Nichelle Nichols#Star Trek
{{Short description|American actress (1932–2022)}}
{{Use American English|date=July 2022}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=July 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Nichelle Nichols
| image = Nichelle Nichols (4505899674) (cropped).jpg
| alt = A grinning afro-haired Nichelle Nichols
| caption = Nichols in 1979
| birth_name = Grace Dell Nichols
| birth_date = {{Birth date|mf=yes|1932|12|28}}
| birth_place = Robbins, Illinois, U.S.
| death_date = {{Death date and age|mf=yes|2022|07|30|1932|12|28}}
| death_place = Silver City, New Mexico, U.S.
| occupation = {{Hlist|Actress|singer|dancer}}
| years_active = 1959–2019
| education = Englewood High School
| credits = Nyota Uhura in Star Trek
| spouse = {{Ubl
|{{Marriage|Foster Johnson|1951|1951|end=div.}}
|{{Marriage|Duke Mondy|1968|1972|end=div.}}
}}
| children = Kyle Johnson
}}
Nichelle Nichols ({{IPAc-en|n|ɪ|'|ʃ|ɛ|l}} {{respell|nish|EL}}; born Grace Dell Nichols; December 28, 1932 – July 30, 2022){{Cite news |last=Sottile |first=Zoe |title=Nichelle Nichols, trailblazing 'Star Trek' actress, dies at 89 |publisher=CNN |url=https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/31/entertainment/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-dies/index.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731200059/https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/31/entertainment/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-dies/index.html |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} was an American actress, singer and dancer whose portrayal of Uhura in Star Trek and its film sequels was groundbreaking for African American actresses on American television. From 1977 to 2015, she volunteered her time to promote NASA's programs and recruit diverse astronauts, including some of the first female and ethnic minority astronauts.{{Cite web |last=Hahn |first=Michael |date=August 20, 2009 |title=GPN-2004-00017 – Nichelle Nichols, NASA Recruiter |url=http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2004-00017.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222042250/http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2004-00017.html |archive-date=December 22, 2009 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=NASA}}{{Cite web |last=Currie |first=Netisha |date=March 1, 2016 |title=To Boldly Go Where No (Wo)Man Has Gone Before… |url=https://rediscovering-black-history.blogs.archives.gov/2016/03/01/to-boldly-go-where-no-woman-has-gone-before/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503105236/https://rediscovering-black-history.blogs.archives.gov/2016/03/01/to-boldly-go-where-no-woman-has-gone-before/ |archive-date=May 3, 2021 |access-date=November 22, 2020 |publisher=Rediscovering Black History, National Archives |language=en-US |quote=Many astronauts have credited Nichols and the character of Lt. Uhura as an inspiration to them for seeking out opportunities with NASA, including: Ronald McNair, Sally Ride, Judith Resnik, current NASA Administrator Charles Bolden, and the first African American woman in space – Mae Jemison.}}
Born in the Chicago suburb of Robbins, she trained in dance, and began her career as a dancer, singer and model in Chicago. As an actor, she appeared on stage, in television and in film.
Early life
Grace Dell "Nichelle" Nichols was born the third of six children on December 28, 1932,{{Cite book |last=McCann |first=Bob |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=X7ZYsnTPIhwC&q=nichelle+nichols+1932&pg=PA251 |title=Encyclopedia of African American Actresses in Film and Television |date=December 21, 2009 |publisher=McFarland |isbn=978-0-7864-5804-2 |page=251}}{{Cite book |last=Adell |first=Sandra |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E2QYAQAAIAAJ&q=nichelle+nichols+1932 |title=African American Culture |publisher=Gale |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-8103-8485-9 |page=152}}{{Cite book |last1=David |first1=Shayler |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pKENlNUWPEwC&q=nichelle+nichols+1932&pg=PA152 |title=Women in Space - Following Valentina |last2=Moule |first2=Ian A. |date=August 29, 2006 |publisher=Springer Science & Business Media |isbn=978-1-84628-078-8 |page=152}} in Robbins, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago, to Samuel Earl Nichols, a factory worker who was elected both town mayor of Robbins in 1929{{Cite web |title=Robbins History |url=https://www.robbinshistorymusuem.org/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220115201628/https://www.robbinshistorymusuem.org/ |archive-date=January 15, 2022 |website=Robbins History Museum |quote=Actress Nichelle Nichols' grandfather, Samuel G. Nichols (a white man), was one of the village's original settlers who was married a black woman. Nichelle Nichols who portrayed Lt. Uhura in the original Star Trek television series also was hired by NASA to begin finding and recruiting qualified blacks for todays NASA Space program. Nichelle was born in a two-story frame house built by her grandparents in Robbins. Her father, Samuel E. Nichols, became the mayor of Robbins, IL in 1929. |accessdate=January 15, 2022}} and its chief magistrate, and his wife, Lishia (Parks) Nichols, a homemaker.{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols's Biography |url=https://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/nichelle-nichols |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211122090206/https://www.thehistorymakers.org/biography/nichelle-nichols |archive-date=November 22, 2021 |publisher=Thehistorymakers.org |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} Disliking her name, Nichols asked her parents for a new one; they suggested Nichelle, which they said meant "victorious maiden" (from Nike and the suffix -elle).{{Cite web|url=http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2016/oct/18/star-trek-nichelle-nichols-martin-luther-king-trekker|title=Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols: 'Martin Luther King was a Trekker'|date=October 18, 2016|website=the Guardian}} The family later moved into an apartment in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Chicago, where Nichols attended Englewood High School, graduating in 1951.{{Cite web|url=https://www.classmates.com/siteui/yearbooks/4182782477?page=88|title='1950 Englewood High School (Chicago, Illinois) Yearbook}}{{Cite web |title=Beyond Uhura Star Trek and Other Memories, By Nichelle Nichols · 1994 |url=https://www.google.com/books/edition/Beyond_Uhura/1HJZAAAAMAAJhl%3Den%26gbpv%3D1%26bsq%3Dnichelle+nichols+englewood+high+school+chicago%26dq%3Dnichelle+nichols+englewood+high+school+chicago%26printsec%3Dfrontcover}} From age 12, she studied dance at the Chicago Ballet Academy.
