http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xxlSe_A17ZM&feature=related  and

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNrEaWLg2_U

Interview with Leonard Nimoy via telephone

Broadcast without measure. The broadcast edition of the official E-Zine for the international sci-fi association. Here is your host: Alan Staedham.

The "Do you like Italian?" discussion from ST IV is heard, ending with Captain Kirk saying: "I love it and so do you.", and Spock obeying: "Yes."

Hallo, this is Allan Steadham, and I was trying to think of the best way to introduce my special guest for this show. And for some reason that particular scene from Star Trek IV, The Voyage Home, just jumped out at me. Instead of reading of a list of the accomplishments in film and photography, acting in general, A span of more than 40 year, Leonard I prefer to let the man speak for himself. So, without further ado, I am delighted to introduce Leonard Nimoy.

(on the phone)

AS: Let's start with The Full Body Project. Tell us about the idea and how it developed.

LN: Well, I showed some work from a book that is called Shekhina in a seminar in Northern California and when it was done a lady approached me and introduced herself and said she is a model form a different body type than I was used to work with. She was a larger woman. Indeed, much larger than I used to work with in the past. I agreed to have a go and try it. She came to my studio, my wife and I photographed her. She is in the book. She is in the Full Body Project book. She is the lady lying against the black background. Subsequently wherever I showed any of my work which included images of her, she got a lot of attention of people who were unused to see people of that type. She looked like a marble sculpture in black and white. I was intrigued by the amount of attention she got and I decided to pursue it. Through some friends I contacted Heather McAllister. She had a group that she called "The Fat Bottom Review", and I made a date to fly to San Francisco and to photograph her and some of her dancers. That was the basis for the book.

AS: What effect did the project have on you as a professional and as a person?
 LN: Well, it evoke some new ideas in terms of what my perception and what my vision was of the female figure. I learned a lot, I had some investigation and conversation with various people, including Heather McAllister, and I learned a lot about beauty which is so culture driven and the obsession with thinness in our culture, with models that wear clothes who weigh 25% less than the weight of the average American woman. Women are told they don't look right, and they should try to achieve that model's look. To achieve this they are told to buy pills and programs and exercise Programs and even surgery. I learned quite a lot about body concern in our culture.

 AS: I was wondering whether you see yourself as an activist and why or why not.

LN: I think I did my piece, I am moving on, I do other projects now. Why or why not? I found that very intriguing just as I found feminism intriguing and Jewish mysticism intriguing and I did a book about that called Shekhina. I don't consider myself an activist in that territory nor do I consider myself an activist in the body image territory.

AS: O. k., then lets go to your reprising your role as Mr. Spock in the new Star Trek film. I don't want you to give away spoilers, we want the people to see the film, but it is needless to say your role was quite extensive. What made you become involved? The script or something else?   
LN: I was contacted by the director, J. J. Abrams and he had a meeting with me with the writers Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman. We had a very intense conversation about what Star Trek was about, what Mr. Spock was about. Mr. Spock's character had been marginalized for some time. …  and I thought it was okay with me, I had gone off and did a lot of other kinds of work, but here these people came and let me to understand that they really appreciated what the original Star Trek was about wan what the Spock character was about and they wanted to tell a story in which Spock would be an important factor. I was actually very touched by their sincerity and their understanding what Spock contributed to Star Trek. I agreed that I would at lest be interested to red the script. And they went ahead with that understanding and they wrote the script. When I got the script I was quite pleased with it and I contacted Mr. Abrams that I would act in the film.

AS: Have you met or worked with any of the cast before?
LN: No, I didn't know any of the cast. … it was the first time for me.

 AS: So, how was it like with so many new faces playing Kirk and Scotty…
LN: Well, …  the old timer shows up and the young people in the cast were appropriately intimidated. They are wonderful people, they are very talented. I enjoyed working with each one of them, I admire what they accomplished. I have been asked a lot about my opinion of Zachary Quinto. He is an extremely intelligent and talented gentleman, looks enough like me to make the connection and, more important, he has a lot of craft and intelligence and I think his performance is excellent.

AS: I would agree. I saw the movie and I very much enjoyed it. Now, you have written books on this subject. But just for us right here. Is a part of you Spock and what does it mean to you?

