A Star Trek star is opening up about an on-set injury that still gives him trouble today. Now, they are trying to help others!
Back in the mid-1960s, stunt work wasn’t quite as safe as it is today. The only way to do explosions was to set them off for real, and while stunt performers were used, director Joseph Pevney had Will Shatner and Leonard Nimoy on set for real to make it look better in "Arena," one of the better episodes of the first season.
Shatner was near one explosion that went off closer than it was supposed to. He and Nimoy had some hearing loss for a bit, but chalked it up to just an accident. As the years went on, however, Shatner’s hearing worsened to eventually be diagnosed as Tinnitus.
Shatner has spoken about this before, and recently, he shared a video where he detailed the difficulties of living with a non-stop ringing in his ears.
“My own journey with tinnitus started when I was filming a ‘Star Trek’ episode called ‘Arena,’ and I was too close to the special effects explosion, and the result was that I was left with permanent Tinnitus. And over the years, I’ve had many ups and downs with my Tinnitus, and I know from firsthand experience just how difficult it can get.”
Shatner noted how up to 2 percent of the population suffers from a form of Tinnitus, and more money is needed for research. It’s a fundraiser for Tinnitus Quest, who sponsor such research into treatments.
The condition is a tough one, even if it didn’t keep Shatner from taking a flight into space. He’s still going strong and using his own affliction to raise awareness to help others in the same boat. It shows that the actor behind Kirk can be just as courageous off-screen as he is on-screen.
For those who don't recall, Star Trek is known for some great action sequences, going back to the original series. "Arena," the episode where Shatner suffered the injury, opens with the Enterprise crew discovering a Federation colony has been attacked by a ruthless lizard-like race called the Gorn.
The opening scene is a thrill as Kirk, Spock, McCoy, and a couple of redshirts (one vaporized on screen) outrun explosions set off by the Gorn. After driving them off, an obsessed Kirk takes the ship to chase the Gorn into a remote sector of space. A mysterious, all-powerful being is upset about the pair bringing their war to their home and using their powers to freeze both ships. They then have Kirk and the Gorn captain go at it one-on-one.
It’s a famous episode showing Shatner’s athleticism and a good message of Kirk refusing to kill the helpless Gorn to show humanity still has hope left.
Star Trek streaming on Paramount+.
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