Which regular ST actor(s) or actress(es) do you most admire IRL?

[enterprisecvn65]

So if you had to choose a few of the regular members from any Star Trek franchises, including Abrams Trek, as people you most admire for their real life persona and/or accomplishments.......who would you choose?

And this is not to say you DON'T admire anyone you don't mention and to slam others, so keep it that way please.

Mine top 3 in order would be: Doohan, Frakes and Shatner.

First I admire all 3 men for paying their dues and earning it the hard way as far as their fame and success came. None were "connected" and all 3 spent many years doing bit things in the industry, plays, radio, guest spots.....etc. before they got their big breaks in ST. And I'm not saying a lot of the other actors didn't do that as well.

Doohan I admire because, quite frankly, the guy was an absolute tough as nails SOB in real life who didn't seem to have any fear at all. He stormed the beaches of Normandy, got shot, flew dangerous airplane stunts.....I mean the guy was pretty much the definition of a man's man. Plus he was talented with things like voices and making the Klingon language.......He's almost like a combination of Leonardo Da Vinci and Humphery Bogart in terms of intelligence and toughness. The only thing I don't like is how bitter he was at Shatner and apparently took it to his grave. Personally I think he didn't like the fact that he'd seen the darker side of life and Shatner had led a pretty safe life training as an actor and probably didn't think much of his divaish qualities when Doohan knew Shatner had never experienced the things he had.....Just my theory.

Frakes I just like because he seems like a good guy all around. He seems like he was well liked by everyone on TNG. He was liked as a director. He never bitched when his character was greatly diminished in the TNG films. He still lives in Maine I think and he just seems like a guy who never let his fame go to his head and kept it all in perspective. At least I've never heard otherwise.

I know some may raise an eyebrow with Shatner and I freely admit he has some undesirable qualities that have been aired ad nauseum.....But the guy is an absolute BEAST when it comes to his work ethic. The guy worked his ass off before ST. He worked his ass off in the period after ST was cancelled before it became popular. He worked his ass off during the ST film era and he's continued to work his ass off up to the present day. It seems every few months there some new project that Shatner is involved in, film, music, books, TV, you name it........The guy just loves to work.

He clearly doesn't need the money and hasn't for a long time. I doubt he thinks things like his "Has Been" album or "Raw Nerve" show were going to make him more famous than he already is. The guy just loves to take on new tasks and challenges for the hell of it. Plus he runs a damn horse farm and is an expert breeder on top of it all!!!!!!

Also I give him credit for his willingness to admit and poke fun at his faults. The guy has taken more shit, some justified, a lot of it not, than almost any other entertainer including actors, singers and sports figures.......but why? He's been a jerk at times, but he's never done anything really terrible or criminal. Hell Robert Downey Jr. has done way worse shit that Shatner, yet I don't know many passes he's gotten and the public seems to revere him for his acting and personal achievements.

Shatner never did anything on the scale of Downey's actions, yet he picked on constantly....and for the most part he takes it in good humor. The other week Downey walked out on an interview because the guy had the nerve to ask about his drug addicted past.

Also Shatner has done a lot of nice things he doesn't seek publicity for. He's active in the American Tinnitus Association (a condition we both share unfortunately), he often has kids out to his farm to teach them about horses and horse rearing, he couldn't make it to Nimoy's funeral because he was at a charity event.........There are a lot of actors who only do that stuff for publicity or not at all.

Oh and the guy is 83 F****** years old!!!!!!

I think one of the biggest problems in America is a lot of people want it all handed to them and they don't want to work for it. Well Shatner worked for everything he's gotten.....and, considering his age and not really needing to, he continues to work harder than most of the US population despite the fact he could have called a day decades ago.

Whatever character flaws he may have......he is impressive as a person and the country would be a lot better off if more people had his work ethic.

 

[USS Triumphant]

Tim Russ - I really admire his perseverance in pursuit of a regular Star Trek gig, even passing on other roles if they would have possibly kept him from that goal. The man knew what he wanted, and went for it.

 

[Kilana2]

Tim Russ - I really admire his perseverance in pursuit of a regular Star Trek gig, even passing on other roles if they would have possibly kept him from that goal. The man knew what he wanted, and went for it.

Tim Russ is also a great singer and plays the guitar.

 

[Captain Clark Terrell]

I agree about Shatner and Doohan, both of whom have paid their dues.

