ShatWatch: Horse Stunt, Phaeton Fun, Gonzo Premiere + Bill/JJ Summit? April 23, 2009
by John Tenuto , Filed under: Shatner, Star Trek (2009 film) , trackback
With all the news going on in the world of Star Trek it is only natural to ask, what is William Shatner up to? And if adventure had a name it wouldn’t be Indiana Jones – it would be William Shatner. This edition of ShatWatch tracks the Shat’s latest adventures on horseback, in a Phaeton, with Gonzo (not the Muppet Gonzo), and more. Oh and there may be news on how William Shatner does tie into all this new movie stuff.
Shatner’s Hollywood Charity Horse Show – Shatner to do special stunt!
On April 25th at the Equestrian Center of Los Angeles, fans of Shatner and horses gather to enjoy some of the best equestrian entertainment with all proceeds going to a variety of charities including Ahead With Horses and Camp Max Strauss. Shatner started the annual Hollywood Charity Horse Show about 20 years ago after learning how horses were being used in therapy to help the severely disabled. The arena show is free, but for an extra donation, there is evening entertainment including a Willie Nelson performance and food prepared by Top Chef winner Fabio Vivani (who was also Shatner’s personal chef). For more information, including how you could donate and help this wonderful event visit horseshow.org
Normally, Shatner serves as MC at the Hollywood Charity Horse Show and performs some of his award winning equestrian rides. However, this year, NBC News is reporting that Shatner is boldly going…you know the rest. At the charity event, Shatner will perform a dangerous "kind of scary" stunt where he rides full gallop towards a wall and stops at the last minute. For those unaware of Shatner’s history, he is an award winning equestrian with years of experience. That he is doing this both for charity and at 78 years old is why we love the Shat so much.
Here is Bill promoting the show on a morning show in LA.
JJ Abrams and cast to attend horse show dinner?
While on the same morning show, Bill also talked about the new Star Trek movie and he mentioned (jump to around 5:00 in), that JJ Abrams and Paramount had purchased tables for the dinner at the horse show.
Shatner does say he isn’t sure if they would be attending, but this could be the first public Abrams/Shatner summit (and maybe a meeting of the Kirks). However, people often buy tables in order to make a donation to the charities, and there is a wrinkle as Paramount is holding a Star Trek press event on Saturday so the timing may not allow Abrams and others to be in two locations at once.
Speaking of Shatner and the new movie, Bill has a new interview at Wizard Universe promoting his upcoming TekWar and other comics. The interview also gets into talking about the new Star Trek movie, here is what Bill had to say about the ‘feud’ with Abrams:
Wizard: We hear you’ve been calling out director J.J. Abrams in a series of online videos.
Shatner: Well, I’ve been pulling his leg on the Web a bit. Pulling the Web over his eyes! I believe he said something like, "I don’t know when my life became answering Shatner on the Web!" So I’ve just been keeping at him. He has to call me!Wizard: Were you ever approached to be in the film?
Shatner: When they were thinking about doing the movie, they talked to me a couple of times, I don’t know what it really was all about, and then they stopped talking to me and went their way. But you just know it’s going to be wonderful because J.J. Abrams is such a good moviemaker.Wizard: We think it’s kind of silly that they’re using the excuse that you died in "Generations." Dude, everyone on "Star Trek" died at one time or another and came back!
Shatner: Yes, including the ship! I keep thinking about amber, how they have these insects that are trapped in this liquid for millions of years, fossilized, and how they’re talking about being able to extract DNA from them. And therein lies the mystery of Kirk’s return!
Gonzo Ballet and a Customized Gibson
April 17th the documentary "William Shatner’s Gonzo Ballet" premiered at the Nashville Film Festival. Shatner was a producing partner on this film that is about how his acclaimed "Has Been" album was transformed into a ballet by award-winning artist Margo Sappington performed by the Milwaukee Ballet. Attending the premiere were Sheryl Crow, Ben Folds (who produced the "Has Been" album), Scott Hamilton, and Vincent D’Onofrio. According to reports, the documentary received an extended standing ovation. Also, while at the event, Nashville Mayor Karl Dean presented the Shat with a customized Gibson acoustic guitar. Gonzo Ballet will be available on DVD or TV soon, and there is a plan for a limited theatrical run.
