28 Feb – "Star Trek" actor Leonard Nimoy has passed away at age 83 at his home in Los Angeles, his family confirmed. His wife Susan Bay Nimoy confirmed the cause of death to be chronic lung disease COPD, which the actor revealed last year he was suffering of, IBTimes reports. He is survived by his wife; two children from his first marriage, Adam and Julie; a stepson and several grandchildren. The actor's granddaughter, Dani, posted on his official Twitter account, "Hi all, as you all know, my Grandpa passed away this morning at 8:40 from end-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He was an extraordinary man, husband, grandfather, brother, actor, author-the list goes on- and friend. Thank you for the warm condolences. May you all LLAP."
The post was signed off with Nimoy's Spock character's famous catchphrase, Live Long and Prosper. Famous for portraying the half-human, half-Vulcan science officer, Nimoy had contributed a lot in building the character, including introducing the signature Vulcan salute. The last "Star Trek" movie Nimoy appeared in was 1991's "Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country", though that was far from being the final movie in the franchise. The last "Star Trek" movie seen onscreen was 2013's "Star Trek Into Darkness", which made a worldwide gross of USD467 million. In Malaysia, it made USD2.7 million and USD2.4 million in Singapore. An untitled "Star Trek" sequel is currently in works, set for release in 2016. (Photo source: tvzap.kataweb.it)