Career
Nichols began her professional career as a singer and dancer in Chicago. She then toured the United States and Canada with the bands of Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. In 1959, she appeared as the principal dancer in the film version of Porgy and Bess.{{Cite news |last=Hayward |first=Anthony |date=2022-08-01 |title=Nichelle Nichols obituary |language=en |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2022/aug/01/nichelle-nichols-obituary |access-date=2022-08-09}} Her acting break was an appearance in Kicks and Co., Oscar Brown's highly touted but ill-fated 1961 musical.{{Cite web |title=Kicks and Co. Original Broadway Cast – 1961 Broadway |url=http://www.broadwayworld.com/shows/cast.php?showid=8651#content |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206121657/http://www.broadwayworld.com/shows/cast.php?showid=8651#content |archive-date=December 6, 2014 |access-date=September 1, 2013 |website=www.broadwayworld.com}} In the thinly veiled satire of Playboy magazine, she played Hazel Sharpe, a voluptuous campus queen who was tempted by the devil and Orgy Magazine to become "Orgy Maiden of the Month". Although the play closed after a short run in Chicago, Nichols attracted the attention of Hugh Hefner, the publisher of Playboy, who booked her as a singer for his Chicago Playboy Club.{{Cite magazine |date=January 1962 |editor-last=Johnson |editor-first=John H. |title=Satirical flop brings star success |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BtcDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA41 |magazine=Ebony |volume=17 |issue=3 |pages=41–47}}{{Cite magazine |last=Still |first=Larry |date=October 12, 1961 |editor-last=Johnson |editor-first=John H. |title=Oscar Brown musical gets warm reception in windy city |magazine=Jet |volume=20 |issue=25 |pages=58–61}} She also appeared as Carmen for a Chicago stock company production of Carmen Jones and performed in a New York production of Porgy and Bess. Between acting and singing engagements, she did occasional modeling.{{Cite web |last=Dagan |first=Carmel |date=July 31, 2022 |title=Nichelle Nichols, Uhura in 'Star Trek,' Dies at 89 |url=https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/nichelle-nichols-dead-star-trek-the-original-series-1235330159/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731193759/https://variety.com/2022/tv/news/nichelle-nichols-dead-star-trek-the-original-series-1235330159/ |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |magazine=Variety |accessdate=July 31, 2022}}
In January 1967, Nichols was also featured on the cover of Ebony magazine, and had two feature articles in it in five years.{{Cite magazine |date=January 1967 |editor-last=Johnson |editor-first=John H. |title=A new star in the TV heavens |magazine=Ebony |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=70–76}} She continued touring the US, Canada, and Europe as a singer with Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton.{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/pioneers-of-television/pioneering-people/nichelle-nichols/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170722174116/http://www.pbs.org/wnet/pioneers-of-television/pioneering-people/nichelle-nichols/ |archive-date=July 22, 2017 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=PBS}} On the West Coast, she appeared in The Roar of the Greasepaint and For My People, and garnered high praise for her performance in the James Baldwin play Blues for Mister Charlie. Prior to being cast as Lieutenant Uhura in Star Trek, Nichols was a guest actress on television producer Gene Roddenberry's first series The Lieutenant (1964) in the episode "To Set It Right", which dealt with racial prejudice.{{Cite web |title=LIEUTENANT, THE: TO SET IT RIGHT {UNAIRED EPISODE} (TV) |url=http://www.paleycenter.org/collection/item/?q=john&p=423&item=T78:0377 |access-date=September 1, 2013 |website=Paley Center for Media}}
= ''Star Trek'' =
{{Main|Nyota Uhura}}
File:Nichelle Nichols, NASA Recruiter - GPN-2004-00017.jpg, 1967]]
On Star Trek, Nichols was one of the first Black women featured in a major television series. Her prominent supporting role as a bridge officer was unprecedented.{{Cite news |last=Nishi |first=Dennis |date=January 17, 2011 |title=SpeakEasy: 'Star Trek's' Nichelle Nichols on How Martin Luther King Jr. Changed Her Life |work=The Wall Street Journal |url=https://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/01/17/star-treks-nichelle-nichols-on-how-martin-luther-king-king-jr-changed-her-life/ |url-status=live |access-date=August 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170911125501/https://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2011/01/17/star-treks-nichelle-nichols-on-how-martin-luther-king-king-jr-changed-her-life/ |archive-date=September 11, 2017}} She was once tempted to leave the series; however, a conversation with Martin Luther King Jr. changed her mind.
