Kirk, captain of the uss enterprise, in the star trek franchise. Chris elliott on letterman doing his version of william shatners rocket man. William shatner goes kpop with girls generation on better. This is shatner giving it another try, over thirty years later, and in my opinion, getting. Rocket man is een lied geschreven door elton john muziek en bernie. One man holds the key to an empire as vast as the stars jim. William shatner stars in new pedego electric bikes commercials shatner is a reallife pedego customer who is passionate about electric cycling fountain valley, calif. Among numerous other performances, john played rocket man at the launch site of space shuttle discovery in 1998. There are a couple of theories, so lets pick through them and find out. Finally, if youre wondering who brought home the hardware from the 78. The thing is that fandom has changed in the past twenty years that it has gone from something fringe to mainstream so the former craziness of trekkies now almost quaint. One of the interwebs most popular viral videos is of william shatner singing elton johns classic rocket man at an awards show from the 70s. Shatner famously told a gaggle of infatuated trekkers to get a life.
Kirk of the uss enterprise in the television show star trek. Poking fun at star treks gungho fans and conventions in a now infamous saturday night live sketch, william shatner s comic rallying cry has been indelibly emblazoned into the collective psyche of trekkers everywhere. You can find a new recording of rocket man on seeking major tom. In his seven decades of acting, shatner became a cultural icon for his portrayal of captain james t.
Oct 10, 2018 the book details shatners wild life as an actor, musician, producer, director, writer and so much more. The father finds that his work is ruining his life, but the draw of the stars is too. The tragedy of his life the drowning death of his third wife nerine is heartbreakingly told, shatner finding her body in their swimming pool after returning from a visit to his daughter. He has written a series of books chronicling his experiences playing captain kirk and being a part of star trek, and has cowritten several novels set in the star trek universe. In it, star trek fans are portrayed as immature, nerdish, without social skills, focused on fandom minutia, and objects of disdain. Dec 15, 2010 from the 1978 science fiction film awards. The fascinating fantasy behind elton johns rocket man.
In 1978, shatner hosted the 5th saturn awards where he performed elton john s rocket man again, in a spoken voice. Once youve read the conversations with the shy veterinary student who made friends. Nov 18, 2016 check out rocket man by william shatner on amazon music. Dec 21, 2015 my gift to all shatner fans who have had to sit through the abysmal versions of this song replete with buzzing and hissing. During the next halfcenturyfrom his agonized cover of rocket man to the irresistible denny crane. To many people a rocket man is a rocket man is primarily a man flying with a backpack rocket pack, not some pop music group. Get a life, william shatners comic rallying cry, memorably first exclaimed during a popular saturday night live sketch, has been indelibly emblazoned into the collective psyche of trekkers everywhere. Midnight pulp william shatner performs rocket man facebook. Songs get a life, by built to spill from ultimate alternative wavers get a life, by the freestylers from. The title of this documentary is taken from one of the funniest saturday night live skits of the 1980sthe one where william shatner addresses a groups of trekkies and tells them to get a life.
Uhura in the november 22, 1968, star trek episode, platos stepchildren. Its an excellent title to this shatner hosted show, as it explores star trek fandom as well as tries to draw some meaning to all this. She packed my bags last night preflight zero hour nine a. Jul 17, 2012 the star trek star reveals why he wanted to make the documentary and the longevity of why people still consumed with the series. He is also the author of several nonfiction books, including get a life. The movie and tv actor, author, singer, documentary maker and one of the most visible icons from 1960s pop. Apr 16, 2008 shatners rocket man condensed to just the performance. A firstperson journey of discovery told with selfdeprecating wit, unflagging honesty, and his trademark enthusiasm and humor, get a life. The song first appeared on elton johns 1972 album honky chateau and became a hit single, rising to no. An unofficial nickname for a collection of 10 star trek novels written by william shatner, with judith and garfield reevesstevens. William shatner on his documentary william shatners get a. July 7, 2017 we have to watch this every once in a while, just to make sure. William shatner sings rocket man at the 1978 science fiction. Rocket man officially titled rocket man i think its going to be a long, long time is a song composed by elton john and bernie taupin and originally performed by elton john.
Poking fun at star treks gungho fans and conventions in a now infamous saturday night live sketch, william shatners comic rallying cry has been indelibly emblazoned into the collective psyche of trekkers everywhere. Our new desktop experience was built to be your music destination. In the course of this book, shatner gives us a short history of trek fandom. All of us have an innate, instinctive desire to change our environment, to put our original stamp. The episode is popularly cited as the first example of a kiss between a white man and a black woman on scripted television in the united states. Pages media art 70s scifi movies videos william shatner sings rocket man at the 1978.
