George Takei and More Star Trek Legends Pay Tribute to Walter Koenig After His Death at 90

Tributes are pouring in for Walter Koenig, who starred as Pavel Chekov on two seasons of Star Trek: The Original Series and seven Star Trek feature films. Koenig passed away at age 90, triggering remembrances from his friends and colleagues.

George Takei, who is now one of two surviving members of The Original Series, shared a photo of the two in recent years, and remembered their six decades of friendship that saw Koenig serve as best man at Takei’s 2008 wedding. He eulogized Koenig as “a writer, a teacher, a thoughtful man, and a loyal friend.”

David Gerrold, who wrote a number of Star Trek episodes including the fan-favorite “The Trouble With Tribbles,” remembered Koenig as “a good friend and a very talented actor.”

Star Trek: Picard showrunner Terry Matalas, who brought in Koenig to cameo as Federation President Anton Chekov, Pavel’s son, on that show’s season finale, called him “one of the sweetest, kindest humans I’ve ever worked with.”

Adam Nimoy, the son of Koenig’s longtime Trek co-star Leonard Nimoy, saw a lot of Koenig on the convention circuit, and described him as “a pleasure to hang out with.”

Cirroc Lofton, who played Jake Sisko on Deep Space Nine, came to know Koenig over the years, and interviewed him for his podcast, The 7th Rule. He remembered Koenig as “a truly kind and lovable gentle man who dedicated his life to expressing his values through his work and words.”

Koenig wasn’t just Chekov. He recurred on the groundbreaking 1990s science fiction series Babylon 5 as Alfred Bester; a complete reversal from the cheery, heroic Chekov, Bester was a menacing, sinister agent of the Psi Corps. One of his frequent fellow guest stars was Bill Mumy, a TV sci-fi legend in his own right from his appearances on The Twilight Zone and Lost in Space. He shared memories of working alongside Koenig, and wished him “love and respect to you on your new adventure.”

Claudia Christian, another Babylon 5 co-star, called him one of a kind: “bold, funny and deadly serious about his craft.”

Star Trek: The Original Series