the Great" pilot.

Wow. That is a remarkable clip.

Terrible, terrible staging of the action. The pouring water masks some of the dialogue, and the steam completely obscures the great Joseph Cotten as he spearks. It's unprofessional. Shatner's forced laughter and "impetuousness" are grating.

And yet, and yet. There is something there. The interaction between Shatner & Cotten is compelling (even if you can't see it). Despite its drawbacks, the water & steam give the actors some interesting stuff to do. Shatner's gusto when the girl pours the water is eye-opening.

Warts and all, they had some raw material that they could have built a series on. Seems like it needed just a bit more work. Maybe they should have done a second pilot. ;-)

 

[JimZipCode]

Shatner is a decent actor. There's an interesting clip here where he discusses his method:

That was super interesting, thanks for posting.

Wow, after the show wrapped, but before the last episode had aired. Fascinating moment.

 

[TREK_GOD_1]

He can be low key when he desires; in the 1970's, he hosted a PBS show called American Enterprise (get it? ), which I believe was illustrating American industrial/technical innovation in the present (and he would announce he was portraying a character relevant to the subject), with references/dramas about the same in the nation's early years. He was to the point, but could be dramatic when required whether on camera, or narrating scenes talking about the early America's struggles.

Several months ago, someone on YouTube uploaded a couple of abridged episodes, but I wish the entire series was available somewhere. In my opinion, it was one of his best efforts in the lean years between TOS and TMP.

 

[BoredShipCapt'n]

A pre-Trek Bill takes off his shirt in the failed "Alexander the Great" pilot.

Wow. That is a remarkable clip.

Terrible, terrible staging of the action. The pouring water masks some of the dialogue, and the steam completely obscures the great Joseph Cotten as he spearks. It's unprofessional. Shatner's forced laughter and "impetuousness" are grating.

And yet, and yet. There is something there. The interaction between Shatner & Cotten is compelling (even if you can't see it). Despite its drawbacks, the water & steam give the actors some interesting stuff to do. Shatner's gusto when the girl pours the water is eye-opening.

Warts and all, they had some raw material that they could have built a series on. Seems like it needed just a bit more work. Maybe they should have done a second pilot. ;-)

As I suggested earlier in this thread, pairing him up with Adam West was probably a misstep...

 

[AtoZ]

It has been my experience time and again that the vast majority of people lip only what they hear and judge not for themselves, or know not for themselves. What is "bad" acting on Shatner's part? What is good acting on Shatner's part? Do they understand the context of a given era or period and have they seen Shatner play an array of roles?

Is Shatner the same character role after role, like Will Smith so often seems to be?

Is he wooden and stiff, devoid of energy, or can he breath life into a role; add color and dimension?

I grant that Shatner can be very animated, not just in his actions, but with his facial gestures and voice inflection, but I believe the vast majority doesn't know or has taken the time to do any research beyond their programming. Shatner is great at projecting character and energy; life into a character. He's an entertainer.

There are parrots all around us, and they grasp not why Shats was paid the big bucks, why he has endured over decades and to a great extent, why TOS was the enduring success that it has been.

Good and bad acting is much like human sexuality and attraction, very subjective.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

"We'd better get to the tower, Lieutenant."

"We have no tower, sir."

"...No tower?"

"Just a bridge, sir."

"WHY THE HELL AREN'T I NOTIFIED ABOUT THESE THINGS?!?!?"

 

[Mr_Homn]

"We'd better get to the tower, Lieutenant."

"We have no tower, sir."

"...No tower?"

"Just a bridge, sir."

"WHY THE HELL AREN'T I NOTIFIED ABOUT THESE THINGS?!?!?"

He was so great in Airplane II.