The 2010 Winter Olympics came to an end on Sunday in Vancouver. The closing ceremony celebrated the games and Canada, including some of Canada’s greatest treasures, like William Shatner. See below for pictures and a video clip of Shatner’s Olympic moment, plus Shatner’s first video blog in months.
Shatner closes out the Olympics
How can Canada bring to a close their hosting of the Winter Olympics? An event of this magnitude needs a true hero of Canada, and that man is none other than the original Captain Kirk himself, William Shatner who ascended into the center Olympic arena amidst an enormous Canadian flag.
William Shatner – makes his entrance at Winter Olympics closing ceremony
The closing ceremonies were actually a mix of pageantry and humor, that included a celebration of the quintessentially Canadian, such as giant hockey players, moose, Mounties, and beavers. Part of the humor included famous Canadians speaking, including William Shatner and Catherine O’Hara and Michael J. Fox. In a moment reminiscent of his famous "I am a Canadian" speech, Shatner told the crowd “I’m proud to be a Canadian, a people who know how to make love in a canoe, which is why our health care system covers splinters". Shatner poked fun at Canadians famous politeness and penchant for wide open spaces, throwing in a reference to the "final frontier".
William Shatner – at Winter Olympics closing ceremony
More photos from the Olympics closing ceremony (including more of Shatner) at digitalsportsdaily.com
VIDEO UPDATE: Shatner’s moment is now available at nbcolympics.com (in HD). You can also watch it via the embed below.
MORE SHATNER – BDAY VIDEO FOR LIZ TAYLOR
Want some more Shatner fun. Well after a hiatus of many many months, a new video was uploaded over the weekend to his Shatner Project video blog at YouTube. And the new video is Bill wishing his friend Elizabeth Taylor a happy birthday.
I’m so happy they included Mr. Shatner in the closing ceremony of Vancouver 2010! It was a perfect cherry on top to a wonderful Olympics.
I was watching the Olympics closing ceremony tonight when Shatner popped up! Looks like he’s starting to pack on the beef again!
Here’s where the naysayers start griping, “hey, we should all look this good when pushin’ 80!!”
yeah, yeah………
Am I only thinking that he should have done a spoken word rendition of “O’ Canada?”
#2: “Here’s where the naysayers start griping, “hey, we should all look this good when pushin’ 80!!””
Complimenting Shatner’s relatively good state of health and preservation at his age wouldn’t be griping or naysaying … exactly the opposite, in fact.
#3: Awesome idea :)
Shat rules!
The Shat be praised!
#4
I meant the “naysayers” would be criticising MY remark. :)
The man is EVERYWHERE! I wish he’d go rest on his laurels. I don’t mean that in a bad way – I’m just afraid of that day I’ll wake up and see “Shatner Dead of Heart Attack”…
Well if is isn’t a heart attack it will ultimately be something else. He is pushing 80 – if he wants to keep working then he really shouldn’t stop – IMO – as long as he isn’t in the next Trek movie.
Yeah, I was hoping they would. I mean, I grew up with Katherine Ohara and SCTV but c’mo!…..Shatner’s a no brainer. I love the man.
He was seen in the crowd during the ice hockey final as well!
Why have we as a society not built monuments or statues dedicated to this man? We are being remiss…
11
Good idea.
Shatner = Icon.
Shatner as icon. On what operating system would he run?
Also, nice birthday wish to Elizabeth Taylor.
Too bad about so many people in the background yacking during that.
Would you people shut up?! William Shatner is talking! ;-)
I’m sure the television viewing audience (in Canada) fell silent when the Shat appeared.
“Quiet children, the Shat speaks!!”
This is funny, because i remember thinking fleetingly during the opening ceremonies that what it really needed was Shatner’s “I’m a Canadian”. I’m sad I missed it.
He had to show up sooner or later. I mean come on — a ceremony represeting Canada without the Shat? Inconceivable!
@11: He’s got a building named after him at McGill University, but I agree — it’s only the beginning!
Very cool that he appeared. That closing ceremony was bizarre, but entertaining. Absolutely loved the Olympics.
I think we had better snow here in Cleveland than they did there!
Shatner set the bar so high there… that O’Hara completely got hit by it.
At least the indefatiguable Michael J. Fox picked up the pieces.
Sorry Cath…. Bill and Mike really outdid you there….
It was really cool, and I was sitting there very envious of my wife for having more Canadians in her family tree than I do! Canadian culture is fun, friendly, self-deprecating, and doesn’t hurt. The World could use more of it.
Ok that didn’t work, sorry.
I still think it is terrific that Shatner is enjoying a great life. He really is a legend.
I wish the crowded chatted “Shat for Trek 12”
yay they were able to work TheShat in….all these olympics needed was to get Bob and doug Mckenzie in there to make it totally cool.
Awesome finishing touch for the awesome Olympics!
Go Mr.Shatner!
23
“.all these olympics needed was to get Bob and doug Mckenzie in there to make it totally cool.”
I was waiting for that too.
I so regret not going to Vancouver to see the Olympics.
Gotta love the Shat!
16. Actually, a lot of people in Canada are surprised to learn that Mr.Shatner is Canadian.
Off topic: I’ve always admired how patriotic Americans are. But when Crosby scored that goal in overtime- well there were tears in my eyes.
