Top 6 Favorite Leonard Nimoy Moments (Outside Star Trek)

I was as sad as everyone to hear that Leonard Nimoy passed away. He has been one of my favorite actors/directors for quite awhile. I decided I didn’t want to do a rushed “random thoughts” on it, I needed something more special. So that’s what we have today. I adored his character of Spock in the Star Trek TV series plus all six movies (and the Next Gen episode…and yes the reboot movie too!).





So while I could share posts of Spock’s great moments, the truth is I have done that a lot in other articles. And besides I could do 20 Spock moments and not come close to covering them all.


So I decided the best tribute would be to focus on his other work. His non-Star Trek roles where he showed he really was more than just Mr.Spock. Some he played a character (like in the sitcom Becker) and others he was himself (like when he hosted the Nickelodeon show “Standby:Lights, Camera, Action” which I watched as a kid). Of course he was also a damn good director (Three Men and a Baby) but I am sticking to his on screen/voice work.


Here are my favorite Leonard Nimoy moments outside Star Trek



#6.The Ballad of BilboBaggins


I had to mention this odd project he worked on for some reason, that was a song. Yep, he recorded the Ballad of Bilbo Baggins. It’s…curious as Spock would say. But it’s fun to watch Nimoy in his prime having fun. I think that it really sums up the guy as an actor. Not much else to say.

#5.The Big Bang Theory

Ok ok, this is cheating in a big way since he was voicing Spock in the episode. But let me explain. I really wanted to acknowledge his voice over work here, but sadly it seems I have never heard much of it. He did a lot from Transformers to Atlantis to Pagemaster but as I scroll IMDB I can’t find anything I actually saw. And besides, this was The Big Bang Theory not Star Trek. And the cameo is cute. Sheldon dreams his Mr.Spock action figure is talking to him, and do I need to say more?

#4.Commercials

Leonard Nimoy often popped up in TV ads. And they were always clever, usually playing off his Spock role in one way or another. And I always loved them. So let’s go thru these since there are a few I had to share :
First, this 80’s Oldsmobile ad alongside his daughter

Second, a great ad for a stupid product-MCI Friends and Family with the whole Trek cast

Third, a hilarious priceline ad where William Shatner learns he is being replaced

Finally, this ad which aired a few years ago where Nimoy competes with Zachary Quinto. It’s just
 funny as hell.

#3.Man from U.N.C.LE.

Nimoy had quite a career before and after Star Trek including Twilight Zone and Mission:Impossible. So why pick this one? I love this because a few years before Star Trek, guess who Leonard Nimoy worked alongside? Yep. William Shatner. True they don’t get many scenes together, if at all, but having them both in the same episode is just…..fascinating.






#2.T.J.Hooker

Some twenty years later, William Shatner had his own corny 80’s action show. Guess who guest starred? What I love about the episode is that the character Nimoy plays is so emotional (given the plot which involves his daughter being raped). You know the writers thought that would be a fun contrast from his usual cool and emotionless demeanor. By the way it should also be noted Leonard Nimoy directed another episode of this show as practice for his directing of Star Trek III.  

#1.The Simpsons

If you happen to follow Rob Walker’s Facebook page you know he showed a clip from this a few days ago. I swear I am not ripping him off, I saw this episode many years ago and it’s one of the few Simpsons episodes I really loved. Nimoy being a part of the cast was a big part of that. The plot involved a monorail and, well, it’s a long stry that doesn’t really matter. It’s a brilliant cameo and one of my all time favorite Nimoy moments. And yes I do know there was a second episode he appeared in, but I never saw that one.

Many are gonna wonder where The Fringe is, and I simply never saw it. I did see some clips and Nimoy looked awesome in it as usual. And finally, if you would like a taste of Nimoy as Spock I direct you to this article my friend Les and I did on Star Trek Speeches. True the articles covers all of Trek, but three of Nimoy’s best scenes are included so it’s worth a look here.



My friends, we have a lost a great actor and fantastic human being. I never heard anything bad about him, and whatever he did he seemed to thoroughly enjoy. I loved watching him in interviews because he would just sit back and have a fun reminiscing with his friends. He also appreciated the fans who loved him and was always returning that salute when a fan would show it. He appeared at conventions until just a few years ago, and I may as well ad was born and raised just a few miles away from me here in Boston. Suffice to say, he was a legend and will be missed.