Goodbye, Mr. Spock

[mariole]

I was so saddened to learn of Leonard Nimoy's passing. I only saw him in person once, at a StarFest here in Denver. Star Trek IV had just come out, and he spent his whole presentation excitedly talking about how they made the whales look real. He was personally humble, generous with his thoughts, and passionate about his craft. He really enriched

Comments

[shirebound]

Thank you for sharing this memory with us. I love it.

[mariole]

Thank you for sharing the memories with me. He made the world a better place. Wonderful man.

[gilli_ann]

You know, I never watched any of the original Star Trek episodes or movies. But I did watch the rebooted Star Trek movie with Chris Pine and Zachay Quinto, when I was visiting Meryl in NYC one time. The thing I remember most about that film is her reaction when time came for Leonard Nimoy's cameo in the film. She nearly levitated out of her seat, and blew kisses at the screen, completely moved and elated. Nothing could have better illustrated to me what an impact the original Spock had made, and the high regard that the actor was held in. I can't recall much about the film, but I will always remember that spontaneous reaction, and the actor who inspired it.

[mariole]

It's so good to see you! *massive hugs*

Nobody did Vulcans like Nimoy. He _was_ Vulcan-- helped create and define it. Most people make Vulcans either too emotional (like Quinto) or like robots (almost everyone else). Nimoy skated the line between an intense inner life and cultural restraint with elegance and understatement. You always sensed the depth lurking beneath, but rarely were privileged to glimpse that electric expression of it. It was a truly wonderful role, and we owe much to Nimoy for making it so.

I've always loved Spock, and followed Nimoy's other performances because of it. Like so many people on LJ, I often feel as if I'm the outsider, the alien that most people don't quite understand. Nimoy touched that core because that was his personal experience as well. I've been playing his Yiddish experience clips today, and they've really touched my heart (thanks, Dreamflower, for posting those). https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QAYvI5CC5s

[addie71]

What a lovely post, thank you.

[mariole]

Thanks, Addie. :)

I've been roaming the net looking up tributes. I thought this comment really reflected my own thoughts:

Jay Oziel ·
Leonard Nimoy was perhaps loved as a person more than as a character. Spock was a character for the ages, as indelible as any character ever created. But, Nimoy was a person for the ages, warm, compassionate, giving and highly ethical.

[addie71]

That is a beautiful quote and very true. :)

[mariole]

He was so very "real", no hype at all. He walked into a huge ballroom where, I don't know, several hundred of us were ready to worship him. And he just started talking in a normal voice and got into talking about directing (not acting in) Star Trek IV and put up all these whale pictures. A geek, is what he was. He was one of us. He was real and you could tell he was into communicating the experience, the reality, not the fantasy.

He really was an awesome man. The world is a better place for his contribution to it.

[maewyn_2]

Star Trek was my very first fandom. I was 14 when I discovered this new TV show. I was captivated immediately, in no small part by the character of Spock.

He was an enigma; an outsider, much like me. You just wanted to know more about him. What made him tick? Bit by bit, over the series, he became/allowed himself to become more exposed, revealing the struggle he had to maintain his upright Vulcan veneer. He always remained true to himself and his fellow crew. And he remained as fascinating through all of the movies and guest appearances on ST:TNG. I, as one of your friends mentioned above, was as surprised and thrilled at his appearance in both of the new Star Trek movies. Such was the genius of Leonard Nimoy. He will be greatly missed by his uncountable number of fans.

[mariole]

So true, Maewyn. He was an artist. He made so many contributions to the character and to the series as a whole. It was him who kept the returning crew from being extras in their own film for the first movie, and came up with the plot for the most successful movie (per box office) by insisting, for the whale movie, "No one dies. There won't even be a shot fired in anger." He wanted the movie to be about the beauty of communicating with each other.

He enriched the world in so many ways, because he had a strong moral code in himself. Thank you, Leonard. Go in peace.