‘He won’t be forgotten’
On Twitter, Stewart expresses his sorrow over the news of Nimoy’s passing.
It is with sadness that I heard of Leonard Nimoy's death. I was lucky to spend many happy, inspiring hours with him. He won't be forgotten.
— Patrick Stewart (@SirPatStew) February 27, 2015
Leonard Nimoy dies age 83
Nimoy, 83, dies of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease at his Bel Air home.
Three Men and A Baby
Nimoy directs Three Men and a Baby, a comedy about three bachelors adapting their lives around the arrival of a baby. The film grosses $167 million dollars in the US alone and wins the 1988 People’s Choice award for Favorite Comedy.
Death on a Barge
Nimoy makes his directorial debut during the 3rd season of Rod Serling’s Night Gallery. Death on a Barge, the 13th episode of that season, stars Lesley Ann Warren as a woman whose father confines her to a barge because she’s a vampire.
Leonard Nimoy born in Boston
Leonard Simon Nimoy is born in Boston, MA, to Dora and Max, orthodox Jewish immigrants from the Ukraine. Max owns a barbershop. He has an older brother, Melvin. He attends Boston English High School.He speaks and reads Yiddish.
My first language was English. but I needed to speak Yiddish with my grandparents.
On the famous Vulcan salute:
I grew up in an interesting inner-city neighborhood in Boston. The area was known as the West End and was written about in a book called the Urban Villagers. It was a desirable area since it was within walking distance of downtown Boston and the Boston Commons, as well as being situated along the banks of the Charles River. The population was mostly immigrants. Maybe 70% Italian and 25% Jewish. My family attended services in an Orthodox Jewish Synagogue, or “Shul.” We were especially attentive to the high holidays, Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement.
Since I was somewhat musical, I was hired as a young boy to sing in choirs for the holidays and I was therefore exposed to all of the rituals firsthand. I still have a vivid memory of the first time I saw the use of the split-fingered hands being extended to the congregation in blessing. There were a group of five or six men facing the congregation and chanting in passionate shouts of a Hebrew benediction. It would translate to “May the Lord bless you and keep you,”…etc. My Dad said, “Don’t look.”
I learned later that it is believed that during this prayer, the “Shekhina,” the feminine aspect of God comes into the temple to bless the congregation. The light from this Deity could be very damaging. So we are told to protect ourselves by closing our eyes. I peeked. And when I saw the split-fingered gesture of these men… I was entranced. I learned to do it simply because it seemed so magical. It was probably 25 years later that I introduced that gesture as a Vulcan greeting in Star Trek and it has resonated with fans around the world ever since. It gives me great pleasure since it is, after all, a blessing.