ACTRESS and singer, Nichelle Nichols is dead at the age of 89.
She died on the 30th of July, 2022.
She was one of the first black women to be featured on American television playing the communications officer, Lieutenant Nyota Uhura in the original Star Trek series in a non-subservient role in the 1960s.
President Biden released a statement late Sunday night acknowledging the veteran actress.
His statement reads, “In Nichelle Nichols, our nation has lost a trailblazer of stage and screen who redefined what is possible for Black Americans and women. During the height of the Civil Rights Movement, she shattered stereotypes to become the first Black woman to act in a major role on a primetime television show with her groundbreaking portrayal of Lt. Uhura in the original Star Trek. With a defining dignity and authority, she helped tell a central story that reimagined scientific pursuits and discoveries. And she continued this legacy by going on to work with NASA to empower generations of Americans from every background to reach for the stars and beyond.”“Our nation is forever indebted to inspiring artists like Nichelle Nichols, who shows us a future where unity, dignity, and respect are cornerstones of every society.”
A chance meeting with civil rights leader, Martin Luther King, at a fundraising event, changed her mind when she considered leaving Star Trek at the end of the first run. According to her in a 2011 programme, he said, “He said I had the first non-stereotypical role, I had a role with honor, dignity, and intelligence. You simply cannot abdicate. This is an important role. This is why we are marching. We never thought we’d see this on TV.”
After the meeting, she saw Uhura, her screen name which was based on Uhuru, the Swahili for “freedom”, not only as a role model for black people but also for women with scientific or astronomic ambitions. “I am still very proud of Uhura: proud of who she was (or will be) and what she represented, not only in her time but in ours,” she wrote in her 1994 autobiography, Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories.
After Star Trek ended in 1969, she voiced Uhura in Star Trek: The Animated Series (1973-74) and played the part in the first six spin-off films, beginning with Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979) and ending with Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991). She played Uhura once again in the 2020 fan-produced film Star Trek: First Frontier, as well as appearing as Admiral Grace Jemison in the 2017 fans’ internet series Star Trek: Renegades.
In her singing career, Nichols released three albums, Down to Earth (1967), Uhura Sings (1986), and Out of this World (1991). She also staged a one-woman show in 1990 called Reflections, a musical tribute to black performers such as Josephine Baker, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Lena Horne, and Eartha Kitt, at the Westwood Playhouse in Los Angeles.
She got married twice, with both marriages ending in divorce. Furthermore, she is survived by her actor son, Kyle, from her first marriage.
The Guardian
