Ricardo Montalban

You know, when people croak you learn all sorts of stuff. Until I read Ricardo Montalban's obituary I didn't know that there really was no such thing as Corinthian leather, soft or otherwise. That saved me a gaff or two, I'm sure.

It's a been a tough month for Trekkers and the booking agents who populate their conventions. First, Majel Barrett, and now the man who made William Shatner scream, "Khaaaaaaan!" Next thing you know, Max Grodenchik will drop off. Oh, the humanity.

Of course, when I was a wee lad it was "Fantasy Island" that really got us going. "Smile, everyone, smile! We want our guests to feel welcome!" Every freakin' week he had to remind those idiots. And every week another group of tourists was not too careful what they wished for.

After seeing Ricardo looking so dapper on that show and in the Cordoba ads, it was a bit of a shock to go catch the reruns of "Space Seed" and seeing just how, well, hunky he looked. And then, flipping forward to "The Wrath of Khan", just how, well, odd he looked. But still strangely hunky.

It's the best of the Trek movies and, after the snoozefest of Robert Wise's "Star Trek: The Motion Picture", it saved the franchise and paved the way for the new TV series. So we have Ricardo to thank for that. Okay, and Nicholas Meyer. But he's still kicking.

I love what they've done to my car. Khaaaaaaaaaaaan!