Nichelle Nichols, the first lady of Star Trek, is preparing for her retirement tour. Ms. Nichols, who played Lt. Uhura, the communications officer of Jim Kirk’s Enterprise, is 86 now and her health is not what it was. She suffered a stroke in 2015.
Her son, Kyle Johmson, filed for a conservatorship to protect her interests, fearing she was being cheated by those who wanted her money. However, her friend Angelique Fawcett claimed that Ms. Nichols did not have dementia, and that it was her son who was after her money. Those who have seen her recently claim that Ms. Nichols is not doing well and that she failed to recognize an old friend at WonderCon in Anaheim, CA this spring.
Ms. Nichols is planning a farewell tour, with a series of convention appearances during the summer of 2020. Sky Conway, the producer behind the Trek-alike web series Renegades, is working with her to crowdfund a documentary about her life.
For more information on Ms. Nichols’ upcoming events see her schedule at uhura.com.
The website TrekMovie.com announced that Ms. Nichols “has announced she will be making her final public appearances over the next 12 months, with her last being a special ‘Hailing Frequencies Open…One Last Time!’ convention on the first weekend of May 2020. It was revealed last year that Nichols was diagnosed with moderate progressive dementia and she plans on moving in with her son Kyle, who has been acting as her proxy and is joining her on her farewell tour.”
For her final appearances, Nichelle is doing photo opportunities and signings, but not panels. According to a representative for Nichelle Nichols, she is confirmed for the following upcoming events:
- May 16-19 – MegaCon – Orlando Flordia
- May 23-26 – Phoenix Fan Fusion – Phoenix, Arizona
- June 28-30 – Wisconsin Comic Convention – Milwaukee, WI
- July 4-7 – Florida Supercon – Miami, Florida
- July 12-14 – Shore Leave – Baltimore, Maryland
- July 31-August 4 – Official Star Trek Convention – Las Vegas, Nevada
- October 3-6 – New York Comic Con – New York, New York
- May 1-3, 2020 –Nichelle Nichols Farewell Convention – Burbank, CA”
In addition to singing, acting, and dancing, Ms. Nichols worked with NASA to recruit more females and more ethnic minorities in the Seventies. She herself flew aboard the SOFIA (Stratospheric Observatory For Infrared Astronomy) aircraft in 2015; SOFIA is a specially modified 747 hauling a large telescope. She is also the author of a fascinating autobiography, Beyond Uhura: “Star Trek” and Other Memories.
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Susan Macdonald is the author of the children's book "R is for Renaissance Faire", as well as 26 short stories, mostly fantasy in "Alternative Truths", "Swords and Sorceress #30", Swords &Sorceries Vols. 1, 2, & 5, "Cat Tails" "Under Western Stars", and "Knee-High Drummond and the Durango Kid". Her articles have appeared on SCIFI.radio's web site, in The Inquisitr, and in The Millington Star. She enjoys Renaissance Faires (see book above), science fiction conventions, Highland Games, and Native American pow-wows.
