Jeff Bezos’ space travel company, Blue Origin, announced that “Star Trek” actor William Shatner will blast off from West Texas on Oct. 12. The 90-year-old Shatner tweeted: “Yes, it’s true; I’m going to be a ‘rocket man! It’s never too late to experience new things.” He added: “I’ve heard about space for a long time now. I’m taking the opportunity to see it for myself. What a miracle.”
Bezos, the founder of Amazon, invited Shatner to fly as its guest. At 90-years-old, Shatner will become the oldest person to go to space. He’ll join three others — two of them paying customers — aboard a Blue Origin capsule. The flight will last just 10 minutes and reach no higher than about 66 miles (106 kilometers). The capsule will parachute back to the desert floor, not far from where it took off.
This will be Blue Origin’s second launch of a crew. Bezos was on the debut flight July 20, taking along his brother, an 18-year-old from the Netherlands and 82-year-old aviation pioneer Wally Funk — the youngest and oldest at the time to fly in space.
Shatner played the role of the USS Enterprise’s commander Captain Kirk for three seasons on Star Trek, from 1966 to 1969. He also portrayed Kirk in seven movies. He’s currently the host and executive producer of a History Channel show, “The UnXplained.”
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