Star Trek Day Featured a Touching Tribute to Nichelle Nichols
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura in STAR TREK. Image: Paramount.
SEPTEMBER 8, 2022 - Nichelle Nichols, unfortunately, didn’t quite make it to Star Trek Day this year, but her star was still shining at the official celebrations of the day yesterday from the Skirball Center in Los Angeles. One of the highlights of the day, among the interviews, trailers, and announcements, was a tribute to Nichols by some of the current cast and crew from the Star Trek universe.
Those expressing their sense of inspiration included Dawnn Lewis, Sonequa Martin-Green, Hanelle Culpepper, Kate Mulgrew, Michelle Hurd, and Tawny Newsome.
Hurd noted the control and power for women of color that Nichols represented, while executive producer Jenny Lumet said that Nichols allowed them to “exist in an intellectual space.”
Celia Rose Gooding, who currently plays Nyota Uhura on Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, said, “She had this air of limitlessness….It is an honor to try and have even a fraction of the impact that she had.”
And while Newsome said that it is “impossible to try and encapsulate what she means,” Alex Kurtzman gave it a try when he concluded, “The work of Star Trek has always been to make people believe that our better angels will win. There is no better angel than Nichelle Nichols.”
As we all continue to remember Nichelle Nichols and celebrate her legacy, you can watch the entire video tribute at Star Trek.
David is a contributing writer for Daily Star Trek News on the Roddenberry Podcast Network. He is a librarian, baseball fan, and book and movie buff. He has also written for American Libraries and Skeptical Inquirer. David also enjoys diverse music, but leans toward classical and jazz. He plays a mean radio.
