70s Trek: Star Trek In The 1970s

Gene Roddenberry already had an actor in mind when he created the character Spock for his upcoming show, Star Trek.  It was Leonard Nimoy.  The actor had guest starred in the first series Roddenberry created, The Lieutenant. He seemed to fit the physical type that Gene had in mind for the character. Nimoy was hired and became the only actor who was there from the first pilot, The Cage, to the second pilot, Where No Man Has Gone Before, to the last episode of the series, Turnabout Intruder. Nimoy was a method actor, getting inside the skin of this alien character.  It took its toll on him.  After staying in character for 12-14 hours per day, it took him all of Saturday and half of Sunday to shed the character and become himself again.  Of course, Monday morning was then just around the corner. The stress of the difficult shooting schedule, and perhaps even the way he approached the Spock character, took its toll on Nimoy.  He became an alcoholic.  He eventually sought help and went into rehab after the show wa