Walter Marvin Koenig, the Jewish actor who famously played Pavel Chekov in the original Star Trek series, has died aged 90.
Koenig, who starred as the arrogant Russian navigation officer in seven Star Trek feature films, passed away in Los Angeles on Sunday.
Zachery McGinnis, the founder of Galactic Productions, an agency that counted the actor as one of its clients, posted: “Today we mourn the passing of Walter Koenig, whose talent, warmth, and unforgettable performances left a lasting mark on generations of fans around the world.
“Walter’s legacy extends far beyond the screen. Through countless convention appearances and interactions with fans, he shared his kindness, wit, and appreciation with everyone fortunate enough to meet him. He understood what Star Trek meant to people and embraced the community that grew around it.”
Koenig’s Chekov character was central to the plot of 1982’s Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, generally considered the best of the Star Trek movies.
Koenig also played the evil policeman Alfred Bester in J Michael Straczynski’s Babylon 5, another sci-fi franchise. He appeared in 12 episodes of the show between 1994 and 1998.
Born in Chicago, Koenig’s family – originally named Koenigsberg – had Russian-Jewish origins.
He attended Fieldston High School in Fieldston, New York, where he did some stage work, before starting at Grinnell College in Iowa. He then transferred to and graduated from UCLA with a degree in psychology.
After a professor urged him to pursue a career in acting, he began studying at the Neighbourhood Playhouse in New York.
There his classmates included Christopher Lloyd, with whom he would be reunited on Star Trek III: The Search for Spock in which Lloyd played the villainous Klingon Commander Kruge, as well as James Caan and Dabney Coleman.
Koenig made his small screen debut with an uncredited role in an episode of Combat! in 1962.
After the original Star Trek series went off the air in 1969, he worked occasionally in TV, guesting on “The Virginian,” “Ironside” and “Columbo” (in an episode that had William Shatner as the special guest star).
A one-character film that Koenig wrote and performed, “You’re Never Alone When You’re a Schizophrenic,” was screened in the 1996 New York Film Festival.
He voiced Chekov in a variety of Star Trek video games, including 1998’s Starfleet Academy: Chekov’s Lost Missions.
Koenig wrote the memoir “Chekov’s Enterprise: A Personal Journal of the Making of Star Trek – The Motion Picture,” published in 1980, and “Warped Factors – A Neurotic’s Guide to the Universe,” published in 1998.
Koenig leaves a daughter, actress-writer Danielle Koenig. A son, actor and editor Andrew Koenig, died in 2010.
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