Sometimes I forget to write about these things when they happen, and a window slams shut before I know it. I forgot to do it when Rene Auberjonois died, and I forgot to do it when Aron Eisenberg died, and I still kick myself about both of them. But we’re not gonna let this one pass us by. This one hurts too much.
Nichelle Nichols, the absolute god-tier legend who played Lt. Nyota Uhura on the original series for its whole run, voiced her in the Animated Series, and played her in all six TOS movies, died of natural causes on July 31. She was 89.
It is barely disputable, if at all, that Nichols is the single most influential cast member in all of Star Trek. She and Uhura are the greatest example of the franchise living up to the lofty ideals it aims for, and the all-time peak supporting evidence for the proof that representation matters.
The story is well-known by now, and carries the aura of myth. Nichols was ready to quit Star Trek after the first season and pursue other roles, but she was persuaded to stay by a single fan, Martin Luther King, Jr., who told her that it was important what she was doing, being on that show, because it was the only thing on television that showed a Black woman in a position of authority, skill, and power.
She stayed. And Star Trek, and the world, were all the better for it.
Nichols blazed the trail for all of them: the engineers, the security chiefs, the doctors, and all the captains. The anecdotes of Black scientists being inspired to enter the STEM fields by her are as immeasurable as all the grains of sand on all the beaches of the world. She was a hero to EGOT achiever Whoopi Goldberg, who played El-Aurian Ten Forward bartender Guinan on The Next Generation, a show she was a huge fan of and eager to work on, because of the time when she was a child when she frantically summoned her mother to the television to see the Black character who wasn’t a maid.
“Sorry, neither” might be the best line in TOS history
It might be easy for some to say something snide like “oh, well, they made the Black woman the switchboard operator, guess not much has changed in 300 years hurr durr durr.” But not only is that a disgustingly cynical take, it’s also a smooth-brained one. As many have astutely observed, you’d have to be an insanely talented linguist, not to mention plenty good with machines, to do her job at her level. Which was another point in the show’s favor: they portrayed a Black woman with intelligence. And not only was she smart, she was an amazing singer and a stunning beauty on top of that. Jeez, Nichelle, save some talent for the rest of us!
Nichols spent the last few years of her life struggling with dementia and stuck in a conservatorship run by her son, Kyle Johnson. The whole thing is a huge, tragic mess; this L.A. Times article is a pretty good summary of it.
Others have played Uhura, and are carrying the legacy on as we speak. But no one will ever hold a candle to the original. Rest in power, Nichelle. You earned it.
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