Pop Quiz: Trekking on with the Celebrity Name Chain

Yes, I know I just did one of these. Thing is, I've been out of commission a bit as of late. Some (non life-threatening) medical issues along with an avalanche of work have kept me sidelined and unable to put up the sort of posts I would prefer. As I was doing the original Celebrity Name Chain Pop Quiz, I found that, with two exceptions, I could perform the task on virtually everyone from Star Trek (now annoying called "Star Trek: The Original Series" to differentiate it from all the redux that have come in its wake.) With apologies to Majel Barrett and Nichelle Nichols, we proceed onward with the rest of the cast. We don't feel too guilty, though, about Nichols since she actually has her very own tribute on this site already! If you don't know, you guess the first person pictured's name and their last name is the first name of the second performer. (Or vice-versa) Thus, a name chain. Obviously, a working knowledge of the performers' names is key so it will be tougher on non-fans of the show. I learned my lesson, though, and have added some hints this time. Now let's load our photon torpedoes and beam down to the brief quiz!

1. Here we find the original Captain of the U.S.S. Enterprise from the pilot (and later edited into a two-part episode of the series), Christopher Pike paired with the soap opera actress who famously took on Aaron Spelling (and won) over being fired from Melrose Place prior to filming her role because she was pregnant.

2. Next up is one of the early-1930s' most popular actors, famous for portraying questionable gentlemen in a number of racy "Pre-Code" films and later for portraying the attorney-sleuth Perry Mason in a series of movies, long before Raymond Burr scored a hit on television. He's paired with the famous principle star of Star Trek, who played Captain James T. Kirk.

3. The youthful man on the left made an impact in the cinema during the late-1980s and early-'90s before later landing a lengthy role on a prime-time TV medical hit (from 2004-2012.) His counterpart is the famous Mr. Spock, an emotion-free Vulcan on Star Trek. 

4. Oh, if you're a fan of David Letterman you might recognize the man on the left as Larry 'Bud' Melman, but, you see, that was not his real name. That was just a character he played during his many appearances on Late Night with David Letterman. He's paired with the cantankerous Dr. Leonard McCoy, who retained his homespun attitudes despite having been launched into space.

5. Famous as one of the rare Dynasty cast members to appear in its initial episode up until its finale eight years later (with an interruption to star in his own spin-off series) is matched with Mr. Scott, chief engineer of the Enterprise and not only named Scott, but portrayed as a Scot with the actor providing an accent that many people believed was his very own! (It wasn't. He was Canadian!)

6. This British blonde was the leading lady in several sexually-charged movies of the 1970s. She departed the biz for the most part after marrying a handsome fellow actor in 1984, though he died prematurely in 2010. Her name game partner is Enterprise helmsman Mr. Sulu, who has recently found a whole new level of fame as a humorist and activist.

7. Initially intended to be a regular, Yeoman Janice Rand (of the famed beehive hairdo) was fired after about a dozen episodes over personal and physical issues. Probably only fans of the 1960s sitcom Hazel will know the second actress's name, though she is also known as the mother of Meredith Baxter Birney (neither last name giving anything away.) When Hazel changed networks, she and her screen husband were let go.

8. The lady on the left was a popular actress of movies and TV in the '60s and '70s. Later, she found a whole new raft of fans when she turned to alcohol-tinged comedy on a sitcom with a devoted cult following. The final Star Trek cast member of this quiz was added in season two to bring in some of the teen fans who loved The Monkees. He, Mr. Chekov, was even given a Davy Jones-ish wig at first before later getting to use his own brunette locks.

Answers below!



1.

"Jeffrey Hunter Tylo" (One of our favorite actors, talked out of taking the lead in Trek and denied the lead in The Brady Bunch because he was "too good looking to play an architect," Jeffrey Hunter has a brief tribute here. Hunter Tylo is back on The Bold and the Beautiful now, where she got most of her attention to start with back in the 1990s. Her judgement against Spelling was $4.8 million and set a precedent for such cases.)

