Spock

Half-Vulcan science officer of the USS Enterprise.

Spock is a fictional character in the Star Trek media franchise, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy. He is one of the three central characters in the original Star Trek series, serving as first officer and science officer of the starship Enterprise. His mixed human–Vulcan heritage is an important plot element, and he is one of the most popular Star Trek characters, appearing in many later installments.

Quick Facts

Series

Star Trek

First minor

The Man Trap

First date

September 6, 1966

Creator

Gene Roddenberry

Species

Half-Vulcan and half-human

Affiliation

Starfleet; Vulcan Government

Origin

Vulcan

Partner

T'Pring
Christine Chapel
La'an Noonien-Singh
Nyota Uhura (reboot films)

Facts from the source article.

Appearances

Spock was born in the 23rd century to Sarek, a Vulcan, and Amanda Grayson, a human. His mixed heritage led to a troubled childhood; pure-blooded Vulcan children bullied him to incite his human emotions. He grew up alongside his older half-brother Sybok until Sybok was cast out from Vulcan for rejecting logic. Spock also has a human adoptive sister, Michael Burnham, and was betrothed to T'Pring during childhood.

Sarek supported Spock's scientific learning and application to the Vulcan Science Academy, but Spock rejected his acceptance because the Academy would never fully accept someone half-Vulcan. He instead sought to join Starfleet, leading to an 18-year estrangement from his father. Spock appeared as science officer on the USS Enterprise in the unaired first pilot, "The Cage," later canonized in "The Menagerie. He also appeared in the second pilot, "Where No Man Has Gone Before.

His earliest broadcast appearance was in "The Man Trap. In "The Enemy Within," he first used the Vulcan nerve pinch. In "Miri," he was immune to a disease but realized he could be a carrier; Dr. McCoy devised a cure.

Development

The earliest known mention of Spock occurred during a conversation between Star Trek's creator, Gene Roddenberry, and actor Gary Lockwood, who suggested Leonard Nimoy for the role. Roddenberry agreed but was required to audition other actors. Roddenberry sought DeForest Kelley for the doctor in the pilot, but NBC executives and director Robert Butler wanted Kelley to play Spock. Roddenberry offered the part to Kelley and Martin Landau, but both turned him down.

Nimoy accepted but was apprehensive about the makeup. In a 2006 interview, Nimoy stated that Roddenberry's first choice was George Lindsey, though the comment may have been a joke. Ernest Borgnine wrote in his autobiography that Lindsey turned down the role. The character evolved from having a metal plate in his stomach to being half-Martian in the 1964 pitch, with a reddish complexion and semi-pointed ears.

Roddenberry changed Spock's home planet due to concern about a Mars landing. Lee Greenway conducted initial makeup tests, then Fred Phillips took over, with John Chambers creating Spock's ears. A red skin tone was abandoned for yellow due to black-and-white television. Nimoy hated the ears; Roddenberry promised to write them out if Nimoy was still unhappy by the 13th episode. NBC executives were concerned the ears made the character satanic.

Reception

Nimoy said years after the show ended that if he had to be someone else, he would be Spock. The public reacted very positively, even fanatically, to the character, with The Boston Globe in 1967 describing "Spockmania." Headshots of Spock became popular souvenirs, with rare ones of the actor laughing most valuable. Nimoy reported that within two weeks after "Amok Time," his mail jumped from a few hundred letters to 10,000 a week.

When he appeared as Spock as grand marshal of a Medford, Oregon, parade in April 1967, thousands gathered; the crowd surged forward, and Nimoy was terrified someone would be crushed. After police rescued him, he never appeared publicly in Vulcan guise again. Fans asked Nimoy questions about current events as if he were the Vulcan scientist; one asked him to lay hands on a friend's eyes to heal them. A biracial girl wrote for advice on persecution as a "half-breed"; Nimoy responded that young Vulcans had treated Spock similarly and she should realize the difference between popularity and true greatness.

To Nimoy's surprise, Spock became a sex symbol; Isaac Asimov described the character as "a security blanket with sexual overtones." Nimoy speculated that Spock appealed to women for certain reasons. Spock is very popular in romantic and erotic fan fiction, widely paired with Kirk, originating slash fiction.

Cultural impact

Spock has been a frequent source of parody and inspiration across pop culture. Keyboardist George Duke included two tribute tracks, "Spock Gets Funky" and "Vulcan Mind Probe," on his 1976 solo album. Guitarist Paul Gilbert wrote "Mr. Spock" for his album Space Ship One, and the Swedish band S.P.O.C.K creates music heavily shaped by the Star Trek universe. Leonard Nimoy, in character as Spock, recorded novelty songs like "Highly Illogical," which mocked human flaws in relationships, cars, and greed, and the darker "A Visit to a Sad Planet," about a future Earth destroyed by war and pollution.

The Transformers character Shockwave was modeled after Spock, according to comic writer Bob Budiansky. Spock's line "the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few" was cited in a Texas Supreme Court ruling. Nimoy's second-season Spock costume shirt was expected to fetch over $75,000 at auction. The "evil twin" trope, marked by a goatee, originated from Spock's parallel-universe appearance in the 1967 episode "Mirror, Mirror." io9 called the beard the best shorthand for evil duplicates.

Examples include Mystery Science Theater 3000, Futurama's Flexo, and a 2009 Colbert Report sketch. The progressive rock band Spock's Beard directly references this goatee.