LN: Oh, there is no question about it. There is no escaping that and there is nothing I want to. But there is no question that my strongest identification would be with the Spock character. It has been a blessing to me since Star Trek went to the air in 1966. I have never needed to worry about finding a job, I always had places where I could go and work, in the theatre, in television and the films, and all over in the United Stated and in a number of foreign countries as well. So, I have been able to make a living as an actor through all these years which I consider a blessing, and I am very grateful for all the opportunities Star trek and Mr. Spock has given.

AS: You have done numerous vice acting and voice over roles and animated acting in recent years. What do you consider before doing a voice over part? Are there any unique challenges that are different from other ones?

LN: Well, I read the scripts to look for the acting opportunity what it has to offer me and how I can approach this role. Is it something I can do creatively and successfully? Usually, most of the time, why I am offered a voice over role is that people know my voice and know what kind of a persona my voice projects. And they have gone through casting ideas to offer to writers as a role that I could manage. I have not been asked to do voices for creatures that are so outside my range that I said: No, I can't do that. It is unlikely that I would be offered that kind of role.

AS: I understand. A few months ago I listened to a recording of Two Young for Yiddish. I really appreciated the work of the personality you gave Richard Michelson's story. Please, tell us what this is about.

LN: Well, the book is a lovely book. Rich Michelson is a very good friend of mine, he also happens to have a very good gallery, an art gallery in Northampton, Massachusetts, where he shows my work. And that was the connection. He is an award winning poet and writer. I admire his writings and I admire his work and I was moved by the concept of that book, I mean it is a very good book. I was very flattered and honoured to be asked to do the voice.

AS: What is the number one thing you'd like people to know about you that perhaps is  not something commonly to be known?
LN: (laughing) Well, after all these years as a public person I don't think there's an awful lot people don't know about me. I have always tried to find my way in the arts. It is sometimes challenging, it is sometimes surprisingly exciting and sometimes surprisingly disappointing, but that's the way it is in the arts. It is not a clear cut scientific process. You operate in the dark. I said some times: Studying an artistic project is like entering a dark room with holes in the floor. And somewhere in that room there is a light switch and you have to find that switch to illuminate the place. And obviously there are dangers involved because of the holes in the floor. And there is excite because you might find the switch and if you do find the switch and turn the light on, there is great satisfaction. This is what the artistic process is all about.

AS: You have always some projects going on. Tell us about the Secret Selves.
LN: This is a project that I am particularly pleased with. We rounded up a lot of people by invitation in Massachusetts and invited them to come to be photographed by me, to have their portrait photographed by me, to come to the session, bringing to the camera the secret or hidden or fantasy self that I would photograph. Over two or three days we photographed 95 people, we have narrowed it down to 25 who were most successful. They were wonderful people, all of them. They came with open hearts, some of them were very funny, some very touching. Some of them were unique and exciting. And that collection will be showing next year at this time at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art in Northern Massachusetts as an exhibition called Secret Selves.
And some of those images are available now on my website which is leonardnimoyphotography.com It is listed there under the title of the Identity Project. So, people can take a look and see how these images look like. In addition to the clips which will be hanging for people to see there is also a 40 minute video of my conversations with all of the people which I think is quite exciting. I am really pleased about this because it is my first solo exhibition in a mayor museum in the United States.

AS: Congratulations! It sounds exciting and it must have been particularly interesting seeing these people and how they chose to express themselves.

LN: I really didn't know what to expect and the experience was full of wonderful surprises.

AS: What kind of things to you have as future projects?
LN: This is what I am working on in the moment. Of course I am committed to do some appearances on the Fringe television series. I have already films an appearance in two episodes, one a couple of months ago and one will be in October. I am playing a character called William Bell who is referred to during the first season but is never seen until the last scene of the very last episode where I made an appearance. A very interesting character. Fringe is a unique series, I find it exciting, I think the writers are very clever, very talented, it is a very well produced show. So, I am looking forward to doing some more of that.

AS: Thank you so much for joining us this evening.

LN: You are very, very welcome. I am sorry it took so long to get back to you.