What many people may not know about Shatner is that he struggled financially during the 1970s, when Star Trek was off the air, and spent much of his time essentially living out of his truck/camper that he drove back and forth to various gigs in his attempt to earn a living--all the while being separated from his daughters, who were living with their mother in California.

Doohan fought in World War II and participated in the mission to invade Normandy. He also saved a young woman's life several years ago by acting as a sort of mentor for her, after she wrote to him and expressed a strong desire to end her life. Doohan managed to find her phone number (this was before the days of the internet) and spoke to her for several minutes, stating that he would be appearing at a convention in Indianapolis, and that he wanted her to not only attend but to stop by and speak with him so that he knew she was okay.

Doohan met the woman in question several more times over the next two years before losing touch with her. Several years later, he received another letter from her, thanking him for the positive impact he'd made in her life, as she'd recently earned a graduate degree in electrical engineering. This video contains Doohan's recollection of his relationship with the woman.

--Sran

 

[enterprisecvn65]

I agree about Shatner and Doohan, both of whom have paid their dues.

What many people may not know about Shatner is that he struggled financially during the 1970s, when Star Trek was off the air, and spent much of his time essentially living out of his truck/camper that he drove back and forth to various gigs in his attempt to earn a living--all the while being separated from his daughters, who were living with their mother in California.

Doohan fought in World War II and participated in the mission to invade Normandy. He also saved a young woman's life several years ago by acting as a sort of mentor for her, after she wrote to him and expressed a strong desire to end her life. Doohan managed to find her phone number (this was before the days of the internet) and spoke to her for several minutes, stating that he would be appearing at a convention in Indianapolis, and that he wanted her to not only attend but to stop by and speak with him so that he knew she was okay.

Doohan met the woman in question several more times over the next two years before losing touch with her. Several years later, he received another letter from her, thanking him for the positive impact he'd made in her life, as she'd recently earned a graduate degree in electrical engineering. This video contains Doohan's recollection of his relationship with the woman.

--Sran

Yeah that period about Shatner living in his truck what I was talking about the period between ST getting cancelled and it becoming a pop icon. Say what you want about him but come or hell high water the guy hasn't wallowed in self pity during tough times and has ALWAYS done whatever it took to keep food on the table and gas in the tank, regardless of how unpleasant or meanial it might be.

I didn't know that about Doohan and the girl....that's a great story.

I think it's a damn shame that the two had the issues they did and could never resolve them. I don't think it had to do so much with Shatner taking away lines or screen time from Doohan like Takei, Nicholls and Koenig have all said bothered them most about Shatner, Doohan actually got a decent amount of time on the show and films.

Like I said I think it has to do with their backgrounds. I think Doohan, having experienced the dangerous and darker side of life in great detail, just couldn't get over the fact that a guy like Shatner, who went to college and trained as an actor and led pretty safe existence, pulled some of the stuff he did when, in Doohan's mind, he had done nothing in his life to justify acting so self important.

I'm sure Doohan saw friends and men he considered to be good men killed in WWII and he just couldn't respect Shatner as a man for the way he acted at times, especially knowing Shatner hadn't ever experienced horror on the scale Doohan knew existed and had seen first hand.

I don't really blame either and I freely admit this is all dime store Freud on my part. To me though Doohan's extreme bitterness has to have an explanation beyond just simply thinking Shatner was a jerk and he didn't like working with him and this is the best theory I can come up with.

Like I said it's a shame because both men are remarkable in their own ways.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Vaughn Armstrong, of course.

 

[Trek Survivor]

Good topic.

I agree with Jonathan Frakes for mostly the same reasons the OP cited. Just a genuinely nice, creative, warm and friendly bloke.

Scott Bakula for pretty much the same reasons.

The third, the late Leonard Nimoy - for the same reasons again!

I am sure many if not most of the Trek actors are warm, friendly, kind and compassionate people, but the three examples I give here just seem to really shine in this regard.

 

[hux]

All of them to be honest

I admire Jeffrey Combs because of his continued association with the show in various roles. I was always impressed by Nimoy's intelligence and thoughtfulness. Patrick Stewart raised the bar and opened up Trek to a new audience and definitely brought some acting credibility to the franchise. Whoopie Goldberg being in the show at a time when she didn't need it due to her respect for the shows history and reputation. Colm Meaney has always impressed me with his work (loved him in the Partridge film).

