So Long Leonard

I was saddened today to read that Leonard Nimoy has passed away in California. Like just about everyone, I knew him as Mr. Spock on the old Star Trek movies and TV shows.

It is odd when a celebrity dies, for the most part I just say "sorry to hear about that" and move on. But when it is someone who touched your childhood, it goes deeper. I'll let someone with a psychology background figure that out.

When I was a kid I loved Star Trek and the spinoff series with Patrick Stewart. I have probably seen every episode 2-3 times. Wrath of Khan is also among my favourite sci-fi films of all time, and I think much of it has held up even today (it came out the same year I was born!). Star Trek was great because it was our future where we had finally gotten our shit together as a species. No more racism, war, poverty etc. While some (much) of the original series is fairly cheezy by modern standards (space hippies?) the message holds, and is still important, maybe more than ever.

Later Star Trek series and the next generation films never really lived up to the original two series for me, and as I got in to my teenage years Star Trek faded, though I could then (and even now I bet) go back and watch the original series and the next generation and get real enjoyment out of it. It was not only exciting, but damn smart. The Abrams movies have a sort of Walking Dead appeal (this is great if you never stop to think about it) but the greater message is gone, replaced by lense flares and explosions designed to entertain millenials. But it does go well with weed, beer and popcorn, so I guess that is something.

Nimoy played a crucial role in the show, but was also a great guy outside the role, and it showed. He touched the childhood of millions of people in a very positive way. The show made science, exploration and generally improving yourself an ideal, but not in an after school special way that made you immediately want to take up drinking and smoking so you would never turn in to the kids from that special. Rather, the show inspired you, while also entertaining you. While there is a lot of great television shows out today, none seem to similarly inspire, which is sad. I guess I was just lucky to have something like that in my childhood and Leonard Nimoy was a huge part of that. I think that is a feeling shared by millions of people around the world. He will be missed.