Here is a coverage Nashville’s Channel 5.
And Gibson.com has a photo gallery from the event as well:
Bill rocks the Gibson guitar
Shatner’s Favorite Car
Ever wonder what Shatner’s favorite car is? Its the Volkswagen Phaeton (Phaeton…photon? Hmm….) Learn about this, how Shatner feels about the being party to TV’s first interracial kiss, his college career, and his nickname Tuffy by checking the newest videos at the award-winning Shatner Project.
More Raw Nerve coming
Shatner started filming the second season of Raw Nerve on April 9th. The episodes will be shown later this year on the Bio Channel. There is still no confirmation that the new season will have the ‘bury the hatchet’ show with George Takei. However, one guest we know of for sure is Tony Danza who has a short vblog about his taping at the Daily Danza.
Invasion Iowa DVD coming in May
If you can’t wait that long for your Shatner fix, then you can look forward to the Invasion Iowa DVD coming out in May. This is the reality television show where Shatner played a practical joke on the entire town of Riverside, Iowa (aka ‘future birthplace Captain Kirk’). TrekMovie will have an early review of Invasion Iowa soon.
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Comments»
At least Bill seems to be enjoying the “washed up years”.
Finest example of a real Life Bonafied Hollywood Man’s Man. Maybe the last
The Shat!
what a shatastrophe
Did the Nimoy interview ever get posted online from Raw Nerve?
Boy, the Volkswagen people should sign up the Shat for a T.V. ad since he seems to like their product!
Shatastrophic…
Yes, let us bring captain kirk back from the dead, that way we can turn it into a cheeseball scifi nerd fest, instead of an interesting, intellectual franchise.
And yes i realize they brought spock back from the dead, in fact they had a whole movie about it, and it was not very good…
Having seen ST09, I can say that team JJ could’ve placed Shat in there with Nimoy, and no one in John Q. Public would’ve questioned it. General filmgoers would’ve loved it.
Sure wish you were in this movie, Mr. Shatner.
I’m hoping that there is a Priceline commercial before Star Trek. Bonus if PL were to be topical and have it be of Shatner going through space seeking out new deals and great rates.
Shatner’s Gonna Slaughter the New Guys on that show
Haha, horses. I LOVE HORSES! I’m getting a new one next week.
~what a load of BillShat~
I wish those chicks could’ve shut up for ONE FREAKING SECOND! Geez…let the man say a WORD!
Shatner, it’s public knowledge that Kirk died. And it doesn’t fit the story, at all. It’s a cheesy cameo that would have pulled people right out of the movie.
If he wanted to be in the movie so bad, he shouldn’t have been in Generations.
#15 “it’s public knowledge that Kirk died.”
Is it? Then why is the most oft repeated Shat-related question of the past 2 years (usually coming from the media): “Why isn’t he in the movie?”
“Captain Kirk can still score a green bi***”
……….in the words of that very man, “I’m not sure how to take that”.
Ok, they were in the moment, little hahas here and there. But this? I don’t know. That’s not how I would label Kirk nor ANY of the women he’s encountered in Star Trek.
Come on Tenuto. Doesn’t anybody know how to spell anymore? What is journalism coming to? Shameful.
The other day some idiot at WENN posted an article about Jessica Biel and thought that her TV ”dad” from 7th Heaven was actually her real dad and attributed a quote to him. Worse yet, IMDb picked up the story word-for-word before someone ”fixed” it hours later.
It doesn’t take a second to check your work. Perhaps you should consider Twittering your stories?
The one thing I hated about Star Trek in the past was that every time someone would die or something would explode, presto, they would find some way to make it all better and bring it back. Spock died a very heroic and memorable death in the Wrath of Khan, and then, guess what!? They spent a whole movie just to bring him back to life. And while they were at it, they blew up the Enterprise. And guess what!? They replaced in with another Enterprise, but guess what? Its version 1701-A. 40 years later, we’ve gone through 7 Enterprises. A little overkill maybe? So yeah, it is not only time for a reboot, but its waaaaay overdo, and the last thing the film makers should do is bring back yet another dead character just to please the fans.
#18 … You misspelled the word journalist.
