Leonard Nimoy, the charismatic Spock of 'Star Trek,' dies

Los Angeles, Feb 28 (IANS/EFE) Actor Leonard Nimoy, who played the extraterrestrial Mr. Spock in the sci-fi TV series and movie saga "Star Trek," died on Friday at his home in Bel Air, Los Angeles, of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, his family said. He was 83.

Nimoy announced he was suffering from the lung disease in 2014, and blamed it on his years of smoking.

"I quit smoking 30 years ago. Not soon enough," he said on Twitter. "Grandpa says, quit now!!"

Born on March 26, 1931, in Boston, he came an icon of pop culture as Mr. Spock from the planet Vulcan, hugely intelligent, impeccably logical but out of his orbit when it came to being sociable.

Nimoy played Spock in the galactic exploration TV series "Star Trek" between 1966 and 1969, and again in six feature films between 1979 and 1991.

The actor was back on the big screen as Spock in the remake of the saga directed by J.J. Abrams - "Star Trek" in 2009 and "Star Trek: Into the Darkness" in 2013.

The role of Spock, half Vulcan and half human, came to identify Nimoy so completely that he resented everyone thinking that Nimoy was Spock, Spock was Nimoy, and that's as far as it went.

So he plunged down other creative paths like theatre, writing, photography, music...and in 1975 published his first autobiography, significantly entitled "I Am Not Spock."

Yet 20 years later, now resigned to the character and after realising what a contribution he had made to creating it, he published in 1995 his second biography: "I Am Spock."

The Hollywood Chamber of Commerce said on Friday it will place a floral tribute on the star bearing the name of Leonard Nimoy on another "star trek" - the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

--IANS/EFE

vr/