Nichelle Nichols, turning 85 today and still busy acting, talks about life after 'Star Trek'

[n2doc]

Diversity and inclusion on the screen — and behind the scenes — wasn't a hot topic when, on Sept. 8, 1966, "Star Trek" premiered. Yet when Gene Roddenberry's little show introduced Nichelle Nichols to the world as Lt. Nyota Uhura of the Starship Enterprise, she unknowingly inspired millions of young girls and boys, African American and otherwise.

A black woman being given the responsibilities of a bridge crew officer — even in the fictional setting of space — was unheard of in the TV landscape of the 1960s. But Nichols’ performance, with little fanfare at the time, gave generations to come a template of what a sophisticated, multi-talented actress could do.

More than 50 years later, Nichols is still going strong. The musician-turned-actress turns 85 on Thursday and hasn’t stopped working. Just this week, a couple of days before her birthday, she was on set filming the sci-fi parody "Unbelievable!!!" The film, which boasts 40 former “Star Trek” actors — including Michael Dorn, Nana Visitor, Tim Russ, Marina Sirtis and Nichols' onetime "Trek" co-star Walter Koenig — follows the exploits of four astronauts (one is an animatronic marionette) who travel to the moon on a rescue mission.

Nichols is also working on "Noah's Room," a film about a black family that takes in a white youth who's been abused by the foster care system. She plays the matriarch of the family in the faith-based drama.

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http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-nichelle-nichols-20171228-htmlstory.html

[Princess Turandot]

1. From her visit in 2012 with PBO...

She also worked with NASA on outreach for several years.

[NewJeffCT]

2. beautiful picture

and, I think Obama was a big fan of the show, at least growing up he was.

[Staph]

3. Live long and prosper, Beautiful Lady!

She was quite the role model for this little white girl in the 1960s. A woman on the bridge, a woman who had a voice among the leadership. I wanted to be an astronaut because of her. And ended up in the tech industry, still one of the few females in the room, but I was a voice that people listened to!

Thank you, Nichelle!

[pokerfan]

4. Peace and long life

Uhura means 'freedom' and Nyota means 'star.'

More trivia: Nichols almost left after the first year...

When Nichols told Gene Roddenberry she wasn’t planning to return to the series after the first season, he advised her to think about it for a couple of days. At a fundraiser the next night, one of the organizers told her there was someone there who really wanted to meet her because he was her greatest fan.

“When I turned around, I was looking into the face of Dr. Martin Luther King, walking toward me with a big smile on his face,” she recalled. “And he said, ‘Yes, Miss Nichols, I am your greatest fan.’ How amazing is that! My mouth kept opening and closing as he began to tell me what my role meant, not just to ‘Star Trek,’ but for people all over the world.

“When I could finally catch my breath after hearing so many accolades from a man I considered as my leader, I thanked him and then told him I was leaving the series. His face completely changed and he said, ‘No! You are our image of where we’re going, you’re 300 years from now, and that means that’s where we are and it takes place now. Keep doing what you’re doing, you are our inspiration.’”

And then the leader of the civil rights movement told Nichols, “Besides, ‘Star Trek’ is the only show that my wife, Coretta, and I will allow our little children to stay up late and watch. YOU are their hero.”

https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/11/29/gene-roddenberry-son-star-trek_n_1119119.html

And just for fun...

[Nonhlanhla]

5. Star Trek,

for all its silliness, did indeed boldly go where few were willing to go before.

May she live long and prosper.