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Grace Lee Whitney, Yeoman Janice Rand on ‘Star Trek,’ Dies at 85

By The Associated Press

• May 4, 2015

Grace Lee Whitney, who played Captain Kirk’s assistant, Yeoman Janice Rand , on the original “Star Trek” series, died on Friday at her home in Coarsegold, Calif. She was 85.

Her son Jonathan Dweck confirmed her death.

Ms. Whitney played Yeoman Rand in the first eight episodes before being written out of the series. In her 1998 autobiography, “The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy,” she wrote that her acting career largely ended after that.

She also wrote of becoming an alcoholic. She described struggling with her addiction for many years before seeking treatment and resuming her career with the help of Leonard Nimoy, who starred as Spock in the series. Mr. Nimoy died in February.

She returned for the “Star Trek” movie franchise, reprising her role in “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock,” “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”

Ms. Whitney was born Mary Ann Chase on April 1, 1930, in Ann Arbor, Mich.

Before joining the cast of “Star Trek,” she appeared on many television series, including “Bewitched,” “77 Sunset Strip,” “The Untouchables” and “Gunsmoke.”

Mr. Dweck said his mother wanted to be remembered more as a successful survivor of addiction than for her “Star Trek” fame. She dedicated her last 35 years to helping people with addiction problems, some of whom she met at “Star Trek” conventions, he said.

“Over time, she became appreciative of her short time on ‘Star Trek’ because she developed meaningful relationships with the fans, Leonard Nimoy and other cast members,” Mr. Dweck said.

Besides her son Jonathan, she is survived by another son, Scott Dweck.

An earlier version of the picture of Ms. Whitney, from NBC and Photofest, was posted in mirror image.

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Grace Lee Whitney, Yeoman Janice Rand on ‘Star Trek,’ Dead at 85

Actress reprised the role in subsequent “Star Trek” films and an episode of “Star Trek: Voyager”

Grace Lee Whitney, best known for portraying Captain James T. Kirk’s ( William Shatner ) personal assistant in the original “Star Trek” series, and several of its subsequent films, died Friday in her California home, The Fresno Bee reports. She was 85.

Rand’s death comes just a few months after Leonard Nimoy , who portrayed Mr. Spock on the classic series. After appearing in the first eight episodes, Rand was released from her contract as part of a creative retooling of the show.

She would not return to “Trek” until the franchise took the leap to the big screen with the 1979 release of “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.” Whitney subsequently appeared in a cameo role in “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock,” and then again as Rand in “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”

She also reprised her role alongside fellow original series cast-member George Takei for the franchise’s 30th anniversary on an episode of spinoff series “Star Trek: Voyager” in 1996.

Whitney released her autobiography “The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy” in 1998, which talked about her hiring and firing from the original series, as well as her struggles with alcohol and substance abuse, which she ultimately overcame. In her latter years, Whitney settled in Coarsegold, California, where she worked with others dealing with substance abuse and addiction.

Her career started as a vocalist, kicking off at the age of fourteen with a Detroit radio station. She moved to Chicago and became a nightclub singer, opening for major acts of the 1950s.

It was in this decade, that Whitney shifted her focus to acting, appearing on stage, television and in multiple films. Many of her early roles were uncredited, or credited to different names, including appearances in the original “House of Wax,” “The Naked and the Dead,” and “Pocketful of Miracles.”

Whitney debuted on television in “Cowboy G-Men” in 1953, and continued with appearances in more than a hundred episodes thoughout the next several decades, including shows like “Batman,” “The Rifleman,” “The Outer Limits,” “Gunsmoke,” and “Hart to Hart.”

Music never left completely, though, with Whitney appearing alongside several bands in the 1960s and 1970s. She even wrote several “Star Trek” -themed songs, which were collected and released in the latter 1990s.

But she will always be remembered as Yeoman Janice Rand, the first woman to catch Captain Kirk’s oft-wandering eye.

