Walter Koenig: Summary
- Recent Role:
- Himself on Bring Back...
- Gender:
- Male
- Birthday:
- 9-14-1936
- Birthplace:
- Chicago, Illinois, USA
- Birth Name:
- Walter Marvin Koenig
- AKA:
- Walter Koening, Walter Marvin Koenig
The one word that best describes Walter Koenig would have to be versatile. He has excelled as an actor, a director, a screenwriter, a novelist, an acting professor and a comic book creator. Creativity is in his blood and self expression has never been a problem for him.
Born on September 14, 1936 in Chicago, Walter's parents moved to Manhattan when he was still a small child. His parents, Isadore and Sarah Koenig, were Russian Jewish immigrants from Lithuania. When they arrived in America, they had shortened their name from Koenisberg to Koenig. It was believed that they had done this to deflect some of the anti-Semitic attitudes which were prevalent at the turn of the century. While Isadore made a living as a businessman, Walter grew up as a regular kid living in Inwood with his brother, Norman, and his sister, Vera. He attended a public grammar school and then went on to Fieldston High School in Riverdale. It was during this time in high school, between Yankees games, that he had developed a passion for acting. His first experiences on stage were for the school presentations of "Peer Gynt" and "Devil's Disciple".
As much as he enjoyed acting, Walter was not contemplating a career in show business. After high school, he applied to and was accepted to Grinnell College in Iowa as a pre-med student with an interest in studying psychiatry. He had later transferred to UCLA and earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. As he was about to pursue his goal of Psychiatry, a professor urged him to explore his interest in acting before committing to any one path. Taking this advice to heart, Walter returned home to New York enrolled in New York's Neighborhood Playhouse. While there, he learned the craft of acting alongside ates like Christopher Lloyd, James Caan, Brenda Vacarro, Dabney Coleman and Jessica Walter. Finding that acting gave him more pleasure and fulfillment that psychiatry ever would, he pressed on with an acting career.
During the early 1960s, Walter made numerous television appearances on a wide variety of shows such as "Combat", "The Untouchables", "Ben Casey" and "I Spy", but nothing that made his name and face instantly recognizable. It was during this time that he met a young aspiring actress named Judy Levitt. The two shared a passion for performing and they began dating. It wasn't long before they realized that they were made for each other. They were married in June of 1965.
In the months and years that followed, both were trying to land whatever roles they could to pay the bills. For Walter, his biggest break in television came from a very unlikely source: the Russian media. They had seen the first season of Gene Roddenberry's "Star Trek". They had complained that this American show about a ship travelling through space with an international and interspecies crew did not have a single Russian on board. Russia was the first nation to put a man in space and was still leading the United States in the "space race" of the 60s, but the "Ugly Americans" would give Russia no credit for its pioneering firsts in space exploration. Roddenberry thought about this for some time and realized that they were right. He proceeded to add a young Russian ensign to the command crew named Pavel Chekov. Walter was tailor made for the role. He looked considerably younger than his 31 years, he resembled singer Davey Jones enough so that he would click with younger audiences and he could nail the Russian accent, having been raised by Lithuanian parents. He was even asked to overdo the Russian accent to add a bit of comic relief to the series. He played Ensign Pavel Chekov for 2 seasons on the ground breaking show, but then found himself unemployed when the show was cancelled due to low ratings in 1969.
With "Star Trek" apparently behind him, Walter looked for new projects. He had begun to indulge in one of his other passions: writing. When he was asked to provide a voice for Chekov in the Star Trek animated series in the mid-70s, he declined. He didn't want to be forever tied down to that one character, but he did provide a script for one of the episodes. During the 1970s, Walter wrote scripts for the television shows "The of 65", "Family" and "Land of the Lost". He had also written the satirical sci-fi novel "Buck Alice and the Actor-Robot". Throughout this time, he noticed the same phenomenon that all of his former cast mates did: "Star Trek", a show which failed miserably during its initial run on NBC had developed a cult following in all walks of life. When he had been approached by Paramount executives to play Pavel Chekov again in a big budget film version of the show he performed in ten years earlier, he immediately agreed. When "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" opened to audiences in the summer of 1979, the response was overwhelming. Despite critic's complaints that the movie was too slow paced and too "talky", fans were thrilled to see their heroes in a new adventure. Over the years to come, the "Star Trek" films featuring the original cast grossed over 700 million dollars worldwide. With the character of Chekov firmly behind him (more or less), Walter was now free to explore his other passions at his leisure. In the early 1990s, he created his own comic book series called "Raver" which was published and distributed by Malibu Comics. He also wrote and performed in a one-man play called "You're Never Alone When You're A Schizophrenic". It was very well received and was a source of pride and achievement for Walter. In 1994, he was scheduled to play a guest role on "Babylon 5" in an episode called "And the Sky Full of Stars". He was to play one of two operatives sent to extract information from the station's commander, Jeffrey Sinclair. However, Walter suffered a minor heart attack which required bypass surgery before shooting was to begin and the role was recast. When he had recovered sufficiently, J. Michael Straczynski cast Koenig as the telepathic Psi-Cop, Alfred Bester. The character was so well received by fans that he was written into the show as a pivotal recurring character. Walter loved playing Bester for many reasons. Firstly, he could let a wide audience hear him speak without the Russian accent they had become so accustomed to. Secondly, he was given the opportunity to play a villain with official sanction. Throughout its five year run, Walter returned to "Babylon 5" whenever he was asked. Bester became at times a quintessential villain with only his own agenda in his thoughts, or a reluctant ally when he and the Babylon 5 command staff had similar goals. Whatever the situation, it was always a treat when Walter Koenig was a guest star.