Off subject but the official web site for the movie has updated the Dossiers
#20…You think? You spoiled the joke.
I know – they can find Denny Crane’s frozen body floating through space, revive him, he can steal the big E from Pine/Kirk, then he can strand him on Delta Vega and Pine/Kirk can shout:
CRAAAAAAAANE!!!!
this might be a bit off-topic but I dunno if others have seen this :)
http://www.cnn.com/2009/SHOWBIZ/04/22/star.trek.screening.room/index.html
I really shouldn’t post after taking my meds…
What does Kirk’s death in Generations have to do with anything in a prequel? Stop being so sequential in your thought.
If it makes you feel better, Shatner’s flash-back scene(s) could have a Stardate before the start of his 3-hour cruise in Generations. As one that cheated the no-win situation set-up at Star Fleet Academy, maybe the flashback is how he fully faces the situation he avoided then, become at peace with death, and can he can say at the end that tomorrow he is going on the 3-hour cruise.
See. It is simple. And, I’m not a SciFi writer.
(Geez. These are all fiction. Remember?)
#18
“It doesn’t take a second to check your work.”
Quite right! It takes many seconds, and in some cases even an editor after that! ;)
“I keep thinking about amber, how they have these insects that are trapped in this liquid for millions of years, fossilized, and how they’re talking about being able to extract DNA from them. And therein lies the mystery of Kirk’s return!”
He’s BIG enough; he’s OLD enough; and he should call it …
Jurassic Park IV: The Kirk Dinosaur!!!
Daily Danza? Really?
re:#1. Someone-
Are you quoting something, or are you really saying BS is washed up? We should all be half as busy in our “prime” as he is at 78. High profile charity events, a talk show, books, an Emmy award winning tv character, blogging, etc. etc.
Most of us are grateful he’d be willing to play a character we all love him as. He certainly doesn’t have to.
As for Kirk being dead, I think it’s ironic if that’s the reason he was kept out of the movie, since this movie’s storyline is about their entire Starfleet career (including Kirk’s death) being rewritten!
Kirk is an icon among the general public- people who don’t watch Trek know who Kirk is, and have never seen “Generations”. It wouldn’t confuse anybody to have him just show up in the movie. That said, I’m glad they didn’t shoehorn him into it.
P.S. #8.Sam- I think it’s hilarious you think TOS, the series that spawned this 40+ year franchise and that Paramount is now desperately trying to recapture, was “a cheeseball scifi nerd fest”, but the new movie (which we haven’t seen yet) is “an interesting, intellectual franchise.” I don’t know how intellectual a story about a tatooed, time travelling, revenge seeking Romulan pirate will be. The motorcycle riding and pointless car-crashing don’t give me much hope of “intellect”, but I’m sure things will blow up real good.
@ 1. Someone:
Do you mean that Mr. Shatner is washed up and would qualify for a guest spot on The Love Boat, or that he just happens to be in the golden years of his entertainment career?
Call me crazy, but he sure seemed more than viable to me in Boston Legal.
8 – You talk as if ‘life’ and ‘death’ are meaningful things in the context of the kind of fiction Star Trek is. I find that to be an odd perspective. It’s not like Star Trek ever attempts surface mimesis in any concrete way. This particular reversal of a plot point is the moment we put our collective feet down and demand a realistic approach to mortality? Man, that ship sailed on Star Trek a long time ago.
#1 Someone
Washed up years? What do you do with your time? Or are you an expert?
19. The Governator – April 23, 2009
The one thing I hated about Star Trek in the past was that every time someone would die or something would explode, presto, they would find some way to make it all better and bring it back. …
**********
I always chuckle when I read this kind of comment–and I’m not picking on you, Governator, lots of people say stuff like this.
“…every time someone would die…” Um…how many times, exactly? They killed Spock in TWOK and brought him back. That’s one. They “killed” McCoy in Shore Leave; that’s two. Who else?
Yeah, they kinda brought back Tasha, but it was an alternate timeline, not really resurrection.
And the ship wasn’t brought back, it was replaced. Big difference. (But I agree, too damn many Enterprises! Like Scotty, I want the one with no bloody A, B, C, or D.)
