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

[singeaddams]

I try to comfort myself with remembering what a long, rich life he had. He always seemed such a warm man.

[mariole]

He was, and he did LLAP. I'm very glad he came to peace with himself; for a while there, he really struggled. People who do that and come out the other side are wiser, more giving, and just all-around grand. :)

[illariy]

Thank you for sharing that memory. I, too, was saddened by his passing. The times he was in Germany, I could not afford it and now I'll never get to see him. But his art lives on. I am Spock was the first real book I read in English, at first understanding only half and getting half of the rest wrong. (Probably most hilariously, I thought Data was a relative of Spock, based on a comment that "Data was envious of Spock's human side.)

Spock, as portrayed by Nimoy, will probably remain my all-time favourite character. I love how he took what could have been a stereotypical robot and gave him a rich inner life and some great comments on humanity.

[mariole]

> I am Spock was the first real book I read in English

That is incredibly awesome! Wow. I remember when fanfic came out-- in authorized books, because there was no internet. I read the title "Spock Must Die!" in the bookstore, and shivers ran through me. I'm such a fan. :D

We owe much to Nimoy's care and development of his character. Especially in Season 3, Roddenberry was absorbed in his next project and left Star Trek to die on the vine. There were no consistent editors, and people would make up the most outrageous "facts" about Vulcans because they fit the story. Nimoy was there to do battle (as the rest of the regular cast was there to battle for their own counterparts). Some of his work-arounds led to some terrific stories. Basically, anything featuring Spock in Season 3 was probably highly influenced by Leonard.

Thanks for dropping in. It's comforting to talk about it.

[illariy]

Oooh yes, I read so many Star Trek novels in the bookshop. ;-) And then I sought out nearby libraries in the hopes of reading older novels, and bought them on a German antiquarian bookshop website as well as annoy my mother by needing to drop by every single library, bookshop or used bookshop we came by to check if they had any Trek books. Then years later, I came upon a zip version of allll the published Trek novels in ebook format and my passion was finally fulfilled :D

Yes, it was pretty interesting to read about season 3 struggles in his later autobiography. But I must admit that book gave me my first shock - I knew Star Trek had been around for many years but only through reading it did I realise that filming had finished and there would be no new episodes nor films with the TOS actors.

It is hugely comforting to talk about it, yes, so much. I particularly love all those links to Nimoy articles. Now off to read the BU address you linked, thank you!

[mariole]

> I came upon a zip version of allll the published Trek novels in ebook format

My head just exploded. I must find this!!!

I got a trove another way. I horse-sat for a friend for 3 weeks, and her home was filled with sf, including all the Trek novels. Wallow, wallow, wallow. Star Trek, you gave me so much.