I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud to be a Canadian.
A moment I will never forget.
(Hey hockey is like Trek! People either get it or they don’t.)
19. yes the closing ceremonies were bizarre- even for me a Canadian.
oh and shats “toque” looked horrible last night
Him rising and descending in to the stage like that reminded me of the shot towards the end of TMP when the landing party pops up out of the primary hull :)
20 – Daoud
“It was really cool, and I was sitting there very envious of my wife for having more Canadians in her family tree than I do! Canadian culture is fun, friendly, self-deprecating, and doesn’t hurt. The World could use more of it.”
Makes me even more proud of being Canadian! And to be living in Montreal where Mr. Shatner was born. I’m sorry I missed his speech yesterday. Will try to catch it on YouTube or something… :)
28 – denny cranium
“But when Crosby scored that goal in overtime- well there were tears in my eyes. I don’t think I’ve ever been so proud to be a Canadian.
A moment I will never forget.”
Seriously, eh? :D I felt the same. I had a big lump in my throat when they played our national anthem afterward…
Shatner has always been my favorite from Star Trek. I just wish he hadn’t turned to the self-deprecating humor the last 15-20 years or so. He makes himself like a clown when he acts like that and he is so much the hero. He is far better suited acting like a hero than a clown, IMO.
I’m surprised that they allowed him in that role given his penchant for being a ‘loose cannon’.
Great, with not being in the new movie, Shatner is no longer part of canon. Now he’s just a “loose cannon” !
All Hail the Shat. May he Live Long and Prosper.
Being in Vancouver, what the Olympics did in this city for 2010 felt oddly like Star Trek. On crowded busses and sky-trains where people normally pretend they don’t know anyone else is even there and where too often residents live in bubbles, suddenly the city was talking. Strangers would talk to strangers, nobody was alone. People of all races and creeds shared and laughed and sat together with shared hopes. The whole city held hands, everyone was a “friend”, the social ramifications of this even in Vancouver were astounding. Reports are saying 99% of Canadians watched some part of the olympics!! MY GOD! Talk about a shared narrative experience! I felt like I was on the Enterprise. In absolutely massive crowds, there was never any pressure or tension or frustration. You could walk your way through the crowded streets no problem, people would give you an opening and let you by…
These were a wonderful games… and Shatner belonged with them, for all he represented as a hero in Star Trek.
I agree with 11, there needs to be a Shatner statue…nay, a monument.
So, tell me, does that mean the people posting here who don’t want Shatner in the next movie, are doing to him what the pigeons are going to do to his statue?
what a great move by the Canadians to have THE SHAT.
Bet Bill loved it too. great stuff. The bloke is a Legend.
Greg
UK
@32: To be honest, his willingness to poke fun at himself makes me like him more that I ever did when he played The Hero ™.
Shatner is the man.
35 Million Canadians?
Forget Afghanistan and Iran. Let’s invade The Great White North! We could be back by lunch.
#42
You tried that in 1812. Two years later we were torching the White House.
All joking aside, Americans like to think that invading and controlling a country is easy even though third-world and developing nations have thwarted your attempts since Korea (you only finished have the job on that one). For the sake of argument (and for fun) do you really think you would fare well against a developed nation with virtually unlimited resources and a huge infrastructure spanning half a continent, an educated population whose citizens can easily pass for one of your own after crossing the largest shared border in the world? The guerrilla warfare and terrorist threats would bring American cities to a standstill. Plus, 80% of our population straddles the border, meaning nukes couldn’t be an option due to fallout. A couple of homemade bombs on our side of the border could take out the power supply to most of the American North-East in a heartbeat. Canada would certainly be crushed, but the US would be screwed in both the short and long terms.
Anyway, we’re all friends and everything so this hypothetical gobbledygook is just fun to throw around. So what I’m basically saying is cheers and don’t mess with us.
#43
I’m Canadian too and, hum, I think you should take a pill and relax
You’ve all missed the point. Didn’t you hear about the “Condom Shortage” at the olympics? Shatner was on a secret mission to curb the shortage of protected sex going on in the great white north. The Shat flew in on a super secret military plane (The Trojan) and brought relief to the condom stricken olympians. The closing ceremony was just a cover for his real mission. Shatner….Saving the world…..One Encounter at a Time.
#44
Just because I like a fun debate doesn’t mean I’m not as mellow as an afternoon in Charlottetown.
Our post-hockey gold jingoism has to last at least a week so cut me some slack, eh?
Ya know, it was a joke.
I wouldn’t even invade Celine Dion.
Oh, and a grudging congrats to Canada on that hockey thing.
The Shat strikes again! Now lets get him into the next movie!
To CmdrR
Hockey: Thanks! That’s very big of you.
Not invading Céline: Wise choice. War is Hell would truly be an understatement.
However, it’s important to note that this country boasts plenty of invasion-worthy beauties. Fans of Vancouver-produced sci-fi know what I’m talking about…
which reminds me, why doesn’t Paramount make a few Trek mini-series up in BC? They could base them at any point in the original Trek universe with unknown but strikingly attractive actors (à la BSG). Sure, they would be CGI-heavy to compensate for costly one-off sets, but they’ve been doing great effect on TV these past few years. Just a thought.