To Be Takei

The basso profundo actor activist engagingly shares his life in Jennifer M. Kroot's documentary "To Be Takei."

George Takei ("ta-KAY") was named after King George VI by his father, an Anglophile and a Japanese American. During World War II, the family was relieved of their bank account and relocated from their home in Los Angeles to an internment camp in rural Rohwer, Arkansas, of which George has painful memories about barbed wire and armed soldiers. He says the song "Don't Fence Me In" still holds deep, double meanings for him.

The Takeis struggled on Skid Row upon their return to California, but George finally made it to college. His dad saw a voice-over actor casting notice for the Japanese monster movie "Rodan," and George found his profession. He made many guest appearances on shows such as "Playhouse 90," "Hawaii 50," and "The Twilight Zone," in addition to his well known turn as navigator Sulu on the original "Star Trek."

He had also realized he was gay, but remained closeted, going to "parties with beards, putting on a fa�ade, adding another layer of tension," in order to keep working in homophobic Hollywood and on the subsequent series of "Star Trek" films. Takei also worked in politics in the 70s and 80s, appointed by LA Mayor Tom Bradley to serve on his transportation board.

But it was Governor Schwarzenegger's veto of California's gay marriage bill in 2004 that prompted Takei to come out with his longtime partner Brad. Some sections of the country also wouldn't allow the word gay to be said in school, so he lent his name to the cause: "It's OK to be Takei."

He became a regular on Howard Stern's radio show to promote marriage equality. Takei also worked with theater producers to create the musical "Allegiance," a memory play that tells a Japanese-American internment story similar to his own. The production broke box office records at San Diego's Old Globe Theater. His Facebook promotion of the project, alongside his own witty comments and memes, has garnered him millions of followers well into his 77th year.

Asian American actor interviewees give credit to Takei for fighting stereotypes (although Takei regrets his work on some Jerry Lewis films), including John Cho (the "new Sulu") and B.D. Wong, who calls Takei "a beacon of dignity."

Asian American politicians celebrate his advocacy for the internment redress movement, such as Senator Daniel Inouye and former Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta.

Gay activists like Dan Savage welcome Takei's LGBT leadership, and "Star Trek" cast mates support him as well. Nichelle Nichols ("Uhura") and Walter Koenig ("Chekhov") stood up at his marriage to Brad, and Leonard Nimoy ("Spock") speaks highly of him as well. Only William Shatner ("Kirk") constantly dismisses Takei as "an actor he barely knew 50 years ago."

But Takei gets his last booming laugh as Kirk and Spock are immortalized in "slash fiction" - stories about the two intimate character friends as gay lovers. Oh, my.

"To Be Takei"
DVD
$17.98
http://tobetakei.com