Star Trek in the News - April 4, 2011

There’s always something going on in the Star Trek universe, whether it’s favorite actors landing new roles or Star Trek extending its pop culture claws into our everyday lives. Here, we take a look at some Star Trek in the news.

This tidbit took us to the final front-ear. A pointy-ear prosthetic, worn by Leonard Nimoy during production of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, went on the auction block this weekend. The ear belonged to the film’s prop master, who kept it wrapped and well maintained for decades before providing it to Premiere Props. Pre-auction estimates for the ear were between $700 and $1400, but the ultimate sale price has not been revealed.

Speaking of Leonard Nimoy, he’s fast becoming the busiest retired man in the galaxy. The Star Trek legend just signed on to provide the voice of Sentinel Prime in the upcoming mega-budget sci-fi sequel Transformers: Dark of the Moon. It’s actually not too surprising that Nimoy got involved with Dark of the Moon. He’d voiced Galvatron in the 1986 animated feature Transformers: The Movie and he’s related to Transformers director Michael Bay. Nimoy’s wife is Susan Bay, the director’s cousin.

Sally Kellerman may be known to millions of Star Trek fans for her role as Elizabeth Dehner in the second TOS pilot, “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” but the Oscar-nominated actress is also a talented singer who’s been taking her smoky voice on the road, literally. Kellerman is opening for veteran comedian Bob Newhart on his current tour.

Staying on the theater front for a moment, let’s catch up with Tony Award winner Donna Murphy, who played Anij in Star Trek: Insurrection, and John Larroquette, who buried himself in prosthetics to portray the Klingon officer Maltz in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. Murphy just started previews for her new Broadway musical, The People in the Picture, by Beaches author Iris Rainer Dart. The show will officially open at the Roundabout Theatre Company/Studio 54 on April 28. Meanwhile, Larroquette is co-starring as J.B. Biggley opposite Daniel Radcliffe’s J. Pierpoint Finch in the Broadway revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. The show opened on March 27 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

Apparently, resistance is still futile when it comes to Jeri Ryan. Body of Proof, the new ABC drama starring the former Voyager actress and Dana Delany, attracted an impressive and promising 13.9 million viewers when it premiered on March 27.

Veteran Star Trek author Kirsten Beyer, who has been penning Simon & Schuster’s Voyager novels for the past several years, will return to bookshelves this spring with Children of the Storm, her first Voyager adventure since Unworthy in 2009. Keep an eye on StarTrek.com for additional news about Children of the Storm.

We’re used to seeing Star Trek referenced in some way, shape or form on Big Bang Theory, Criminal Minds, The Simpsons and The Family Guy, but be sure to check out the April 6 premiere of the new Fox comedy Breaking In. The show stars and is produced by Christian Slater, a lifelong Star Trek aficionado who, as most fans know, made a quickie cameo in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Slater’s character Oz runs a company that tests security systems. And what does he have sitting in his office? Kirk’s captain’s chair. As Oz explains it, “Shatner gave it to us when we helped secure his home from a fanboy stalker.” And that isn’t the only Star Trek reference viewers should expect to see (or hear).