Is Shatner really bald?

Discussion in 'General Trek Discussion' started by CaptainHawk1, Jan 21, 2009.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. Ryan Thomas Riddle

    Ryan Thomas Riddle Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 26, 2003
    I'm not getting worked up over it. If he did or didn't, doesn't matter but you did pose the question in the OP:

    I posted the excerpt from Up Till Now because you asked to see it. Moreover, in an attempt to provide you with "any confirmation," I also provided you what Bob Justman put "on record" on the subject. I did so because (1) I had access to the book and (2) in the sense of completeness.


    A toupee is a partial wig worn to cover partial baldness. It's etymology is French related to "top" or "tuft." If one wore a piece to make his hair fuller and more forward on the head (his tuft), then it is very much a toupee in the strictest definition.
     
  2. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    Not really... I'm just trying to figure out if he looks like this...

    [​IMG]

    That's really what I'm trying to get at.

    After reading some of these recent responses, I'm starting to think that I'm coming off a lot more caustic in this thread than I ever intended.

    -Shawn :borg:
     
  3. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    the Up Till Now quote is great and completely appropriate because it's from the horse's mouth but it doesn't answer the question. The Justman quote, however-- and I'm not suggesting that it's not true-- is a lot less credible as he's the only one who's made that claim and it's awfully vague.




    Fine and dandy, dandy and fine. It may be a 'toupee' (I can't believe you gave the etymology of the word 'toupee'-- that's dedication! :bolian:) but the question is to what level is his thin hair or baldness?

    -Shawn :borg:
     
  4. Vance

    Vance Vice Admiral In Memoriam

    Joined:
    Oct 27, 2005
    Location:
    Colorado Springs
    Therin, warning for bad joke. Comments to MA. :P

    But, seriously, this has been pretty conclusive settled now, hasn't it? Complete with relevant pics? Bill's got to be laughing his ass off as his daughters show him this. (They apparently do read the site.)

    I could offer up more detail on what Shatner went through, since it was really a major issue from going to black and white television to color. The studio lighting was much harsher for color shots, since the lighting would be 'split' and the image made much darker. So, like I said, people who were using light dyes in the studio, (or, in some cases, nothing at all) for the purposes of film suddenly had to go VERY thick and heavy with the hair under the insane lights.

    Though Shatner's toupee could be the most obvious, pretty much everyone on TOS had to wear one at some point, depending on the shot. It would be a bit (though, thankfully not too long) before lighting techniques for color process would improve enough so that either more subtle toupees/wigs could be worn, or actors could go natural again.

    If you want a more telling example of this in practice, compare Robert Conrad's hair from season one of Wild Wild West (which was still in black and white) with season two.
     
  5. Tinkertoyz76

    Tinkertoyz76 Lieutenant Junior Grade Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Jan 6, 2009
    Location:
    Hollywood California
    does it honestly really even matter. i mean come on people you like the man for his Performance of kirk. who the flock cares if he has thinning hair, no hair, wears a wig or not. seriously
     
  6. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    ANd hence we've com full-circle. It's just a fun and stupid thread. :)

    -Shawn :borg:
     
  7. RandyS

    RandyS Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Nov 9, 2007
    Location:
    Randyland
    Shatner is so bald, he wears THREE toupees.
     
  8. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    :p
     
  9. Misfit Toy

    Misfit Toy Caped Trek Mod Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 11, 2002
    Location:
    Transporter buffer
    Plus there's the whole "against the rules" thing. :shifty:

    Also - I completely agree - this is just a fun thread. I appreciate everyone keeping it that way. ;)
     
  10. Rabittooth

    Rabittooth Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Apr 6, 2008
    Location:
    The Depths of the Realm
    The above line made me pee a little. :guffaw:

    Yeah...I think we've got this covered. Thin hair...not enough to use a piece in real life, but enough to require one under the harsher, more revealing conditions of TV and film. :cool:

    -Rabittooth
     
  11. CaptainStoner

    CaptainStoner Knuckle-dragging TNZ Denizen Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 11, 2007
    Location:
    Hill dweller
    It must have been hell wearing one on Generations, in the desert. And then having to die. It wasn't the fall that did him in, it was heat exhaustion from wearing a piece in the desert. That, and the lack of a love interest in the film. He always knew he'd die alone.