 

We've never gotten enough of Hunter's winning smile and bright blues eyes...

...nor of his lean tan physique in many rugged movies from Sailor of the King (1953) to White Feather (1955) to The Searchers (1956) among many others.

Hunter was taken from us altogether too early (aged forty-two) when an on-set accident left him with a concussion. A drinking problem compounded this condition and he fell on some steps, fracturing his skull on a banister.

2.

"Warren William Shatner" (Mr. Warren William was, surprisingly enough, one of the more physically fit and active stars of his time in an era where this was not particularly emphasized. He not only played amoral businessmen in films like Skyscraper Souls (1932), but also was Julius Caesar to Claudette Colbert's Cleopatra (1934) - the film in which she bathed in ass's milk.  You'd have to have lived under a rock to not know who William Shatner is!

Mr. William as 1930s audiences saw him on and off screen.

3.

"Robert Sean Leonard Nimoy" (Robert Sean Leonard starred in films like Dead Poets Society, 1989, Swing Kids, 1993, and Much Ado About Nothing, 1993, before costarring in House with Hugh Laurie. Leonard Nimoy initially resented his association with his alien character, penning a book called "I Am Not Spock," but later grew to appreciate its legacy and impact, penning a book called, "I Am Spock!"

4.

"Calvert DeForest Kelley" (Calvert DeForest eventually began appearing with Letterman using his own name, but for many folks he was eternally "Larry 'Bud' Melman." DeForest Kelley played a lot of shady characters in westerns on TV and in movies. He also appeared in the howler Where Love Has Gone (1964) just before heading onto Trek.

5.

"John James Doohan" (John James wasn't even supposed to be a regular on Dynasty, just a guest in the pilot, but he was able to talk his way into a role that buttered his bread for a decade! His spin-off, The Colbys, only lasted two seasons, but was glitzy fun while it lasted. Years later, he popped up as a bad guy on As the World Turns. James Doohan was a decorated Canadian soldier prior to his busy acting career. Like most of his Trek costars, he was typecast thereafter, but in time was able to parlay that into further notoriety and income.

Like most soap actors, daytime or prime-time, James was enlisted to remove his shirt. Often. 

No matter what anyone else thought or said, I LOVED The Colbys, especially because of (not pictured) Stephanie Beacham. This publicity shot between takes is a lot more loose than the drama-fueled show ever was...!

Like many late-1970s and '80s TV stars, James was poured into a Speedo for the semi-annual Battle of the Network Stars specials.

6.

"Susan George Takei"  (Susan George costarred with Dustin Hoffman in Straw Dogs, 1971, with Peter Fonda in Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry, 1974, and Perry King in Mandingo, 1975. Her handsome husband was Simon MacCorkindale, of Death on the Nile, 1978, among many other things. Takei, after some lean year post-Trek, began appearing on The Howard Stern Show, revealing a clever sense of humor (and later the fact that he was gay.) He became a heavy LGBT activist and a popular Internet humorist and has a gargantuan following today.

Jogging your memory with a glimpse of Mr. Simon MacCorkindale.

7.

"Grace Lee Whitney Blake" (Grace Lee Whitney had at the time of Star Trek an alcohol problem which led to some weight gain, a big no-no when handed a micro-miniskirt as her uniform. She was also the victim of a decision to leave Captain Kirk open to romance with female guests on the show. Her quasi-romantic attachment to him became a problem in that vein. Whitney Blake later co-created and wrote for the sitcom One Day at a Time.

8.

"Jessica Walter Koenig" (Jessica Walter was one of the ladies who formed The Group, 1966, and is well-known as the crazed, knife-wielding lover of Clint Eastwood in Play Misty for Me, 1971. Later, she scored as the heavy-drinking mother on Arrested Development. Walter Koenig later had a recurring part on Babylon 5 and served as Best Man to  George Takei at his 2008 wedding to his longtime partner Brad Altman.

Till next time!  Take care... Or perhaps I ought to say, "Live Long and Prosper!"  Ha ha!