Horses, Trains and Spaceships
By Leonard Nimoy, Acclaimed Actor, Director and Photographer

Executive summary

Leonard Nimoy’s life is one of seemingly small opportunities seen, seized, and turned into huge payoffs. But it is also a life guided by several powerful principles. The sense of honor he gained from his two years in the military. The appreciation for how the little things, the small moments – like a chance exchange with John F. Kennedy after an even more serendipitous cab ride together – can have an outsized impact and literally change your life. The realization that we all have some bit of creativity within us – we just need to take the path of discovery, and learn how to tap our creativity and where best to apply it.

For only by finding our creativity and successfully applying it can we truly "live long and prosper."

Sound bites
"Then my father gave me some advice, the only piece of advice he ever gave me. He said ‘Learn to play the accordion. You can always make a living if you can play the accordion.’"
"In search of honor, I got on a train and went to that citadel of honor: Hollywood."
Re: Picking up John F Kennedy in LA while driving a cab: "Your business [acting] is a lot like mine. But keep in mind: There’s always room for another good one.’ And that made a big impression on me."

Confluence 2009 - Keynote Summaries, Keynote Address

Leonard Nimoy - the most quotable man yet!

Leonard Nimoy speaks not only about his experience bringing to life "Spock," but also about how he made ends meet pre-Star Trek (stints in Bonanza and taxi driving), advice he received from his father and never followed ("learn to play the accordian"), and what virtue motives him the most ("virtue"). Simply unforgettable!

Confluence: The most quotable...

Mr. Nimoy’s talking about the JFK quote and how you have to put yourself in the work-things he’s mentioned before. His voice sounds a little softer than usual.

Leonard Nimoy Recognized as Morton Visiting Artist

Though perhaps most well known for his role as Mr. Spock in the Star Trek TV series and movie franchise, Leonard Nimoy also enjoys a career as a photographer. On February 6, UAB hosted the acclaimed actor and artist at the UAB Visual Arts Gallery as the Department of Art and Art History’s 2009 John Morton Visiting Artist.

“Because of his fame as an actor and director, Leonard Nimoy brought attention to the UAB art department from different constituencies than we usually attract to our visiting artist programs,” says Erin Wright, chair of the Department of Art and Art History. “In turn, I think we gave people an opportunity to see another, albeit different, creative side of his personality.”

Nimoy’s interest in photography began in his teenage years, and he later studied the subject at UCLA in the 1970s. His works include “The Full Body Project,” an examination of concepts of beauty and sexuality, and “The Shekhina Project,” a work about the feminine essence of God.

“John Morton working to bring artists of Leonard Nimoy’s stature to UAB is a testament to his desire to give students the opportunity to experience art firsthand,” Wright adds. “In addition to his support for the visiting artist series that bears his name, he also has made his own significant collection available for students to see and study. There is nothing like being able to see actual works of art and hear the creator speak about his or her inspiration and technique. John strives to make that possible for our students.”

Nimoy and his wife spoke about how they came to become avid art collectors — their interaction was sweetly and sincerely affectionate, underscoring their shared passion and hands-on approach to their acquisitions. The two spend hours personally touring artists’ galleries, selecting and compiling pieces for their private collection (presented in slide show photos of their home) guided primarily by how the work resonates with them, rather than by adhering to any specific trends, style or genre.

Nimoy-Gate

On April 3rd, 1973, Leonard Nimoy came to Cottey. He gave an evening lecture, “The Life and Death of a Series Character”, to a full audience in Rosemary Auditorium.1,2 Nimoy was scheduled to meet informally with students at the B.I.L. Lodge earlier that day, but canceled it at the last minute.3 (Oddly, the Nevada Daily Mail states that this meeting did happen, and even recounts what was supposedly discussed, “from politics to sensuality.”1) Students were disappointed and dismayed. Karen O’Leary, a Cottey Senior at the time, writes, “Word got out that several students were planning to boycott his lecture, so the administration made it known to the student body that attendance would be taken that evening.”3

The events that followed have developed into a kind of legend. Former Cottey professor Charles Nash has written a second-hand account of Nimoy’s lecture, stating that “Mr. Nimoy showed up so royally sauced that he preferred lying down on the floor of Rosemary Auditorium to standing behind the podium.”4 However, this was not the case. Nimoy did not appear drunk at the lecture, just “somewhat disoriented and moody,” as Randy Jiner puts it.5 Jiner lived in Nevada when Nimoy came to town, and attended the lecture to see his Star Trek hero. He remembers, “[Nimoy] pissed us all off right at the beginning because the microphone was making noise or something. He snickered and sneered, ‘Expensive microphone’. That was rude. The girls did everything they could to make him feel at home, and he seemed to look down on it all.”

Nimoy gave Nevada’s notoriously foul water a try during the lecture. “He asked for a glass of water and the audience went ‘Woooooooo!’ in anticipation. The look on his face was priceless. Needless to say, he didn’t like it. He said it tasted like something they used on Vulcan for medicinal purposes.”5 The Daily Mail described Nimoy “rambl[ing] across the stage as he spoke, drinking enormous quantities of Nevada water, which he compared to an acid used in one series.”1

As Golden Key president, Karen O’Leary was charged with planning a reception for Mr. Nimoy after his address. She recalls that Nimoy “was so rude to the students that only the administration and a few faculty showed up…”3 Star Trek had been a favorite show of Cotteyites, O’Leary notes, but “you could walk all over campus the next week at 4:00 and not see one student watching Star Trek reruns… It was quite the phenomena!”

Works Cited:

1. “Nimoy Gives Inside View of Acting.”  Nevada Daily Mail [Nevada, MO] 4 Apr. 1973: 9. Google news. Web.
2. “Personal Mentions.” Nevada Daily Mail [Nevada, MO] 4 Apr. 1973: 3.
3. O’Leary, Karen. Personal interview. 2-3 Apr. 2010.
4. Nash, Charles C. “Lansing and Byer—here’s looking at you, kids!” Nevada Daily Mail [Nevada, MO] 1 Apr. 2001: 4A. Web. (See also: Nash, Dr. Charles. “Memories of Inez Byer.” Cottey Viewpoint. Winter 2008. Print.)
5. Jiner, Randy. Personal Interview. Feb. 2011.