March 17, 2006. Copyright 2006, Graphic News. All rights reserved

William Shatner
By Joanna Griffin

LONDON, March 17, Graphic News:  On the eve of his 75th birthday, William Shatner is revelling in perhaps the best reviews of his long career. Critical acclaim for his television portrayal of eccentric lawyer Denny Crane seems a long way from the affectionate parodying of the wooden acting and stilted speech of the role for which he is known best, Star TrekÕs Captain James Tiberius Kirk.

In some ways, his two Emmy awards for Crane (in 2004 and 2005) complete a cycle for Shatner, who trained as a classical Shakespearean actor and had a clutch of stage and screen credits in serious dramas to his name before Star Trek turned him into a caricature of pop culture. Shatner bounced back by poking fun at his superhuman Star Trek persona.

Like his co-star Leonard Nimoy, William Shatner is of Ukranian Jewish descent. Born in Montreal on March 22, 1931, he graduated in commerce and appeared on stage and screen in Canada before moving to New York City to seek his fortune. He made his U.S. film debut in The ButlerÕs Night Off (1951) and appeared in movies including The Intruder (1962) and Judgment at Nuremberg (1961).

In 1966, Shatner found the role that would erase all his other film incarnations from the public imagination for a while. If in the original Star Trek series Captain Kirk was a dashing, over confident hero, ShatnerÕs portrayal of him in the seven Star Trek movies in the 1980s and 1990s were endearingly tongue-in-cheek, winning the actor new fans.

Despite publicly berating ŌTrekkiesĶ for their nerdy obsession with the show, Shatner himself good-naturedly exploited his link with Star Trek, writing TekWar and several sci-fi novels linked to the series and regularly talking about it in public. He also spoofed his Star Trek acting style and status in movies such as Airplane II: The Sequel (1982).

In the post-Star Trek years, Shatner is probably best remembered as the veteran cop T.J. Hooker of the 1980s television show. He also hosted the reality TV show, Rescue 911, and produced and directed episodes of the cable series, TekWar. In 1994, he squeezed into his lycra suit for a last outing as Captain Kirk in Star Trek: Generations.

Always up for a challenge, Shatner has also been unable to resist putting his voice to music and has recorded several spoken word renditions of songs such as the BeatlesÕ Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds and Elton JohnÕs Rocket Man.

Shatner's personal life has not always progressed as smoothly. In 1999, his third wife Nerine Kidd, who was battling alcohol addiction, accidentally drowned in the coupleÕs swimming pool.
/ENDS