Yet Another Reason to Appreciate William Shatner
Randy Pausch, in his book The Last Lecture, wrote that every little boy of a certain age wanted to be Captain Kirk. Not quite true but his statement certainly captures the verve of Kirk in Star Trek. Since then, William Shatner, who proudly counts himself as a 'working actor', has taken dozens of roles of all sorts. One of his best, though, came last night, playing himself, on Twitter. (Yes, I know I rant about Twitter and the rise of the perpetually offended. Not this time.)
It started like this:
I evacuated; now watching #Irma track right towards our home in #Tampa. We're newlyweds. Sigh.
— Mary RS Bracy (@MaryRSBracy) September 10, 2017
What followed was incredible. Shatner spent hours responding to, comforting, and encouraging people in the path of Irma.
I am honestly scared right now and thank you kindly for asking. God bless, hugs and please keep us in your prayers. #HurricaneIrma #Florida
— 👑 Kᗩᖇᕮᑎ ᗰ KᑌᑎKᒪᕮ 👑 (@KarenMKunkle) September 10, 2017
You have our good thoughts, prayers, fingers crossed 🤞🏻, etc... https://t.co/mDtgIVXhJL
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) September 10, 2017
I'm worried about my dad, he's in Sarasota... he didn't evacuate because he doesn't think it'll be bad, but I haven't gotten an update...
— Courtney (@CourtneyWRocket) September 10, 2017
Anyone in Sarasota who can give Courtney an update on at risk areas? https://t.co/Ql3JpnPCpD
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) September 10, 2017
I am, with a wife who is 30 weeks pregnant and freaking out.
— Mike Wëwerka (@mikewewerka) September 10, 2017
She needs to calm down. The last thing she needs is to stress out the baby. Find something to occupy her mind. Reminiscing works. https://t.co/eAFsqfPSBk
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) September 10, 2017
This morning, Bill Shatner picked up where he left off last night, offering encouragement, linking to sites with good advice (DON'T shoot into the storm! Really? People amaze me) and basic human decency.
Bill Shatner is the real deal. Heroes lead by example and he's out front right now.