Seriously, though–and this is to anybody: how many of these “every time somebody dies” resurrections have there actually been? How many times has someone been brought back from death–not “we thought they were dead but they weren’t” but actually brought back? (And not from the verge of death, or heart-stopped-but-we-revived-him death. I mean Spock-dead-and-buried death.)
The only one I can think of is…Spock.
^26. Shatner and Nimoy are 15 and18 years older than their last Trek appearances. Only with blind affection — and I mean blind — do I tolerate Frakes and Sirtis and their makeup artists performing that stunt with an 11-year degree of difficulty in the ENT finale.
Probably the best of none-too-good ways Shatner’s Kirk could come back in a mainstream way is if there’s a flash forward to check on elder Spock after the history-changing events of the movie, and we see that in the new timeline Kirk didn’t die, never mind the details.
“Shatner: I keep thinking about amber, how they have these insects that are trapped in this liquid for millions of years, fossilized, and how they’re talking about being able to extract DNA from them. And therein lies the mystery of Kirk’s return!”
Meanwhile, Sheldon Cooper will clone Leonard Nimoy. :)
@30, 31, 33:
ROFL…did the Shat see my comment and dispatch you all to show me who’s boss? As far as his acting career Shat was a one-trick pony. His character on Boston Legal was nothing more than self parody. By the way, if you or I had as much money and free time as him, we could do just as much — or even if we spent less time posting comments about washed up actors on a movie blog…
“So yeah, it is not only time for a reboot, but its waaaaay overdo, and the last thing the film makers should do is bring back yet another dead character just to please the fans.”
Yes… definitely don’t want to please the fans. What good are they? All they do is moan and whine about a stupid TV show that they kept alive for 40+ years. Hopefully they are all getting close to the “kicking the bucket” age and all that old 60’s nonsense can be forgotten and buried.
As for TOS characters that have died (whether buried or not) and were miraculously brought back… let’s see… McCoy in “Shore Leave”, Scotty in “The Changeling”, Chekov in “Spectre Of The Gun”, Rand in “Charlie X”, and Spock in “TWOK”. No problem bringing them back, and some of them were thrown to oblivion (or wherever Charlie sent Janice). But Kirk? No way we can bring him back… after all… he fell off a bridge. It doesn’t get any more final than falling off a bridge. That’s the ultimate death. The others being brought back were easy to explain away in science fiction, but falling off a bridge? Even science fiction couldn’t explain the resurrection from that.
..wouldn’t it be great if JJ pulled the ultimate surprise. What if he had an edited print of Star Trek, that he has taken across the world…showing it, one city at time, along with another print he cut together that contains everything people are loving, but just a little more.
What if the 1000’s of theater prints were duplicated from the SECOND print…and what if THAT print, which no one will see until May 7th, has some Shat edited into it. It could be done before the prints are struck for the theaters. The ultimate slight of hand. Man, people that wanted Shat in the film would go crazy and those jealous Shat bashers would be going nuts as well due to his inclusion. lol (if you haven’t thought of it JJ, you should!)
After the big switcharoo they pulled in Austin, I wouldn’t put it past them!
#23
Denny Crane should be the primary villain in the next film. Seriously! I can see a big reveal in the teaser trailer where everyone on the bridge is cowering from a huge pistol that’s being held from off camera, and then we hear it:
“It’s good to be a Republican isn’t it?”
Pull back to reveal…Crane! he has that s**t-eating grin and everything. 2011 slams onto the screen. Audience cheers. Yeah. :D
“. Shatner started the annual Hollywood Charity Horse Show about 20 years ago after learning how horses were being used in therapy to help the severely disabled.”
LOL
THE IRONY
Too bad Christopher Reeve isn’t around to laugh at this with me, hahaha!
#1
Have you ever listened to the song “Has Been”? The lyrics are pretty relevant to your comment
#40
I would pay a lot of money to see that. A whole pile of money.
#39
ALSO THIS.
Invasion Iowa for the Win!
#9
Ts ts ts, now you HAVE SEEN the film, and you’re still saying that?! You…you incorrigible, hopeless, unreconstructed, blinkered, lagging-behind-the-times jerk…:D
34 – 38 makes loads of good points. Then look at the other series. Trip dies, on average, more than once a season in ENTERPRISE. There’s scarcely a regular character in any STAR TREK series who hasn’t come back from the dead at least once. It’s practically a running theme.
