Another of my childhood idols/heroes gone. I comfort knowing that, while Mr. Nimoy is gone, Mr. Spock will live on in the hearts and minds of us all.
Most illogical, but perfectly human.
I take comfort…
Just a day or so before Nimoys passing I had been pondering how many of the stars of TV / movies I grew up watching in the 60’s – 70’s were gone. Adding Nimoy to that growing list is a tough one, he was one of the most iconic stars of my life.
In 2010, the annual National Space Society conference in Colorado Springs honored Leonard Nimoy for lifetime achievement. He received the award with the most amazingly funny, yet poignant, acceptance speech I’ve ever heard. He began by expressing gratitude at the award, but gratitude mixed with mystification. He said that he knew nothing about space, and though he admired what all of us in the audience he had achieved, he comprehended little of it. Then he proceeded to go through the story of his life, and it was amazing.
The number of odd jobs he worked reflected an era of a work ethic that I don’t see today, and believe would not be possible given the government restrictions in place today. It was astonishing that he was able to pursue acting in that context, but did. Then he went through his early acting experiences in Westerns, and finally to Star Trek. The stories from there were wonderful, including the origin of the Vulcan hand sign and the Vulcan nerve pinch. What was most wonderful was his delivery. Nimoy had a sense of humor that ran through everything he did. It was in such stark contrast to the Spock character that it took some time to absorb. But I and the rest of the people in the audience finally did, and I think all of us are grateful to have heard him speak. Leonard Nimoy faced the world with eternal optimism, and greeted all of it with humor. He accomplished quite a bit in his career, and I’m very glad to have heard about it from him.
“He’ll never really be dead as long as we find ways to remember him.”
Another of my childhood idols/heroes gone. I comfort knowing that, while Mr. Nimoy is gone, Mr. Spock will live on in the hearts and minds of us all.
Most illogical, but perfectly human.
I take comfort…
Just a day or so before Nimoys passing I had been pondering how many of the stars of TV / movies I grew up watching in the 60’s – 70’s were gone. Adding Nimoy to that growing list is a tough one, he was one of the most iconic stars of my life.
In 2010, the annual National Space Society conference in Colorado Springs honored Leonard Nimoy for lifetime achievement. He received the award with the most amazingly funny, yet poignant, acceptance speech I’ve ever heard. He began by expressing gratitude at the award, but gratitude mixed with mystification. He said that he knew nothing about space, and though he admired what all of us in the audience he had achieved, he comprehended little of it. Then he proceeded to go through the story of his life, and it was amazing.
The number of odd jobs he worked reflected an era of a work ethic that I don’t see today, and believe would not be possible given the government restrictions in place today. It was astonishing that he was able to pursue acting in that context, but did. Then he went through his early acting experiences in Westerns, and finally to Star Trek. The stories from there were wonderful, including the origin of the Vulcan hand sign and the Vulcan nerve pinch. What was most wonderful was his delivery. Nimoy had a sense of humor that ran through everything he did. It was in such stark contrast to the Spock character that it took some time to absorb. But I and the rest of the people in the audience finally did, and I think all of us are grateful to have heard him speak. Leonard Nimoy faced the world with eternal optimism, and greeted all of it with humor. He accomplished quite a bit in his career, and I’m very glad to have heard about it from him.
“He’ll never really be dead as long as we find ways to remember him.”
As Jerry Seinfeld reminded us.