Grace Lee Whitney, Yeoman Janice Rand on ‘Star Trek,’ Dies at 85

By Pat Saperstein

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Actress Grace Lee Whitney, who was most well known for playing Yeoman Janice Rand on the original “ Star Trek ” series, died May 1 in Coarsegold, Calif. She was 85.

A recovering alcoholic, she helped many people with addiction problems through women’s prisons or the Salvation Army. Her family told NBC News that she would prefer to be remembered more as “a successful survivor of addiction” than for her “Star Trek” fame.

Her death was announced by StarTrek.com, which recounted that she was dropped from the show after the eight first episodes and turned to drugs and alcohol before getting treatment and regaining her career with help from Leonard Nimoy.

Whitney was cast as the personal assistant to William Shatner’s Captain Kirk in the first season of “Star Trek” in 1966. She told StarTrek.com about her character’s crush on Kirk, “It could not be consummated. It had to be love from afar, an unrequited love between the captain and me.”

She returned for the movie franchise starting with 1979’s “Star Trek: The Motion Picture,” with a promotion to chief petty officer, then in “Star Trek III: The Search for Spock,” “Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home” and she was finally promoted to lieutenant in 1991’s “Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.”

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Born Mary Ann Chase in Ann Arbor, Mich., she started out as a singer and dancer. She guest-starred on numerous other shows of the 1960s and ’70s including “77 Sunset Strip,” “Batman,” “Cannon” and “Hart to Hart.” In 1998, she joined George Takei, Walter Koenig and Majel Barrett for a guest appearance on “Diagnosis Murder.”

In later years she attended “Star Trek” conventions and wrote an autobiography, “The Longest Trek.”

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R.I.P. Grace Lee Whitney, Star Trek ’s Janice Rand

Grace Lee Whitney, known to Star Trek fans as Yeoman Janice Rand, died last Friday at the age of 85. Rand was assigned to Captain Kirk as his personal assistant—and in the dynamic of the series, the coworker with whom he shares a mutual attraction, though Kirk couldn’t allow himself to act on it. In the episode “The Enemy Within,” however, Evil Kirk has no such reservations.

Whitney appeared in eight episodes of the original series before her character was written out, clearing the way for Kirk to flirt with every single female creature in the universe. As Whitney later wrote in her autobiography, The Longest Trek: My Tour Of The Galaxy , her brief tenure on the series was a tumultuous one, marked by constantly starving herself to fit into her Starfleet uniform with the help of amphetamines, and a sexual assault at the hands of one of the production’s executives.

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Things got even worse once she was let go: Whitney began drinking heavily to deal with her bitterness and all but gave up on acting. She says it was Leonard Nimoy who helped her through some of those dark times on the show, while it was DeForest Kelley who eventually brought her back to the Star Trek franchise, after spotting her in an unemployment line.

Janice Rand made her return in Star Trek: The Motion Picture —now promoted to Chief Petty Officer—and appeared again in Star Trek III: The Search For Spock , Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , and finally Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country , eventually making it all the way to Lieutenant. She also appeared in the “Flashback” episode of Star Trek: Voyager alongside George Takei.

Beyond Star Trek , Whitney had a prolific TV career that included appearances on shows like The Outer Limits , Bewitched , Gunsmoke , and Batman . She could also be seen in two Billy Wilder movies— Some Like It Hot (as a member of the all-female band), and Irma La Douce (as “Kiki the Cossack”)—as well as films like House Of Wax , The Naked And The Dead , and Top Banana , in a role she’d originated on Broadway.

Though Whitney was a regular at Star Trek conventions, and even appeared in two fan-created Star Trek episodes, her son tells the New York Times that she would have rather been remembered as a survivor of substance abuse, and for the past 35 years she spent helping others with their own addictions—including fans who sought her counsel at conventions.

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Hollywood remembers roger corman as a man who got films made, grace lee whitney dies; janice rand of ‘star trek’ was 85.

