Leonard Nimoy, best known as Spock from Star Trek, has died at the age of 83.
Nimoy’s wife, Susan Bay Nimoy, confirmed his death to The New York Times, saying the cause was end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Nimoy had been battling the disease for a year.
Nimoy's granddaughter, Dani, also confirmed his death on his official twitter account Friday afternoon: "Hi all, as you all know, my Grandpa passed away this morning at 8:40 from end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was an extraordinary man, husband, grandfather, brother, actor, author-the list goes on- and friend. Thank you for the warm condolences. May you all LLAP."
Nimoy starred as the half-Vulcan, half-human character on the original version of Star Trek, which ran for three seasons in the late 1960s; Nimoy earned three Emmy nominations for his performance.
After the show was canceled, Nimoy continued to play the role in the first six Star Trek feature films. He would reprise the role as an elder version of Spock – Zachary Quinto portrayed the younger version – in 2009’s Star Trek, which rebooted the classic franchise. Nimoy also returned for the 2013 sequel Star Trek: Into Darkness.
On TV, Nimoy had roles in Mission: Impossible as Paris, the mission team's master of disguises. Nimoy also hosted the syndicated series In Search of… from 1976-1982. His most recent TV role was on Fox’s Fringe, which ran from 2008-2013.
However, it would be Spock that would define Nimoy’s career, as the character, along with Star Trek itself, became one of the biggest cultural icons in science fiction history. Spock’s catch phrase “Live long and prosper” stands as one of the most famous lines in entertainment history.
He published two autobiographies, titled I Am Not Spock and I Am Spock.
Nimoy’s Star Trek costar George Takei, who played Captain Sulu, was among the first to weigh in on Nimoy’s passing.
“You know, the word ‘extraordinary’ is often overused, but I think it’s really appropriate for Leonard. He was an extraordinarily talented man, but also a very decent human being,” he told MSNBC’s Kristen Welker on Andrea Mitchell Reports. “His talent embraced directing as well as acting, and photography. He was a very sensitive man and we feel his passing very much. He’d been ill for a long, long time and we miss him very much.”
