McSTREAMY.COM (02/28/2015) – Leonard Nimoy, 83, has made that final, long trek through the stars. One could say, he lived a long life and prospered. No one could have been a better Spock than he in the television and movie series called Star Trek, and, no one has. As Spock, Nimoy taught us much about life.
Nimoy died on February 27, 2015 at the age of 83 in his Bel Air home from complications of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. He was survived by his wife, two children, six grandchildren and a great-grandchild.
A few days before his death, Nimoy shared some of his poetry on social media website Twitter:
“A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP” [Live Long and Prosper].
Although his most shining accomplishment was as the Star Trek character named Mr. Spock, which endeared him to millions of Star Trek fans throughout the world, he appeared in numerous other roles through his long career. His earliest roles included a 1951 movie called “Rhubarb”, in which he played a young baseball player.
“Rhubarb”, simply put, was about baseball and how a cat named Rhubarb inherited a baseball team owner’s fortune, and complications thereof. The delightful movie from Paramount Pictures starred Ray Milland and Jan Sterling.
In the movie, Thaddeus J. Banner, a lonely, eccentric millionaire who owns a baseball team called the Brooklyn Loons, takes a liking to a dog-chasing stray cat, and takes him into his home. He names the cat “Rhubarb,” which is baseball slang for an on-field argument or fight.
When the man dies, it is discovered that his will makes Rhubarb his sole beneficiary, which basically means the cat inherits the baseball team. Team publicist Eric Yeager (Milland) is named the cat’s guardian. His fiancee Polly Sickles (Sterling), daughter of the team’s manager, is terribly allergic to Rhubarb, causing many problems. The cat gets kidnapped, and the fun begins.
Leonard Nimoy has an uncredited role in “Rhubarb”, but, if you watch carefully, you’ll see a relatively young Nimoy appearing as a young ballplayer.
The movie, itself, made a memorable impression on this writer when seen as a young movie theater goer in the early 1950s. It’s too bad the motion picture hasn’t been seen on television often for everyone to enjoy. Perhaps you might find it in the video stores and take home a dvd, or maybe an old VHS tape, to play for you and your family to enjoy.
Nimoy died one month short of his 84th birthday. He was born March 26, 1931 in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. During his long career from 1951 to 2013, he was an actor, film director, poet, photographer, singer, songwriter, author, husband, father, and fondly remembered friend to many.
On Twitter, Star Trek co-star William Shatner wrote of his friend:
“I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love.”
George Takei, who played Hikaru Sulu in the original Star Trek television series and the movie versions, stated:
“The word extraordinary is often overused, but I think it’s really appropriate for Leonard. He was an extraordinarily talented man, but he was also a very decent human being.”
Leonard Nimoy wrote two autobiographies. The first one was called “I Am Not Spock”, published in 1971. The second, in 1995, was titled, “I Am Spock”.
On the music side of Nimoy, he recorded five albums of songs, including his version of “Proud Mary” and “I Walk the Line”. Some of the songs on his Dot Records albums were co-written by Nimoy.
Leonard Nimoy had a varied life outside of portraying Spock on television and movie screens. He was a pilot who owned his own airplane; a voice actor in various projects; appeared in music videos by other artists, including The Bangles and Bruno Mars; an on-screen actor in nearly 50 films; had 43 roles in various television shows from 1954-2012, including Dragnet, Seahunt, Wagon Train, Bonanza, Gunsmoke, Twilight Zone, Rawhide, Perry Mason, The Virginian, Mission Impossible, T. J. Hooker, Outer Limits, Futurama, Becker, Fringe, and The Big Bang Theory; directed and produced; wrote screenplays; and so much more.
Leonard Nimoy lived a long, fruitful life. During that time he not only prospered financially, he also prospered in the family and friend relationships he and they experienced during his time on earth.
As for his role as Mr. Spock: Many of us learned about the value of logic in running our personal lives from Spock’s disapproving words, “That’s not logical.” We also hoped that we, too, would “Live Long and Prosper”. That greeting from Spock also encouraged many of us to wish only goodwill upon our friends, family members and acquaintances as we, ourselves, go through our lives.
Some of us knew in our hearts that the words, bravado and logical behavior of Spock on-screen would never have rung so true, without the believability of the actor who portrayed that unforgettable character, so well. Thank you, Leonard Nimoy.
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