By Ross A. Lincoln

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Grace Lee Whitney, known to legions of Star Trek fans as Yeoman Janice Rand, died Friday in her Coarsegold, California home at 85, her son announced  today.

It was through Gene Roddenberry’s vision of the future that she would make her mark on popular culture. A mainstay of the Trekverse from the beginning, Whitney first appeared as Captain Kirk’s personal assistant during the first season of the original Star Trek . Appearing only in eight of the first thirteen episodes, she was fired from the role early on. About her termination, she said “They wanted William Shatner to have romances in each episode with a different person, because for him to be stuck with one woman was not good for him and it wasn’t good for the audience. That’s what they told me, so I was written out.”

Whitney later admitted that she turned to amphetamines in an attempt to stay thin, and that she turned to alcohol to cope with her frustration and anger following her release from the show. The most shocking revelation, however, came from her memoir,  The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy , in which she revealed that she was sexually assaulted by one of the show’s producers, an executive at Desilu. Like other members of the iconic cast, she would go on to credit Leonard Nimoy, who died in February , as a source of support during her troubles.

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She returned to the Trek franchise in large part due to the legions of devoted Trek fans who, as the show went into syndicated reruns during the 1970s, would routinely ask about her at conventions. Thanks in part to DeForest Kelly, who portrayed Leonard “Bones” McCoy, she appeared in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . She also appeared on an episode of Star Trek: Voyager , and in two Star Trek fan films released online.

Originally from Ann Arbor, Michigan, Whitney began her entertainment career at age 14, appearing on local radio as a singer. She would later work nightclubs in Chicago, opening for legends like Billie Holiday and Buddy Rich. Her varied career included Broadway theatrical roles, appearances in the Billy Wilder Films Some Like It Hot and Irma la Douce , several musical projects, and more than 100 television roles. She was also the first model for the Chicken of the Sea mermaid.

As news of her death spread, tributes to Whitney poured in on Twitter from fans and fellow actors alike, including William Shatner, James T. Kirk himself.

Condolences to the family of Grace. She was a constant shining smile over the years every time our paths crossed. — William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) May 4, 2015

Whitney had lived in Coursegold since 1993, where she often worked as an advocate for people struggling with substance abuse. She is survived by her son, Jonathan Dweck.

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Published May 3, 2015

Remembering Grace Lee Whitney, 1930-2015

StarTrek.com is deeply saddened to report the passing of Grace Lee Whitney, who played Yeoman Janice Rand on Star Trek: The Original Series , in several of the TOS features and also on Star Trek: Voyager . According to her family, the actress and singer died on May 1 at the age of 85, passing away peacefully in her home in Coarsegold, California.

Whitney, a blue-eyed blond beauty, represented one of Star Trek ’s greatest cautionary tales and also one of the franchise's most satisfying renaissance stories. She played the deeply professional Rand in eight first-season TOS episodes before being dropped from the series and slipping into an abyss of drugs and alcohol that left her, quite literally, on Hollywood’s Skid Row. She finally got help, found God, and reclaimed her life and career, with an assist from Leonard Nimoy, and spent decades helping others overcome their own addictions.

Star Trek even came full circle for Whitney, as she was invited back into the fold and appeared in The Motion Picture, The Search for Spock, The Voyage Home , and The Undiscovered Country, as well as in the “ Flashback ” episode of Voyager and the fan films “World Enough and Time” and “Of Gods and Men.”

Her revealing autobiography, The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy , was published in 1998 and, to her death, she remained a beloved figure at Star Trek conventions around the world.

Beyond the realm of Star Trek , Whitney's credits included the Broadway show Top Banana , such films as Some Like It Hot and Irma la Douce and also many TV guest spots on shows including, The Outer Limits, Death Valley Days, Bonanza, The Rifleman, Bewitched and the pilot for Police Story , which also featured the talents of Gene Roddenberry and DeForest Kelley.

