The Star Trek character that Jason Alexander tried to imitate in real life

In the “Star Trek: Voyager” episode “Think Tank” (March 31, 1999), the USS Voyager was on the run from bounty hunters when they were visited by A mysterious alien named Koros (Jason Alexander). He offers to hide Voyager in subspace, keeping them safe from their pursuers. While in hiding, Koros explains that he is part of a four-member cadre of hyper-intelligent aliens dubbed the Think Tank by Captain Janeway (Kate Mulgrew). The four members of the Think Tank are convinced of their intellectual superiority, and have lost morality in their pursuit of knowledge. They want to kidnap Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and bring her into their club.

Jason Alexander was thrilled to play Kuros, having been a rabid Tricky for decades. Shortly after his appearance in “Voyager,” Alexander hosted a 1999 TV special called “Ultimate Trek: Star Trek’s Greatest Moments” in which he played Captain James T. Kirk, running around a Paramount “investigating” a mystery. His impersonation of Alexander Kirk was spot on, capturing all of actor William Shatner’s outsized mannerisms and intense line readings.

It’s no surprise that Alexander is right, since he’s been watching Shatner his whole life. No ordinary Tricky, he had a huge crush on Captain Kirk since childhood. While Shatner is often ridiculed for his outsized performances, Alexander sat in awe, feeling that Shatner’s energy and strength were wise, attracting acting choices. In a 2011 interview with StarTrek.comAlexander even admitted that James T. Kirk was a personal hero of his, and that he always aimed to emulate the Starfleet captain as closely as possible. When Alexander played Kouros, he didn’t influence Shatner’s mannerisms, but he knew he had to do everything he could to match Shatner’s power.

When asked who Alexander is most like in the Star Trek series, he didn’t hesitate, saying:

“Kirk, Kirk, Kirk. The power, the responsibility, the unity of command, the ways in which he exercised that power, his combination of intellect and emotion, his sense of humor and his ‘I don’t believe in no-win scenario’ “For me, he is one of the greatest creations and I pay tribute to Roddenberry and then I bow to Shatner “The Great.”

Trekkies love to discuss the different qualities that the various starship captains in the franchise have, and this discussion has common talking points. Kirk commands on instinct: making wise, but sometimes rash, decisions, depending on the scenario. He had confidence and self-confidence that even other strong leaders did not display. Captain Picard from “Star Trek: The Next Generation” was intellectual and diplomatic, often stern and usually aloof. Captain Sisko from “Deep Space Nine” He was confrontational and assertiveGentle in practice but intense in person. It forced you to focus. Captain Janeway was sociable but defiant. She will not tolerate disrespect for her authority. Captain Archer was almost too friendly for his own good.

But Kirk was the best of the best, according to Jason Alexander. In fact, he explained that Kirk and Shatner were a big part of his decision to become a professional actor.

Alexander even admitted that Kirk informed his sexuality in unexpected ways. Captain Kirk’s confidence extended to his masculinity, serving as a heterosexual archetype. But Emmy Award-winner Alexander knew it was all an acting choice. He was happy to defend Shatner as a performer, saying:

“I can tell you, as a heterosexual, Shatner rang my bell. I wanted to be him. And he literally imprinted his essence on my cells. I thought speaking as if Kirk was a great actor. At my college audition, I did two monologues and I channeled Shatner in every one.” From them, Bale takes a lot of flak for his larger-than-life style of performance, but I’m telling you, he’s one of the most inventive, authentic, and courageous actors I’ve ever seen and those standards I’ve tried Maintaining it even as my commitment to imitating him in every role waned.

Jason Alexander studied acting at Boston University and participated in its acting program. Such programs usually require auditions, hence his comment about the audition he took for the college.

While playing Kirk in a TV special was probably fun, and landing a guest spot on “Star Trek: Voyager” was a dream come true, Alexander has achieved another goal on “Star Trek” in 2022, landing a semi-regular role In “Star Trek: Miracle”. In this show, he played a tellurite doctor named Dr. Nome who served as the Chief Medical Officer of the USS Dauntless. After that, he took a job as ship’s advisor on the USS Voyager-A. The character appeared in 23 episodes. One can only imagine that Alexander was on the moon.