To name a few

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Also Zach Quinto. Not just because of his acting talent, but because he actively fought for the role and said he was "born" to play Spock. I admire anyone with that kind of dedication. Too many actors treat roles like this as just another paycheck - nice to see some of them are really into it. You're likely to get better acting out of such people if they actually enjoy what they're doing!

 

[Cyke101]

So many good answers in here already, and I don't want to repeat, because for the most part I'm in agreement.

I've found myself drawn particularly to Andrew Robinson, one of the hardest working artists in the biz, and now a teacher. That we talk about Garak to this very day with such respect is a testament to his skill, but it's also his own ideas that he injects into his character, the gusto of his work, and that he just seems like a straight up friendly professional (but a professional nonetheless). He seems like the kind of guy who you want to work with, and then have drinks with after the shift.

I'm also a fan of Alexander Siddig, if partly because he's one of the Trek alumni who've successfully branched out to other opportunities. Yes, he'll always be known as Bashir, but his being everywhere (Game of Thrones, baby) still brings good attention back to Trek.

And though I've never met him, Karl Urban seems like a standup guy. Everything he's said about DeForest Kelley is just right. The guy loves to work, and it shows. And though it's not Trek-related, the way he stands up for and leads his Judge Dredd fans makes him pretty down to earth, so to me it's something that carries over to Trek conventions, too.

 

[Kinggodzillak]

Chase Masterson.

The reasons for this are numerous, and I've gone on at length about her before here and elsewhere.

But it's always worth saying again.

1) She's a much much stronger actress than DS9 ever allowed her to show. Now I adore Leeta, but recently I've been tracking down a lot of Chase's other acting work and realised that she wasn't really given much of a chance on Trek to show off her range. She's really good. She could have been a lead on any of these shows. She could have played Kira, quite easily. Not that I would ever have wanted to lose Nana Visitor for anything, ever, but Chase could have played that role or any number of similar stronger roles than the one she had. Nothing against Leeta, she's wonderful, and Chase did a great job with her, but that character was never really showcased the way the actress playing her deserved to have been.

(Although the fact was created specifically for her says rather a lot about her awesomeness too. )

2) Her non-acting work. Okay. Chase

- runs an anti-bullying campaign at various Comic Cons.
- mentors young people coming out of gangs.
- is a volunteer counsellor.
- organises Christmas toy drives for underprivileged kids.
- and is involved with or has been part of more charities and community projects than any of us could probably name, and not just in the US.

That's an even more impressive body of work than her acting career there. If you haven't been lucky enough to meet Chase then something that you have to look forward to if you ever get the chance is discovering that she has maybe the biggest kindest heart of anybody ever, and isn't afraid to go out there and try to make a real difference.

And it's constant. She's always got some project like that on the go - usually lots of them. And that's in addition to any acting work. She's one person with an enormous heart trying her best to do the work of a hundred big-hearted people - and amazingly enough, she's succeeding. She's just so set on making the world a better place however she can, and getting lots of other people along for the ride.

When Jim Henson passed away someone said in tribute "Perhaps the substance of Jim Henson's genius was the ability to see wonder far off in crazy directions, and to get people to follow him there." That's Chase's genius too, and she does it all without asking for anything in return. Pure genuine selflessness; very rare, very precious, and very much worth celebrating.

3) If I can go into personal stuff for a moment...

I'm at a point in my life (I say 'point', but this has been dragging on for 15 years now) where I really pretty much think it's all over. I've failed, there's nothing to go on for. Literally nothing. Everywhere I turn other people are getting to achieve my goals, realise my dreams - but I always have to stay on the outside, watching everyone else having a great time doing all the things that I've always wanted to do and hurting inside and out because I can't get involved. For no readily-apparent reason. Everything's just turned to dust and crap, basically.

One of the only good things to come out of this period has been finally getting to go along to conventions and meeting so many of the actors from Star Trek and Doctor Who and the various other shows that I've loved all my life. Some people I was more excited to meet than others. Some had been my absolute heroes for ages. Others, I only went up to see because they were a part of the show rather than because they were one of my absolute faves.

As almost ashamed as I am to admit it, back then Chase was in the latter category; I didn't like or dislike Leeta, she was just there and because she was almost never involved with the plot I never really noticed her. So when I went up to meet Chase at a 2009 convention I had no expectations whatsoever; it was just going to be one more signed photo for the collection.

