- Apr 17, 2002
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See, even Trekkies can be loved. :confused: :)
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- The crew of the Starship Enterprise have sprung to the defense of Trekkies -- No, they are not obsessive weirdos who need to get a life.
The message from Troi, Data and Captain Jean-Luc Picard was the same: stop being mean to Star Trek fans.
Captain Kirk, alias Hollywood Star William Shatner, poked gentle fun at the Trekkies in his book "Get A Life," mocking their meticulous attention to detail in the five television series and 10 Star Trek movies.
But Patrick Stewart, the bald-headed British classical actor who plays Captain Picard and bestrides the most famous bridge in space, was much more charitable about the Star Trek devotees. Stewart, in London for the premiere of "Star Trek Nemesis" and the launch of a new Star Trek Exhibition, did concede: "There are a tiny percentage of Star Trek fans who might be categorized as obsessive."
But he defended the vast majority who revel in one of cinema's longest-running and most successful franchises that has earned more than $1 billion at the box office. "I know fans who would not dream of missing an episode who are Vice Chancellors of Universities, internationally famous classical musicians, opera singers, celebrities, members of President Bush's cabinet, high-ranking members of the military," he told reporters. "These are not people that you would want to be apprehensive about. They are fascinating to meet."
The American actor Brent Spiner, who has portrayed the android Data for all seven seasons of the television series "Star Trek: The Next Generation," is equally loyal. "I think Trekkies get a really bad rap," he said. "For some reason, they have this reputation for being really peculiar. I don't think they are."
"At a Star Trek convention, there are 2,000 to 3,000 people and maybe about 25 who have uniforms and make-up on. The rest are just people who watch Star Trek and enjoy it. They are not anywhere so peculiar as football fans. Nobody ever gets hurt at a Star Trek convention," he added.
But when it comes to devotion to the fan base, English actress Marina Sirtis knows no equal as a convention regular. Sirtis, who portrays the half-human, half-Betazoid Commander Deanna Troi, said of the Trekkies: "They are very knowledgeable and ardent fans."
"I can't say anything bad against them," Sirtis said. "Because of them, I have a really nice house in Los Angeles, I drive a Porsche, I have nice clothes, I have my lovely American husband and all the bits that go with it." She added, "So I say 'God bless them for turning on their television sets every day.'"
LONDON, England (Reuters) -- The crew of the Starship Enterprise have sprung to the defense of Trekkies -- No, they are not obsessive weirdos who need to get a life.
The message from Troi, Data and Captain Jean-Luc Picard was the same: stop being mean to Star Trek fans.
Captain Kirk, alias Hollywood Star William Shatner, poked gentle fun at the Trekkies in his book "Get A Life," mocking their meticulous attention to detail in the five television series and 10 Star Trek movies.
But Patrick Stewart, the bald-headed British classical actor who plays Captain Picard and bestrides the most famous bridge in space, was much more charitable about the Star Trek devotees. Stewart, in London for the premiere of "Star Trek Nemesis" and the launch of a new Star Trek Exhibition, did concede: "There are a tiny percentage of Star Trek fans who might be categorized as obsessive."
But he defended the vast majority who revel in one of cinema's longest-running and most successful franchises that has earned more than $1 billion at the box office. "I know fans who would not dream of missing an episode who are Vice Chancellors of Universities, internationally famous classical musicians, opera singers, celebrities, members of President Bush's cabinet, high-ranking members of the military," he told reporters. "These are not people that you would want to be apprehensive about. They are fascinating to meet."
The American actor Brent Spiner, who has portrayed the android Data for all seven seasons of the television series "Star Trek: The Next Generation," is equally loyal. "I think Trekkies get a really bad rap," he said. "For some reason, they have this reputation for being really peculiar. I don't think they are."
"At a Star Trek convention, there are 2,000 to 3,000 people and maybe about 25 who have uniforms and make-up on. The rest are just people who watch Star Trek and enjoy it. They are not anywhere so peculiar as football fans. Nobody ever gets hurt at a Star Trek convention," he added.
But when it comes to devotion to the fan base, English actress Marina Sirtis knows no equal as a convention regular. Sirtis, who portrays the half-human, half-Betazoid Commander Deanna Troi, said of the Trekkies: "They are very knowledgeable and ardent fans."
"I can't say anything bad against them," Sirtis said. "Because of them, I have a really nice house in Los Angeles, I drive a Porsche, I have nice clothes, I have my lovely American husband and all the bits that go with it." She added, "So I say 'God bless them for turning on their television sets every day.'"