StarTrek.com interviewed the vivacious Whitney in 2011, and she had this to say about the early days of playing Rand. "I was supposed to be innocent, dedicated, excellent in my motives for wanting to be on the Enterprise, but very green, with no experience. Rand was willing to learn to be a secretary to the captain, whom, of course, I immediately had a crush on. But, it was unrequited love, like Kitty and Matt on Gunsmoke . It could not be consummated. It had to be love from afar, an unrequited love between the captain and me."

Back in 2011, when StarTrek.com interviewed Whitney, she spoke excitedly of living on a 30-acre property near Yosemite National Park, with a running creek, and helping to care for her grandchildren. "(My son) Jonathan built a home down at the end of my property, where he lives with his family, including my grandchildren," she enthused. "They’re going to take care of me as I move through life to my home in heaven. But right now I take my grandchildren to school and cart them around, and I’m of maximum service to them... I also line dance one night a week and I go to the gym three days a week. So, my life is happy, joyous, free, sober and saved, and a lot of fun, too. I have a lot of fun."

Please join StarTrek.com in offering our condolences to Whitney's family, friends, colleagues and fans. She will be missed.

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May 6, 2015

Star Trek Actress Grace Lee Whitney Dies at 85

"She was a constant shining smile over the years every time our paths crossed," tweeted her co-star William Shatner (Captain Kirk)

By Megan Gannon & SPACE.com

"Star Trek" actress Grace Lee Whitney — who played Janice Rand, yeoman to Captain Kirk — has died at age 85.

According to the Associated Press , Whitney died peacefully in her home in Coarsegold, California, on May 1.

"Condolences to the family of Grace," her co-star, William Shatner, who played Captain Kirk, post on Twitter . "She was a constant shining smile over the years every time our paths crossed."

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Whitney was written off the original series (1966-1967) after eight episodes — and a harrowing sexual assault by a studio executive, which she describes in the opening of her 1998 autobiography, " The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy ." In the years that followed, Whitney struggled with alcoholism. Her son, Jonathan Dweck, told the Associated Press that his mother would rather be remembered as a survivor of addiction than be remembered for her role in "Star Trek."

"Over time, she became appreciative of her short time on 'Star Trek' because she developed meaningful relationships with the fans, Leonard Nimoy and other cast members," Dweck told the Associated Press. Whitney partially credited Spock actor Nimoy — who died in February at age 83 — with helping her reboot her acting career in the late 1970s.

Whitney returned to the big screen in her role as Rand. She starred in "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," "Star Trek III: The Search for Spock," "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" and "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country." She was also in the " Flashback " episode of the "Voyager" TV series.

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RIP Grace Lee Whitney, Star Trek 's Yeoman Janice Rand

Grace Lee Whitney, instantly recognizable as Yeoman Janice Rand from the original Star Trek , has passed away at the age of 85.

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Whitney died in her home in Coarsegold, California, her son, Jonathan Dweck, confirmed on Sunday. Despite only appearing in eight episodes of the original series, Whitney officially reprised her role in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , S tar Trek IV: The Voyage Home , Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, and Star Trek: Voyager . She reprised the role in the unofficial Star Trek fan projects Star Trek: Of Gods and Men and Star Trek New Voyages: Phase II .

In her later years, Whitney worked as an advocate for people struggling with substance abuse. She credited her own recovery in some part to the Star Trek fans who supported her:

“When I told the fans I was an alcoholic, they all applauded. When I told them I had given myself to a higher power, they cheered again,” Ms. Whitney told The Bee’s Rick Bentley in 2013. “I’m in a great place because I’ve gone full circle.

Outside of Star Trek , the Ann Arbor, MI. native was in the Broadway musical Top Banana , and appeared in the 1954 movie version of the show. Her TV career included roles on The Life and Legend of Wyatt Earp , The Real McCoys , The Outer Limits , Batman , and Bewitched . She also served as the inspiration for the Chicken of the Sea mermaid.

William Shatner tweeted out his own tribute:

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Star trek: what is a yeoman & why did they disappear from starfleet.