Fast forward to 2015. I've now seen Chase at 10 different events across 6 years - and at each one she has exceeded any expectations I could ever have had of anybody. She's been kind. She's been welcoming. She's accepted me for who I am - which is such genuinely a rare thing in this world - and the amazing thing is that I've been able to see her treat everybody that way. I've even been lucky enough to get to spend a little time away from the convention world with her recently.

In that time, she's become one of the best friends I've ever had. And no, I didn't just randomly decide that we were friends - she did.

Yes. Friend isn't a word that I hear all that much these days. Things have gone wrong and I've lost a lot of my old friends along the way; some of that was my fault, some not. But the fact is my life is kind of empty, and Chase is one of only a handful people who still makes me feel like I'm worth something. Who's been there for me, who's listened, who's tried to understand. Not lecture me, not judge me, not interrogate me, but listen. Really really listen. And I hope that along the way I've maybe made some kind of small difference in her life too.

So, yes. While Star Trek has definitely had more than it's fair share of talented actors, so many of whom are worth admiring for many many reasons, only one of those people has reached out a hand of genuine friendship to me and made an actual genuine difference in my life.

I can't not admire my friend for that.

 

[RandyS]

Deforest Kelley. It doesn't matter that he's no longer with us (unless you put Star Trek on the DVD player, of course), by all accounts he was a good man. The kind that doesn't exist anymore, and was rare even in his time.

I wish I was that good a person.

 

[enterprisecvn65]

Deforest Kelley. It doesn't matter that he's no longer with us (unless you put Star Trek on the DVD player, of course), by all accounts he was a good man. The kind that doesn't exist anymore, and was rare even in his time.

I wish I was that good a person.

I agree. Kelley was the only one in TOS who didn't get involved in this whole bitching about Shatner thing at one time or another. Yes even Nimoy had his period early on in the show where he and Shatner butted heads.

I think he'd been around long enough to realize he'd hit on a good thing and he wasn't going to lessen it by getting involved in petty bickering.

My one quibble is he seemed to like wearing ascots a lot.......it just wasn't a good look for him.

 

[suarezguy]

It's somewhat hard for me to separate them from their acting but probably Gates McFadden, Rene Auberjonois and Armin Shimerman (all a lot of interest in the themes of Trek, passion for their characters and appreciation for their success).

 

[Cyke101]

Deforest Kelley. It doesn't matter that he's no longer with us (unless you put Star Trek on the DVD player, of course), by all accounts he was a good man. The kind that doesn't exist anymore, and was rare even in his time.

I wish I was that good a person.

Kelley/McCoy was always my favorite of the TOS crew, but I love that Urban consistently speaks so well about the path that Kelley laid down. That's legacy, one that, as you say, was rare back in Kelley's day, but can defintely impact the present.

----

Back on topic and speaking of TOS, I'll mention George Takei. I'm going to set aside the Shatner/Takei feud (which I'm still convinced started out as a legitimate feud, and then evolved into a hoax/inside joke between the two over the past 10 years).

A career resurgence is always nice, and it's led to him being in demand more than ever before. He entertains in a pretty modern way, and brings more people into the Trekkie neighbhorhood each day. But it's also the way he's channeled this renewed fame into his personal causes. Anyone who can produce a stage musical about an historical atrocity, and then get it to Broadway, is one heck of a person, even more so when one is at that age.

On a side note, my boss has met with him a few times at Takei's home office for nonprofit fundraising purposes. Apparently, the way he talks in a business meeting at his desk is the exact same way that Takei speaks everywhere else -- deep, projecting, and with gravitas. At one point, my boss said, "There's no need to project! It's just the two of us here!"

 

[enterprisecvn65]

Deforest Kelley. It doesn't matter that he's no longer with us (unless you put Star Trek on the DVD player, of course), by all accounts he was a good man. The kind that doesn't exist anymore, and was rare even in his time.

I wish I was that good a person.

Kelley/McCoy was always my favorite of the TOS crew, but I love that Urban consistently speaks so well about the path that Kelley laid down. That's legacy, one that, as you say, was rare back in Kelley's day, but can defintely impact the present.

