Dearly departed M.A.S.H. star was a key figure in the early days of Star Trek

The acting world said goodbye to Sally Kellerman, an early name on Star Trek.

Sally Kellerman passed away on Thursday at the age of 85-years-old. The legendary actress was most famous for her role in the 1970, dark-comedy film, “M.A.S.H” where she portrayed Major Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan, later brought to life in the television series of the same name by Loretta Swit.

Kellerman wasn’t just known for the film version of “M.A.S.H.”, of which she received an Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for Best Supporting Actress, but also in fils like “It Rained All Night the Day I Left” and “The Player”.

She was best known, perhaps, for her work on television. For many reading this, they’ll likely remember her as Dr. Elizabeth Dehner, in the third episode of Star Trek’s first season, entitled “Where No Man Has Gone Before”. She played a pivotal role in the episode, and her performance helped create the Star Trek we know.

While the episode was third in airing, it served as the second pilot episode of the series. The first pilot, “The Cage”, was later turned into “The Menagerie” parts one and two.

Everyone on the set of that second pilot episode helped get Star Trek picked up, so it isn’t a stretch at all to say that her performance was in part the reason why the show was given a second shot at life.

In a fun bit of kismet, Kellerman shared screen time with one future Star Trek legend in Rene Auberjonois; who would of course later go on to star as Odo on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Sally Kellerman was also a Sci-Fi stand out

During her time in the 1960s and 1970s, Kellerman was quite known for her work on the more sci-fi and spooky side of television. She appeared in shows like The Outer Limits, The Twilight Zone, The Invaders, and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

She was a stand-out in the sci-fi and thriller scene but as time moved on, she was able to not be buckled down and typed-cast. When you land on some of the biggest sci-fi and spooky shows of the era, it’d be easy to only ever get those types of roles.

Instead, she ended up doing everything and anything throughout her long and impressive career.