In recent years, Walter has taught acting and directing s at UCLA (his alma-mater), as well as at the Sherwood Oaks Experimental Film College and the Actor's Alley Repertory Company in Los Angeles. He has also held lectures at the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University.
For over 40 years, his wife, Judy Levitt, has always been by his side. Their son Andrew has become an actor himself and their daughter Danielle, a part-time actress herself, has given Walter and Judy their first grandchild with her husband, comedian Jimmy Pardo. Walter currently lives in Los Angeles and continues with various projects both on television and on stage. He is also involved in humanitarian work with the human rights group, U.S. Campaign for Burma. It is a grassroots organization dedicated to bringing awareness to the plight of refugees fleeing Myanmar and to promote the restoration of democracy to Burma. The one word that best describes Walter Koenig would have to be versatile. He has excelled as an actor, a director, a screenwriter, a novelist, an acting professor and a comic book creator. Creativity is in his blood and self expression has never been a problem for him.
Born on September 14, 1936 in Chicago, Walter's parents moved to Manhattan when he was still a small...
Born on September 14, 1936 in Chicago, Walter's parents moved to Manhattan when he was still a small child. His parents, Isadore and Sarah Koenig, were Russian Jewish immigrants from Lithuania. When they arrived in America, they had shortened their name from Koenisberg to Koenig. It was believed that they had done this to deflect some of the anti-Semitic attitudes which were prevalent at the turn of the century. While Isadore made a living as a businessman, Walter grew up as a regular kid living in Inwood with his brother, Norman, and his sister, Vera. He attended a public grammar school and then went on to Fieldston High School in Riverdale. It was during this time in high school, between Yankees games, that he had developed a passion for acting. His first experiences on stage were for the school presentations of "Peer Gynt" and "Devil's Disciple".
As much as he enjoyed acting, Walter was not contemplating a career in show business. After high school, he applied to and was accepted to Grinnell College in Iowa as a pre-med student with an interest in studying psychiatry. He had later transferred to UCLA and earned a Bachelor of Arts in psychology. As he was about to pursue his goal of Psychiatry, a professor urged him to explore his interest in acting before committing to any one path. Taking this advice to heart, Walter returned home to New York enrolled in New York's Neighborhood Playhouse. While there, he learned the craft of acting alongside ates like Christopher Lloyd, James Caan, Brenda Vacarro, Dabney Coleman and Jessica Walter. Finding that acting gave him more pleasure and fulfillment that psychiatry ever would, he pressed on with an acting career.
During the early 1960s, Walter made numerous television appearances on a wide variety of shows such as "Combat", "The Untouchables", "Ben Casey" and "I Spy", but nothing that made his name and face instantly recognizable. It was during this time that he met a young aspiring actress named Judy Levitt. The two shared a passion for performing and they began dating. It wasn't long before they realized that they were made for each other. They were married in June of 1965.
In the months and years that followed, both were trying to land whatever roles they could to pay the bills. For Walter, his biggest break in television came from a very unlikely source: the Russian media. They had seen the first season of Gene Roddenberry's "Star Trek". They had complained that this American show about a ship travelling through space with an international and interspecies crew did not have a single Russian on board. Russia was the first nation to put a man in space and was still leading the United States in the "space race" of the 60s, but the "Ugly Americans" would give Russia no credit for its pioneering firsts in space exploration. Roddenberry thought about this for some time and realized that they were right. He proceeded to add a young Russian ensign to the command crew named Pavel Chekov. Walter was tailor made for the role. He looked considerably younger than his 31 years, he resembled singer Davey Jones enough so that he would click with younger audiences and he could nail the Russian accent, having been raised by Lithuanian parents. He was even asked to overdo the Russian accent to add a bit of comic relief to the series. He played Ensign Pavel Chekov for 2 seasons on the ground breaking show, but then found himself unemployed when the show was cancelled due to low ratings in 1969.
