Forums: William Shatner Board: Resurgence in Popularity

I am just so fascinated by the pop-culture phenomenon that is Bill Shatner.  For years he was ridiculed by mainstream parodist and comedians for his campy, staggered delivery of lines in his role as Capt. Kirk.  Over the last few years his popularity has gone from infamous to legendary.  His produced his own cd, and hosted numerous shows, most based on science and technology.  Now, Comedy Central is "roasting" him.  I can't figure out if he has become popular because he makes fun of himself or if people just respect him because he's hung around for so long.  Anybody else have any ideas?

Definitely a huge part of his popularity is the fact that he is able to laugh at himself. His daughters have said that he has always been a joker, meant in a good way.

He is a showman at heart. His larger-than-life persona means that people don't readily forget him, even if they don't like his work.

Another notable quality is his energy. Despite the fact that he is in his 70s, he stars on one network series, he is hosting a new game show this November, he appears in numerous movies, he promotes his horse-riding charity for children and he appears in numerous commercials and projects (the William Shatner DVD club, for example). Though some of his projects are a bit schlocky, he forges on. He seems to reinvent himself every decade, moving from roles as a paranoid mental patient (The Twilight Zone) to Starfleet captain, to police officer to lampooned talk-singer, movie star, lawyer and now game-show host.

He could be setting a new example of what is possible for senior citizens if they take care of themselves and keep active. He does more than most 30 year olds do.

I've always adored Shatner! Those mischevious eyes and smile you know he's up to no good. Whether you call it cheez or schmaltz or silliness that's what makes him special, he's so darn likeable, and yes I can imagine him to be a prankster! I think he's more like Denny Crane then he admits! I'm glad he's still around and able to do what he does best ENTERTAIN.

What is impressive is that a French-Canadian was able to get that far in the industry.

Although he's from Quebec, he's not a French-Canadian. He's a native English speaker and speaks French only as a second language. His ethnic background is Ukrainian Jewish.

Just watched The Comedy Central Roast of William Shatner. It was fantastic, raunchy but great fun. Loved Kevin Pollack's impersonation of William Shatner. Nice seeing Nichelle Nichols and George Takei as well. I have no idea why they had Farrah Fawcett there, was she in anything Shatner did, I don't think so. It would have been better to have Heather Locklear there. I saw Adrien Zmed in the audience (from TJ Hooker series). Again Leonard Nimoy was a no show. Sad. I would have liked to see more of his co-stars from Boston Legal. Only Betty White was there as was Rene Auberjonois and  Mark Valley. BTW Boston Legal has been renewed for a fourth season.

He has stood the test of time and has emerged a true legend.

I really love this dude in 'Boston Legal'. He also reminds me a lot of someone I know, physically. He seems like a cool old guy! I'm glad he's around, doing his thing in the acting world.