We lost Leonard Nimoy last week, the multi-talented actor who is best known for his portrayal of the Vulcan-Human Mr. Spock, on the short-but-long-lived television series “Star Trek.” The cool and logical became the patron saint of nerdy teenagers everywhere (including this guy, who wrote a tribute to the actor that started, “Long before being nerdy was cool…”
Nimoy, who grew up speaking Yiddish, brought a piece of an Orthdox blessing to the universe at large with his signature sign-off, “Life long and prosper” with the accompanying hand gesture, which is the shape, according to a 2013 interview with Nimoy, of the Hebrew letter shin. From the Washington Post:
The Hebrew letter shin, he noted, is the first letter in several Hebrew words, including Shaddai (a name for God), Shalom (the word for hello, goodbye and peace) and Shekhinah, which he defined as “the feminine aspect of God who supposedly was created to live among humans.”
This weekend, NASA astronaut Terry Virts saluted back. And — fittingly — here are Nimoy’s final public words, in the form of a tweet:
A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP
(That’s “Life Long and Prosper.”) RIP to a fascinating person who created an indelible character.)
Dating Jesus 
Star Trek saved my life. I had a handful of friends at school, but mostly didn’t fit in. I felt unwanted at home. Star Trek was my escape, and by the time it was canceled I was at college, my other escape. RIP Leonard Nimoy, and thank you.
What a beautiful tribute.
Thank you for sharing this and well written as usual. Have a great day .
Mary
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Creating the half-breed Spock for his “Wagon Train to the Stars” was a stroke of Roddenberry genius. Casting Nimoy in the role was a stroke of luck that helped legitimize the series to science fiction fans…like me.
Nimoy took Spock seriously, which added a touch of realism to the fantastic story lines that made up the series. More than any other character…for me anyway…Spock was the reason I kept tuning in every week.
RIP Leonard. And thanks.
There was at least one episode where he laughed and it really really bothered me because I’d come to expect no emotion, all logic from him. What a wonderful show.
“This Side of Paradise” I think.
He gets sprayed with spores by a plant and has a little romance with one of the planet’s inhabitants.
There were a couple other episodes where he struggled with emotions. “Amok Time” is probably the most famous…where he goes through a Vulcan mating ritual and is tricked into believing he has killed Kirk.
Big smile when he realizes it wasn’t true. I’ll never forget that one.
I wasn’t a Trekkie and still am not, but you’d have to be blind not to notice his character’s influence on the culture at large.
The Spock character illuminated, in a subtle way…mostly…challenges of the human experience. Spock epitomized the conflict between the emotional and rational humans have always struggled with throughout their history. His interactions with the McCoy character…another favorite of mine… are priceless.
In one episode though…”The Galileo Seven”…Spock commands an away team…his first command… that gets stranded on a planet with hostile humanoids resembling cavemen. His logical approach in dealing with irrational creatures costs a crewman his life. Spock eventually resorts to a completely illogical tactic…luck…to try and save the crew.
Spock, of course, refuses to admit it was a purely emotional act. It being logical to undertake an act of desperation. He doesn’t fool anybody.
I am not a Trekkie. Just a fan. Honest. No uniforms in my closet. No ComicCon ticket stubs in my desk drawer. No action figures. Just a fan.
His rabbi said he was a real mensch.
http://www.reformjudaism.org/blog/2015/03/01/remembering-leonard-nimoy-rabbis-eulogy
Ah. Yes. That’s beautiful.