William Shatner may have recently turned 90, but he is not slowing down. He continues working in acting, music, and show hosting. But Bill is also a legendary pitchman and this week his latest promotional push put him in the ring with a former heavyweight champion. He is also showing that he is in tune with what’s trending these days.
Shatner feels the pain with Tyson
This week William Shatner appeared in a new online campaign for CopperGel, a pain relief gel. The new ad features Shatner in the ring with Mike Tyson. Check it out.
https://youtu.be/I20wSYEFRPY
CopperGel is a brand of Mike Tyson’s Ranch Companies. The promotion actually started last week with some online taunting back and forth with Tyson, including Shatner offering to “train” Tyson.
It all started with a simple invite!!! @CopperGel @WilliamShatner #coppergel #miketyson #williamshatner #shatnervs #ad pic.twitter.com/ob0PgkjICD
— Mike Tyson (@MikeTyson) May 19, 2021
Shatner also showed up on ESPN to preview it.
Shatner endorses BTS Star Trek takeover
In other Shatner news, this week Bill again showed how tuned in he is with modern pop culture. After the Korean supergroup BTS did a skit on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert featuring members of the band showing off more hand gestures they have popularized, including Jeon Jung-kook saying he invented Star Trek’s famous live long and prosper salute, K-Pop fans flooded Twitter with “Star Trek” in their latest trending tag takeover.
jungkook teaching the hand gesture "live long and proper" 😭
🐰 I invented and Star Trek learne from me pic.twitter.com/LGKFq1cdPE
— jk updates ★ (@jjklve) May 26, 2021
Not one to miss out on a trend, Shatner jumped in saying he was on board with BTS, Tweeting: “I can agree with that logic!” The tweet garnered over 140k likes in two days.
I can agree with that logic!😉🖖🏻 @BTS_twt pic.twitter.com/wpJ3tw6qp5
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) May 26, 2021
Maybe this will lead to his next musical collaboration and album. Could Bill be the next K-Pop star?
Keep up on Star Trek celebrities at TrekMovie.com.
William Shatner and Ringo Starr are two of the oldest guys who are energetic for their ages. Nice to see BTS influenced by Star Trek.
Nice to see Shatner listened to the stunt coordinator. If Tyson had queued a real right, it would have Killed Bill.
It would still be a better end for Kirk than what was in Generations ;)
Ha ha Sad but true.
HaHa! For sure. Oh my…
You either believe in yourself or you don’t.
Glad Bill’s still having fun!
Shatner’s always a shill for something, but I still love him!
Actually, he’s very careful about what products he attaches himself to. He’s inundated with requests to promote various products. This CopperGel would at least have to do what it claims to do.
I get to volunteer at the Set Tour in Ticonderoga NY when he does his appearances there. He took a few minutes to explain what he will or won’t endorse.
Thanks for sharing that with us! Got any other Set Tour experiences you’d like to share?
I took the set tour in the summer of 2018, and it was just wonderful. Such a magnificent re-creation of the original sets, so lovingly put together and cared for. I’d go again if Ticonderoga weren’t such a very long drive away…
When we got there, we told the woman who sold us our tickets that we were pilgrims come to worship at the shrine. She seemed to think we were joking. :-)
First of all, THANK YOU for coming out to see the tour! When people ask me about the set tour, in general? I tell people it’s the “Field Of Dreams” for Star Trek fans. It truly is. I’ve countless numbers of stories about my experiences, there.
One was meeting Nichelle Nichols. I’ve been fortunate to have met several Trek celebrities. I’ve also learned that they’re regular people, for the most part. I’ll walk up to them, say hello and tell them I’m a volunteer and my connection to the event. I let them know that if they need anything and their helper or no-one else is available? They can reach out to me for anything that comes up. I make sure they’re comfortable and don’t need anything else and then I move on. Well, when I met Michelle? I shook her hand, opened my mouth to say hello and a “croak” came out. I was awestruck, star struck, all at the same time. She’s a part of television history, she was an advocate for NASA. She smiled and said: ” Hello dear, I’m Nichelle,” holding my hand. That broke me from my spell. I told her how grateful we were that she was there. She asked me my name, and gave me her autograph. She’s wonderful. Eddie Paskey and I, shared a private conversation. He’s been in more episodes than Takei and Koenig. He’d seen it all. I told him that always noticed him at his post. He was Shatner’s stand in for lighting shots. He knew how Bill moved and would turn his face to the camera. The lighting guys loved him for making their job easier. They always lit Eddie very well, in gratitude. We spoke for a few minutes. It got very emotional, for both us us. We shared an embrace, a few tears, and he headed for home, with his wife.
