Why William Shatner won a 2005 EW.com Award

Why William Shatner won a 2005 EW.com Award

FOR Boston Legal

WHY? There have always been reasons to laugh at William Shatner — his patented pregnant-pause dialogue readings; those ghastly spoken-word renditions of ”Mr. Tambourine Man” and ”Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds” he recorded at the height of his early Star Trek fame; his lead role in T.J. Hooker. In fact, Shatner’s made a career in recent years of laughing at himself, especially in those self-parodic Priceline ads. But in 2004 everyone was laughing with him, not at him. Along with his surprisingly well-received album Has Been, he had an Emmy-winning guest turn as gleefully gonzo lawyer Denny Crane on The Practice, which helped keep that show alive long enough to mutate into Boston Legal. Not only does Shatner appear to be having the time of his life playing the legal loudmouth, but the character has earned the 73-year-old his first Golden Globe nomination. No wonder the starship captain is beaming.

(Golden Globe nomination: Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a Series, Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television)