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• The position of yeoman in Star Trek originated from the US Navy and served as assistants to the Captain, performing administrative work and attending to various duties.
• In the original series, women rarely served as high-ranking officers, so the yeoman position allowed for more female representation, often portraying them as attractive objects of desire.
• In modern Star Trek shows, the position of yeoman has been abandoned due to advancements in technology, making their administrative work unnecessary and easily automated.

Though various yeomen appeared over the course of Star Trek: The Original Series, subsequent Star Trek series have rarely featured crew members with that title. The most prominent yeoman character was Janice Rand (Grace Lee Whitney), who served as the yeoman for Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) aboard the USS Enterprise. After Whitney's departure from TOS following eight episodes of the first season, various young women filled the position of yeoman for the rest of the series. Though Star Trek: Strange New Worlds introduced Captain Pike's (Anson Mount) previous yeoman, Zac Nguyen (David Huynh) in "Among the Lotus Eaters," Pike does not seem to have a yeoman anymore.

In the original unaired pilot for Star Trek: The Original Series , Yeoman Colt (Laurel Goodwin) was offered by the Talosians as a potential mate for Captain Pike (Jeffrey Hunter), and Pike himself commented on the strangeness of having a woman on the bridge. In the TOS episode "The Corbomite Maneuver," Captain Kirk made a similar comment about Yeoman Rand. It was a trope in the media of the 1960s for men in positions of power to have young, attractive women as their secretaries, and the yeoman position played into this trope for Star Trek, but modern shows have done away with it for a very good reason.

What Is A Yeoman In Star Trek?

The position of yeoman, like many of the Starfleet officer positions, comes from the US Navy. In the Navy, a yeoman works in an office setting, seeing to administrative work. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a yeoman is defined as "an attendant or officer in a royal or noble household" or "a person attending or assisting another." The yeomen of Star Trek combine the Navy version of a yeoman with this more general definition. On a typical starship, a yeomen served as assistants to the Captain, attending to various duties and seeing to the Captain's needs, much like a secretary.

Yeomen could hold various ranks, from enlisted crewmen to junior officers. For example, Yeoman Rand on Star Trek: The Original Series was a non-commissioned Starfleet officer who sometimes accompanied the Captain on away missions in addition to her duties aboard the ship. On TOS , women rarely served as high-ranking officers, so the position of yeomen allowed there to be more women among the show's cast. In fact, the yeomen of TOS were almost exclusively attractive young women, and this sometimes led to inappropriate comments from male officers. In many episodes, the main purpose of a female yeoman was to be an object of desire for the surrounding men.

Why Star Trek Abandoned The Yeoman Rank

In an organization as advanced as Starfleet and a society as supposedly utopian as the United Federation of Planets , the need for yeomen on starships makes little sense. With the computers and data PADDs available on the ships and technology like food replicators, the position of Yeoman feels like an unnecessary one. Much of the administrative-type work a yeoman in the Navy does, for example, could be automated with the technology of the Star Trek universe.

After Star Trek: The Original Series , Star Trek shows would have ensigns or other lower-level officers perform any necessary functions of a yeoman. By the time of Star Trek: The Next Generation , starship captains even have food replicators in their quarters, meaning no one needed to bring them meals or coffee. While the roles of yeomen, and the way they were treated, could have been updated for the modern era, the advancements of Star Trek ' s far future render the position obsolete.

• Star Trek: The Original Series (1966)
• Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (2022)

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BETWEEN THE LINES OF CINEMA

Written by James M. Tate / 12/11/2012 / 5 Comments / deforest kelly , grace lee whitney , science-fiction , sixties , william shatner

• THE LAST STAND OF STAR TREK YEOMAN JANICE RAND

5 comments:

This is freaking AWESOME! I love this post. Great stuff Jim.

i LINKED THIS TO MY FACEBOOK GROUP: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Yeoman.Rand/

