# William Shatner heads off to the final frontier (space, not death) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** star-trek-paramount\ **Created:** [October 4, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868 "2021-10-04T15:40:43Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 3:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/61 "2021-10-06T15:18:39Z")
Shatner’s version of Space Oddity [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/3L-bTza_7-I/hqdefault.jpg "William Shatner - Space Oddity") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3L-bTza_7-I) Shatner’s version of Rocket Man [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HQnmLT1KbQo/maxresdefault.jpg "Rocket Man") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HQnmLT1KbQo) ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/62 "2021-10-06T15:28:23Z")
> [@Quercus\_alba](#): > > if George Takei is at the controls for this flight. “Oh, my.” I feel for Wally Funk. She’s the current record-holder for oldest human into space, and she’s a trained astronaut candidate who’s getting upstaged by a PR stunt. Although at this point, “PR stunt” is most of what Blue Origin is visibly doing. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 3:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/63 "2021-10-06T15:31:53Z")
Tuesday, October 12, 2021: “Mr. Shatner, how did you enjoy your flight?” “It…was fun. Oh, my.” ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/64 "2021-10-06T15:36:09Z")
That flight will be shorter than the time it takes Shatner to recite the lyrics to “Louie, Louie”. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/65 "2021-10-06T19:29:47Z")
At least he’ll be able to say “Well, I got it … up!” Not many 90-year-old men can claim that. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 8:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/66 "2021-10-06T20:00:18Z")
William Shatner is a cool guy in my book. I saw him in the _“Shatner’s World, We Just Live In It”_ production and he talked about his philosophy about taking on new projects, which was basically to never say no. He is always open to try something new and have fun with it regardless of whether critics might approve or not. That attitude has served him pretty well I think. ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/67 "2021-10-06T20:07:22Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > I feel for Wally Funk. She’s the current record-holder for oldest human into space, and she’s a trained astronaut candidate who’s getting upstaged by a PR stunt. Is it certain this is a PR stunt? Or is Shatner a paying customer? ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/68 "2021-10-06T20:09:13Z")
I still can’t believe he wasn’t appointed to head Space Force. ---
**Author:** ![wolfpup](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wolfpup/32/10618_2.png) [@wolfpup](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wolfpup)\ **Post date:** [October 6, 2021, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/69 "2021-10-06T20:14:56Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > Is it certain this is a PR stunt? Or is Shatner a paying customer? He’s an invited guest, not a paying customer. As to “PR stunt”, I suppose everyone is free to draw their own conclusions. I think Bezos is doing it for PR reasons, but I disagree with the huckster connotations of the word “stunt”. ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/70 "2021-10-07T00:53:02Z")
Glad for Shatner. Not sure if he _can_ die. Strange aeons and all. ---
**Author:** ![JRDelirious](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jrdelirious/32/9531_2.png) [@JRDelirious](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JRDelirious)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 2:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/71 "2021-10-07T02:58:32Z")
> [@gnoitall](#): > > I feel for Wally Funk. She’s the current record-holder for oldest human into space, and she’s a trained astronaut candidate who’s getting upstaged by a PR stunt. Since back at the time we were having Senators-in-Space (Glenn being of course an exception) I’ve said we’re at the point we really really need some honest-to-goodness official regulation of what makes you _astronaut_ vs. breathing freight. Even if you _do_ make it to orbit. I mean, in the Air Force not everyone with a job aboard the airplane gets wings. And me taking a cruise on the _MV Costa Viral Outbreak_ doesn’t make me an Able Seaman. That said, yeah, if Bezos were really perverse he’d reveal Takei as the capcom once Bill is strapped in… that’s what _ **I** _ would do. ---
**Author:** ![gnoitall](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/bb73d2/32.png) [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/72 "2021-10-07T03:06:43Z")
> [@JRDelirious](#): > > I’ve said we’re at the point we really really need some honest-to-goodness official regulation of what makes you _astronaut_ vs. breathing freight. Of course, it’s a patchwork of jurisdictions, even within a single nation like the U.S. In the US, purely private spaceflight is regulated by the FAA, and as of this July [they ruled](https://www.faa.gov/documentLibrary/media/Order/FAA_Order_8800.2.pdf) that you’re not an astronaut unless you do something on the misson other than, as you say, serve as “breathing freight”. > [@](#): > > **5.** Eligibility Requirements. To be eligible for FAA Commercial Space Astronaut Wings, commercial launch crewmembers must meet the following criteria: > **a.** Meet the requirements for flight crew qualifications and training under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) part 460. > **b.** Demonstrated flight beyond 50 statute miles above the surface of the Earth as flight crew on an FAA/AST licensed or permitted launch or reentry vehicle. > **c.** _Demonstrated activities during flight that were essential to public safety, or contributed to human space flight safety._ So none of the BO suborbital tourist flights have produced astronauts. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/73 "2021-10-07T03:54:27Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > At least he’ll be able to say “Well, I got it … up!” Not many 90-year-old men can claim that. They should name the ship Viagra 1 in his honor. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 6:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/74 "2021-10-07T06:35:47Z")
“A rose by any other name … would smell as sweet!” 🤣 ---
**Author:** ![dtilque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d6d6ee/32.png) [@dtilque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dtilque)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 7:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/75 "2021-10-07T07:17:46Z")
If I were in Blue Origin marketing, I’d have him redo the ST:TOS intro except for the New Shepard rather than the Enterprise (and other mods as appropriate). It’d give everyone a nice laugh. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 11:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/76 "2021-10-07T11:43:18Z")
> [@cochrane](#): > > “There appears to have been some human activity upon the large natural satellite in the past, but it appears to have been abandoned. It is our consensus that these humans may never explore past the fourth planet in their solar system. Unfortunate.” “Those humans and their puny, juvenile minds. They’re STUPID, STUPID, STUPID!!!” ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/77 "2021-10-07T14:02:21Z")
In his interview with Anderson Cooper: _Shatner talked about pressing his nose “against the plastic window” on the flight, saying he didn’t want to see “somebody else out there looking back at me.”_ Please please please let someone at Blue Origin have watched “The Big Bang Theory!” ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/78 "2021-10-07T14:10:17Z")
If he actually sees something no one is going to believe him. “Ha ha William, it was funny when you did that joke on take off but it’s starting to wear thin” “No I’m serious there’s something out there taking out pieces of the craft!” “yeah yeah, you are starting to get dense Shatner” ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/79 "2021-10-07T15:38:00Z")
> [@silenus](#): > > Please please please let someone at Blue Origin have watched “The Big Bang Theory!” Sure you don’t mean **Third Rock from the Sun**? [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/_OF2uOy5r5k/hqdefault.jpg "William Shatner and John Lithgow 3rd Rock from the Sun") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OF2uOy5r5k) ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [October 7, 2021, 3:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868/80 "2021-10-07T15:40:47Z")
Nope. TBBT is where the astronauts on the ISS pranked a paranoid Wolowitz by taping a scary alien face on the window by his sleeping spot. He wet himself in terror. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/zUFCArwH2Jc/hqdefault.jpg "The Big Bang Theory - All Howard Moments In Space") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUFCArwH2Jc) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-heads-off-to-the-final-frontier-space-not-death/951868.md?page=5)