WILLIAM SHATNER (Kazar) lends his distinctive voice to this looney leader of a cult of wildebeests intent on moving up the food chain.
The popular star has cultivated a career that has spanned 50 years as a professional actor, director, producer, screenwriter, recording artist, author, and horseman. He is one of pop culture’s most recognizable figures and has also established himself as a major Hollywood philanthropist.
Born in Montreal, Canada, Shatner developed an early interest in acting and started working professionally at the Canadian Broadcasting Company (CBC) even before he reached his teens.
He found himself drawn to the theater and eventually joined the Stratford Shakespeare Festival under Sir Tyron Guthrie. “Tamburlaine,” one of the festival’s productions, moved to Broadway, and Shatner was immediately noticed by the New York critics.
While at Stratford, Shatner also found time to write plays for the CBC. He moved to New York and was part of television’s Golden Age, working on programs such as “Playhouse 90” and “Studio One.” He made his film debut in the 1957 film “The Brothers Karamazov,” followed by “Judgment at Nuremburg” and “The Intruder.” During the same period, he starred on Broadway in “The World of Suzie Wong” and “A Shot in the Dark.”
He has since guest-starred in several hundred television programs, including classics such as “The Twilight Zone,” “Alfred Hitchcock Presents,” and “Mission: Impossible.” He also recurred on other staples, including “77 Sunset Strip” and “Dr. Kildare,” before garnering an Emmy® nomination for his appearances in “3rd Rock From the Sun.”
In 1966, Shatner originated the role of Captain James T. Kirk in the television series “Star Trek,” a show which rocketed to fame only after it was cancelled and relaunched in syndication. The series spawned a feature-film franchise, and Shatner reprised the role of Kirk in seven of the “Star Trek” motion pictures. He has since appeared in other movies, such as “Airplane II: The Sequel,” “Loaded Weapon I,” and both installments of the “Miss Congeniality” franchise.
Shatner played the title role in the hit network series “T.J. Hooker” before hosting the CBS series “Rescue 911” for six seasons. He made his feature-film directing debut in 1989 with “Star Trek V: The Final Frontier,” in which he also starred as well as helped conceive the story. Since then he has directed several features, television movies, and episodics. Most recently, he directed and produced “Groom Lake,” a picture about the mysterious area surrounding Roswell, New Mexico.
Shatner’s love and appreciation of music inspired him to go into the studio and record “Has Been,” a compilation of songs he recorded with such musical artists as Ben Folds (who also produced the record), Brad Paisley, Joe Jackson, Aimee Mann and Henry Rollins. The album features Shatner’s trademark vocalization and shows off his passion for poetry and lyricism. Off-screen, Shatner has authored over 20 best-selling books in both the fiction and non-fiction genres. His novel series TekWar was turned into a television series for Sci-Fi Network, in which he starred and directed. Some of his other popular novels include Man O’War, Star Trek Avenger, and Ashes of Eden. He wrote two books on his “Star Trek” career, Star Trek Memories and Star Trek Movie Memories, before penning Get a Life!—a hilarious yet endearing look at the cult of “Star Trek” conventions.
Beyond the confines of the entertainment industry, he has also enjoyed success in the field of horse breeding. His love for horses led him to his involvement with AHEAD With Horses, a charity organization that gives physically and mentally challenged children the thrill of riding a horse, boosting their confidence and self-esteem. For the past 14 years, he has hosted the Hollywood Charity Horse Show at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center. Held every spring, the event benefits AHEAD With Horses and other child-oriented charities in the Los Angeles area.
In September 2004, Shatner won an Emmy® for his recurring role as eccentric law-firm partner Denny Crane on “The Practice,” the David E. Kelley-created legal drama that finished its impressive run on ABC in 2004. The actor is reprising the role as a series regular on the hit ABC program “Boston Legal,” and the portrayal garnered him his first Golden Globe,® in January 2005, as well as an Emmy®, in September 2005.
Shatner continues to act, write, produce, and direct while still managing to find time to work with charities and further his passion in the equestrian arts. He and his wife, Elizabeth, and his three married children live in Los Angeles.
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