Towards the end of the first season, Nichols was offered a role on Broadway. Preferring the stage to the television studio, she decided to take the role. Nichols went to Roddenberry's office, told him that she planned to leave, and handed him her resignation letter. Unable to convince her to stay, Roddenberry told her to take the weekend off, and if she still felt she should leave, he would give her his blessing. That weekend, Nichols attended a banquet organized by the NAACP, where she was informed that a fan wanted to meet her.{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols on how Dr. MLK, Jr. dissuaded her from quitting Star Trek - EMMYTVLEGENDS.ORG |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pSq_UIuxba8 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211110/pSq_UIuxba8 |archive-date=November 10, 2021 |via=www.youtube.com}}{{cbignore}}
{{Blockquote|text=I thought it was a Trekkie, and so I said, 'Sure.' I looked across the room and whoever the fan was had to wait because there was Dr. Martin Luther King walking towards me with this big grin on his face. He reached out to me and said, 'Yes, Ms. Nichols, I am your greatest fan.' He said that Star Trek was the only show that he, and his wife Coretta, would allow their three little children to stay up and watch. [She told King about her plans to leave the series because she wanted to take a role that was tied to Broadway.] I never got to tell him why, because he said, 'You cannot, you cannot... For the first time on television, we will be seen as we should be seen every day—as intelligent, quality, beautiful people who can sing, dance, and go to space… who are professors, lawyers… If you leave, that door can be closed, because your role is not a black role, and is not a female role; he can fill it with anybody, even an alien."}}
Calling Nichols a "vital role model", King compared her work on the series to the marches of the ongoing civil rights movement.{{Cite news |last=Huff |first=Richard |date=January 17, 2011 |title='Star Trek' actress Nichelle Nichols: Martin Luther King Jr. impacted decision to stay on Enterprise |work=New York Daily News |url=https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/star-trek-actress-nichelle-nichols-martin-luther-king-jr-impacted-decision-stay-enterprise-article-1.154674 |url-status=live |access-date=August 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502114006/https://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv-movies/star-trek-actress-nichelle-nichols-martin-luther-king-jr-impacted-decision-stay-enterprise-article-1.154674 |archive-date=May 2, 2019}}{{Cite podcast |url=https://www.startalkradio.net/show/a-conversation-with-nichelle-nichols/ |title=A Conversation with Nichelle Nichols |website=StarTalk |host=Neil deGrasse Tyson |date=July 11, 2011 |time=11:12 |access-date=September 24, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191011064319/https://www.startalkradio.net/show/a-conversation-with-nichelle-nichols/ |archive-date=October 11, 2019 |url-status=live}}{{Cite book |last=Nichols |first=Nichelle |url=https://archive.org/details/beyonduhurastart00nich/page/164 |title=Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories |date=October 19, 1994 |publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons |isbn=978-0-399-13993-2 |location=New York |pages=[https://archive.org/details/beyonduhurastart00nich/page/164 164–65]}} The next day, she returned to Roddenberry's office to tell him she would stay. When she told Roddenberry what King had said, tears came to his eyes.{{Cite web |last=Strachan |first=Alex |date=August 5, 2010 |title=Nichelle Nichols on playing Star Trek's Lt. Uhura and meeting Dr. King |url=https://o.canada.com/entertainment/nichelle-nichols-on-playing-star-treks-lt-uhura-and-meeting-dr-king |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216223502/https://o.canada.com/entertainment/nichelle-nichols-on-playing-star-treks-lt-uhura-and-meeting-dr-king |archive-date=February 16, 2020 |access-date=February 16, 2020 |website=Canada.com |language=en |quote=Now, Gene Roddenberry was a 6-foot-3 guy with muscles. ... And he sat there with tears in his eyes. He said, 'Thank God that someone knows what I'm trying to do. Thank God for Dr. Martin Luther King.'}}
Former NASA astronaut Mae Jemison cited Nichols' role of Lieutenant Uhura as her inspiration for becoming an astronaut. Whoopi Goldberg has also spoken of Nichols' influence,{{Cite web |title=Whoopi Goldberg |url=http://transporting.to/CyberWoman/whoopi.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110831103712/http://transporting.to/CyberWoman/whoopi.html |archive-date=August 31, 2011 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=A Woman's CyberSpace}} saying she asked for a role on Star Trek: The Next Generation, and her character Guinan was specially created, while Jemison appeared on an episode of the series.{{Cite web |last=Nichols |first=Nichelle |date=April 7, 2002 |title=Nichelle Nichols – Communications expert Uhura from Star Trek's Original series |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/st/interviews/nichols/printpage.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060628071740/http://www.bbc.co.uk/cult/st/interviews/nichols/printpage.html |archive-date=June 28, 2006 |access-date=April 1, 2007 |website=BBC}}
In her role as Lieutenant Uhura, Nichols kissed white actor William Shatner (as Captain James T. Kirk) in the November 22, 1968 Star Trek episode "Plato's Stepchildren". It has been cited as the first example of an interracial kiss on U.S. television, although several earlier instances have been identified.{{Cite web |date=September 5, 2001 |title=Nichols Talks First Inter-Racial Kiss |url=http://www.trektoday.com/news/050901_05.shtml |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229160018/http://www.trektoday.com/news/050901_05.shtml |archive-date=February 29, 2012 |access-date=September 29, 2014 |website=TrekToday}} The Shatner/Nichols kiss was considered groundbreaking, even though it was portrayed as having been forced by alien telekinesis. There was some praise and almost no dissent. In her autobiography Beyond Uhura, Star Trek and Other Memories, Nichols cited a letter from a white Southerner who wrote, "I am totally opposed to the mixing of the races. However, any time a red-blooded American boy like Captain Kirk gets a beautiful dame in his arms that looks like Uhura, he ain't gonna fight it." During the Comedy Central Roast of Shatner on August 20, 2006, Nichols jokingly referred to the kiss and said, "What do you say, let's make a little more TV history ... and kiss my black ass!{{hsp}}"{{Cite episode |title=William Shatner |series=Comedy Central Roast |series-link=Comedy Central Roast |network=Comedy Central |date=August 20, 2006}}
Despite the series' cancellation in 1969, Star Trek continued to play a part in Nichols' life. She provided the voice of Uhura in Star Trek: The Animated Series; in one episode, "The Lorelei Signal", Uhura assumes command of the Enterprise.{{Cite magazine |last=Mangels |first=Andy |date=Summer 2018 |title=Star Trek: The Animated Series |magazine=RetroFan |publisher=TwoMorrows Publishing |issue=1 |pages=25–37}} Nichols noted in her autobiography her frustration that this never happened on the original series. She co-starred in six Star Trek films, culminating in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. File:NichelleNicholsHWOFSept2012.jpg