Here bill shatner talks about hosting saturday night live where he performed his infamous get a life skit. William shatner rocket man ize the song telephone by lady gaga video 10 jp. Kirk of the uss enterprise in the star trek franchise. But the tv moment also inspired shatner to write a book. But the tv moment also inspired shatner to write a book followed by a tv documentary called get a life. Hwayi a monster boy now streaming on midnight pulp. And to promote the book shatner will also be sitting down with the ladies at the. It seems to exist in our culture purely as a punchline, a goto gag to illustrate the depth to which shatners career had fallen poststar trek.
William shatner is the author of nine star trek novels, including the new york times bestsellers the ashes of eden and the return. Oct 15, 2010 william shatners take on the classic elton johnbernie taupin tune rocket man has an awesome powerpeople know it without ever having heard it. He appeared on stage at the science fiction film awards in 1978, under a spotlight, cigarette in hand, to perform rocket man, experimenting for the first time with shatner as shatner. He coolly deconstructed elton johns rocket man on the science fiction film awards in 1978. And im gonna be high as a kite by then i miss the earth so much i miss my wife. For the second year in a row bill explores star trek, but this time he turns his focus to the fans. Kirk, can finally come to grips with his past, his fans, their love, and his own intergalactic legacy. But according to an account in elizabeth rosenthals book his song. The fascinating fantasy behind elton johns rocket man radio x.
Its taupin who introduces shatner, and karen black who introduces. Get a life stiff little fingers album, or the title song. William shatner is the rocket man 1978 click americana. But really, if you want to experience the high watermark of shatners musical work, you need to beam yourself back to 1978. The original series from 1966 to 1969 continuing into seven of the subsequent movies.
In that book, there was a story called the rocket man, which was about how astronauts in the future would become sort of an everyday job. William shatner and his coauthor chris kreski have a pleasant, enjoyable, breezy prose style and what theyre talking about it actually. He unleashed his quasishakespearean versions of beatles and bob dylan songs on the transformed man in 1968. William shatner stars in new pedego electric bikes commercials shatner is a real life pedego customer who is passionate about electric cycling fountain valley, calif.
Another live double album by shatner, captain of the starship, was also released in 1978. Kirk, briefly explains the origins of the infamous saturday night live sketch that gives the book its title, holds a seminar with the three other starship captains. This performance has been parodied by the tv show family guy and musician beck, to name a few. Browse author series lists, sequels, pseudonyms, synopses, book covers, ratings and awards. William shatner oc born march 22, 1931 is a canadian actor, author, producer, director, screenwriter, and singer. In 1978, shatner hosted the 5th saturn awards where he performed elton johns rocket man again, in a.
Shatner is the only actor who could do this and have the audience unsure. My gift to all shatner fans who have had to sit through the abysmal versions of this song replete with buzzing and hissing. Jul 28, 2012 the title of this documentary is taken from one of the funniest saturday night live skits of the 1980sthe one where william shatner addresses a groups of trekkies and tells them to get a life. In the course of this book, shatner gives us a short history of trek fandom, reveals the thinking behind paramounts decision to kill off james t.
William shatner says goodbye to leonard nimoy in his new book. Previously and infamously, he performed the song in the 1978 science fiction film awards. This article may feature affiliate links to amazon or other companies, and purchases made via these links may earn us a small commission at no additional cost to you. Audio restored william shatner sings rocket man 1978. Chris elliotts reenactment of it on letterman in 1992 had more comedy because it was done in the context of elliotts tv series get a life. William shatner sings rocket man at the 1978 science fiction f. Shatner s rocket man condensed to just the performance. The novels are published by pocket books as part of their pocket tos line 1995 2007 and set in an alternate timeline with a resurrected captain. William shatner performs his interpretation of elton johns rocket man at the science fiction film awards in 1978. Nov 29, 2017 william shatner became a cultural icon for his portrayal of james t.
At the very least, theres no denying that shatner s rocket man is very, very weird. But really, if you want to experience the high watermark of shatner s musical work, you need to beam yourself back to 1978. William shatner chats about life and the space force space. Get a life by william shatner is a short documentary that celebrates the rabid devotion of trek fans to their chosen icon. Oct 07, 20 william shatner is introduced by lyricist bernie taupin before hilariously performing elton johns hit rocket man at the 1978 science fiction film awards which he cohosted with karen black. William shatner sings rocket man at the 1978 science fiction film awards. Rocket man is a song composed by elton john and bernie taupin and originally performed by.
William shatner sings rocket man 1978 best quality. In 1977 a live double album titled william shatner live was released. William shatner has notched up an impressive 50plus years in front of the camera, displaying heady comedic talent and being instantly recognizable to several generations of cult television fans as the squarejawed captain james t. William shatners music career has taken as many strange turns as his acting career over the decades. It sounds like a wacky idea, but it actually turned out quite well. Through the years, the phrase has spurred laughter, anger, controversy, and far more than its fair share of debate.