Shatner, William
Entry updated 20 February 2023. Tagged: Author.
(1931- ) Canadian actor from 1952, and author, long resident in the USA, where he gained fame as Captain Kirk in the Star Trek television series, going on to star in all the film sequels; he also directed the disappointing Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1989), about which he wrote, with Lisbeth Shatner, The Captain's Log: William Shatner's Personal Account of the Making of Star Trek V, the Final Frontier (1989). Other books incorporating public memories include Star Trek Memories (1993) with Chris Kreski and Star Trek Movie Memories (1994), also with Kreski. A memoir, Up Till Now: The Autobiography (2008) with David Fisher, adds some new material in a roguish voice. He has also written various "Shatnerverse" Ties to the Star Trek universe, beginning with The Ashes of Eden (1995) with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens, who were his collaborators on all the remaining titles [see Checklist]; the degree to which Shatner participated in this writing task is not known. Shatner's long connection with Star Trek universe was parodied in Galaxy Quest (1999), where Captain Kirk appears very lightly disguised as Captain Jason Nesmith.
In the preface to his first sf novel, TekWar (1989) – set in a twenty-second-century Los Angeles (see California) where crime is rife, and where a wise-mouth robot resignedly helps a lanky protagonist solve a mystery – Shatner acknowledges the assistance of Ron Goulart, who is otherwise uncredited as co-author. The TekLords sequence continued with Teklords (1991) and ended with Tek Net (1997), all also with Goulart (uncredited), all conspicuously in Goulart's style, and utilizing stock characters – including the pixillated Robot – he had made familiar. The Quest for Tomorrow sequence, beginning with Delta Search (1997) and ending with Shadow Planet: Delta Search (2002), was written in collaboration with W T Quick, who remained uncredited. Believe (1992) with Michael Tobias is associational, with tinges of the occult. [JC]
William Shatner
born Montreal, Quebec: 22 March 1931
works
series
TekLords
- TekWar (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1989) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- Teklords (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1991) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- TekLab (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1992) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- Tek Vengeance (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1993) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- Tek Secret (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1993) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- Tek Power (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1994) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Boris Vallejo]
- Tek Money (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1995) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Donato Giancola]
- Tek Kill (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1996) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Donato Giancola]
- Tek Net (New York: Ace/Putnam, 1997) as with Ron Goulart, uncredited [TekLords: hb/Donato Giancola]
Star Trek Shatnerverse: Odyssey
- The Ashes of Eden (New York: Pocket Books, 1995) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Odyssey: hb/Bryan D Allen]
- The Return (New York: Pocket Books, 1996) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Odyssey: hb/555 Communications]
- The Avenger (New York: Pocket Books, 1997) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Odyssey: hb/James Wang]
- Odyssey (New York: Pocket Books, 1998) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [omni of the above three: tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Odyssey: pb/]
Star Trek Shatnerverse: Mirror Universe
- Spectre (New York: Pocket Books, 1998) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Mirror Universe: hb/Keith Birdsong]
- Dark Victory (New York: Pocket Books, 1999) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Mirror Universe: hb/John Ennis]
- Preserver (New York: Pocket Books, 2000) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Mirror Universe: hb/Gerber Studio]
Star Trek Shatnerverse: Totality
- Captain's Peril (New York: Pocket Books, 2002) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Totality: hb/Mark Gerber]
- Captain's Blood (New York: Pocket Books, 2003) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Totality: hb/ZuccaDesign]
- Captain's Glory (New York: Pocket Books, 2006) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Shatnerverse: Totality: hb/Jerry Vanderstelt]
Star Trek Academy
- Collision Course (New York: Pocket Books, 2007) as with Garfield Reeves-Stevens and Judith Reeves-Stevens [tie to the series: Star Trek Academy: hb/James Wang]
Quest for Tomorrow
- Delta Search (New York: HarperPrism, 1997) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Jim Burns]
- Delta Search: Quest for Tomorrow (New York: G K Hall, 1997) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Jim Burns]
- Quest for Tomorrow: In Alien Hands (New York: HarperPrism, 1997) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Jim Burns]
- Step into Chaos (New York: HarperPrism, 1999) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Peter Peebles]
- Beyond the Stars (New York: HarperPrism, 2000) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Peter Peebles]
- Shadow Planet: Delta Search (New York: HarperPrism, 2002) as with W T Quick, uncredited [Quest for Tomorrow: hb/Chris Moore]
Man O'War
- Man O'War (New York: Putnam/Ace, 1996) [Man O'War: hb/Bob Eggleton]
- The Law of War (New York: Putnam/Ace, 1998) [Man O'War: hb/Sean Beavers]
Samuel Lord
- Zero-G (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2016) with Jeff Rovin [hb/Tavis Coburn]
- Zero-G: Green Space (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2017) with Jeff Rovin [hb/Tavis Coburn]
individual titles
nonfiction
series
Star Trek
- The Captain's Log: William Shatner's Personal Account of the Making of Star Trek V, the Final Frontier (New York: Pocket Books, 1989) with Lisabeth Shatner [nonfiction: Star Trek: pb/]
- Star Trek Memories (New York: HarperCollins, 1993) with Chris Kreski [nonfiction: Star Trek: pb/]
- Star Trek Movie Memories (New York: HarperCollins, 1994) with Chris Kreski [nonfiction: Star Trek: pb/]
- Get a Life! (New York: Pocket Books, 1999) with Chris Kreski [nonfiction: Star Trek: hb/Chris Kreski, Greg Schwartz]
- Star Trek: I'm Working on That (New York: Pocket Books, 2002) with Chip Walter [nonfiction: Star Trek: hb/]
individual titles (selected)
- Up Till Now: The Autobiography (New York: St Martin's Press/Thomas Dunne Books, 2008) with David Fisher [nonfiction: hb/]
- Leonard: My Fifty-Year Friendship with a Remarkable Man (New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2016) [nonfiction: Star Trek: hb/]
- Live Long and ....: What I Learnt Along the Way (New York: Thomas Dunne Books, 2018) with David Fisher [nonfiction: Star Trek: hb/]
nonfiction
- Boldly Go: Reflections On A Life Of Awe & Wonder (New York: Atria Books, 2022) with Joshua Brandon [nonfiction: hb/]
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