Leonard Nimoy was more than Spock. He was a talented actor, director and photographer. However, his development of the character Spock figured large in his life's work and is why so many wonky/science minded folks have written some outstanding articles about Nimoy the past two days:
Matthew Yglesias, Dylan Matthews, and Lockwood to name a few.
Matthew Yglesias, Dylan Matthews, and Lockwood to name a few.
I am not sure I know how much his portrayal of Spock inspired me, but I do know that it was for the better. While Nimoy was not Spock, I appreciated that what Nimoy did with Spock - he was a powerful lasting character that dealt with the logic of morality and came across as passionate without emotion. A great role model for a science officer and for humankind.
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It's been fairly stock in pop culture to smirk about Nimoy's career, but the objective truth is that he gave us a character of Shakespearean proportions. If it's true that he wasn't working working alone (he had the cooperation and support of writers and directors), it's also true that it's hard to imagine the fully-fleshed Spock, with his multiple layers of soul and symbolism intact, played by anyone else.
You have only to observe Zachary Quinto in the same role to see it. I don't want to touch off an intergenerational war, but Quinto's Spock (though competent and watchable in context) is a pale reflection of Nimoy's. He just doesn't have the reach.
Nimoy gave us that. It's his Spock we'll still be referring to in a hundred years.
Robin
Rusty Ring: Reflections of an Old-Timey Hermit
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