Nichelle Nichols, Uhura in ‘Star Trek,’ Dies at 89
By Curt_Anderson July 31, 2022 1:10 pm Category: Star Trek (5.0 from 1 vote)
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Nichelle Nichols, who portrayed communications officer Uhura on the original “Star Trek” series, died Saturday night in Silver City, N.M. She was 89 years old.
This isn't the biggest obituary of the day. Celtics great Bill Russell also died. He will deservedly have a lot written about him including his civil rights activities.
Nichelle Nichols also moved race relations forward. According to Variety,
Nichols shared one of the first interracial kisses in television history on “Star Trek.” That moment, with her co-star William Shatner, was a courageous move on the part of her, “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry and NBC considering the climate at the time, but the episode “Plato’s Stepchildren,” which aired in 1968, was written to give all involved an out: Uhura and Captain Kirk did not choose to kiss but were instead made to do so involuntarily by aliens with the ability to control the movements of humans. Nevertheless, it was a landmark moment.
The Uhura-Kirk kiss was likely the first televised white/African American lip-to-lip kiss.
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