Billionaire Jeff Bezos-founded Blue Origin will fly Canadian actor William Shatner to space on October 12 on its New Shepard rocket. At 90, Shatner, who famously played Captain James T. Kirk in the ‘Star Trek’ TV series, is set to become the oldest person to fly to space. Blue Origin’s executive Audrey Powers will join Shatner on the spaceflight.
William Shatner’s career as an actor, director, producer, writer, recording artist, and horseman has spanned 60 years. He originated the role of “Captain James T. Kirk” in 1966 for the television series Star Trek. The series spawned a feature film franchise where Shatner returned as Captain Kirk in seven of the Star Trek movies, one of which he directed. He has long wanted to travel to space and will become the oldest person to have flown to space.
