In the latest mash of sci-fi and real-life space odysseys, Hollywood actor William Shatner, blasted into space on Wednesday, aboard a ship built by Jeff Bezos’ space travel company, Blue Origin.
Dressed in a royal blue flight suit, Shatner joined three fellow passengers, both paying space tourism customers, and Audrey Powers, who is Blue Origin’s vice president of mission and flight operations. 90-year-old William Shatner is the oldest person to go to Space.
The 'Star Trek' actor and his co-passengers hurtled to an altitude of 66.5 miles, over the West Texas desert in a fully automated capsule, then safely parachuted back to Earth, in a flight that lasted just over 10 minutes.
Calling it the most profound experience of his life, Shatner was moved beyond words. "I'm overwhelmed by the response.To have name recognized in such great length, it's overwhelming," he told reporters after landing back.
Shatner said, that going from the blue sky to the utter blackness of space was unbelievable. "It's impossible to tell you in a few words the profundity, just that the difference between darkness and light is, how do you describe that? Yeah, and that's what I would need. More words and more time to talk to you."
Sci-fi fans reveled in the opportunity to see the man best known as the brave and principled commander of the starship Enterprise boldly go where no star of American TV has gone before. The internet went wild, with Trekkies quoting favorite lines from Kirk, including, "Risk: Risk is our business. That's what this starship is all about."
"This is a pinch-me moment for all of us to see Capt. James Tiberius Kirk go to space," Blue Origin launch commentator Jacki Cortese said before liftoff. She said she, like so many others, was drawn to space by shows like "Star Trek."
Interestingly, Jeff Bezos is a huge "Star Trek" fan. The Amazon founder even had a cameo as an alien in one of the later Star Trek movies.
Bezos himself drove the four crew members to the launch pad, accompanied them to the platform high above the ground and cranked the hatch shut after they climbed aboard the 60-foot rocket. He was there to greet them when the capsule floated back to Earth under its brilliant blue-and-red parachutes.
As a favor to Bezos, Shatner took up into space some "Star Trek" tricorders and communicators — sort of the iPhones of the future — that Bezos made when he was a 9-year-old Trekkie. Bezos said his mother had saved them for 48 years.
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