In 1994, Nichols published her autobiography, Beyond Uhura: Star Trek and Other Memories. In it, she claimed that the role of Peggy Fair in the television series Mannix was offered to her during the final season of Star Trek, but producer Gene Roddenberry refused to release her from her contract. Between the end of the original series and the Star Trek animated series and feature films, Nichols appeared in small television and film roles. She briefly appeared as a secretary in Doctor, You've Got to Be Kidding! (1967),{{Cite web |date=October 29, 2019 |title=The Tampa Tribune |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38098204/the-tampa-tribune/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033235/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38098204/the-tampa-tribune/ |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} and portrayed Dorienda, a foul-mouthed madam in Truck Turner (1974) opposite Isaac Hayes, her only appearance in a blaxploitation film.{{Cite web |last=Shields |first=Meg |date=June 15, 2020 |title=On Blaxploitation and Breaking Barriers: The Radical Impact of Nichelle Nichols |url=https://filmschoolrejects.com/nichelle-nichols-lieutenant-uhura/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220415161439/https://filmschoolrejects.com/nichelle-nichols-lieutenant-uhura/ |archive-date=April 15, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=Film School Rejects}}
Nichols appeared in animated form as one of Al Gore's Vice Presidential Action Rangers in the "Anthology of Interest I" episode of Futurama,{{Cite web |date=March 12, 2015 |title=Futurama: "Anthology Of Interest I"/ "War Is The H Word" |url=https://www.avclub.com/futurama-anthology-of-interest-i-war-is-the-h-word-1798183059 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220705230607/https://www.avclub.com/futurama-anthology-of-interest-i-war-is-the-h-word-1798183059 |archive-date=July 5, 2022 |publisher=Avclub.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} and she provided the voice of her own head in a glass jar in the episode "Where No Fan Has Gone Before".{{Cite web |date=July 23, 2015 |title=Futurama: "Where No Fan Has Gone Before"/"The Sting" |url=https://www.avclub.com/futurama-where-no-fan-has-gone-before-the-sting-1798184428 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509074101/https://www.avclub.com/futurama-where-no-fan-has-gone-before-the-sting-1798184428 |archive-date=May 9, 2022 |publisher=Avclub.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} She voiced the recurring role of Elisa Maza's mother Diane Maza in the animated series Gargoyles,{{Cite web |date=June 22, 1997 |title=22 Jun 1997, Page 212 – The Orlando Sentinel at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/234371333/?terms=%22nichelle%20nichols%22%20%22diane%20maza%22&match=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033235/https://www.newspapers.com/image/234371333/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22diane+maza%22&match=1 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} and played Thoth-Kopeira in an episode of Batman: The Animated Series.{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FbyCBAAAQBAJ&dq=nichelle+nichols+Thoth-Kopeira+batman&pg=PA215 |title=Glamour, Gidgets, and the Girl Next Door: Television's Iconic Women from the ... – Herbie J. Pilato – Google Books |date=September 9, 2014 |publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=9781589799707}} In 2004, she provided the voice for herself in The Simpsons episode "Simple Simpson".{{Cite web|url=http://www.newspapers.com/image/486933682/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22the+simpsons%22&match=1|title=2 May 2004, 40 - Calgary Herald at Newspapers.com|website=Newspapers.com}} In the comedy film Snow Dogs (2002), she appeared as the mother of the male lead, played by Cuba Gooding Jr.{{Cite web |date=January 25, 2002 |title=25 Jan 2002, 20 – Sioux City Journal at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/336528156/?terms=%22nichelle%20nichols%22%20%22snow%20dogs%22&match=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033235/https://www.newspapers.com/image/336528156/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22snow+dogs%22&match=1 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} In 2006, she played the title character in the film Lady Magdalene's, the madam of a legal Nevada brothel in tax default.{{Cite web |date=August 31, 2007 |title=31 Aug 2007, H2 – The Atlanta Constitution at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/423190608/?terms=%22nichelle%20nichols%22%20%22Lady%20Magdalene%27s%22&match=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033235/https://www.newspapers.com/image/423190608/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22Lady+Magdalene%27s%22&match=1 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} She also served as executive producer and choreographer, and sang three songs in the film, two of which she composed. She was twice nominated for the Chicago theatrical Sarah Siddons Award for Best Actress, first for her portrayal of Hazel Sharpe in Kicks and Co., and again for her performance in The Blacks.{{Cite web |date=May 22, 1995 |title=22 May 1995, 6 – The Tribune at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/565688764/?terms=%22nichelle%20nichols%22%20%22%20Sarah%20Siddons%20Award%22&match=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033236/https://www.newspapers.com/image/565688764/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22+Sarah+Siddons+Award%22&match=1 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}}
Nichols had a recurring role on the second season of the NBC drama Heroes, first in the episode "Kindred", which aired October 8, 2007. She portrayed Nana Dawson, the matriarch of a New Orleans family financially and personally devastated by Hurricane Katrina, who cares for her orphaned grandchildren and her great-nephew, series regular Micah Sanders. In 2008, Nichols starred in the film The Torturer, playing the role of a psychiatrist. In 2009, she joined the cast of The Cabonauts, a sci-fi musical comedy that debuted on DailyMotion. Playing CJ, the CEO of the Cabonauts Inc, she was also featured singing and dancing.{{Cite web |last=Pascale |first=Anthony |date=July 7, 2009 |title=Nichelle Nichols Joins Sci-Fi Comedy Web Series 'The Cabonauts' |url=https://trekmovie.com/2009/07/07/nichelle-nichols-joins-sci-fi-comedy-web-series-cabonauts/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151012055418/http://trekmovie.com/2009/07/07/nichelle-nichols-joins-sci-fi-comedy-web-series-cabonauts/ |archive-date=October 12, 2015 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=TrekMovie.com}} On August 30, 2016, she was introduced as the aging mother of Neil Winters on the long-running soap opera The Young and the Restless. She received her first Daytime Emmy nomination for "Outstanding Guest Performer in a Drama Series" for the role on March 22, 2017.{{Cite web |date=March 22, 2017 |title=The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Announces Nominations For The 44th Annual Daytime Emmy® Awards |url=http://cdn.emmyonline.org/day_44th_nominations_v02.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200503025016/http://cdn.emmyonline.org/day_44th_nominations_v02.pdf |archive-date=May 3, 2020 |access-date=March 22, 2017 |website=National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences}}
= Music =
