Star Trek Actor Nichelle Nichols - Episode 48

Star Trek Actor Nichelle Nichols - Episode 48

Author: Bob Turner & Kelly Casto July 16, 2017 Duration: 33:01

Nichelle Nichols was born Grace Dell Nichols in 1932 in small town near Chicago, Robbins, Illinois.  Young Grace was drawn to singing, dancing and acting early on, getting her first professional gig at the age of 14.

She soon made a name for herself, meeting the big stars of the day.  This included Duke Ellington.  The musician was so impressed with her that he invited her to tour with him.

After starting a family, she created her own touring show and did so well, that she was able to move her family to Los Angeles.  There she landed a part in the movie    Starring Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge and Sammy Davis, Jr.

She soon caught the attention of casting director Joe D'Agosta (who would later do the same job on Star Trek) who hired her for a part on The Lieutenant.  This was the first show Gene Roddenberry created.  On the episode "To Set it Right," she played the wife of an African-American officer who was dealing with racism.  A big topic for 1964. 

It was during this time that she and Roddenberry developed a romantic relationship.  While it was short-lived, Roddenberry remained impressed with Nichols and with her help, created the role of Lt. Uhura.

After Star Trek, Nichols worked for NASA in the mid-70s recruiting women and minorities to join the space program.  She was able to bring in some very notable names including Sally Ride, Guion Bluford, Judy Resnick, Ron McNair and Charles Bolden.  After flying six missions, Bolden would later become the head of NASA.

Nichol's last official performance as Uhura was in 1991 in the film Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.  But she reprised the role in 2007 in the fan-made web-based film, Star Trek: Of Gods and Men.

In 2016, she received The Life Career Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films. 

70s Trek is a fan production and does not receive any profit. Intro and Outro Music was purchased from Free Play Music.

Copyright 2017 - 70s Trek


Dive into the fascinating decade when Star Trek lived on without a single new episode airing on television. Hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto guide 70s Trek: Star Trek in the 1970s through a detailed exploration of how a cancelled series refused to fade away. This podcast digs into the people who kept the flame burning-the original cast finding new voices in animation and convention halls, the writers and artists expanding the universe in novels and comics, and the passionate fans who created a blueprint for modern fandom. Each discussion connects the dots between the show's internal creative shifts and the wider cultural currents of the seventies that it both reflected and influenced. You'll hear about the specific efforts, from fan-led letter campaigns to Paramount's strategic decisions, that slowly built the momentum leading to a theatrical rebirth. It's a story of resilience and reinvention, examining not just what happened but how it felt to be part of that enduring phenomenon during those years. For anyone curious about the hidden history between the original series and "The Motion Picture," this podcast offers a rich, conversational deep dive into the community and commerce that made a comeback inevitable. Join Turner and Casto as they unpack the legacy of a show that was technically off the air, yet somehow more alive than ever.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

70s Trek: Star Trek in the 1970s
Podcast Episodes
TMP in Ultra HD - Ep 152 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:07
Welcome to the first new 70s Trek episode in 3 years! The release of the 4K, Ultra HD version of Star Trek The Motion Picture, The Director's Edition, is such big news that co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto felt it des…
Journey to Babel - Bonus Trek 10, Ep 151 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:47
The Original Series episode Journey to Babel is considered by many to be one of the best. It featured several "firsts" for the show. Among them was seeing Spock's parents and several alien species that would play a major…
Vazquez Rocks - Bonus Trek 9, Ep 150 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:58
It's a place here on Earth that feels like it's an alien landscape. That's probably why we've seen it used as another world so many times in TV and film. Including Star Trek. Vasquez Rocks, located just north of Los Ange…
Strange New Worlds - Bonus Trek 8, Ep 149 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 30:37
One of the Star Trek productions coming in 2022 is Strange New Worlds. It will be the story of Captain Pike and the Enterprise crew before Captain Kirk commanded the ship. Since the show hasn't premiered yet, we don't kn…
Old Trek vs New Trek - Bonus Trek 7, Ep 148 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 46:43
In July of 2021, the YouTube channel "The Popcast" posted a video entitled "This is how STRANGE NEW WORLDS will bring OLD TREK and NEW TREK Together!" The video discussed the divide between fans of Old Trek, Star Trek ep…
James Bond - Bonus Trek 6, Ep 147 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 44:46
With the release of the film No Time to Die in the fall of 2021, James Bond is back in the popular culture again. It's the 25th Bond film, and co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto of The Unofficial Trek Podcast thought it…
Dyson Spheres - Bonus Trek 5, Ep 146 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 36:21
Imagine flying through the galaxy, minding your own business and suddenly you see a structure that is very large. It's so big, in fact, that it surrounds a star! It's a Dyson Sphere! This week we explore the concept of a…
Star Trek in Vegas - Bonus Trek 4, Ep 145 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:25
Imagine driving through downtown Las Vegas and looking up to see a giant, life-sized USS Enterprise. That almost happened in the early 1990s. But the project morphed into something very different and became The Star Trek…
Did Scott Bakula Kill Enterprise? - Bonus Trek 3, Ep 144 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 21:35
Here's episode 3 from The Unofficial Trek Podcast: A recent article from the website RedShirtsAlwaysDie.com reports that UPN Executives blamed beloved Star Trek Actor Scott Bakula for the bad ratings that the show experi…
The Klingon Battle Cruiser - Bonus Trek 2, Ep 143 [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 37:11
The co-hosts of 70s Trek, Bob Turner and Kelly Casto, have launched a new show called The Unofficial Trek Podcast. In this show, hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "unofficial" take on the concepts, the people a…