    The previous paragraph shows little ability to differentiate between Shatner and Kirk. As it should be.
     
  12. 137th Gebirg

    137th Gebirg Admiral Premium Member

    Joined:
    Aug 31, 2000
    Location:
    Go Lick The World!
    I too remember this quite clearly and, even back then when I saw it in theaters, there were the rumors about his baldness. That immediately came to mind when I saw that scene and it looked pretty real to me. Of late, however, his Denny Crane 'do looks a little odd. And am I the only one to notice that under most studio lighting, his hair looks green?
     
  13. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    Y'know I wasn't sure about that but I assumed it because it's pretty standard on BBS's that you don't post someone's correspondence w/out their permission, but I was thinking courtesy first.

    Also, you'll be happy to know that btflash and I have become friends and kindred spirits as we've fdiscovered that we both have a passion for building Trek models and a passion for being big-mouthed pains in the ass. :p

    Thank you for the comments about the thread. That's why I got so torqued with Red Ranger, It is just a fun thread and he had to start trouble with me with his remarks. Willingto forgive and forget, though, if he is. :)

    -Shawn :borg:
     
  14. ClayinCA

    ClayinCA Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Nov 3, 2005
    Location:
    California
    That's karmic balance for having his green "Kirk" shirt come out looking gold, all those years ago...
     
  15. Australis

    Australis Writer - Australis Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 12, 2005
    Location:
    The Edge of Reality
    Hawk, you should join TNZ. You fit in good down there.
     
  16. Level 2 Diagnostic

    Level 2 Diagnostic Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Nov 23, 2005
    Location:
    A Man Called Hawk
    Really? Well, let's take a look....

    [​IMG]

    Hmmm. Not all that helpful, is it?
     
  17. Adm_Drake

    Adm_Drake Ensign Red Shirt

    Joined:
    May 8, 2007
    Shatner wore his hairpiece throughout The Deadly Years. In the early aging segment, the piece was placed a bit further back on his head, combed straight back, and sprayed with silver hair color. You can clearly see the latex mat, especially in the remastered episodes:

    http://tos.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/2x12/The_Deadly_Years_066.JPG

    For Kirk's late aging segment, the piece was painted white, but it was still on.

    By the way, if you check out Incubus, Shatner is wearing a different toupee which is placed further back on his head.

    Shatner went through various pieces over the years, waring a top piece in the first two Star Trek movies. He switched to a full piece by the time Star Trek III was filmed. By the time of Trek IV, he was wearing a weave which is simply a wig sewn into the existing hair to keep it more secure.

    Shatner ditched the wig in favor of a transplant done in 1999. In some of his videos he posts on youtube, it looks like he just woke up and has "bed-hair." The reason his hair seems to change color from time to time is because Shatner colors it. If you look at the roots, you can see his hair is mostly white.
     
  18. CaptainHawk1

    CaptainHawk1 Commodore

    Joined:
    Sep 8, 2000
    Location:
    Las Vegas, NV USA
    I was in TNZ back in the day (c. 2000 - 2002) and no good came from as it was complete free for all and downriht vicious. I've considered rejoining, but if what's in Miscellaneous (which is just a watered down TNZ) is any indication of what to expect now, I think i'll pass. There's more than enough hostility on this board to get by blood boiling w/out going into TNZ.

    That's why I appreciate D3. He generally just makes things up and doesn't logically back up his argumemts and people tear him apart but he doesn't let it bother him... He just keeps on trucking with his goofy ideas.

    I get bothered.

    -Shawn :borg:
     
  19. Red Ranger

    Red Ranger Admiral In Memoriam

    Joined:
    May 20, 2005
    Location:
    New York City, the greatest city in the world!
    I think a little Scripture is in order here: "As you sow, so shall you reap!" :techman: BTW, me and my cat are doing just fine. Thanks for the good wishes, old chap! ;) -- RR
     
  20. Saxman1

    Saxman1 Commodore Commodore

    Joined:
    Oct 21, 2005
    I have a relative in the movie business. Believe it or not (most probably know this anyway), most actors/actresses wear hair pieces of some kind. The average person's hair doesn't stand up to studio lighting. If a person has thinner hair, it photographs as bald, flat or just plain unattractive.
     
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.