Nichols released two music albums: Down to Earth, a collection of standards released in 1967, during the original run of Star Trek;{{Cite web |last=Planer |first=Lindsay |title=Down to Earth |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/down-to-earth-mw0000475901 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190408101923/https://www.allmusic.com/album/down-to-earth-mw0000475901 |archive-date=April 8, 2019 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=AllMusic}} and Out of This World, released in 1991, a more rock-oriented album themed around Star Trek and space exploration.{{Cite web |date=March 29, 1992 |title=29 Mar 1992, 34 – The Courier at |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/359262559/?terms=%22nichelle%20nichols%22%20%22out%20of%20this%20world%22%20album&match=1 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033236/https://www.newspapers.com/image/359262559/?terms=%22nichelle+nichols%22+%22out+of+this+world%22+album&match=1 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |publisher=Newspapers.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}}{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols – Out of This World |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/out-of-this-world-mw0000611993 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033237/https://www.allmusic.com/album/out-of-this-world-mw0000611993 |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=AllMusic}}
As Uhura, Nichols sang on the Star Trek episodes "Charlie X", “The Changeling” and "The Conscience of the King".{{Cite web |date=December 28, 1932 |title=Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek's Uhura, Passed Away at Age 89 |url=https://gizmodo.com/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-uhura-actor-obituary-1849353418 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731190508/https://gizmodo.com/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-uhura-actor-obituary-1849353418 |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |publisher=Gizmodo.com |accessdate=July 31, 2022}}
Work with NASA
File:Space shuttle enterprise star trek-cropcast.jpg at the Rockwell International plant at Palmdale, California, U.S., 1976]]
After the cancellation of Star Trek, Nichols volunteered her time in a special project with NASA to recruit minority and female personnel for the space agency. She began this work by making an affiliation between NASA and a company which she helped to run, Women in Motion.{{Cite news |last=Prafder |first=Erika |date=February 2, 2011 |title=To boldly go: Groundbreaking actress Nichelle Nichols continues to expand her horizons |work=New York Post |url=https://nypost.com/2011/02/02/to-boldly-go/ |url-status=live |access-date=August 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190821105324/https://nypost.com/2011/02/02/to-boldly-go/ |archive-date=August 21, 2019}}{{Cite magazine |date=July 29, 2009 |title=Where No Woman Has Gone Before: An Actress Spotlight on Nichelle Nichols |url=http://bitchmagazine.org/post/where-no-woman-has-gone-before-an-actress-spotlight-on-nichelle-nichols |url-status=dead |magazine=Bitch |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006131851/http://bitchmagazine.org/post/where-no-woman-has-gone-before-an-actress-spotlight-on-nichelle-nichols |archive-date=October 6, 2014 |access-date=September 29, 2014}}{{Cite web |last=Levi |first=Linda |date=February 21, 2011 |title=Black History Month Profile: Nichelle Nichols |url=http://www.nywici.org/features/blogs/aloud/black-history-month-profile-nichelle-nichols |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111009063639/http://www.nywici.org/features/blogs/aloud/black-history-month-profile-nichelle-nichols |archive-date=October 9, 2011 |access-date=September 29, 2014 |website=New York Women In Communications}}{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols, National Space Society Board of Governors |url=http://www.nss.org/about/bios/nichols.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111212223056/http://www.nss.org/about/bios/nichols.html |archive-date=December 12, 2011 |access-date=September 29, 2014 |website=National Space Society}}{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols |url=http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Nichelle_Nichols.aspx |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121018202233/http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/Nichelle_Nichols.aspx |archive-date=October 18, 2012 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=Encyclopedia.com}}{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols, NASA Recruiter |url=http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2004-00017.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091222042250/http://grin.hq.nasa.gov/ABSTRACTS/GPN-2004-00017.html |archive-date=December 22, 2009 |access-date=January 9, 2019 |website=NASA}}{{Cite web |last=Arcynta Ali Childs |date=June 11, 2011 |title=Q & A: Nichelle Nichols, AKA Lt. Uhura, and NASA |url=http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2011/06/q-a-nichelle-nichols-aka-lt-uhura-and-nasa/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110627163412/http://blogs.smithsonianmag.com/aroundthemall/2011/06/q-a-nichelle-nichols-aka-lt-uhura-and-nasa/ |archive-date=June 27, 2011 |access-date=January 9, 2019 |publisher=Smithsonian.com |quote=Ten years after "Star Trek" was cancelled, almost to the day, I was invited to join the board of directors of the newly formed National Space Society. They flew me to Washington and I gave a speech called "New Opportunities for the Humanization of Space" or "Space, What's in it for me?" In [the speech], I'm going where no man or woman dares go. I took NASA on for not including women and I gave some history of the powerful women who had applied and, after five times applying, felt disenfranchised and backed off. [At that time] NASA was having their fifth or sixth recruitment and women and ethnic people [were] staying away in droves. I was asked to come to headquarters the next day and they wanted me to assist them in persuading women and people of ethnic backgrounds that NASA was serious [about recruiting them]. And I said you've got to be joking; I didn't take them seriously. . . . John Yardley, who I knew from working on a previous project, was in the room and said 'Nichelle, we are serious.' I said OK. I will do this and I will bring you the most qualified people on the planet, as qualified as anyone you've ever had and I will bring them in droves. And if you do not pick a person of color, if you do not pick a woman, if it's the same old, same old, all-white male astronaut corps, that you've done for the last five years, and I'm just another dupe, I will be your worst nightmare.}}
The program was a success. Among those recruited were Dr. Sally Ride, the first American female astronaut, and United States Air Force Colonel Guion Bluford, the first African-American to go into space, as well as Dr. Judith Resnik and Dr. Ronald McNair, who both flew successful missions during the Space Shuttle program before their deaths in the Space Shuttle Challenger disaster on January 28, 1986. Recruits also included Charles Bolden, the former NASA administrator and veteran of four shuttle missions, Frederick D. Gregory, former deputy administrator and a veteran of three shuttle missions and Lori Garver, former deputy administrator. An enthusiastic advocate of space exploration, Nichols served from the mid-1980s on the board of governors of the National Space Institute (today's National Space Society), a nonprofit, educational space advocacy organization.
