No, he wasn’t a classroom teacher, though he did have a Masters in Education. Or a scientist, though he played one as Spock on Star Trek. But to so many of us, he was the catalyst that sparked a love of all things scientific, alien and was one of the founding fathers of the science fiction so many of us came to love. His voice was one that once heard, was not easily forgotten. How many of us as children and adults have giddily relished our ability to do the Vulcan Salute or mourned our inability to get our darn fingers to do it?
Leondard Nimoy died today and like his famous quote – his legacy will live long and prosper.
“The miracle is this – the more we share, the more we have.” Leonard Nimoy
A lovely short tribute to Mr. Nimoy: The Man Who Was Spock
Rest in peace Mr. Nimoy.
labcoatsandbookjackets 
My dad was a huge Star Trek fan when I was a kid. I never liked Star Trek because it wasn’t exciting enough for my five year old self. The meaning of the show was completely lost to me, too. I found out only a few months ago that the show is actually fantastic and overarching theme was really about addressing complex moral and philosophical issues that just happen to have some Science Fiction thrown into the mix.
I watched The Wrath of Khan for the first time on Netflix only two weeks ago where (spoiler alert) Spock dies. It was surreal to find out Leonard Nimoy passed away while The Wrath of Khan was fresh in my mind. I was immediately reminded of Captain Kirk’s speech for spock:
“We are assembled here today to pay final respects to our honored dead. And yet it should be noted, in the midst of our sorrow, this death takes place in the shadow of new life, the sunrise of a new world; a world that our beloved comrade gave his life to protect and nourish. He did not feel this sacrifice a vain or empty one, and we will not debate his profound wisdom at these proceedings. Of my friend, I can only say this: Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels, his was the most…. human.”
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I grew up watching Star Trek (it was in re-runs by then) and I’ve probably seen 90-100% of them. I loved them. Totally campy but the characters were so hard not to like. And the cast was pretty diverse for that time period. And you’re right – there were much bigger themes at play it was pretty cutting edge for it’s time.
There have been few celebrity deaths that struck such a strong chord – Adam Yauch of the Beastie Boys, Robin Williams and now Nimoy – and I suspect it is because they were such huge figures when I was growing up.
I guess it just feels like the end of an era, Star Trek will go on (the new movies are pretty good), but it won’t be quite the same.
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