We have a small dog, named Tilly. Gates McFadden scooped her up and she posted a picture of herself, with our Jack Russell on her Twitter feed.
At another event, I saw an elderly gentlemen who I thought was in the wrong place, it was our green room. I went up and introduced myself, ready to escort him out. He smiled, shook my hand and said: “Hello, my name is Keir Dullea,” one of the stars of 2001: A Space Odyssey. I realized who he was, mortified that I was trying to kick a celebrity out of the event! He was appearing with Gary Lockwood, for a 2001 panel. At another event, there were reserved parking spots for celebrities, I watched a huge white SUV arrive taking up one of the celebrity spots. I was telling the nice lady she couldn’t park there. She took off her sunglasses, extended her hand and said: ” Hi I’m Robin Curtis. I know I was only in one Trek movie, but I can park here.” Again, I was mortified. She was awesome, she laughed it off and gave me a hug. She makes a point to come and say hello to me at events. I’ve seen people weep while walking the sets. They’re overcome with emotion. One very tall man, in his costume, feel to his knees in the corridor, outside if sickbay. He just couldn’t believe he was on the Enterprise. He was a sickly kid, growing up and Star Trek was his escape. He got bullied and picked on because of his love if Trek. He said he’d escaped to the ship in his imagination, countless times. To be able to physically walk through them wad just too much for them. There wasn’t a dry eye in the corridor, I’ll tell you that.
Thanks so much for your wonderful reply! It sounds like you’ve had a number of really affecting experiences while volunteering with the tour. Sounds like a total dream for a TOS fan! Do you live in Ticonderoga?
I’m so grateful to Mr. Cawley for opening his sets to the public and allowing all of us who love TOS to enjoy his magnificent re-creation of the Enterprise. Like Bob Justman, we all believe that ship is really up there. :-)
I wish when I took the tour, YOU had been my guide! When my husband and I went there, in July of 2018, the usual tour guide was indisposed, so we had a back-up guide. She was a young woman in a TNG uniform who sounded completely robotic as she showed us around, no enthusiasm for where she was at all. She was so robotic that my husband joked that she was a reject from Harry Mudd’s android factory, one who wasn’t human enough for Harry. :-) The ship was amazing enough that we enjoyed the tour, anyway, but having her standing nearby acting as if the starship Enterprise was the most boring thing she could think of … it did sap some of the joy out of the experience.
Unfortunately, no, We don’t live in Ti. It’s a beautiful area. I realize it’s a bit of a travel but there is lots to do, in the region. My significant other, MB, helps James co-ordinate the big events. We did briefly entertain buying an investment home but couldn’t make the deal. I’m not sure who your guide might have been in 2018. Some people were brand new at the time and this was their first season. I know that now, everyone does an amazing job giving the tour. Please, if you’re ever in Ti again, for a major event? Please look me up, people know me by my screen name, dennycranium. Or, ask for Dennis. I’ll introduce you to James and see if we can’t give you a better experience, next time. Again, thanks, so much, for coming to visit. You business is so appreciated, by The Set Tour and the local tourist industry.
That’s very sweet of you! I’m pretty much allergic to crowds, so I’m unlikely to go to a big event, unfortunately. When we went in 2018, we deliberately went on a Tuesday afternoon, so as to be there at a time when hardly anyone else was. But if I should get over my allergy, I’ll certainly look you up. :-)
Sadly, my husband is unlikely to be willing to go again. I’m the Trek fan in the family, and he’s very indulgent about listening to me talk endlessly about TOS, but a long drive to Ticonderoga … he did that for me once, but I doubt he’d be up for it a second time.
