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Posted by: Admin on Thursday, April 11, 2002 - 12:08 AM
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The other night, my wife, Elizabeth, and I had dinner with Leonard and his lovely wife, Susan. We had a great time, which made me think it was appropriate to comment on my friendship with Leonard here in "Bill's Space." You all know about our fictional friendship on Star Trek. If you've been to Conventions, you've either seen us together, or heard me talk about him. I even wore his nose in an episode of "Ruby." But seeing him the other night, I was struck by how dear he is to me. He and I have a deep friendship that can only be achieved by many years of experience.
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The other night, my wife, Elizabeth, and I had dinner with Leonard and his lovely wife, Susan. We had a great time, which made me think it was appropriate to comment on my friendship with Leonard here in "Bill's Space." You all know about our fictional friendship on Star Trek. If you've been to Conventions, you've either seen us together, or heard me talk about him. I even wore his nose in an episode of "Ruby." But seeing him the other night, I was struck by how dear he is to me. He and I have a deep friendship that can only be achieved by many years of experience.
 It wasn't always that way, though. In the beginning of Star Trek, Leonard seemed remote and distant to me. We were strangers, and Leonard seemed humorless to me off screen. It was definitely not love at first sight. Later, I found out he was maintaining the character of Spock off screen as well as during filming, as he was ascribing to an acting technique with which I was unfamiliar. But now I know he was maintaining the character. That Spockian tendency towards reservation was not really who Leonard was; by the time we finished the series, we were well on our way to melting the frosty quality of our interactions.
I think our real friendship started during the making of the movies; we started understanding that we had a great deal in common. After all, we have almost the same birthday; our backgrounds are very similar, and we were both married with children. During those years, I became acquainted with Leonard's artistry, specifically his photography. Leonard has become a first rate photographer, and I am in awe of his ability. Together with his wife, Susan, he also has amassed a first rate art collection. I love discussing his finds with him and admire his eye so much.
I think part of what makes us feel so close is that we share many problems in common, too. We elaborate on this in ""Mind Meld," so I won't go into it here. But I think that we are able to discuss these issues together and, in many cases, help each other come up with solutions.
I thought when I started this website that it would be great to do something special that the fans had never before witnessed. Certainly Leonard and I have done interviews many, many times, but I thought a situation where we cross interviewed each other in a comfortable setting would be unique. Thus, the idea for "Mind Meld" came into being. I think that the idea was it would be a no holds barred discussion, knowing that we were both safe and that neither of us would hurt the other. And the reality of it was, it turned out to be a magical day. Neither of us was distracted by any of life's nagging pains and worries, and we just felt glad to be sharing ourselves with the other.
Behind the Scenes on "Mind Meld"
I think the best thing about "Mind Meld" is that it documented how close I really feel to Leonard. We've had such a unique experience together, and I'm so glad there's a record of us sharing our viewpoints about this journey. Truly, I am blessed to be able to call him my friend.
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