Leonard Nimoy, a former soldier, dies at 83

Actor Leonard Nimoy, a former enlisted soldier, died Friday at age 83.

Nimoy, who immortalized the science officer Mr. Spock on TV and in movies, wore the Army uniform long before he wore the Star Fleet ensemble for "Star Trek."

He served as a soldier from 1953 to 1955. The Army took him to Fort Ord, California, Fort Benning, Georgia, and Fort McPherson, Georgia, according to a Twitter post from Nimoy for Veterans Day in 2013.

He posted a photo of himself in uniform, wearing the rank of technician 3rd grade, equivalent to the World War II-era rank of staff sergeant (E-5).

Nimoy had many acting credits before and after his Army days. He was cast to play Spock in 1966, and the show ran until 1969, launching both Nimoy and his character into the icon stratosphere.

Nimoy played Spock throughout much of his career after that, including a cameo appearance in the most recent Star Trek movie, "Star Trek Into Darkness" as Spock Prime while actor Zachary Quinto took the role of younger Spock.

About Kathleen Curthoys

Kathleen Curthoys is editor of Army Times. She has been an editor at Military Times for 20 years, covering issues that affect service members. She previously worked as an editor and staff writer at newspapers in Columbus, Georgia; Huntsville, Alabama; Bloomington, Indiana; Monterey, California and in Germany.