With "Star Trek" apparently behind him, Walter looked for new projects. He had begun to indulge in one of his other passions: writing. When he was asked to provide a voice for Chekov in the Star Trek animated series in the mid-70s, he declined. He didn't want to be forever tied down to that one character, but he did provide a script for one of the episodes. During the 1970s, Walter wrote scripts for the television shows "The of 65", "Family" and "Land of the Lost". He had also written the satirical sci-fi novel "Buck Alice and the Actor-Robot". Throughout this time, he noticed the same phenomenon that all of his former cast mates did: "Star Trek", a show which failed miserably during its initial run on NBC had developed a cult following in all walks of life. When he had been approached by Paramount executives to play Pavel Chekov again in a big budget film version of the show he performed in ten years earlier, he immediately agreed. When "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" opened to audiences in the summer of 1979, the response was overwhelming. Despite critic's complaints that the movie was too slow paced and too "talky", fans were thrilled to see their heroes in a new adventure. Over the years to come, the "Star Trek" films featuring the original cast grossed over 700 million dollars worldwide. With the character of Chekov firmly behind him (more or less), Walter was now free to explore his other passions at his leisure. In the early 1990s, he created his own comic book series called "Raver" which was published and distributed by Malibu Comics. He also wrote and performed in a one-man play called "You're Never Alone When You're A Schizophrenic". It was very well received and was a source of pride and achievement for Walter. In 1994, he was scheduled to play a guest role on "Babylon 5" in an episode called "And the Sky Full of Stars". He was to play one of two operatives sent to extract information from the station's commander, Jeffrey Sinclair. However, Walter suffered a minor heart attack which required bypass surgery before shooting was to begin and the role was recast. When he had recovered sufficiently, J. Michael Straczynski cast Koenig as the telepathic Psi-Cop, Alfred Bester. The character was so well received by fans that he was written into the show as a pivotal recurring character. Walter loved playing Bester for many reasons. Firstly, he could let a wide audience hear him speak without the Russian accent they had become so accustomed to. Secondly, he was given the opportunity to play a villain with official sanction. Throughout its five year run, Walter returned to "Babylon 5" whenever he was asked. Bester became at times a quintessential villain with only his own agenda in his thoughts, or a reluctant ally when he and the Babylon 5 command staff had similar goals. Whatever the situation, it was always a treat when Walter Koenig was a guest star.
In recent years, Walter has taught acting and directing s at UCLA (his alma-mater), as well as at the Sherwood Oaks Experimental Film College and the Actor's Alley Repertory Company in Los Angeles. He has also held lectures at the California School of Professional Psychology at Alliant International University.
For over 40 years, his wife, Judy Levitt, has always been by his side. Their son Andrew has become an actor himself and their daughter Danielle, a part-time actress herself, has given Walter and Judy their first grandchild with her husband, comedian Jimmy Pardo. Walter currently lives in Los Angeles and continues with various projects both on television and on stage. He is also involved in humanitarian work with the human rights group, U.S. Campaign for Burma. It is a grassroots organization dedicated to bringing awareness to the plight of refugees fleeing Myanmar and to promote the restoration of democracy to Burma. The one word that best describes Walter Koenig would have to be versatile. He has excelled as an actor, a director, a screenwriter, a novelist, an acting professor and a comic book creator. Creativity is in his blood and self expression has never been a problem for him.
Born on September 14, 1936 in Chicago, Walter's parents moved to Manhattan when he was still a small...
BLOG
Sorry, no blogs exist at this time.
NEWS
Sorry there is no news for Walter Koenig at this time.
add a review
USER REVIEWS
Person Score
9.5
superb
- Person Statistics
-
22 Tracked by
-
40 Votes
Top Contributors
Contribute-
Hoeech
Editor
User Score 90 , Last Online 20 seconds ago -
minimax34
Retired
User Score 423 , Last Online Mar 25, 2009 -
iumellogirl
User Score 14 , Last Online Jun 19, 2007 -
skeeter291
User Score 6 , Last Online 13 hrs, 1 min ago -
shatterdaymorn
User Score 5 , Last Online Aug 25, 2009