In late 2015, Nichols flew aboard NASA's Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA) Boeing 747SP, which analyzed the atmospheres of Mars and Saturn on an eight-hour, high-altitude mission. She was also a special guest at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, on July 17, 1976, to view the Viking 1 soft landing on Mars. Along with the other cast members from the original Star Trek series, she attended the christening of the first space shuttle, Enterprise, at the North American Rockwell assembly facility in Palmdale, California. On July 14, 2010, she toured the space shuttle simulator and Mission Control at the Johnson Space Center.{{Cite web |date=July 14, 2010 |title=Nichelle Nicholls, Star Trek's Uhura, in the Shuttle Simulator at NASA at Houston |url=http://twitpic.com/25brxs |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100719034416/http://twitpic.com/25brxs |archive-date=July 19, 2010 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=TwitPic}}
Nichols' work with NASA is given significant focus in the documentary Woman in Motion about her life.{{Cite web |date=April 5, 2021 |title=Woman in Motion Honors Nichelle Nichols' Contributions to Space Exploration |url=https://www.startrek.com/news/woman-in-motion-honors-nichelle-nichols-contributions-to-space-exploration |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624204552/https://www.startrek.com/news/woman-in-motion-honors-nichelle-nichols-contributions-to-space-exploration |archive-date=June 24, 2021 |access-date=June 20, 2021 |website=StarTrek.com}}
Personal life
File:Nichelle Nichols Photo Op GalaxyCon Minneapolis 2019.jpg
In her autobiography, Nichols wrote that she was romantically involved with Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry for a few years in the 1960s. She said the affair ended well before Star Trek began, when she realized Roddenberry was also involved with her acquaintance Majel Hudec (known as Majel Barrett). Hudec went on to marry Gene Roddenberry and have a regular supporting role as nurse Christine Chapel on Star Trek.{{Cite book |last=Nichols |first=Nichelle |url=https://archive.org/details/beyonduhurastart00nich |title=Beyond Uhura |date=October 1994 |publisher=G. P. Putnam's Sons |isbn=9780399139932 |location=New York |url-access=registration}}
When Roddenberry's health was fading, Nichols co-wrote a song for him, "Gene", which she sang at his memorial service.
She also wrote that she had "a short, stormy, exciting relationship" with Sammy Davis Jr. in 1959.{{cite book|last=Fishgall|first=Gary|title=Gonna Do Great Things: The Life of Sammy Davis Jr|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780743227414|url-access=registration|access-date=January 14, 2011|date=September 30, 2003|publisher=Scribner|isbn=978-0-7432-2741-4}}
Nichols married twice—first to dancer Foster Johnson (1917–1981), whom she married in 1951 and divorced the same year. They had one child together, Kyle Johnson, who was born August 14, 1951. She married Duke Mondy, in 1968; they divorced in 1972.{{Cite web |last=Bedard |first=Mike |date=July 31, 2022 |title=The Devastating Death Of Nichelle Nichols |url=https://www.looper.com/445176/the-devastating-death-of-nichelle-nichols/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033237/https://www.looper.com/445176/the-devastating-death-of-nichelle-nichols/ |archive-date=August 1, 2022 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=Looper.com}}
Nichols' younger brother, Thomas, was a member of the Heaven's Gate cult. He died on March 26, 1997, in the cult's mass suicide that purposefully coincided with the passing of Comet Hale–Bopp.{{Cite web |title=Nichelle Nichols' Connection to the Heaven's Gate Cult Tragedy |url=http://www.reocities.com/Hollywood/6952/nichols.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130624125458/http://www.reocities.com/Hollywood/6952/nichols.htm |archive-date=June 24, 2013 |access-date=September 29, 2014 |website=Reocities}} A member for 20 years, he frequently identified himself as Nichelle's brother in promotional materials released by the cult.{{Cite news |last=Bearman |first=Joshuah |author-link=Joshuah Bearman |date=March 21, 2007 |title=Heaven's Gate: The Sequel |work=LA Weekly |url=http://www.laweekly.com/news/heavens-gate-the-sequel-2147951 |url-status=live |access-date=August 21, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161125175611/http://www.laweekly.com/news/heavens-gate-the-sequel-2147951 |archive-date=November 25, 2016}}{{Cite news |date=March 28, 1997 |title=Some members of suicide cult castrated |work=CNN |url=http://www.cnn.com/US/9703/28/mass.suicide.pm/ |url-status=dead |access-date=May 20, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/19990222131949/http://www.cnn.com/US/9703/28/mass.suicide.pm/ |archive-date=February 22, 1999}}
On February 29, 2012, Nichols met with President Barack Obama in the Oval Office. She later tweeted, "…[President] Obama was quoted as saying that he'd had a crush on me when he was younger… I asked about that, and he proudly confirmed it! President Obama also confirmed for me that he was definitely a Trekker! How wonderful is that?!"{{Cite news |last=Jackson |first=David |date=April 5, 2012 |title=Obama gives Vulcan salute with Lt. Uhura |work=USA Today |url=http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2012/04/obama-gives-vulcan-salute-with-lt-uhura/1#.WJG_tYVOLkk |url-status=live |access-date=February 1, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150827024410/http://content.usatoday.com/communities/theoval/post/2012/04/obama-gives-vulcan-salute-with-lt-uhura/1#.WJG_tYVOLkk |archive-date=August 27, 2015}}
