It would seem that December is rife with Star Trek birthdays. Today is the birthday of our lovely Lt. Uhura, Star Trek's own Nichelle Nichols. Before joining the crew of the Enterprise in 1966, Nichelle was an accomplished theatrical actress and singer, touring with Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. As we reported earlier this year, she originally saw "Star Trek" as a way to further her career on Broadway.

"It was rather interesting to me to be cast on the show, because I came up in musical theater," Nichelle said. "And somehow I was, like, really on my way to break through and do all of the things that I really wanted to do on Broadway. And I took 'Star Trek' because I thought it would be a nice adjunct to my resume and I'd get to Broadway quicker and as a star. And, I still think that way, but 'Star Trek' interrupted my career."

"I kind of got stuck there," She said. "As a matter of fact, I even tried to leave after the first season, because I thought, 'Oh, this is going nowhere for me."

We're so glad that she decided to stick-it-out! What would the Enterprise be without it's amazing communications officer? Happy birthday Nichelle from all of us here at Subspace Communique!