A clear sky. Low 7F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph..
A clear sky. Low 7F. Winds ENE at 5 to 10 mph.
Updated: December 16, 2022 @ 5:48 pm
First, a moment of silence for the Broncos, who joined the Texans and Bears to be among the first few teams to be officially eliminated from playoff contention. I’d make a joke about them, but I refuse to put more effort into those teams than the coaching staff or general managers have.
Too bad Paul Whelan is not Black or gay or someone who openly hates America.
George Takei has lived in the White Mountains since the 1980s.
George Takei has lived in the White Mountains since the 1980s.
It is no secret that Arizona is the home to a number of celebrities.
Though the Phoenix area boasts the most, the White Mountains does have its own, and when word got out recently that George Takei, who played Mr. Sulu on television’s “Star Trek,” was selling his Bison Ridge home, it looked like dark skies would have to suffice for stars on the Mountain.
It is true that Takei is selling his Bison Ridge home, but he confirms that he will still be a Show Low homeowner but in Torreon.
Takei, correctly pronounced Ta-KAY, doesn’t care that people often mispronounce him name. In Japanese it means expensive.
Takei is Japanese-American. His mother was born in Sacramento, California, to Japanese parents and his father was born in Japan. Takei was born in Los Angeles.
Takei proudly calls himself an Anglophile, as was his father. He loves everything British. He was named after George VI by his father since his birth was so close to the king’s crowning.
More proof — his brother Henry is named after King Henry VIII.
Regardless of how you pronounce Takei, when you hear that distinct voice, there is no mistake that it belongs to Takei, a legend from “Star Trek,” and many other Hollywood and theatrical venues.
In 1980 Takei was introduced to the White Mountains. His partner Brad Altman’s mother lived in Show Low and eventually Takei and Altman bought a place at Fairway Park. And, while they were here, sometime in the ’80s, Altman worked for the White Mountain Independent as a journalist.
In 2004, Takei sold the Fairway Park home and bought a larger two-bedroom home in Bison Ridge. He and Altman had invited his nephew and family up for a vacation getaway and he and Altman arrived before they did.
While he and Altman were hiking at Bangal Wash, they saw a red roof looming over them and decided to check it out. It turned out to be Bison Ridge and they bought a two-bedroom there on Bison Lane and subsequently sold the Fairway Park property.
A few years ago they bought a four-bedroom home at Torreon. A film crew was coming up to do a documentary on the couple, now married, and was going to stay at a hotel.
Takei insisted that since they were doing the documentary on them, they – the crew and director — should stay with them at the Torreon property. They did and it just happened to be around July 4 and the Show Low Fourth of July Parade, “Classic Americana with its Tractors,” became part of the documentary.
“We love Torreon,” said Takei.
They come to the Mountain as often as Takei’s schedule will permit and recently decided it is time to sell the Bison property.
At 85, Takei is still fit and very active. Having been a marathon runner, he has not abandoned his exercise routine.
“I go to the fitness center and do a light workout,” said Takei. “I have adjusted it to my age. I also watch what I eat and don’t eat. I love ice cream. I love deep, dark, genuine chocolate. My mother also loved ice cream and she passed at 89.”
Takei said his grandmother, who died at 103, loved to celebrate her birthdays in a big way. He said, like all women, she starting lying about her age. When she was 100, she told everyone she was 101. When she turned 101, she said she was 103. Though he corrected her, she said she used the Japanese way, and at 104, her real age, she went to bed and died in her sleep.
“That’s my way,” said Takei, who with the schedule he has, is no doubt counting on family longevity to accomplish everything he is working on.
Takei was just on the big screen at WME Theaters. If you saw “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank,” you, no doubt, recognized his voice. He was the voice of Ohga, a muscular Manx cat.
As a bit of trivia, Takei actually got his start in acting doing voice overs during summer vacation from college at UC Berkley. He did five or six voices, translating English to Japanese in the 1956 film “Rodan,” a turning point in his educational pursuit.
Takei’s father was in real estate. He thought his son would make a good architect, and there were always architect magazines on their coffee table. That was the message he got from his father, so, like a good son, he wanted to please him.
“When there was an interesting project,” said Takei, “he would take me there and show me what was going to go up there, like Bunker Hill — ‘On this site will be built a performing arts center,’ and the LA Music Center is there; another Sunday he took me to Beverly Hills and showed me where a luxury hotel would be built, and the Beverly Hilton is there.”
Takei had enrolled in UC Berkeley to become an architect, but after two years he said he could not imagine himself working in that profession.
After doing the voices in “Rodan,” Takei transferred to UCLA as a theater arts major. When he graduated in 1960, he went on to study at the Shakespeare Institute at Stratford-upon-Avon in England that summer.
“I grew up in radio age — no TV; we had movies but went to the theater to see them; voice acting was what I was introduced to,” said Takei, recalling TV shows and characters from back in the day like Cisco and Poncho, the Lone Ranger and Gene Autry.
Takei loves theater and made his Broadway debut 10 years ago at age 75 in “Allegiance,”a musical that was inspired by Takei and his personal experiences of living with his family in an internment camp during World War II when he was 5 to 8 years of age.
“They called us the enemy because we looked like the people who bombed Pearl Harbor,” said Takei, who tells the story of living behind barbed wire in his memoir, “They Call Us Enemy.”
Takei’s autobiography is “To the Stars: The Autobiography of George Takei, Start Trek’s Mr. Sulu.”
Takei is well known as an outspoken activist in politics and LGBTQ rights.
He has starred in many roles and there is more to come. He and Altman will be going to London in late November to begin rehearsal for a jolly musical that will open in January and run through April.
So, the Mountain can boast that one of several celebrities remains a White Mountains homeowner. And, the person who buys the Bison Ridge property — perhaps a Trekkie — can also boast saying, “Mr. Sulu lived here.”
Reach the reporter at bbruce@wmicentral.com
A few years ago they bought a four bedroom at Torreon. A film crew was coming up to do a documentary on George and Brad, now married, and were going to stay at a hotel. George insisted that since they were doing the documentary on them, they – the crew and director – should stay with them at the Torreon property. They did and it just happened to be around the 4th of July and the Show Low 4th of July Parade, “Classic Americana with its tractors,” became part of the documentary.
With 20 plus years media experience, Barbara Bruce is an award winning journalist, senior reporter and monthly columnist for the White Mountain Independent.
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And his famous catchphrase: «OH MY».
When I worked at Pinetop Office and Art Supply from 2001-2011 I met him once in the store. Funny I grabbed piece of paper for autograph not thinking of looking for something better. In the store I could have found many! He was very gracious. His partner was looking for a gift for his Mother who was an artist. Never forget that experience.
Oh, geesh. Another far left leftie.
Left, left, left, left. You are a broken record .ms. Unibrow.
Yes, wanting equal rights is so extreme🤦🏼♀️
Who doesn’t want equal rights? How about all the progress over the years? Wonderful and good. Broken record poor meeee.
And???
Class Act, we’re lucky nice people like him live here…
That is very nice. Now give equal time to a person with different vocal political spectrum agenda — to be fair.
The right wing perspective gets more than enough time here🙄
So where is the equal time and length of glowing story to the «conservative» celebrity?
Do you truly believe someone’s existence is political? Him living his life the way he chooses is some sort of statement against you? Now you feel the need to be given equal time to be fair? If there is a conservative celebrity around here worth as much time as Takei is then that is fair. However you are demanding payment that is not deserved.
Takei is a Class act, you’re lucky to have him!
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