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Wiki Headlines 5th Feb: Echo Chamber Season 1 blooper reel on Youtube here 
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"As if his broad over-acting weren't enough, he also saw fit to record an album of spoken-word readings of poetry and pop-song lyrics called The Transformed Man that has to be heard to be believed. His renditions of "Mr. Tambourine Man" and "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" are particularly legendary and inspired the Golden Throats compilations of bad celebrity music recordings. An equally jaw-dropping video rendition of "Rocket Man" became a favorite bit of nonsense that was re-created years later by Chris Elliott on Late Night With David Letterman and Stewie on Family Guy. Recently, Conan O'Brien picked up the gag: "to read the speeches of Sarah Palin in the style they were meant to be performed, beat poetry, please welcome Emmy-award winner and master thespian William Shatner." Shatner also read some of Levi Johnston's writings... and once, Palin went on The Tonight Show to strike back, reading from Shatner's autobiography.An ego the size of his native Canada also did not help his reputation among his co-stars. Details vary, but he has said that he was unaware of how arrogant he was on set. Leonard Nimoy helped him understand that just being nice to them personally doesn't mean that they respected him trying to take away what little screen time they had. His most famous spat was with James Doohan, who was one of the most distinguished character actors before his role on Star Trek. He outright refused an interview with Shatner when he was compiling his "Star Trek Memories" book, but showing genuine regret for alienating the cast allowed the two to reconcile.In more recent years, Shatner has redeemed himself somewhat by developing a sense of humor, mostly about himself, and becoming a new model of Self-Deprecation. This has included playing a ludicrous version of himself in the film Free Enterprise, and parodying his "musical" stylings in a series of commercials and a new, well-received recording with Ben Folds (Has Been). He also appears in the videos for the Brad Paisley songs "Online" ("What? I can't sing?"), and "Celebrity". ("I liked the end of the song. No, the end, when you stopped singing. I liked that part.")Not to mention his famed "Get A Life" sketch on Saturday Night Live, wherein he berated Trek fans for living in their parents' basement.Shatner has also developed a moderately successful reputation as a writer, starting with two autobiographies about his time with Star Trek that may have started his redemption; in the books, he faithfully recounts the brutal interviews he held with his former co-stars, who, one after another, lambasted him for being such an overbearing jerk, and admits to being humbled by the experience. His latest book is an autobiography titled Up Till Now, which is actually really funny, partly because he spends a great deal of it mischievously poking fun at himself, but mostly because Shatner is actually an extremely good (and funny) non-fiction writer.Shatner also starred as a cop in TJ Hooker, and was one of the core cast of Boston Legal, winning an Emmy for his role. He has also dabbled in Reality TV, hosting Rescue 911 and the UPN version of Iron Chef. His popular Tekwar novels were adapted into a short-lived series, in which he played a supporting role. On the A&E Channel in 2008 he began Shatner's Raw Nerve, an intimate interview show (no studio audience) where he talks with guest much like a news interview but done in a much more casual and friendly setting. In fall 2010 he starred as the title father in the CBS Dom Com $#*! My Dad Says, which only lasted one season.He also got first billing on several Star Trek novels (known as the "Shatnerverse" as it apparently has its own continuity separate from that of other Trek novels) that were actually largely authored by Judith and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, though the later books of the series have more of Shatner's influence— and it shows. In these books Kirk comes Back from the Dead and becomes even more of a Marty Stu. Kirk was also a Marty Stu in the Shatner-directed Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, which opens with an obvious stunt double climbing El Capitan and ends with him fighting God (or at least an alien imposter with nifty powers).Shatner also happens to be an expert equestrian, and has been breeding and showing horses for years - namely, American Quarter Horses in reining competitions and Saddlebreds in their breed classes. Incidentally, the horse he rode in Star Trek: Generations was his own Saddlebred mare Great Belles of Fire. He also breeds Dobermans.For a quick primer on how do a passable William Shatner impersonation, simply emphasize the first noun, then say the rest of the sentence as rapidly as possible:
, which draws much influence from Star Trek and is laid out in a way not too different from a sci-fi RPG.In 2010, there was a movement about to have him appointed the next Governor-General of Canada. For those who don't know, the Governor-General is the Queen's representative in Ottawa, and one of his/her most important jobs is to deliver the "Throne Speech," which is a speech outlining the government's intended plans for the next year. It'd be worth it just to hear him read it. Alas, the government chose a far more appropriate candidate, but no doubt everyone will try again around 2015.In May 2010, The Daily Telegraph reported that when Shatner began doing ads for travel website Priceline.com in 1997, he took payment partially in stock. Since the company was young and unproven (having been founded earlier that year), the stock wasn't worth much, and it bottomed out at $1.80/share during the dot-com bust in 2000. It has recovered, however, and current estimates place Shatner's paycheck from Priceline ads alone at US $600,000,000.As of June 2, 2011, he is now Doctor William Shatner, having received an honourary doctorate from McGill University, his alma mater. In other words, he's a doctor, not a starship captain!Tropes Applying to William Shatner:
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