=Health and death=
In June 2015, Nichols suffered a mild stroke at her Los Angeles home and was admitted to a Los Angeles-area hospital.{{Cite web |date=June 5, 2015 |title=Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek's Lt Uhura, suffers stroke |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-33018975 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190522042142/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-33018975 |archive-date=May 22, 2019 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=BBC News}}{{Cite web |last=Whitney |first=Erin |date=June 5, 2015 |title='Star Trek' Star Nichelle Nichols Hospitalized |url=https://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/star-trek-star-nichelle-nichols-hospitalized/ar-BBkHsc3 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304054211/http://www.msn.com/en-us/tv/news/star-trek-star-nichelle-nichols-hospitalized/ar-BBkHsc3 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=August 21, 2019 |website=MSN.com}} A magnetic resonance imaging scan confirmed a small stroke had occurred, and she began inpatient therapy. In early 2018, she was diagnosed with dementia,{{Cite web |last=Cohen |first=Jess |date=April 10, 2018 |title=Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols Diagnosed With Dementia |url=https://www.eonline.com/news/959320/star-trek-s-nichelle-nichols-diagnosed-with-dementia |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200111093146/https://www.eonline.com/news/959320/star-trek-s-nichelle-nichols-diagnosed-with-dementia |archive-date=January 11, 2020 |access-date=January 11, 2020 |website=E! Online |language=en-US}} and subsequently announced her retirement from convention appearances.{{Cite web |last=Pascale |first=Anthony |date=May 19, 2018 |title=Nichelle Nichols Announces Farewell Tour, Convention And Documentary |url=https://trekmovie.com/2019/05/05/nichelle-nichols-announces-farewell-tour-convention-and-documentary/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190507131307/https://trekmovie.com/2019/05/05/nichelle-nichols-announces-farewell-tour-convention-and-documentary/ |archive-date=May 7, 2019 |access-date=January 11, 2020 |website=TrekMovie.com |language=en-US}}
Following a legal dispute over the actions of her manager-turned-caretaker Gilbert Bell, her son Kyle Johnson filed for conservatorship in 2018. Before a court granted his petition in January 2019, Nichols' friend Angelique Fawcette, who had already expressed concern in 2017 over Bell's control of access to her, pressed for visitation rights, including by opposing Johnson's petition. That dispute, and a 2019 court case by Bell over being evicted from the guesthouse on Nichols' property, were both ongoing as of August 2021.{{Cite news |last=Easter |first=Makeda |date=August 15, 2021 |title=Inside the heartbreaking conservatorship battle of a 'Star Trek' legend |work=Los Angeles Times |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2021-08-15/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-uhura-dementia-conversatorship-battle |url-status=live |access-date=March 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308200217/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2021-08-15/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-uhura-dementia-conversatorship-battle |archive-date=March 8, 2022}}
Nichols died of heart failure in Silver City, New Mexico, on July 30, 2022, at the age of 89,{{Cite news |last=Weber |first=Bruce |date=July 31, 2022 |title=Nichelle Nichols, Early 'Trek' Star Who Boldly Blazed Path, Dies at 89 |page=D8 |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/31/obituaries/nichelle-nichols-dead.html |url-status=live |url-access=limited |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220731204921/https://www.nytimes.com/2022/07/31/obituaries/nichelle-nichols-dead.html |archive-date=July 31, 2022 |accessdate=July 31, 2022}} and her ashes were launched into deep space along with those of Majel Barrett and Douglas Trumbull.{{cite web | url=https://www.the-guardian.com/culture/2022/aug/26/nichelle-nichols-star-trek-ashes-space | title=Nichelle Nichols to become latest Star Trek star to have ashes sent into space | website=TheGuardian.com | date=August 26, 2022 }}
Recognition
In 1982, Robert A. Heinlein dedicated his novel Friday to her.{{Cite book |last=Heinlein |first=Robert A. |title=Friday |date=June 1983 |publisher=Henry Holt and Company |isbn=9780030615160 |author-link=Robert A. Heinlein}} Asteroid 68410 Nichols is named in her honor.{{Cite web |last=Chamberlin |first=Alan |date=September 26, 2005 |title=68410 Nichols (2001 QB154) |url=http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=68410 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823013439/http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=68410 |archive-date=August 23, 2014 |access-date=November 22, 2016 |website=JPL Small-Body Database Browser}}
In 1992, she was awarded a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, for her contribution to television.
