Column: Shatner defies Father Time, still successful

William Shatner has boldly gone where no man has gone before. He is one of the most recognizable actors today. He is the man that launched a thousand starships. He helped save millions of lives with his advice on Rescue 911. His style and delivery of lines is so definitive, it has its own name: Shatnerian.

But the one thing that Shatner has been able to do that many actors have not is continuing a successful career later on in life.

Millions will remember Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk of the starship Enterprise. Or maybe it's just me. Hey, my dad's a "Trekkie." I couldn't avoid it growing up. About 16 or 17 people will remember him as T.J. Hooker. But in the past few years, Shatner has gone on to create one of television's best characters, Denny Crane.

Denny Crane, eh?

If you have never seen Boston Legal, you should be ashamed of yourself. Not only are you missing out on one of the best shows on network television (its been in the top 25 in the Nielsen's since its season debut), but you are also missing the best years of Shatner's career.

Over his five-decade career, Shatner has had some of the highest highs and lowest lows. After the original Star Trek series was canceled, his first wife, Gloria Rand, left him and took just about everything. Shatner was reduced to acting bit parts and living in a truck bed camper. But Shatner bounced back, again riding the Enterprise out of the wreckage.

It seems to me that Shatner is doing better now than ever before. He is the first actor ever to win an Emmy for portraying the same character on two different shows, The Practice and Boston Legal, respectively. Not even Kelsey Grammar's Dr. Frasier Crane can boast that award.

Watching last week's episode was hard for me with Crane and partner Alan Shore, played by equally spectacular James Spader, on a fishing trip. I thought at times that I was actually going to hurt myself laughing.

It is a stunning combination of great writing and his Shatnerian delivery that make his role award-winning. And it doesn't hurt to have David E. Kelley as the creator and one of the head writers.

Just to fill you in on what you have been missing, here are a couple of the best scenes Shatner has performed in the past two seasons.

During an episode in season one, a gunman is holding Shore hostage. Crane grabs a rifle from his closet in his office and says to another lawyer in the office, "It's OK. I'm an ex-Marine. I was a trained sniper. Or was I a pilot? I can't remember. Anyway, I'm more of a skeet shooter now, so when I say 'pull,' you're going to open that door." The other lawyer tells him he's crazy, to which he replies "Pull!" and shoots the gunmen in the chest.

In a recent episode this season, Shatner tells the judge he's an idiot. The judge asks him what he said. Shatner points to his own head and says, "I have the mad cow disease. I think you have it too."

On top of these solid gold comedic nuggets, you can rest assured that at least once per episode Shatner will say his character's name, Denny Crane, just to say it.

Maybe it's my own mad cow talking, but I will go on record as saying Shatner's Denny Crane is his best character and one of the best characters of all time on television.

Go see the glory days of Shatner's career, Tuesday nights at 10 p.m. on ABC.

Prefer another Trekie? Want to learn Shatnerian? Tell Tom all about it at tomdeme@msn.com.