Nichelle is one of the oldest actress currently alive in Hollywood. She has a huge fan following and is most famous for her work in the Star Trek series as Nyota Uhura. Besides acting, she is also known for her singing and voice acting. This personality of multiple talents has much more to herself than what appears on the surface.
To know more about this beauty, stay with us as we give you a brief insight on Nichelle Nichols.
Who is Nichelle Nichols?
Nichelle Nichols being born on 28 December 1932, is currently 86 years old. Having lived a long life, she has her share of experience and fascinating stories. Nichelle was born and raised in Robbins, Illinois, near Chicago, and she got her education there. While it is unknown which schools she attended, Nichols attended schools in Chicago, New York, and Los Angeles as well.
Nichelle’s father is Samuel Earl Nicholas, and her mother is Lamia Parks Nichols. Samuel was a factory worker, but later on, he got elected as the town mayor of Robbins, followed by the position of Chief Magistrate.
Living under an influential family and a reputed family, she learned delicate manners and was an ideal daughter. Nichelle also had a little brother, but he was involved in cult activities and committed suicide during the mass suicide of the cult members. Details about this incident are present in her autobiography and IMDB page.
While Nichelle’s career started in 1959, it wasn’t until 1966 when she became a household name for celebrity. As the bridge member for in the Star Trek series named Nyota Uhura. Besides acting, she was also active as a singer and model since 1959. Let’s take a brighter look at the career of this amazing personality.
Nichelle Nichols Career
Nichols’s career started with the 1961 stage play musical Kicks and Co. from which she caught the attention of Hugh Hefner. Hugh got Nichelle into modeling with his magazine Playboy. With all these opportunities, Nichelle made most out of all of those, singing and acting with the modeling in-between.
American actress, Nichelle Nichols
Nichelle’s career in TV started with Star Trek, which is one of the first shows to include interracial casts. Also, it was revolutionary when an interracial kiss happened in the scripted US television for the first time. It was a kiss between Nichelle Nichols and William Shatner in the show Star Trek in their role as Uhura and Captain James T.Kirk, which happened in the episode of November 22, 1968.
That was all about Nichelle’s career in modeling and acting, now for her career in music. Nichelle Nichols is also a singer and a pretty popular one at that. She has two Music Albums under her name despite her busy schedule from acting. Down to Earth is her first album released in 1967 during the original run of Star Trek. And her second album was released in 1991 with the name Out of This World. Nichelle’s music is catered towards the viewers of Star Trek in her second album. Besides the records, Nichols has written a song called ‘Gene,’ which she sang in the funeral of her flame of past, Gene Roddenberry.
Also, Nichelle was the voice actress for Uhura in the Star Trek Animated series.
Nichelle Nichols in Activism
Besides these, Nichelle has worked for NASA as well. While she isn’t a scientist, Nichols worked with NASA to recruit women and minorities. Nichelle also helped run a company called Women in Motion, which is all about empowering women. Besides this, there are a lot of other exciting things about her life as well. Nichols was a crew member of SOFIA, which inspected the atmosphere of Mars and Saturn, in 2015. It was a long flight at a very high altitude.
Nichelle Nichols Married Life & Children
While Nichelle’s married life doesn’t look so good, her dating life was full of excitement. Before the Start Trek franchise was a thing, Nichelle was dating Gene Rodenberry, the creator of Star Trek. For several years in the ’60s, they were together. But, Nichelle and Gene broke up after realizing Gene had a crush on actress Majel Hudec. All of this is mentioned in her autobiography, but she also says the relationship between Gene and herself ended before Star Trek began, which means before meeting Majel Hudec.
Besides her movie, like dating life, which can be read in her autobiography, there is also her marriage life. For the first time in 1951, Nichelle got married. She got married to dancer Foster Johnson but soon got divorced within the same year of 1951. But, Nichols already had a son with Foster Johnson, whom she gave birth to on August 14, 1951. His name is Kyle Johnson, who is already 68 years old and the only child Nichelle’s ever had.
Nichelle Nichols with her son Kyle Johnson
Nichols got married for the second time in the year 1968, to Duke Mondy. Duke and Nichelle had a happy married life, but it only lasted for four years. They had no kids together and got divorced in 1972 after four years of marriage.
On a side note, Nichelle confirmed that Barack Obama had a crush on her during his childhood. While not a romantic pursue or dating event in her life, it is quite fascinating. But with her beauty, a lot of people must have had a crush on her during her days as Lieutenant Uhura.
Nichelle Nichols Net Worth and Income
Nichelle is one of the most influential actresses in Hollywood, with a lot of stature behind her name. One of the first actresses of color and successful. Besides acting, she also worked as a singer, model, and voice actor.
With all these qualifications and success in professions, Nichols is probably going to have a hefty net worth. Nichelle Nichols’s net worth is $8 million according to sources like The Richest and Celebrity Net Worth, but some other sources have quoted her net worth as $12 million as well.
Nichelle’s success in Hollywood being as big as it is, $8 million seems a bit humbling, but she was one of the pioneers who go into the field. Nichols’s success can be measured in more than her net worth as her fan following is really big, among which Barack Obama is one. While her income from the show or any source for that matter has been revealed, she might have about $50,000 per year while acting as an actress.
Nichelle Nichols Wiki, Bio and General Information
Nichelle is currently 86 years old and living in Woodland Hills, California. She was born and raised in Robbins, Illinois, and her birthday is on December 28. Nichols has a son, Kyle Johnson, who is currently 68 years old.
Nichelle played the role of Lieutenant Uhura in the popular TV series Star Trek. She used to work as a model in a magazine like Playboy, and she is also a singer. Nichols has also worked with NASA, and she was one of the crew members of SOFIA in 2015. Nichelle also actively spoke for women empowerment.
Currently, Nichelle’s health condition is not good; she has had a stroke on June 4, 2015, and began inpatient therapy on June 5, 2015. Besides the stroke, recently, on May 3, 2018, she started suffering from short term memory loss as a form of complication of advanced dementia.
Fast Facts about Nichelle Nichols
- Nichelles grew up as the daughter of the Town Mayor and Chief magistrate.
- Nichols’s career started in 9159 with a stage play musical.
- She gained popularity for her role as Uhura in the TV series Star Trek.
- She has also worked for NASA and was a crew member of SOFIA in 2015.
- Nichelle helped run a company called Women in Motion.
- Friday, a 1982 novel by Robert A. Heinlein is partly dedicated to Nichelle Nichols
- Nichols has an asteroid named after her, Asteroid 68410 Nichols, in her honor.
- In 1999 Nichelle received the Golden Kamera Award.
- In 2016, Nichelle was awarded The Life Career Award from the Academy of Science Fiction.
- She has an honorary degree from LA Mission College.
Nichelle Nichols Net Worth, Married, Husband, Kids
| Name | Nichelle Nichols |
| Date of Birth | December 28, 1932 |
| Parents | Samuel Earl Nichols (Father) Lamia (Parks) Nichols (Mother) |
| Occupation | Actress, Model, Singer, and Voice Acting |
| Relationship status | Single |
| Past partner(s) | Gene Roddenberry |
| spouse(s) | Foster Johnson (m.1951; div.1951) Duke Mondy (m.1968; div.1972) |
| Children | One with Foster Johnson Kyle Johnson (born. 1951) |
| Net Worth | $8 million |
| Height | 1.65m (5ft 4.9 inches) |
| Zodiac sign | Capricorn |
