Shatner

The photo above is from the GalaxyCon held in Richmond, Virginia, in 2023. William Shatner was 92 then and still going strong. Recently (March 22), he celebrated his 94th birthday. The versatile actor has been in film and on television for seven decades, but he is in amazingly good shape, both mentally and physically.

I worked with Shatner in the film "Mysteries of the Gods" and subsequently wrote three books about him, including William Shatner: A Bio-Bibliography, a reference book in Greenwood's Performing Arts Series (1994) in which I summarized nearly 1,000 of his credits, and Captain Quirk, a mass-market biography of Shatner for Kensington in 1995.

All this documentation came to a head in a more alchemical treatment of the man in William Shatner: A Transformed Man. Rather than use my own words to describe this work, it might be better to let by James A. Cox, Editor-in-Chief for Midwest Book Review, describe it:

“This biography of William Shatner adds some surprises beyond all the stories of his eccentric behavior and reveals what makes the man tick. Hauck draws upon his interviews with all the cast and crew and sifting through fifty years of archives. He has come up with many amazing insights, including the shocking, untold story of what was really behind the Star Trek franchise.

“Yet, William Shatner: A Transformed Man is intended for people who are not Star Trek fans. Rather it is a moving portrait of a fascinating man. It is an in-depth and often unsettling biography of a modern icon. It is a probing character study of one of the most iconic and recognizable persons on the face of the planet. This behind-the-scenes look at Shatner's amazing career and fascinating personal life uncovers the raw passion and powerful psychological forces behind his public facade, steamy relationships with women, and strained interactions with fellow actors.

“To the baby boomer generation, William Shatner will always be known for his starring role as Captain Kirk in the iconic Gene Roddenberry television 'Star Trek' series and films. The newest generation of teens and young adults may know him best as a pitch man for a series of television commercials hyping a law firm's services. However, after being launched into a lasting fame in "Star Trek", Shatner also played the eponymous veteran police sergeant in T. J. Hooker (1982 - 86) and hosted the reality-based television series, Rescue 911 (1989 - 96), which won a People's Choice Award for the Favorite New TV Dramatic Series. Shatner also appeared in the NBC series, 3rd Rock from the Sun in seasons 4 and 5 as the role of the "Big Giant Head" who the alien characters of the Series reported to. From 2004 until 2008, he starred as attorney Denny Crane in the final season of the legal drama "The Practice" and its spinoff series "Boston Legal", a role that earned him two Emmy Awards.

“Critique: Of special appeal to Shatner's legions of fans, in this biography of the man in terms of his professional accomplishments, is the focus on the off-screen stories of his personal life. Exhaustively researched, exceptionally well written, impressively informed and informative, and thoroughly 'reader engaging' in organization and presentation, William Shatner: A Transformed Man is unreservedly and enthusiastically recommended, especially for community and academic library Contemporary American Biography collections.”

[It should be noted for the personal reading lists of legions of dedicated fans that William Shatner: A Transformed Man is also available in a digital book format (Kindle, $9.95).]