Nichelle Nichols 1932-2022
I didn't know Nichelle Nichols personally, obviously. But in the year 2009, she did something incredibly kind and generous for an LJ friend of mine. And did so in a way that her assistance couldn't be refused, nor could she receive thanks for it. This friend is someone I've lost touch with over the past few years, as LJ folks scattered to the four winds.
But anyway, I had this LJ friend at the time, we'll call her J, and she had lost her job in the financial meltdown of 2008. Given there was a financial meltdown occurring pretty much everywhere at the time, finding another job was no easy matter. She was unemployed for quite some months, then underemployed working at a fast food restaurant or similar because any job was better than nothing when her unemployment benefits ran out. But finally she had a new job, a job in her field with pay comparable to her old job, and would be starting very soon.
Before she'd received the great job news, J. had volunteered to work a sci-fi convention that was happening in her city the long weekend right before she was about to start the new job. She had no spare money for tickets to the con, but if she worked the con, she got free admission. Nichelle Nichols was one of the con's guests, and J. was assigned as her gopher for the duration of the con.
J. said Ms. Nichols was lovely. There was occasionally quiet time, and she asked J. questions about her life and seemed genuinely interested in the answers. She congratulated J. on the new job after her long period of unemployment. J. also mentioned she was a little nervous about clothes, because the new workplace was dressier than her old one. J. didn't say this to make Ms. Nichols feel bad, it was just in the context of conversation.
At the very end of the con, J. helped Ms. Nichols check out of the hotel and wrangled her suitcase for her. Bear in mind in 2009 Ms. Nichols was already 76 or 77. Then J. went and arranged for a taxi to the airport and arranged for the con to be charged for the taxi.
A few minutes before they were due to part, Ms. Nichols handed J. a large envelope with her name on it. Ms Nichols said it contained an autographed photo, but insisted J. not open the envelope (which was sealed) until she got home. It was either raining or snowing at the time, and Ms Nichols said she was worried the photo would get damaged by the weather. So J. put her in the taxi, put the envelope in her bag, and headed back to the con for the last bits of clean up.
When she got home that evening, J. opened the envelope. It contained the promised autographed photo. It also contained $300 in cash and a handwritten note. Ms. Nichols said in the note that she remembered all too well what it was like to be young and poor. She had engaged in some minor subterfuge to make sure J. couldn't get embarrassed and refuse the money. But Ms. Nichols wanted her to use the money to buy some dressier clothes for her new workplace, or else to use it for whatever she might be short on before she got her first paycheque at the new job.
I was already a Nichelle Nichols fan before I heard about that, but I became even more of a fan afterwards. Sometimes celebrities, even celebrities with a good public image, turn out to have feet of clay. Ms. Nichols, though, was incredibly kind, thoughtful and generous. And she did this good turn for someone who had no influence in the entertainment industry. She was kind simply for the sake of being kind to a young woman she barely knew and would never see again. Now, THAT'S class.
But anyway, I had this LJ friend at the time, we'll call her J, and she had lost her job in the financial meltdown of 2008. Given there was a financial meltdown occurring pretty much everywhere at the time, finding another job was no easy matter. She was unemployed for quite some months, then underemployed working at a fast food restaurant or similar because any job was better than nothing when her unemployment benefits ran out. But finally she had a new job, a job in her field with pay comparable to her old job, and would be starting very soon.
Before she'd received the great job news, J. had volunteered to work a sci-fi convention that was happening in her city the long weekend right before she was about to start the new job. She had no spare money for tickets to the con, but if she worked the con, she got free admission. Nichelle Nichols was one of the con's guests, and J. was assigned as her gopher for the duration of the con.
J. said Ms. Nichols was lovely. There was occasionally quiet time, and she asked J. questions about her life and seemed genuinely interested in the answers. She congratulated J. on the new job after her long period of unemployment. J. also mentioned she was a little nervous about clothes, because the new workplace was dressier than her old one. J. didn't say this to make Ms. Nichols feel bad, it was just in the context of conversation.
At the very end of the con, J. helped Ms. Nichols check out of the hotel and wrangled her suitcase for her. Bear in mind in 2009 Ms. Nichols was already 76 or 77. Then J. went and arranged for a taxi to the airport and arranged for the con to be charged for the taxi.
A few minutes before they were due to part, Ms. Nichols handed J. a large envelope with her name on it. Ms Nichols said it contained an autographed photo, but insisted J. not open the envelope (which was sealed) until she got home. It was either raining or snowing at the time, and Ms Nichols said she was worried the photo would get damaged by the weather. So J. put her in the taxi, put the envelope in her bag, and headed back to the con for the last bits of clean up.
When she got home that evening, J. opened the envelope. It contained the promised autographed photo. It also contained $300 in cash and a handwritten note. Ms. Nichols said in the note that she remembered all too well what it was like to be young and poor. She had engaged in some minor subterfuge to make sure J. couldn't get embarrassed and refuse the money. But Ms. Nichols wanted her to use the money to buy some dressier clothes for her new workplace, or else to use it for whatever she might be short on before she got her first paycheque at the new job.
I was already a Nichelle Nichols fan before I heard about that, but I became even more of a fan afterwards. Sometimes celebrities, even celebrities with a good public image, turn out to have feet of clay. Ms. Nichols, though, was incredibly kind, thoughtful and generous. And she did this good turn for someone who had no influence in the entertainment industry. She was kind simply for the sake of being kind to a young woman she barely knew and would never see again. Now, THAT'S class.