The 91-year Canadian actor and director William Shatner is best known for his role as Captain James T. Kirk in the Star Trek franchise. One of the richest Canadian actors, William had leading roles in the drama series T.J. Hooker, comedy-drama The Practice, and Boston Legal as well. The actor was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on 22nd March 1931, to his parents, Ann and Joseph. He is the middle child out of three kids. Joy Rutenberg is his older sister, and Farla Cohen is his younger sister.
Shatner comes from a Jewish family. He attended Willingdon Elementary School and West Hill High School in his younger days. He is an alumnus of the Montreal Children’s Theatre too. Later, he studied economics at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. He graduated from the university in 1952 with a Bachelor’s Degree before moving on to acting.
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Beginning Of His Acting Career
After finishing his studies, he got a job in Montreal. He worked as the business manager for a playhouse. From there, he got to join the Canadian National Repertory Theatre to train as a classical Shakespearean actor. From 1954, he played several roles at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, and the same year he got his chance to act professionally. He was cast as Ranger Bob on the Howdy Doody Show. With The Brothers Karamazov, in 1958, Shatner made his feature film debut. Additionally, he played a role in the show Alfred Hitchcock Presents too. He starred in the episode called The Glass Eye.
It wasn’t until much later that he finally got his big break with the Star Trek franchise. He got cast as Captain James T. Kirk, the famous character seen in Star Trek, running from 1966 to 1969. Later in 1973, he returned as a voice artist for his character in the animated Star Trek series. He reprised his role as James again in the ‘80s for Star Trek movies. During these years, he began his career as a director as well.
Shatner was seen in T.J. Hooker from 1982 to 1986, co-starred in Miss Congeniality and Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous, and was cast as Denny Crane on The Practice. His role as Crane in the legal drama was carried to Boston Legal. He played Crane till the series ended in 2008.
Personal Life
William Shatner has been married four times, starting from his first marriage in 1956 to his last marriage, which ended recently. He was first married to Gloria Rand from 1956 to 1969. The couple share three daughters; Leslie, Lisabeth, and Melanie. His second marriage to Marcy Lafferty lasted from 1973 to 1996. In 1997, he married Nerine Kidd Shatner, but she died after a few years. His last marriage was to Elizabeth Anderson Martin. They married in 2001 and stayed together until they filed for a divorce in 2019.
William Shatner: Net Worth & Earnings
William Shatner has been in the entertainment industry for decades now. He made most of his fortune through his work as an actor. He made around $150,000 per episode of a T.V. show with an annual salary estimated to be somewhere around $5 to 10 million. For most of his life, he has lived in his four-bedroom, four-bathroom 4016 sq. foot home in Studio City, California. He is believed to earn approximately $3,500 per episode during the first season of Star Trek in 1966.
After spending most of his time as an actor and director, William Shatner has become one of the richest Canadian actors as well as one of the richest Hollywood actors, with an estimated net worth of $100 million. However, as of 2022, his net worth is said to have increased from $100 million to $125 million.
William Shatner Achievements
The Star Trek actor is also a two-time Emmy Award winner. He received the first Emmy Award in 2004 under the category “Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series” for The Practice and next in 2005 under the category “Outstanding Supporting Actor In A Drama Series” for Boston Legal. In 2005, he was awarded a Golden Globe Award and a Voice Arts Icon Award in 2015. William Shatner has been a phenomenal actor, and his achievements prove that for him.