----

Back on topic and speaking of TOS, I'll mention George Takei. I'm going to set aside the Shatner/Takei feud (which I'm still convinced started out as a legitimate feud, and then evolved into a hoax/inside joke between the two over the past 10 years).

A career resurgence is always nice, and it's led to him being in demand more than ever before. He entertains in a pretty modern way, and brings more people into the Trekkie neighbhorhood each day. But it's also the way he's channeled this renewed fame into his personal causes. Anyone who can produce a stage musical about an historical atrocity, and then get it to Broadway, is one heck of a person, even more so when one is at that age.

On a side note, my boss has met with him a few times at Takei's home office for nonprofit fundraising purposes. Apparently, the way he talks in a business meeting at his desk is the exact same way that Takei speaks everywhere else -- deep, projecting, and with gravitas. At one point, my boss said, "There's no need to project! It's just the two of us here!"

I agree with the legit feud at first part. If you read Takei's biography which, conveniently, came out after TUC did and he knew he was done working with Shatner, he tears Shatner multiple new assholes. I find it in extremely poor taste because

1. Shatner acknowledged these issues he'd caused at the end of "Star Trek Memories" when Nichols confronted him on it. Shatner contacted Doohan, Koenig and Takei to get their feelings on the record, Doohan flat refused because the bitterness ran too deep. He met with Koenig and Takei and both decided to basically let it drop and Shatner went out of his way to praise George and the challenges he'd overcome as a Japanese American. Then Takei lets fly these personal attacks on Shatner a short time later and continues to do so this day.

2. His most personal attack at Shatner in his book was when Takei said something along lines of during the filming of TUC Takei thought it was sad to see this actor who had had so much drive and energy is the TOS days reduced to basically a characture of himself and a guy who is a buffoon for laughs.....Except Takei basically did the same thing himself years later. He basically became a buffoon who played up the overly flamboyant personality (not an attack on his homosexuality, just a fact) because he realized it kept him in the spotlight somewhat with of course the "OH MY!!!!!!!" bit becoming his trademark. Don't have a problem with his schtick except for the fact he blasted Shatner for the exact same thing. And Shatner is honestly a lot funnier.

Shatner seems to have dropped it in recent years and he doesn't say much aside from comments like "George hasn't been very nice to me" (which is true). I think it's still "legit" to Takei in the respect that he knows whenever he stirs the pot it'll bring him some attention from the media, so he does it from time to time for that reason.

I don't doubt Takei is a good guy. I just find it disappointing he's chosen to act this way post Trek and it taints his legacy a little IMHO

 

[Cyke101]

Deforest Kelley. It doesn't matter that he's no longer with us (unless you put Star Trek on the DVD player, of course), by all accounts he was a good man. The kind that doesn't exist anymore, and was rare even in his time.

I wish I was that good a person.

Kelley/McCoy was always my favorite of the TOS crew, but I love that Urban consistently speaks so well about the path that Kelley laid down. That's legacy, one that, as you say, was rare back in Kelley's day, but can defintely impact the present.

----

Back on topic and speaking of TOS, I'll mention George Takei. I'm going to set aside the Shatner/Takei feud (which I'm still convinced started out as a legitimate feud, and then evolved into a hoax/inside joke between the two over the past 10 years).

A career resurgence is always nice, and it's led to him being in demand more than ever before. He entertains in a pretty modern way, and brings more people into the Trekkie neighbhorhood each day. But it's also the way he's channeled this renewed fame into his personal causes. Anyone who can produce a stage musical about an historical atrocity, and then get it to Broadway, is one heck of a person, even more so when one is at that age.

On a side note, my boss has met with him a few times at Takei's home office for nonprofit fundraising purposes. Apparently, the way he talks in a business meeting at his desk is the exact same way that Takei speaks everywhere else -- deep, projecting, and with gravitas. At one point, my boss said, "There's no need to project! It's just the two of us here!"

I agree with the legit feud at first part. If you read Takei's biography which, conveniently, came out after TUC did and he knew he was done working with Shatner, he tears Shatner multiple new assholes. I find it in extremely poor taste because

1. Shatner acknowledged these issues he'd caused at the end of "Star Trek Memories" when Nichols confronted him on it. Shatner contacted Doohan, Koenig and Takei to get their feelings on the record, Doohan flat refused because the bitterness ran too deep. He met with Koenig and Takei and both decided to basically let it drop and Shatner went out of his way to praise George and the challenges he'd overcome as a Japanese American. Then Takei lets fly these personal attacks on Shatner a short time later and continues to do so this day.