This might amuse you. The tour guide encouraged my husband and me to sit in the captain’s chair, and we both did. While we enjoyed the view — that bridge is SO well designed — we both felt uncomfortable there, because we knew we belonged somewhere in the Sciences section, not anywhere near command. Since I’m a licensed psychologist in real life, I guess my closest TOS equivalent would be Helen Noel … though I hope I’d have noticed that something was amiss at the Tantalus colony before she did. :-)
It’s a real treat to sit in that chair, for me, anyways. We really don’t let people sit in the burke chairs, at the various stations. They are incredibly fragile and are becoming quite scarce. They are modified versions of mid 20th century dining chairs. Trek fans, everywhere, buy them up and make their own Trek chair. Also, they aren’t built for larger. heavier people. If someone were to hurt themselves, it would be awful. My father in law WOULDN’T sit in the Captain’s chair. He was a Marine Corps veteran. He said he didn’t rate the chair. I’m sorry that you’re allergic to crowds. The train does come right into Ti. If you ever find yourself able to come again? Let me know. I’ll let the staff know. We can try to give you a better experience and linger at the science station. Again, I’m just a volunteer, I can only ask.
That’s a great story about your father-in-law! I think it’s a testament to how very real they made things seem in TOS — and how faithful to it Mr. Cawley’s re-creation is — that some of us feel that we aren’t entitled to sit there. :-)
Don’t worry about the robotic tour guide! Actually walking through the starship Enterprise was still a fabulous experience, and I tell every Trek fan I know that they NEED to go to Ticonderoga. As far as I’m concerned, it’s very nearly a holy place.
Hey denny, I have a question about the Set Tour. Do they have any authentic TOS artifacts that are displayed or incorporated into the TOS set recreations? I know that most of the TOS sets were destroyed once the show ended or reused and lost to time, but am curious if Cawley has any original pieces of it on exhibit.
Paul Allen’s science fiction museum in Seattle has Kirk’s captain chair, a control panel from the Enterprise bridge, and some other odds and ends.
The answer is yes. There are several pieces throughout the tour that are authentic. There are props, pieces of wardrobe and the odd piece on the sets that are authentic. I can’t recall the specific pieces. If I’m giving the tour, I mention that there are pieces around that are authentic.
That very well may be. It just seems like he’s shilling crap, but what do I really know? I don’t need old man pain creams (yet!). I‘ve never tried something that Mr. Shatner endorses that I’m aware. Thanks for the info! A truly good shill of course would always maintain he believes in the products ;-)
“It just seems like he’s shilling crap, but what do I really know?”
Actors do commercials. Was Betty White a shill for Snickers?
In one of his memoirs, Shatner describes having dinner at Edward G. Robinson’s place and asking him, “I just saw you doing a coffee commercial. You’re the great Edward G. Robinson! Why would you do that?”
Robinson took him to a wing of his house and showed Shatner part of his famous art collection. “You see that painting?” he asked. “That’s a coffee commercial.”
Shatner said he learned from that (and elsewhere) never to get too full of himself, and that no job is beneath an actor.
I’d not deny either of them a paying gig. If, at 90, someone still wants to pay Shatner to promote something, good for them.
Isn’t Tyson a convicted rapist?
True. He was in prison inbetween TUC and GEN if I remember correctly. But he returned to boxing in the mid 90s… but his “true” comeback was in Hangover :-)
Yep. The Shat is once again showing he’s really just a piece of Shit.
Being nice doesnt get you far in the industry…
Leonard Nimoy was so nice that people rush to tell about it. Grace Lee Whitney talks in her autobiography about how Mr. Nimoy helped her after she was sexually assaulted by someone associated with Star Trek. George Takei talks about how Mr. Nimoy got him and Nichelle Nichols hired for Star Trek: The Animated Series when Gene Roddenberry wanted to use drawings of his and Ms. Nichols’ FACES but not actually pay them anything. Mr. Nimoy also got Ms. Nichols equal compensation when it turned out that she was earning less than Walter Koenig, despite being with the series longer.
