Leonard Nimoy

Biography

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)_ (qv) and another as a ballplayer in the perennial _Rhubarb (1951)_ (qv). After two years in the United States Army, he was still getting small, often uncredited parts, like an Army telex operator in _Them! (1954)_ (qv). His part as Narab, a Martian finally friendly to Earth, in the closing scene in the corny Republic serial _Zombies of the Stratosphere (1952)_ (qv), somewhat foreshadowed the role which would make him a household name: Mr. Spock, the half-human/half-Vulcan science officer on _"Star Trek" (1966)_ (qv) 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)_ (qv), 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)_ (qv) and _"Ancient Mysteries" (1994)_ (qv), authored several volumes of poetry and guest-starred on two episodes of _"The Simpsons" (1989)_ (qv). In the latter years of his career, he played Mustafa Mond in NBC's telling of 'Aldous Huxley' (qv)'s _Brave New World (1998) (TV)_ (qv), voiced Sentinel Prime in the blockbuster _Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)_ (qv), and played Spock again in two new Star Trek films, _Star Trek (2009)_ (qv) and _Star Trek: Into Darkness (2013)_ (qv). Leonard Nimoy died on February 27, 2015 in Bel Air, Los Angeles, California, of end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was 83.