William Shatner Breaks Record as He “Becomes” Captain Kirk

in Entertainment, Movies

Captain Kirk

Credit: Star Trek

Blue Origin took to space today with their shuttle Shepherd for a short, 10-minute visit with the stars. Accompanying the Blue Origin crew was Star Trek’s Captain Kirk himself, AKA actor William Shatner. Shatner not only broke the sound barrier but also the record for being the oldest person to ever travel into space.

William Shatner with flight crew
Credit: Boeing Space

After landing safely back on planet Earth, Shatner told Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, who was in attendance at ground level, “Everybody in the world needs to do this…It was unbelievable.”

The New York Times posted an article revealing Shatner’s raw emotions after his trip to space:

By traveling to the edge of space William Shatner, 90, became the oldest person ever to reach such heights. “I’m so filled with emotion with what just happened,” Shatner said after returning to Earth. “I hope I never recover from this.”

This journey into space was also a big moment for Star Trek fans of all ages. Shatner played Captain Kirk, one of the most decorated captains within the Starfleet who also served as an explorer for the United Federation of Planets.

Boeing Space announced the Blue Origin journey by also paying homage to Star Trek using the Vulcan Salute in their tweet:

Welcome back to the crew of @blueorigin’s #NS18! May your bold ventures to where few have gone before inspire everyone to reach for the stars. 🖖

Captain Kirk
Credit: CNET

Fans of Shatner have taken to Twitter and have not disappointed with their reactions. Stewart Reynolds was jokingly in shock, saying that he finally got to see Grease’s Fonzie (played by actor Henry Winkler) wish Star Trek’s Captain Kirk well on his trip to space.

It was a great day for all Star Trek and Captain Kirk fans. Another successful voyage was made to and from space, and it certainly could not have been possible without our beloved Captain Kirk.

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