Leonard Nimoy managed to be a great actor AND a nice man. Of course, he was exceptional :-)
And none of those names mentioned COMBINED has had a career like Shatners.
James Stewart was generally understood to be a quality guy on and off screen. So was Paul Newman. Both had careers Bill could only dream of. Prople choose their own paths, though, and all these names mentioned are (or were) happy with who they are (or were), then so be it.
Actually, now, Mr. Shatner is quite the philanthropist. He doesn’t make a lot of noise about it or advertise it.
What’s with the comments here today? Jeepers.
And aren’t you a convicted moron? He did his time and actually more of a reformed character than most of the hollyweird elite. Check out his HotBoxin podcast for starters.
I’d rather chew glass.
I’d rather Tyson chew glass. Down there.
Yes. He’s trash.
Yep. And he did more time then most of the unconvicted caucasian rapists in Hollywood. Are you suggesting he’s not entitled to make a living because of that conviction? If so, you’re wrong on that point.
Yes, convicted. It doesn’t necessarily mean he actually did the crime. At the time, there was a Kennedy who was charged with rape. Due to his family name, he was acquitted. I found it a little suspicious that Tyson, an African American, got convicted on (if I recall correctly) shaky evidence. The white guy, despite some compelling evidence, was acquitted. Again, if I recall correctly.
Agreed. Convicted does not mean he actually did it. How many thousands of convicted criminals are later realized to be innocent? Just one reason the death penalty is questionable.
.
‘who would you fight, living or dead?’
‘i’d fight shatner. william shatner’-
‘fight club’
He staged a mock fight in engineering with a member of his security detail. Mr. Shatner was telling a story about a fight scene. It seems he connected with one of his punches. He demonstrated how to make a fake punch look real. He’s quite athletic and energetic.
Bill still in great form and his voice is just amazing he still has it!! I doubt he will ever get another Star Trek role now but if he did many fans would be very happy!!
whatever the next Trek movie turns out to be it needs WILLIAM SHATNER!
I’d love to see him in one. Thing is, any part offered to Shatner today, most likely will be in a supporting role. I just don’t see him accepting any Star Trek part that he isn’t the STAR of. As much as we would love to see him.
I’m sure he’d accept a supporting role.. similar to his supporting role in Generations (and to a lesser extent Nimoy in ST09).. although most likely he (and the writers) would want himself de-aged to his 1990s look
I hope I’m wrong. He’s flipflopped on the idea, several times. I’d love to see him.
That ship has sailed…
never
Shatner should teach boxers some Kirk-Fu moves. Reinvigorate the sport with flying jump kicks and interlaced finger, double-handed “back rubs”!
I like Shatner, But It’s always irked :) me that he’ll do these sell out things, but won’t do Star Trek unless he gets an astronomical sum of money
I’m sure he gets plenty for this.
He’s got a sharp mind for 90. Can’t say that about his gut though.
Was this comment necessary?
It’s actually the camera, adding on the extra weight. When you see him in person? He’s not a stick figure but he looks quite good. He doesn’t walk or talk like a 90 year old man.
Lol what does that title mean?
He can’t be 90. Impossible. Never ever.
I work with the elderly. I don’t know what his insides look like, but on the outside he could pass for 70 easy. Great genetics.
Bill looks so young, he needs to go back to the darker haired Rug to make him appear just a little more youthful. This ad was poorly lit. It made him look 90 rather than a youthful 80.
Whilst this is inviting a “he won’t shag you, mate” reply, I simply do not care One of the best people to have ever lived surely. What a legend.
I’m rewatching TOS since I was 10 and it’s a delightful show. Sure there are some parts that haven’t aged well 😬, but I’m thoroughly enjoying it and Kirk is too good. What a captain! Kurtzman and his band of hacks better stay away from him in SNW/STD or anything else.
This was fantastic, as was Shatner’s Kirk as well. Both the actor, and the character as he portrayed him, are inspirations. Not looking forward to Kurtzman’s inevitable attempt to re-introduce JTK.