“Within weeks of our premiere, it became obvious that Leonard [Nimoy] and the character of Spock were becoming something of a national phenomenon. ... And to be unflatteringly frank, it bugged me. ... [Then, Gene Roddenberry] said to me the wisest thing he could possibly have uttered. He said, 'Don't ever fear having good and popular people around you, because they can only enhance your own performance. The more you can play to these people, the better the show.'”
![“Within weeks of our premiere, it became obvious that Leonard [Nimoy] and the character of Spock were becoming something of a national phenomenon. ... And to be unflatteringly frank, it bugged me. ... [Then, Gene Roddenberry] said to me the wisest thing he could possibly have uttered. He said…” quote by William Shatner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0da/william-shatner-1304_becoming_within-weeks-of-our-premiere-it-became-o_2727156.jpg)
