Biography

Leonard Nimoy

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Overview

Born
March 26, 1931 · Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Died
February 27, 2015 · Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, USA (end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease)
Birth name
Leonard Simon Nimoy
Nickname
- Lenny
Height
5′ 11¾″ (1.82 m)

Mini bio

Leonard Simon Nimoy was born in Boston, Massachusetts, to Dora (Spinner) and Max Nimoy, who owned a barbershop. His parents were Ukrainian Jewish immigrants. Raised in a tenement and acting in community theaters since age eight, Nimoy did not make his Hollywood debut until he was 20, with a bit part in Queen for a Day (1951) and another as a ballplayer in the perennial Rhubarb (1951). After two years in the United States Army, he was still getting small, often uncredited parts, like an Army telex operator in Them! (1954). His part as Narab, a Martian finally friendly to Earth, in the closing scene in the corny Republic serial Zombies of the Stratosphere (1952), somewhat foreshadowed the role which would make him a household name: Mr. Spock, the half-human/half-Vulcan science officer on Star Trek (1966) one of television's all-time most successful series. His performance won him three Emmy nominations and launched his career as a writer and director, notably of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986), the story of a humpback whale rescue that proved the most successful of the Star Trek movies. Stage credits have included "Fiddler on the Roof", "Oliver", "Camelot" and "Equus". He has hosted the well-known television series In Search of... (1976) and Ancient Mysteries (1994), authored several volumes of poetry and guest-starred on two episodes of The Simpsons (1989). In the latter years of his career, he played Mustafa Mond in NBC's telling of Aldous Huxley's Brave New World (1998), voiced Sentinel Prime in the blockbuster Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011), and played Spock again in two new Star Trek films, Star Trek (2009) and Star Trek Into Darkness (2013).

Leonard Nimoy died on February 27, 2015 in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 83.
- IMDb mini biography by: Ed Stephan <stephan@cc.wwu.edu>

Family

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Trademarks

Deep baritone voice
Mr. Spock on Star Trek (1966) and eight of the Star Trek films

Trivia

His final Tweet, posted four days before his death, was "A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" (Live Long and Prosper).
The "Vulcan nerve pinch" concept on Star Trek (1966) was invented by Nimoy when he and the series' writers were trying to figure out how an unarmed Spock could overpower an adversary without resorting to violence.
Spoke Hebrew and Yiddish fluently. According to William Shatner's memoir of Nimoy, Leonard later in his life was concerned about losing his fluency in Yiddish because of a lack of practice. So Nimoy found a Yiddish speaking psychiatrist and made an regular appointment with her so he could spend an hour each week speaking the language.
Was the only actor to appear in every episode and both pilots of Star Trek (1966).
Suffered from tinnitus (ringing in the ears), along with Star Trek (1966) co-star William Shatner. Nimoy's right ear and Shatner's left ear were affected. Their hearing was apparently damaged during the filming of the episode Arena (1967), when they were both close to a special effects explosion.

Quotes

[on working with William Shatner on the original Star Trek (1966) series] Bill was very passionate about the work. Unfortunately, Bill was passionate about everything.
Spock is definitely one of my best friends. When I put on those ears, it's not like just another day. When I become Spock, that day becomes something special.
[on being asked to executive-produce the proposed sequel series Star Trek: The Next Generation (1987)] I thanked him and wished him well with the project, but explained it simply couldn't work. I felt the original Star Trek (1966)'s success was due to many factors: the themes, the characters, the chemistry between the actors, the timing (the future-embracing 1960s)... There was simply no way, I told him, that anyone could duplicate all those things and be successful with a second Star Trek show. And so I opted out... While my argument sounded perfectly rational at the time, my ego was certainly involved. When I said to Frank Mancuso and the assembled execs, "How can you hope to capture lightning in a bottle again?", part of me was *really* saying, "How can you ever hope to do it without *us*?"... You know, crow isn't so bad. It tastes like chicken.
My folks came to the US as immigrants, aliens, and became citizens. I was born in Boston, a citizen, went to Hollywood and became an alien.
[on the death of Spock] I thought everything was managed in excellent taste. I feel proud. When it was first suggested to me that Spock would die, I was hesitant. It seemed exploitative. But now that I've seen how it was accomplished, I think it was a very good idea.