Happy Birthday William Shatner!

Let's wish Capt. Kirk, Officer TJ Hooker himself, William Shatner a very happy birthday. Oh sure you know him from such great TV shows, but did you know him as a film actor? No, well, let's dig a little bit under the carpet and see what we can find.

First and probably the best Shatner film is Star Trek II, Wrath of Kahn. I double dog dare anyone to look at Ricardo Montalban and not scream KAHN! Ricardo's fake chest piece alone is worth the price of rental. The story is very simple. Two enemies meet, one man wins...yadda, yadda, yadda-you are yelling Kahn at the top of your lungs. Oh yeah, and the earwig scene. It will have you squirming in your seat. EWWWWW! Just thinking about it grosses me out. This film is definitely good for some camp value and just plain silliness.

Speaking of camp value and silliness, Shatner's next best role is in the Kingdom of the Spiders and it  is just plain bad but in a good way! OMP wants to know what is wrong with me for including this movie, but I just can't resist really bad movies. It's an addiction. William stars as Dr. Robert "Rack" Hansen (Hee hee, Rack!) who is investigating mysterious animal deaths and discovers a group of mutant spiders heading towards his town. Whackiness ensues and I will leave you in suspense on the fate of " The Rack".

Now William Shatner wasn't all about the camp. He was a trained Shakespearean actor. In The Explosive Generation, Shatner stars as Peter Gifford, an idealistic teacher who wants to teach his seniors about sex ed, Not the technical aspects of it but the emotional part. The square parents get wind of what's up and Gifford is told to stop. The beloved teacher just can't do that and goes against their wishes and the whole school becomes a hot bed for rebellious action. 

Oh Mr. Shatner, I take my hat off to you.  You have made us laugh and cry-the latter usually because we are laughing so hard but never you mind that. You are a pop icon that will transcend time. Men want to be you and the ladies-well they just want you. So I salute you by putting on my copy of the Transformed Man, mix up a cocktail and your version of Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds at the top of my lungs. Aahhhh yes, good times.