8 – I have seen the movie. I don’t think Shatner being in it would quite work as it stands. Which isn’t to say that it couldn’t have been written to accommodate him. I do, though, know exactly how he could be in the next one. Without it seeming remotely silly to a real person. The ending of the movie creates an obvious and easy situation that allows for including Sir William in a sequel and in a crowd-pleasing, not fan-pleasing, way.
It’s interesting that non-fans kind of want and expect a Shatner appearance in this movie; you only need to see the press response or talk to casuals to see that’s true. Peculiarly it’s a fan cringe to go ‘No, he’s dead.. he can’t be in it, that’s silly..’ not the cringe of a casual viewer.
#41
LOL?
Seriously?
Maybe you might benefit from learning about these charities.
@42 -
ROFL again…a song Shat wrote to try and help him accept his status…
#31 … “if we spent less time posting comments about washed up actors on a movie blog…”
We’d all be happy if you adhered to that.
#46 … Nimoy was right all along: “The movie would be better with Shatner in it.” :-)
Correction. Meant #37, not #31.
49 – The whole point of the song is that a ‘has been’ (which Shatner is not) is someone who, by definition, ‘was’ and therefore ‘might again. As opposed to critics of someone, writing in papers and on message boards who have themselves ”never done dick”, nevermind, say, starred in three successful television series in three decades..
still a chance for old kirk and old spock to be together one last time!
http://buzz.yahoo.com/article/1:y_news:4c4a75cc9ecf7fee413e1308fc7d1fb2/Nimoy-open-to-appearing-in-more-Star-Trek-AP
Yeah, we all knew what was coming at the last shot of “Wrath of Khan”. We all bought it before the next movie came out. Spock was coming back. Bring back Kirk. I never said he has to be in the first movie. But I’d love to see him in the next one. Maybe bringing him back can fix the time line they’ve noodled with in this one. Second movie is usually better anyway….no brainer.
OMG, I just realized how James T. Kirk comes to be!
William Shatner’s DNA is stored in a freak tree sap accident, and the DNA is extracted to impregnate Mrs. Kirk.
Hence, James T. Kirk is a clone of William Shatner!
In GEN , canon aside, doesn’t Kirk get nabbed by the same folks that trained Gary Seven ? That explaines the oh my…comment and opens the door for older Kirk to appear in any time… that being said I don’t think ShatKirk should be much more that a cameo. Its time to pass the torch for good.
Shatner rocks!
msnbc has picked up the story too!
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30390030/
Mr. Orci, if your on here is there a chance the shat AND nimoy could be back in Part 12?
“If he wanted to be in the movie so bad, he shouldn’t have been in Generations.”
Yes, because of course he would know that JJ Abrams would one day make a prequel. Right.
Now here in the Los Angeles area for the William Shatner Weekend with the rest of the Shatner & Friends, Int’l. club. Yeah, the rumors are flowing fast through the group about seeing Star Trek 11 cast people at tomorrow’s Hollywood Charity Horseshow banquet. We will see if they show up.
Still camera and camcorder in hand,
Robert Bernardo
#60
Looking forward to your report…:)
60.
Mister Bernardo!!
You did incredible work as the Doctor on Voyager. God speed to you sir, you were my favourite character and your scenes with Seven always made me warm and fuzzy inside.
@ 62
Thanks for the laugh !
I for one would love the shat in the follow up film… listening Bob?
Faux Captain Kirk Imposter Wannabe Kirk indeed! I love it!
hi; the new startrek movie was good but it would have alot better with bill shatner in it .him not being in it was a mistake. i have a question why didnt bill shatner close his show on apr. 25th. i did write a letter to the main office but no answer. the horse show was good. carol partain (grannyballs)
what stunt caused him not to close out his horse show????? it was not made too clear…………..carol (grannyballs)
I WONDER IF BILL SHATNER EVER READS THESE POSTINGS? WOULD BE NICE TO KNOW IF HE DID OR NOT BY RESPONDING ONE TIME. ALWAYS A FAN GRANNYBALLS