Nichelle Nichols, R.I.P.

Actress and singer Nichelle Nichols, best known for her portrayal of Lt. Uhura on Star Trek TV series and in the Star Trek movies, passed away last night of natural causes. She was 89. 

Nichols began her career as a singer and dancer who worked with both Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. Later she would turn to acting. She had but a handful of acting credits including a guest spot in Gene Roddenberry's The Lieutenant when Roddenberry cast her as Lt. Uhura on Star Trek. Roddenberry's casting of Nichols was groundbreaking in that no African-American woman had ever been part of the main cast of a TV show much less portrayed in a non-stereotypical role.

However, Nichols had her sights set on Broadway and had intended to leave the show after one season but would remain at the urging of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Nichols would remain for the balance of the series and reprise her role in Star Trek: The Animated Series and in the first six Star Trek movies. 

Aside from Star Trek, Nichols mostly did voicework but would return to the small screen in the 2000's with a recurring role on Heroes as well as a handful of episodes of the long running soap opera The Young and The Restless in 2016.

Nichols also had a four decade association with NASA and worked with the agency to recruit female and minority community astronauts. In recent years, Nichols health had declined suffering a stroke in 2015. She would be subsequently diagnosed with dementia and this would result in an ugly conservatorship battle between her son, her former manager and one of her closest friends.

With the passing of Nichols, there remain three surviving members of the cast of the original Star Trek - William Shatner, Walter Koenig and George Takei. On Twitter, Takei tweeted:

I shall have more to say about the trailblazing, incomparable Nichelle Nichols, who shared the bridge with us as Lt. Uhura of the USS Enterprise. For today, my heart is heavy, my eyes shining like the stars you now rest among, my dearest friend.

I leave you with some of Nichols' best moments as Lt. Uhura as compiled by MeTV a few years back. R.I.P.