William Shatner is the face of sci-fi for many generations of TV and movie fans. From his awesomely over-the-top roles in Wrath of Khan and video games to his side projects promoting obscure passion projects as director, and whatever the heck TekWar is, he’s thoroughly permeated every form of media. Looking back now, it’s hard to remember — make that impossible if you’re under sixty — that Captain Kirk was all but declared the next Marlon Brando by Ed Sullivan, who brought the “brilliant, young Canadian star” to mainstream audiences’ attention in 1958 for his work on Broadway.