If you do actually want to know, Grace Lee Whitney was diving headfirst down a bottle during all of this. Plus, the writers did not know what to do with her; witness the episode “Miri,” where she beams down to an alien planet sans any equipment whatever, not even the tricorder which was invented SPECIFICALLY to give the character something to do! (There's your Trivial Pursuit question of the day.) Which was cause and which was effect is a matter of opinion; by the time she stopped appearing in cast publicity shots, she was non-functional. Her life in the next ten years was grim and sleazy, involving a great deal of booze and nymphomania (as she admitted later). There were no plans to include her in STAR TREK PHASE II, but she pulled herself up out of the nosedive and cleaned up her act to appear in STMP. Still, she was done; her cameo in ST III was it for G L W.

yeah baron i had read she drank and slept with too many men and got fired. this post is to ask what happened to rand, not whitney though. i always imagined poor rand having a dull job somewhere in the far reaches of the enterprise.

WRITTEN AFTER HER DEATH: Looking back at these comments, I crack up at the fact it was posted "the writers didn't know what to do with her." These are the same writers who created her. I think Shatner might have wanted Rand to go. She was way too close to him, and after she departed, as my post showed, he then had more fun with the ladies. I think the problem wasn't that they didn't know what to do with HER, but with others because of her strength as a female character, who was still more fleshed-out than even Uhura, in my opinion. As for her addiction problems, well, I'm not sure but... she might not have been the only actress (or actor) who got loaded during the 60's and 70's.

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Yeoman Janice Rand

An unnamed yeoman aboard the USS Enterprise -A

Yeoman was a Starfleet title used during the 23rd century . They functioned as personal assistants , performing various tasks, such as carrying a Starfleet tricorder and retrieving information for a starship 's captain , announcing one's arrival with a boatswain's whistle , or bringing them meals . Throughout the 2260s and 2270s , yeomen were typically – but not exclusively – young women; there were also male yeomen during the 2250s and the 2290s . ( TOS : " The Cage "; Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country )

Some yeomen, such as Janice Rand , were enlisted personnel during their time in this position. There were different rates of yeoman, all the way down to "third class." Seventeen-year-old Tina Lawton carried this rate in 2266 . ( TOS : " Charlie X ")

Yeomen could also have held the rank of a junior officer , as seen with a yeoman assigned to the USS Enterprise -A , who wore an officer's uniform with the rank of lieutenant junior grade . ( Star Trek V: The Final Frontier )

In 2267 of the mirror universe , Marlena Moreau told James T. Kirk that she would have a yeoman help her move her things to Commander Kenner 's quarters if he was rejecting her. ( TOS : " Mirror, Mirror ")

List of yeomen [ ]

• Barrows, Tonia
• Landon, Martha
• Lawton, Tina (third class)
• Nguyen, Zac
• Rand, Janice
• Ross, Teresa
• Samno ( petty officer, first class )
• Thompson, Leslie
• Unnamed USS Enterprise command yeoman
• Unnamed USS Enterprise operations yeoman
• Unnamed USS Enterprise -A yeoman

Appendices [ ]

Background information [ ].

Gene Roddenberry always imagined an attractive young woman as his Star Trek captain's personal assistant, writing the first yeoman on Trek as Chris Pike 's young Yeoman Colt in " The Cage ". However, Pike states in the episode that he cannot get used to seeing women on the bridge with the exception of Number One , indicating that his previous yeoman was male.

The following information regarding the yeoman was taken from the Star Trek Writers/Directors Guide (third revision):

Played by a succession of young actresses, always lovely. One such character has been well established in the first year, "Yeoman Janice Rand", played by Grace Lee Whitney . Whether Yeoman Rand or a new character provided by the writer, this female Yeoman serves Kirk as his combination Executive Secretary - Valet - Military aide . As such, she is always capable, a highly professional career girl. As with all female Crewman aboard, during duty hours she is treated co-equal with males of the same rank, and the same level of efficient performance is expected. The Yeoman often carries a small over-the-shoulder case, a Tricorder , about the size of a small handbag, which is also an electronic recorder-camera-sensor combinations, immediately available to the Captain should he be away from his Command Console .

