Shatner Prefers Flying High On Earth

Though William Shatner concedes that it took Boston Legal to help him step fully out of the shadow of Captain Kirk, he insists that he has never wanted to go into space.

"I'm asking for a cease and desist," he joked to The Ottawa Citizen of reports that he had reserved a seat on the first civilian space flights to be offered by the Virgin Galactic fleet. "That's not true...they're saying I did, but I did not. They're getting some mileage out of it, that's for sure."

The 74-year-old actor said that he is enjoying his earthbound life too much to want to see the stars up close, saying that the uniqueness of his character Denny Crane brought him back to network television when he really didn't want to commit to a series. "I'm probably enjoying it more than any other acting work I've done in a long time," he explained. "My way of looking at it is Captain Kirk was a long time ago and there are a lot of things that have gone on since. If Denny does it for you, then so be it."

It isn't as if people have forgotten Star Trek, he conceded. When he was recently in the hospital to have a kidney stone removed, he was being wheeled in a gurney with his feet in stirrups, groaning, and a witness said, "Look, there goes Captain Kirk, and he's having a baby!" Shatner laughed that he still has visitation rights to the stone, which he sold for $75,000 to raise money for Habitat for Humanity after turning down an initial offer of $15,000. "I turned it down knowing that my tunics from Star Trek have commanded more than $100,000," he explained, describing the donation made by the cast of Boston Legal to build a house for a homeless family.

Though the actor is now as famous for playing parody versions of himself as he is for creating new characters, Shatner said that "the tongue-in-cheek muffles the sound a lot", which allows him to protect his privacy. He has no regrets about the course of his career, however, despite having won Razzie Awards. "I made the decisions I had to make based on what I was doing at the time, to the best of my ability," he noted. "The way it's all turned out, with all the storm and rain that went on, I'm happy now and I've got a full and loving life."

For more, including a list of Shatner's non-performing achievements as a philanthropist, writer and horse breeder, see the original article here.

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