Martin Luther King Was a Trekkie

Star Trek cast member Nichelle Nichols revealed this week that she would have fled the Starship Enterprise after her first season had Martin Luther King Jr. not persuaded her otherwise. At a NAACP fundraiser, the Civil Rights hero told Nichols that "Gene Roddenbery had establish[ed] who [African Americans] were in the 23rd century." Furthermore, King told her that Star Trek was the only show he permitted his whole family to watch before adding, "You are part of history, and it's your responsibility, even though it wasn't your career choice." [LAT]