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Star Trek Meme: Day 8
Jun. 12th, 2015 10:03 pmDay 8 - Your favorite actor/actress? (Not the same as character.)
Great Maker, as Londo Mollari would say on another tv show, I can't. First of all, favorite in what sense - acting prowess, public persona, admirable deeds outside of acting? Secondly, between four shows and all the movies, everybody and their twin have guest starred in Star Trek. I mean, I could list Andreas Katsulas here (who played Tomalak the Romulan on TNG before he became G'Kar on B5, and one time afterwards, too), just to be coy.
But even were I to limit myself to the regulars and to the recurring on a regular basis guest stars, there'd still be a huge number of actors I'm very fond of in any or all of these categories, and sometimes what endeared or impressed me about them isn't ST related at all - George Takei, the most politically active of the TOS cast, wrote arguably the most interesting memoirs (due to the vivid description of internment as a Japanese-American during WWII), and then started a late life career on the net via hilarious memes and net activisim, but while I like Sulu (and got a kick of GT showing up as Hiro's father in Heroes), I wouldn't say Takei struck me as a very versatile actor. Walter Koenig, otoh, whom I only discovered as an actor due to JMS writing the part of Bester for him on Babylon 5, and he took and ran with the chance. (He also wrote probably the most insightful and wittiest of the TOS cast memoirs.) Nichelle Nichols had to put up with so much racism and sexism throughout her life without letting it plow her under, and is an amazingly graceful lady, not to mention that I adore Uhura, but I only saw her in one or two non-Trek roles, both bit parts, so I can't say I was swept away by her as an actress. Otoh, Brent Spiner was excellent in all I've seen him in, but the one time I watched him do a Q & A at a convention I certainly had a bad impression of him as a person. And so forth.
But I would be an utter hypocrite to deny there's one particular actor who got introduced to me via Star Trek, whose acting I found and find fantastic in most parts (which is why when I have the chance to watch him on stage, I take it), whose putdowns of annoying reporters eager to sneer at Star Trek fans are perfect and whose activism against domestic violence makes me think his public persona at least is that of someone I can admire as well. Whom am I kidding? Of course Patrick Stewart is my favourite.
( The other days )
Great Maker, as Londo Mollari would say on another tv show, I can't. First of all, favorite in what sense - acting prowess, public persona, admirable deeds outside of acting? Secondly, between four shows and all the movies, everybody and their twin have guest starred in Star Trek. I mean, I could list Andreas Katsulas here (who played Tomalak the Romulan on TNG before he became G'Kar on B5, and one time afterwards, too), just to be coy.
But even were I to limit myself to the regulars and to the recurring on a regular basis guest stars, there'd still be a huge number of actors I'm very fond of in any or all of these categories, and sometimes what endeared or impressed me about them isn't ST related at all - George Takei, the most politically active of the TOS cast, wrote arguably the most interesting memoirs (due to the vivid description of internment as a Japanese-American during WWII), and then started a late life career on the net via hilarious memes and net activisim, but while I like Sulu (and got a kick of GT showing up as Hiro's father in Heroes), I wouldn't say Takei struck me as a very versatile actor. Walter Koenig, otoh, whom I only discovered as an actor due to JMS writing the part of Bester for him on Babylon 5, and he took and ran with the chance. (He also wrote probably the most insightful and wittiest of the TOS cast memoirs.) Nichelle Nichols had to put up with so much racism and sexism throughout her life without letting it plow her under, and is an amazingly graceful lady, not to mention that I adore Uhura, but I only saw her in one or two non-Trek roles, both bit parts, so I can't say I was swept away by her as an actress. Otoh, Brent Spiner was excellent in all I've seen him in, but the one time I watched him do a Q & A at a convention I certainly had a bad impression of him as a person. And so forth.
But I would be an utter hypocrite to deny there's one particular actor who got introduced to me via Star Trek, whose acting I found and find fantastic in most parts (which is why when I have the chance to watch him on stage, I take it), whose putdowns of annoying reporters eager to sneer at Star Trek fans are perfect and whose activism against domestic violence makes me think his public persona at least is that of someone I can admire as well. Whom am I kidding? Of course Patrick Stewart is my favourite.
( The other days )
