William Shatner is well known for his affection for Doberman Pinschers. Morgan, China, Heidi, Kirk, Paris, Royale, Martika, Sterling, Charity, Bella and Starbuck, Cappuccino – all were loved by Shatner, and all were Doberman Pinschers. Shatner’s personal life, however, never spilled over to the cultural icon he portrayed on screen, James T. Kirk, Captain of the USS Enterprise.

Or did it?

The 1994 Star Trek movie “Generations,” was important not only because it bridged the theatrical gap between the original Star Trek crew and those of the Next Generation, but because James T. Kirk met his death.  It was a controversial decision made for financial reasons, and Shatner had little say in the matter.  Told that the new The Next Generation would reach a higher box office, he was given the choice to appear in the movie and die, or not appear and the script would indicate that he died, anyway. Shatner chose the more practical of the two, but in hindsight, industry insiders say that killing Kirk was the wrong call. We agree.

In the movie, Captain Kirk is transported into the “Nexus,” an energy ribbon that allows those who enter it to transcend time. Kirk is able to re-visit loved ones from his past, including his wife and children, and his beloved Great Dane, “Butler.” 

In the movie, Butler died in the year 2286. The scene is set nine years later through the false reality of his Nexus experience. The original script had the dog named “Jake,” but during the filming of the movie, Shatner asked that the dog be renamed “Butler” to honor the Doberman Pinscher he had recently lost in his own life. In the words of Jean-Luc Picard….

And it was made so. 

While many of us put our days of puppy ownership behind us as we grow older, or even downsize our breed, Shatner wasn’t having it. In 2018 at the age of 87,  Shatner added a 60-pound Doberman Pinscher puppy, Macchiato, to his life.  And in 2021, he became the oldest person to fly to space when he was launched aboard the Blue Origin sub-orbital capsule.  We hope it will be many years before we report that William Shatner has truly gone where he’s never been before.

Image of William Shatner as Kirk and Leonard Nimoy as Spock from the original “Star Trek” series used to promote the 1973 animated version is from Wikimedia Commons and is in the public domain in the United States because it was published in the United States between 1927 and 1977, inclusive, without a copyright notice.