LEONARD NIMOY
was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on March 26, 1931. His film debut came 20 years later, in 1951, when he landed a small part in the movie, "Queen for a Day." Subsequent small roles he had in obscure films and serials were a valuable training ground for him. In 1952, his first lead film role came in "Kid Monk Baroni." After a two-year stint in the army, Nimoy went back to work in feature films, television, and theater. During the late '50s and early '60s, Nimoy appeared in all the well-known TV shows of the period including "Wagon Train," "Man from U.N.C.L.E.," "Rawhide," "Perry Mason," and "Combat," to name just a few. He also appeared in several feature films, including "Baffled". However, it was Nimoy's enormous success in the science fiction television series, "Star Trek," which gained him worldwide recognition. First airing in 1966, Nimoy's character, Mr. Spock, would become an icon over the years as the popular television show branched off into syndication and later onto the big screen as a series of six feature films. Nimoy's portrayal of the Vulcan, Spock, earned him three Emmy nominations. Nimoy also became a successful movie director, responsible for "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock" and "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home." His additional contributions to "Star Trek" include story-writing credits on "Star Trek IV" and "Star Trek VI," and involvement as executive producer for "Star Trek VI." His "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home," which focused on the rescue of the humpback whales, is the most successful of the "Star Trek" films to date. Gene Roddenberry, "Star Trek's" creator, called Nimoy "the conscience of 'Star Trek.'" Additional directional credits include "The Good Mother," starring Diane Keaton and Liam Neeson; the blockbuster hit, "Three Men and a Baby," starring Tom Selleck, Ted Danson, and Steve Guttenberg; "Funny About Love," with Gene Wilder, Christine Lahti, and Mary Stuart Masterson; and "Holy Matrimony," starring Patricia Arquette and Joseph Gordon-Levitt. A recent publication listed three of Nimoy's films among the top box-office successes of all time. Nimoy has starred in numerous stage productions, including "Fiddler on the Roof," "Camelot," "Oliver," and "Vincent," a one-man play for which he also served as director and producer. He also had the title role of Sherlock in the Royal Shakespeare Company's hit, "Sherlock Holmes." On Broadway, Nimoy starred in both "Equus" and "Full Circle." On television, he spent two years on the "Mission: Impossible" series and appeared in a number of television movies including "A Woman Called Golda," in which he co-starred opposite Ingrid Bergman (for which he received an Emmy nomination for Best Actor in a Dramatic Special).In 1976, Leonard Nimoy was the narrator of the TV series, "In Search Of", and was the narrator of the Australian TV series, "The Coral Jungle". Nimoy also portrayed the role of "Achmet" in the TV mini-series, "Marco Polo" in 1982.In 1991, Nimoy was seen on TNT in "Never Forget," in which he portrayed a survivor who fought a successful court battle against Holocaust deniers. The show, which he also co-produced with partner Robert Radnitz, was nominated for a Cable ACE Award. Also in 1991, Nimoy was the narrator of the documentary "Ring of Fire". He was also the narrator of "Destiny in Space" in 1994, the documentary "Carpati: 50 Miles, 50 Years" in 1996, and in 1997, narrated "A Life Apart: Hasidism in America", another documentary. Leonard Nimoy portrayed Frank James, one of the legendary outlaws, in 1995's, "Bonanza: Under Attack", an independent TV movie.
In 1996, Leonard Nimoy portrayed the Biblical Prophet, Samuel, in the cable channel, TNT's, production of "David". In 1993, Leonard Nimoy made his first guest appearance on the TV series, "The Simpsons", in the episode, "Marge vs. the Monorail." The second Simpsons episode that Mr. Nimoy "guest-starred" in was the, "The Springfield Files", which aired in January of 1977. Nimoy is also a well-known author. His first autobiography, I AM NOT SPOCK, was published in 1975, followed by a second autobiography, I AM SPOCK, published in 1995 (Hyperion). A story which he co-authored with the late Isaac Asimov is the basis for "PriMortals," a new monthly comic book published by Techno Comix.
