Wonder Woman of the Week: Nichelle Nichols

This week’s WWoW is certain to excite the Star Trek fans out there, but Nichelle Nichols’ influence reaches far beyond the Starship Enterprise. Nichols started her career early playing jazz with legendary musicians Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. Through a role in The Lieutenant, she met the director who would give her the role of her lifetime.

Nichols was cast as Lieutenant Uhura in the revolutionary outer-space show Star Trek. She was the first African American woman cast in a major television role (excluding roles and maids and servants) and the rank of Lieutenant was a major plus. Early in the show’s run, Nichols considered leaving to pursue a career in theatre, but a phone call straight for MLK jr. (in which he stressed her importance as a role model for young African-American boys and girls) convinced her to stick around.

In one particular episode of Star Trek, Nichols and costar William Shatner made television history with the first inter-racial kiss on TV. Nichols was raised by an inter-racial family (and is herself biracial) so the episode was no new subject for her. The public however saw it differently- and in the best kind of way.

After Star Trek ended, Nichols made a few appearances in theatre and cinema, but outer space called the Lieutenant back to service when NASA asked her to join a new project. In the late 70’s and early 80’s, NASA began a project to inspire more women and African-Americans to aspire to careers in science and engineering- specifically for the space shuttle program. Nichols’ work with NASA helped inspire young women and Africa-Americans including Dr. Mae Jemison- a former Wonder Woman of the Week and who’s quote graces the home page.