In the words of actress Grace Lee Whitney , she viewed her role as a yeoman to be, " Her duties were that of a right-hand woman, a girl Friday . In other words, she took care of Kirk's personal needs, like a valet would do. I had a pet name I used to call myself: a 'space geisha .' " ( Starlog #105, April 1986 , p. 48)

During the run of the original series, only female yeomen were featured. Male yeomen later appeared on screen in both Star Trek: The Animated Series and the Star Trek films .

In foreign translations of Star Trek , the yeomen of TOS were usually not referred as yeoman, as their title was changed to "corporal", "sergeant", or another naval rank.

Apocrypha [ ]

The Pocket TOS novel The Captain's Oath noted that Kirk's yeoman had an office close to the captain's quarters .

External links [ ]

• Yeoman at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• Yeoman at Wikipedia

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Grace Lee Whitney, Yeoman Rand on Star Trek, Dead at 85

Grace Lee Whitney, best known as Yeoman Janice Rand in the original Star Trek series, died on May 1 at her home in Coarsegold, Calif. She was 85.

Whitney was fired at the end of Star Trek ‘s first season, but she went on to reprise her role as Janice in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , Star Trek III: The Search for Spock , Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home , and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country . She also guest-starred in a 1996 episode of Star Trek: Voyager that commemorated the 30th anniversary of the franchise.

In her autobiography The Longest Trek , Whitney opened up about her struggle with alcoholism, as well as her departure from Star Trek in 1966. “They wanted William Shatner to have romances in each episode with a different person, because for him to be stuck with one woman was not good for him and it wasn’t good for the audience,” she wrote. “That’s what they told me, so I was written out.”

Whitney spent her later years “helping herself and others find daily sobriety and a higher power out of addiction,” her son, Jonathan Dweck, told The Fresno Bee .

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• Earth Spacedock (23rd Century)
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Janice Rand

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Yeoman Janice Rand is a Human member of Starfleet in the 23rd Century . She is a crewmember of the U.S.S. Enterprise .

History [ | ]

• 2266: Assigned to U.S.S. Enterprise as personal Yeoman of Captain James T. Kirk .
• Early-2270s: Promoted to Chief Petty Officer and assigned transporter chief of U.S.S. Enterprise following the ship's refit.
• 2286: Reassigned to Starfleet Command on Earth as communications officer.
• 2293: Promoted to Lt. Junior Grade and assigned to U.S.S. Excelsior under Captain Hikaru Sulu as communications officer.

Missions involved [ | ]

• “Earthward Bound” : Yeoman Rand is present with several other members of the Enterprise crew; however, it is not possible to speak with her.

External links [ | ]

• Janice Rand at Memory Alpha , the Star Trek Wiki.
• Janice Rand at Memory Beta , the non-canon Star Trek Wiki.
• 1 Gold-Pressed Latinum
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The One Thing Star Trek's George Takei Really Wanted For Sulu But Never Got

In the original "Star Trek," only three actors were credited at the start of the show: William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley. For many watching the series -- and for the actors especially -- those three were the leads, while the rest of the recurring ensemble were mere supporting players. Shatner, Nimoy, and Kelley certainly had the most screen time on "Star Trek," yet they often advocated for more. Eventually, Shatner and Nimoy became such whiny spotlight hogs that show creator Gene Roddenberry had to write an angry letter , demanding the actors stop whining and get back to work.

Trekkies, however, knew better than Shatner and Nimoy. "Star Trek" was always an ensemble piece about a core cast of multiple characters. In addition to the three "leads," the show also regularly featured chief engineer Scott/Scotty (James Doohan), communications officer Uhura (Nichelle Nichols), Ensign Chekov (Walter Koenig), Yeoman Rand (Grace Lee Whitney), and Nurse Chapel (Majel Barrett). Meanwhile, always sitting at the helm and flying the ship was Lieutenant Sulu (George Takei).