In 1999, Nichols was awarded a Goldene Kamera for {{Lang|de|Kultstar des Jahrhunderts}} (Cult Star of the Century).{{Cite web |title=Goldene Kamera 1999 – 34. Verleihung |url=https://www.goldenekamera.de/preisverleihung/chronik-fakten/article207117753/GOLDENE-KAMERA-1999-34-Verleihung.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180630080943/https://www.goldenekamera.de/preisverleihung/chronik-fakten/article207117753/GOLDENE-KAMERA-1999-34-Verleihung.html |archive-date=June 30, 2018 |access-date=October 5, 2019 |website=Goldene Kamera 1999|date=June 15, 2016 }}{{Cite news |last=Whitmore |first=Greg |date=July 31, 2022 |title=Star Trek's Nichelle Nichols: a life in pictures |work=The Guardian |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/gallery/2022/jul/31/star-treks-nichelle-nichols-a-life-in-pictures |url-status=live |access-date=July 31, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220801033325/https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/gallery/2022/jul/31/star-treks-nichelle-nichols-a-life-in-pictures |archive-date=August 1, 2022}} 2010, Nichols received an honorary degree from Los Angeles Mission College.
Nichols received The Life Career Award, from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films, in 2016, the first woman to receive it. The award was presented as part of the 42nd Saturn Awards ceremony. Nichols was awarded the Inkpot Award in 2018.{{Cite web |date=December 6, 2012 |title=Inkpot Award |url=https://www.comic-con.org/awards/inkpot |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170129155249/http://www.comic-con.org/awards/inkpot |archive-date=January 29, 2017 |access-date=September 12, 2020 |website=Comic-Con International: San Diego}}
Nichols was an honorary member of Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority.{{Cite web |title=Alpha Kappa Alpha, Inc. | Membership |url=http://aka1908.org/present/membership/ |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20070928000231/http://aka1908.org/present/membership/ |archivedate=September 28, 2007 |accessdate=July 31, 2022}}
Udea nicholsae, a species of snout moths, was named in her honour.{{cite journal |last1=Mally |first1=Richard |last2=Aarvik |first2=Leif |last3=Karisch |first3=Timm |last4=Lees |first4=David C. |last5=Malm |first5=Tobias |date=2022 |title=Revision of Afrotropical Udea Guenée in Duponchel, 1845, with description of five new species of the U. ferrugalis (Hübner, 1796) group (Lepidoptera, Crambidae, Spilomelinae) |journal=Nota Lepidopterologica |volume=45 |pages=315–353 |url=https://nl.pensoft.net/article/94938/list/11/ |doi=10.3897/nl.45.94938|doi-access=free |hdl=10852/101320 |hdl-access=free }}
The second season of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds began with a pre-credits dedication, referencing one of her recurring lines from the original series: "For Nichelle who was first through the door and showed us the stars. Hailing frequencies forever open..."
Filmography
= Films =
= Television =
= Video games and theme park attractions =
| class="wikitable" |
| Year
!Title !Role !Notes |
|---|
| 1994
|rowspan=2|Video games (CD-ROM versions) |
| 1995 |
| 1996–1998
|Star Trek Adventure |Nyota Uhura |Amusement park feature; appeared in several revisions |
Books
| class="wikitable" |
| Title
!Publisher !Date !ISBN !Notes |
|---|
| Beyond Uhura{{Cite web |title=Beyond Uhura |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nichelle-nichols/beyond-uhura/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201126153250/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nichelle-nichols/beyond-uhura/ |archive-date=November 26, 2020 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=Kirkus Reviews}}
|{{Dts|1994|10|19}} |{{ISBNT|0-399-13993-1}} | |
| Saturn's Child{{Cite web |title=Saturn's Child |url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nichelle-nichols/saturns-child/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210117154034/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/nichelle-nichols/saturns-child/ |archive-date=January 17, 2021 |access-date=July 31, 2022 |website=Kirkus Reviews}}
|{{Dts|1995|10|17}} |{{ISBNT|0-399-14113-8}} |with Margaret Wander Bonanno |
| Saturna's Quest
|Planet X Books |2002 |{{ISBNT|978-0971915404}} |with Jim Meechan |
Discography
- Down to Earth (Epic Records, 1967)
- Uhura Sings (aR-Way Productions, 1986)
- Out of this World (GNP Crescendo, 1991)
See also
{{Portal|Speculative fiction|Television}}
References
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
Further reading
- [https://books.google.com/books?id=CLIDAAAAMBAJ&dq=%22dancer+grace+nichols%22&pg=PA36 "The Week's Best Photos: Drummer's Delight"]. Jet. March 3, 1955. p. 36
External links
{{Commons category}}
{{Wikiquote}}
- {{IMDb name|629675}}
- {{TCMDb name | id=140929{{!}}117155}}
- {{ISFDB name|id=861|name=Nichelle Nichols}}
- {{The Interviews name|nichelle-nichols}}
- {{Discogs artist|Nichelle Nichols}}
{{Star Trek: The Original Series}}{{Inkpot Award 2010s}}
{{The Life Career Award}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nichols, Nichelle}}
Category:20th-century African-American actresses
Category:20th-century American actresses
Category:21st-century African-American actresses
Category:21st-century American actresses
Category:Actresses from Chicago
Category:African-American women singers
Category:American autobiographers
Category:American film actresses
Category:American television actresses
Category:American voice actresses
Category:Deaths from congestive heart failure in the United States
Category:Englewood Technical Prep Academy alumni
Category:People from Robbins, Illinois
Category:Science Fiction Hall of Fame inductees
Category:Star Trek fiction writers