2. His most personal attack at Shatner in his book was when Takei said something along lines of during the filming of TUC Takei thought it was sad to see this actor who had had so much drive and energy is the TOS days reduced to basically a characture of himself and a guy who is a buffoon for laughs.....Except Takei basically did the same thing himself years later. He basically became a buffoon who played up the overly flamboyant personality (not an attack on his homosexuality, just a fact) because he realized it kept him in the spotlight somewhat with of course the "OH MY!!!!!!!" bit becoming his trademark. Don't have a problem with his schtick except for the fact he blasted Shatner for the exact same thing. And Shatner is honestly a lot funnier.

Shatner seems to have dropped it in recent years and he doesn't say much aside from comments like "George hasn't been very nice to me" (which is true). I think it's still "legit" to Takei in the respect that he knows whenever he stirs the pot it'll bring him some attention from the media, so he does it from time to time for that reason.

I don't doubt Takei is a good guy. I just find it disappointing he's chosen to act this way post Trek and it taints his legacy a little IMHO

Ahem

And this is not to say you DON'T admire anyone you don't mention and to slam others, so keep it that way please.

 

[enterprisecvn65]

Kelley/McCoy was always my favorite of the TOS crew, but I love that Urban consistently speaks so well about the path that Kelley laid down. That's legacy, one that, as you say, was rare back in Kelley's day, but can defintely impact the present.

----

Back on topic and speaking of TOS, I'll mention George Takei. I'm going to set aside the Shatner/Takei feud (which I'm still convinced started out as a legitimate feud, and then evolved into a hoax/inside joke between the two over the past 10 years).

A career resurgence is always nice, and it's led to him being in demand more than ever before. He entertains in a pretty modern way, and brings more people into the Trekkie neighbhorhood each day. But it's also the way he's channeled this renewed fame into his personal causes. Anyone who can produce a stage musical about an historical atrocity, and then get it to Broadway, is one heck of a person, even more so when one is at that age.

On a side note, my boss has met with him a few times at Takei's home office for nonprofit fundraising purposes. Apparently, the way he talks in a business meeting at his desk is the exact same way that Takei speaks everywhere else -- deep, projecting, and with gravitas. At one point, my boss said, "There's no need to project! It's just the two of us here!"

I agree with the legit feud at first part. If you read Takei's biography which, conveniently, came out after TUC did and he knew he was done working with Shatner, he tears Shatner multiple new assholes. I find it in extremely poor taste because

1. Shatner acknowledged these issues he'd caused at the end of "Star Trek Memories" when Nichols confronted him on it. Shatner contacted Doohan, Koenig and Takei to get their feelings on the record, Doohan flat refused because the bitterness ran too deep. He met with Koenig and Takei and both decided to basically let it drop and Shatner went out of his way to praise George and the challenges he'd overcome as a Japanese American. Then Takei lets fly these personal attacks on Shatner a short time later and continues to do so this day.

2. His most personal attack at Shatner in his book was when Takei said something along lines of during the filming of TUC Takei thought it was sad to see this actor who had had so much drive and energy is the TOS days reduced to basically a characture of himself and a guy who is a buffoon for laughs.....Except Takei basically did the same thing himself years later. He basically became a buffoon who played up the overly flamboyant personality (not an attack on his homosexuality, just a fact) because he realized it kept him in the spotlight somewhat with of course the "OH MY!!!!!!!" bit becoming his trademark. Don't have a problem with his schtick except for the fact he blasted Shatner for the exact same thing. And Shatner is honestly a lot funnier.

Shatner seems to have dropped it in recent years and he doesn't say much aside from comments like "George hasn't been very nice to me" (which is true). I think it's still "legit" to Takei in the respect that he knows whenever he stirs the pot it'll bring him some attention from the media, so he does it from time to time for that reason.

I don't doubt Takei is a good guy. I just find it disappointing he's chosen to act this way post Trek and it taints his legacy a little IMHO

Ahem

And this is not to say you DON'T admire anyone you don't mention and to slam others, so keep it that way please.