Takei, along with most "Star Trek" viewers, saw the above group as a whole and vitally important senior staff on board the U.S.S. Enterprise. Captain Kirk might have been commanding the ship, but everyone else was just as capable and professional. Indeed, the whole point of "Star Trek" was to depict a future wherein a diverse cross-section of humanity could gather together, work without bickering, and devote themselves collectively to a mission of peaceful exploration.

Back in 2010, Takei was interviewed by StarTrek.com , and the actor admitted that during his tenure playing Sulu, he never got to talk about his family. It wouldn't be until 1994's "Star Trek: Generation" (which Takei wasn't in) that Sulu's family was mentioned.

Read more: Why Khan Noonien Singh Casts A Shadow Over The Entire Star Trek Universe

Sulu Finally Got A Daughter In Star Trek: Generations

Takei recalled his early days on "Star Trek" and the relief he felt in not playing a broad stereotype. Takei was born in Los Angeles to Japanese parents, but when he began acting professionally in the 1950s, roles for Asian and Asian-American men were limited. In his own words:

"From the very beginning I thought it was a breakthrough opportunity. Just to be able to play a member of the leadership team, without an accent, was hugely important. So many Asians back then were, first of all, stereotypes and spoke with a heavy accent. So I thought I could parlay that into something substantial for the character."

Sulu's backstory was never explored in "Star Trek," although the show's writers did think to give him a few iconoclastic hobbies. He was a botany enthusiast for one, and he kept his quarters filled with bizarre alien plants that he tended to closely. Sulu was also a fan of vintage firearms, knowing all about their models and functionality. In the episode "Shore Leave," Sulu fires a classic revolver across a lake, enjoying every shot.

We never learned, however, about Sulu's family, which irked Takei. It wasn't until Demora Sulu (Jacqueline Kim) appeared in "Generations" that Trekkies would learn anything on that front:

"I suggested Sulu having a family that he connects with. I suggested a lot of ideas to develop Sulu that never really happened. It was only after I turned down a role in ['Generations'] that they gave all my lines to a relative that I had lobbied for, my daughter. When the series ended and the films began, I was lobbying for parents, brothers, sisters, lovers, maybe a wife, all of that, but none of it ever happened. I wanted to see Sulu more dimensioned."

It was a missed opportunity.

Star Trek Beyond Introduced Sulu's Husband

Incidentally, Demora's mother wasn't named until the 1995 "Star Trek" novel "The Captain's Daughter" written by Peter David. That book named Demora's mother as a woman named Susan Ling. She was described as a "freelance adventurer" who had a one-time fling with Sulu while he was on shore leave ... and she was on the run from angry aliens. She had Demora nine months later.

Takei gave the above interview in 2010. It wouldn't be until 2016 that Sulu -- this time played by John Cho -- would be seen with additional family members. In Justin Lin's "Star Trek Beyond," Sulu discusses how worried he was about his marriage, seeing as he asked his spouse to relocate to a distant space station called Yorktown ( although that scene was cut ). Sulu's husband is a man named Ben (Doug Jung), and he is introduced holding a young Demora. There are no dialogue scenes between Ben and Sulu, but at least audiences saw that he had a family.

Takei, who came out in 2005 and married his longtime partner Brad Altman in 2008, famously objected to "Beyond" making Sulu a queer man. He told The Hollywood Reporter that Sulu was originally envisioned as a straight man and he played the character that way. "I'm delighted that there's a gay character," he explained. "Unfortunately, it's a twisting of Gene [Roddenberry]'s creation, to which he put in so much thought. I think it's really unfortunate."

Takei would have preferred the makers of "Beyond" merely create a new queer character to introduce into "Star Trek" canon, rather than repurposing Sulu's sexuality.

Since then, "Star Trek: Discovery" has introduced numerous queer, trans, and nonbinary characters to "Star Trek,"  which is more in line with what Takei wanted.

Read the original article on SlashFilm