Those of you who are regular viewers of the Emmy Awards probably know they host an “In Memorium” section every year, where the industry recognises the achievements and impact of those television stars who have taken their final voyage to Shakespeare’s Undiscovered Country.
This year “In Memorium” paid tribute to two bright Star Trek stars, the legendary Leonard Nimoy, and writer/producer Harve Bennett – the man often lauded as the saviour of the Star Trek movie series.
TrekNews have a link to the tribute which you can watch here. Leonard is featured at around the 3:20 mark.
Leonard Nimoy was, and for many always will be, Spock. Though the actor originally bucked against that, he eventually came to accept it, and, like a lot of us, love Spock.
Leonard was born on the 26th of March 1931 in Boston Massachusetts, and passed away in February in Los Angeles.
As Spock, he touched millions of lives around the world – inspiring many of us and helping a lot of us feel less alone. Spock was an underdog. The only Vulcan in Starfleet, he was half Vulcan and half human and barely accepted by either. He was torn between two worlds and two cultures and that difficult reality spoke to many people in the 1960’s, and continues to speak to millions today. Spock was, and still is, a hero for anyone who has ever felt isolated and alone or in some way divided and confused. Leonard injected so much subtle emotion and pathos into the original Spock that the character will live on for generations.
Leonard’s career was long and varied. As the only Star Trek actor to appear in both the very first pilot (“The Cage” in 1964) and the second pilot (“Where No Man Has Gone Before” in 1966), as well as every episode of the original series, all six original series films (two of which he directed), Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the J.J. Abrams reboot (both 2009’s Star Trek and 2013’s Star Trek Into Darkness), he was embraced by multiple generations – but he was more than Spock. He was also an accomplished director, poet, author and photographer and acted in multiple other productions throughout the course of his life.
Since Leonard’s passing there have been many tributes to him, most of them quite beautiful. Just Google his name and you’ll find a number of them online.
While the Emmy tribute is brief, as they are honouring many stars who have passed away, it’s always wonderful to see a person remembered by their peers.
Rest in peace, Leonard. I still can’t believe you’re gone.
Harve Bennett really did save the Star Trek film series.
While some fans love Star Trek: The Motion Picture (I’m one of them) and some rank it as their least favourite, it did meander a bit and the film failed to create any real sense of jeopardy for the crew of the Enterprise. It did very well at the Box Office, but it was an expensive movie that many thought failed to capture the spirit of the original series.
Rather than abandon the potential of a film series, Paramount turned to Harve Bennett and gave Star Trek one more chance on the big screen.
Harve more than delivered. He was the head of a creative team that produced what, for many fans, is still the absolute best Star Trek film of all time – Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan.
Born on August 17 1930 in Chicago, Harve started his professional life in the US Army serving in the Military Police Corps. After the army, he worked for CBS, then ABC where he became the Vice President of Daytime Programming.
He worked with Aaron Spelling, produced shows like the Six Million Dollar Man, The Bionic Woman and Rich Man, Poor Man.
When recruited to breathe new life into the Star Trek franchise he took to it with zeal. As well as Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, Harve Bennett went on to produce Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (which he also acted in). But, he didn’t just produce, Harve wrote STIII:TSFS, co-wrote STIV:TVH and co-wrote the story for STV:TFF.
Though Harve finished his time with Star Trek after the less than successful Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, his positive impact on the franchise cannot be denied, and he is remembered fondly by the actors and fans of the series.
Harve passed away only a few days after Leonard on the 25th of February this year.
Thank you, Mr Bennett, for everything you did for Star Trek.
scifimojo.com 