My bad. I admire Takei very much that only 20 years after we'd dropped two atomic bombs on Japan to end the most destructive war ever and when a great many Anericans, including a lot of veterans still didn't have warm and fuzzy feelings towards Japanese people, that he was able to overcome such odds and play an important role.

 

[Cyke101]

I agree with the legit feud at first part. If you read Takei's biography which, conveniently, came out after TUC did and he knew he was done working with Shatner, he tears Shatner multiple new assholes. I find it in extremely poor taste because

1. Shatner acknowledged these issues he'd caused at the end of "Star Trek Memories" when Nichols confronted him on it. Shatner contacted Doohan, Koenig and Takei to get their feelings on the record, Doohan flat refused because the bitterness ran too deep. He met with Koenig and Takei and both decided to basically let it drop and Shatner went out of his way to praise George and the challenges he'd overcome as a Japanese American. Then Takei lets fly these personal attacks on Shatner a short time later and continues to do so this day.

2. His most personal attack at Shatner in his book was when Takei said something along lines of during the filming of TUC Takei thought it was sad to see this actor who had had so much drive and energy is the TOS days reduced to basically a characture of himself and a guy who is a buffoon for laughs.....Except Takei basically did the same thing himself years later. He basically became a buffoon who played up the overly flamboyant personality (not an attack on his homosexuality, just a fact) because he realized it kept him in the spotlight somewhat with of course the "OH MY!!!!!!!" bit becoming his trademark. Don't have a problem with his schtick except for the fact he blasted Shatner for the exact same thing. And Shatner is honestly a lot funnier.

Shatner seems to have dropped it in recent years and he doesn't say much aside from comments like "George hasn't been very nice to me" (which is true). I think it's still "legit" to Takei in the respect that he knows whenever he stirs the pot it'll bring him some attention from the media, so he does it from time to time for that reason.

I don't doubt Takei is a good guy. I just find it disappointing he's chosen to act this way post Trek and it taints his legacy a little IMHO

Ahem

And this is not to say you DON'T admire anyone you don't mention and to slam others, so keep it that way please.

My bad. I admire Takei very much that only 20 years after we'd dropped two atomic bombs on Japan to end the most destructive war ever and when a great many Anericans, including a lot of veterans still didn't have warm and fuzzy feelings towards Japanese people, that he was able to overcome such odds and play an important role.

Likewise, I admire Shatner for really just sticking to his best abilities, doing not only as much work now as he's ever done, but being a good sport about himself, too. I can't take sides in their feud because I appreciate their work and humor, moreso than before.

One of my favorite Shatner stories came from the 90s (time is important here). His friend was getting married in Chicago and he was invited to the wedding. Unfortunately, scheduling conflicts in Europe meant he had to miss it. So he did the next best thing: he booked a flight on the Concorde (RIP!), which isn't cheap by any means, zoomed across the Atlantic at Mach 2 to NYC, got onto a connecting flight to Chicago, and made it just in time for the wedding reception.

I remember this because I'm a Chicagoan, and the story made the local news. That's dedication!

 

[Autistoid]

The only thing I don't like is how bitter he was at Shatner and apparently took it to his grave. Personally I think he didn't like the fact that he'd seen the darker side of life and Shatner had led a pretty safe life training as an actor and probably didn't think much of his divaish qualities when Doohan knew Shatner had never experienced the things he had.....Just my theory.



Shatner never did anything on the scale of Downey's actions, yet he picked on constantly....and for the most part he takes it in good humor. The other week Downey walked out on an interview because the guy had the nerve to ask about his drug addicted past.


I think one of the biggest problems in America is a lot of people want it all handed to them and they don't want to work for it. Well Shatner worked for everything he's gotten.....and, considering his age and not really needing to, he continues to work harder than most of the US population despite the fact he could have called a day decades ago.
c.

I don't think you quite get what it's like to work with a shatner, anyone that ever has worked with someone like that understands.


You simply cannot trust the person as they will ruin you if you let them. He was highly manipulative and a backstabber, the fact he was so motivated only makes things worst.

I can't even get into this because one would assume I have some preference for the rest of the TOS cast and I do not.

Nimoy was the only one I respected or took interest in.

Anyways one of these days you'll meet your shatner and understand the rest of us are just gonna shrug it off.


Colm Meaney for me is my fave. He's a much more serious actor than the rest of Star trek actors, with the exception of only a handful.

Guy can act and play roles that most regular folk could only dream of doing justice.