JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
A beloved cast member of the original "Star Trek" series in the 1960s has died. Actor Walter Koenig played Chekov, the Russian navigator on the Starship Enterprise. With his daughter and his niece by his side, he died yesterday at age 90 of natural causes in Los Angeles. NPR's Mandalit del Barco reports.
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MANDALIT DEL BARCO, BYLINE: On "Star Trek," Walter Koenig charmed viewers as Pavel Chekov, a baby-faced ensign who co-starred with William Shatner, Captain James T. Kirk.
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WILLIAM SHATNER: (As James T. Kirk) Mr. Chekov, how close will we come to the nearest Klingon outpost if we continue on our present course?
WALTER KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) One parsec, sir. Close enough to smell them.
DEL BARCO: To appeal to the younger generation, Koenig wore a wig like Davy Jones from The Monkees. And Chekov was cheeky, always boasting about Russian ingenuity.
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KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) Scotch?
JAMES DOOHAN: (As Montgomery "Scotty" Scott) Aye.
KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) It was invented by a little old lady from Leningrad.
(As Pavel Chekov) He disappeared again, like the cat in that Russian story.
SHATNER: (As James T. Kirk) Don't you mean the English story? The Cheshire cat?
KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) Cheshire? No, sir. Minsk, perhaps, but...
SHATNER: (As James T. Kirk) All right, all right.
KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) It makes me homesick. Just like Russia.
DEFOREST KELLEY: (as Leonard "Bones" McCoy) More like the Garden of Eden, Ensign.
KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) Of course, Doctor. The Garden of Eden was just outside Moscow. A very nice place.
DEL BARCO: Here's Koenig on NPR in 1976, talking about Chekov.
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KOENIG: I'll give you one of my deathless lines that I'm sure long after I have expired and my ashes have blown in the wind, I'll be known for. (As Pavel Chekov) Warp factor 4, Captain.
DEL BARCO: Ensign Chekov would go on to become a Starfleet officer in seven "Star Trek" movies, including the "Wrath Of Khan" in 1982, and "The Voyage Home" in 1986.
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KOENIG: (As Pavel Chekov) Hello. We are looking for the nuclear wessels (ph) in Alameda.
DEL BARCO: In another sci-fi TV show, "Babylon 5," Koenig played a ruthless and manipulative villain.
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KOENIG: (As Alfred Bester) That happens sometimes. When I feel strong emotion from 2 feet in front of me, it just jumps out of my mouth before I can stop it.
DEL BARCO: Marvin Walter Koenig (ph) was born in Chicago and grew up in Manhattan, the son of a Russian Jewish immigrant and a self-described communist. After getting a college degree in psychology, Koenig studied at The Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. Then in the early 1960s, he started acting on TV shows like "General Hospital" and "The Alfred Hitchcock Hour" before his big break on "Star Trek." He was 32. Over the years, Koenig guest-starred on other shows and often appeared at "Star Trek" conventions, where he was a fan favorite. In 1976, he told NPR that "Star Trek" remained a hopeful vision.
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KOENIG: The show shows a kind of a world where the future may not be desolation, where we not be - may not be all bankrupt and overcrowded and squeezed together in an intolerable situation. But we will continue to explore, to reach new frontiers. I think that very positive aspect is very worthwhile and is exciting.
DEL BARCO: Walter Koenig also wrote two memoirs, "Beaming Up And Getting Off: Life Before And Beyond Star Trek" and "Warped Factors: A Neurotic's Guide To The Universe." Koenig's death leaves just two surviving main cast members from the original series, William Shatner and George Takei. Mandalit del Barco, NPR News, Los Angeles.
(SOUNDBITE OF TAY IWAR SONG, "REFLECTION STATION") Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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