Walter Koenig, Star Trek's Original Chekov, Dies at 90
Walter Koenig, the actor who portrayed Russian navigator Pavel Chekov in the original Star Trek series and seven films, died at his North Hollywood home on Sunday night, surrounded by his daughter and niece.
Walter Koenig, known to generations of science-fiction fans as Ensign Pavel Chekov on the original Star Trek television series, died Sunday night at his home in the North Hollywood neighbourhood of Los Angeles. He was 90. Talent representative Zachery McGinnis confirmed the news, saying Koenig was surrounded by his daughter and niece at the time of his death.
Born September 14, 1936, in Chicago, the son of a businessman, Koenig graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in 1958 and went on to study acting at New York's The Neighborhood Playhouse for two years. He began landing television roles in the early 1960s on shows such as Mr. Novak and Ben Casey before joining Star Trek, which ran on NBC from 1966 to 1969. As Chekov, he portrayed the Enterprise bridge crew's sole representative from the Communist bloc — a character whose warmth and fierce Russian pride illustrated how rival nations could cooperate in the show's far-future setting. He reprised the role across seven Star Trek feature films beginning in 1979 and wrote the book Chekov's Enterprise in 1980.
After the series ended, Koenig wrote scripts for shows including The Incredible Hulk and Family, taught part-time at UCLA and other schools, made occasional appearances on the 1990s syndicated series Babylon 5, and worked in computer games, including the 1995 CD-ROM title Maximum Surge.
Castmate George Takei paid tribute on social media: "Walter was more than Chekov. He was a writer, a teacher, a thoughtful man, and a loyal friend." Koenig had served as best man at Takei's 2008 wedding to Brad Altman.
