GUEST COLUMN
George Takei
The world according to...
The actor, 85, on the horrors of wartime imprisonment, coming out at 68, and finding global fame in Star Trek
My father Takekuma was my first greatmentor, and Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry was my second major influence after he hired me for the role that changed my career at 29. Gene was a true visionary who felt that Sixties American TV drama was not reflecting the times. So he set a story in the 23rd century on the Starship Enterprise, which was a metaphor for Earth, and showed the strength of the diverse spaceship crew, with half-human, half-Vulcan science officer Mr Spock (Leonard Nimoy), African communications officer Lt Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), and me as Hikaru Sulu, who represented all of Asia!