(NEXSTAR) — Nichelle Nichols, best known for her role as Nyota Uhura in “Star Trek: The Original Series,” has died at the age of 89, her son announced Sunday.
“I regret to inform you that a great light in the sky no longer shines for us as it has for so many years,” Kyle Johnson wrote on Nichols. facebook page, “Last night, my mother, Nichelle Nichols, died of natural causes and passed away. Her light however, like the ancient galaxies now being seen for the first time, is for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from. And will continue to take inspiration.”
According to him, Nichols was born in 1932 in Robbins, Illinois imdb page, The legendary musician Duke Ellington “discovered” Nichols and helped her become a singer and dancer. She later turned to acting, and joined Gene Roddenberry’s “Star Trek”.
IMDb says she was one of the first African-American actresses to play a role that was perceived as being similar to characters from another race. Nichols also shared First on-screen kiss between a black woman and a white man With “Star Trek” costar William Shatner.
After his time on “Star Trek,” Nichols became a spokesperson for NASA, where he helped “recruit and inspire a new generation of fearless astronauts,” according to his website. reads,
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Actress Nichelle Nichols, Star Trek’s Uhura, expresses her support to the striking members of the Writers Guild of America (WGA) outside the gate of Paramount Pictures Studios on Monday, December 10, 2007 in Los Angeles. On the left is writer/producer David. Avalon. The Hollywood strike is rewriting the holidays for idle workers entering the sixth week. (AP photo/Damien Dovergens) -
FILE—This December 28, 1988, file photo shows members of the “Star Trek” crew, from left, James Doohan, DeForest Kelly, Walter Koenig, William Shatner, George Takei, Leonard Nimoy and Nickel Nichols, the newest Toasts the “Star Trek” film during a press conference at Paramount Studios. (AP Photo/Bob Galbraith, FILE) -
A foamy finger in the shape of a Vulcan salute is displayed alongside a photo of President Barack Obama and actress Nichelle Nichols, who played Lieutenant Nyota Uhura in “Star Trek,” in this photo taken Wednesday, May 18, 2016 . Display for the “Star Trek: Exploring New Worlds” exhibit for the franchise’s 50th anniversary celebration at the EMP Museum in Seattle. The exhibition opens on Saturday. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson) -
Nichelle Nichols, who portrayed Lieutenant Uhura in the 1960 television series “Star Trek,” speaks at the conclusion of her last flight at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday, Sept. 21 after the Space Shuttle Endeavor lands on a NASA Boeing 747. , 2012. In a matter of weeks, Endeavor will be driven through the streets of the city to its new home at the California Science Center in downtown Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Reid Saxon) -
Sonequa Martin-Green, center, a cast member in “Star Trek: Discovery,” poses with original “Star Trek” cast members Nickel Nichols, left, and William Shatner at the premiere of the new television series Tuesday, Sept. 19 . 2017, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/InVision/AP)
His advocacy was influential to some. Formerly NASA’s Deputy Administrator, Frederick Gregory, now 81, told the Associated Press He once saw an ad in which Nichols said “I want you to apply for the NASA program.”
“She was talking to me,” she said. A US Air Force pilot would apply and would later become the first African American shuttle pilot.
Nichols has been credited with bringing in more than 8,000 applications when she signed on to help NASA recruit more women and people of color. Among those applicants were Sally Ride, America’s first woman in space, and Gion Stewart Blueford Jr., the first African American to go to space. United States of America today,
In 2015, Nicolso suffered a stroke, three years later, she was diagnosis with dementia.
Johnson said the services would be for family members and his close friends.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.