Star Trek

William Shatner made a surprising return to Los Angeles Sunday ... but was quiet about whether he would attend Leonard Nimoy's funeral.

Shatner tweeted on Saturday ... he would not be able to go due to a charity event he had scheduled in Florida -- however our photog shot Captain Kirk after his flight landed around 11:30 AM today.

He remained tight lipped about whether a backlash from fans made him change his mind about paying his last respects to Spock. We reached out to his rep ... but so far no word back.

Shatner did talk to us about Terry W. Virts ... the astronaut who paid tribute to Spock by giving Earth a Vulcan salute from space.

2:50 PM PST -- Nimoy's rep says the funeral was at 9AM this morning ... which means Shatner was still in the air during the service.

Captain Kirk says he won't be there when Mr. Spock beams up for the last time ... despite their decades of friendship.

William Shatner says he's in Florida for a Red Cross Ball -- a commitment he had made prior to Leonard Nimoy's death on Friday morning -- and, regretfully ... will have to miss the funeral service on Sunday.

Leonard Nimoy, who famously played Mr. Spock, died at home Friday morning in Bel-Air... after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

The "Star Trek" star announced last year that he was battling the disease and attributed it to years and years of smoking. He had given up the habit 30 years ago.

TMZ broke the story ... Nimoy checked into UCLA Medical Center last week for intense chest pains -- but was eventually released.

Nimoy started playing Mr. Spock when the TV show debuted in 1966 ... and is the only actor to appear in every episode of that original series. He continued in the Spock role through most of the movies -- including the most recent reboot in 2013.

Aside from acting ... Nimoy also wrote books of poetry, 2 autobiographies, and even recorded albums ... mostly cover songs.

Nimoy tweeted for the last time on Feb. 22, saying ... "A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP"

He was 83.

The Trekkie In Chief, President Obama released a statement saying ... "Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimoy ... I loved Spock."

Nimoy's longtime co-star William Shatner tells us, "I loved him like a brother. We will all miss his humor, this talent, and his capacity to love."

Leonard Nimoy was rushed to the hospital after severe chest pains prompted a 911 call ... TMZ has learned.

Law enforcement sources say the legendary "Star Trek" star was transported to UCLA Medical Center last Thursday.

We're told paramedics weren't taking chances with Captain Spock and got him in front of a doctor ASAP. Nimoy's been in and out of hospitals multiple times in the last few months.

Nimoy announced he was suffering from COPD back in 2014, and even though he quit smoking more than 30 years ago ... he blames his illness on decades of lighting up.

We've reached out to Nimoy's rep for comment ... but no word back yet.

"Star Trek: Voyager" actor Robert Picardo says his estranged wife is under investigation in a murder case, and he now believes his own life is in imminent danger.

Picardo -- who's in the middle of an ugly divorce from Linda Pawlik -- asked a judge to throw Pawlik off his property STAT, because he's deathly afraid of her. She's currently living in a guest house on the property -- after Picardo got a restraining order against her.

In new court docs, Picardo says Pawlik was questioned by cops after her friend, Edward Mello, was found dead Oct. 29 in a hotel room -- killed with a handgun he says was registered to Pawlik.

Picardo claims Pawlik was ordered to turn over all 10 of her handguns when he got the restraining order ... but he claims at least 4 guns were never turned in -- and one was used to murder Mello. He also claims Pawlik hangs out with violent criminals and drug users.

A judge sided with Picardo ... and ordered Pawlik to move out of the guest house and off the property by Dec. 7. ... but Picardo has to pay $10K toward her moving expenses.

We tried several times to reach Pawlik ... but so far no word back.

No one asked Bill Nye about his "Star Trek" pal's messy divorce ... or about Nye's ongoing battle with his former fiancée -- but the Science Guy couldn't wait to tell us all about it.

You'll recall ... Nye ended up in the middle of "Star Trek Voyager" star Robert Picardo's divorce -- because Picardo's estranged wife Linda claimed he and Nye were having an affair.

Nye himself has been fighting with his former flame, Blair Tindall, over $57,000 she owes him stemming from their split in 2006.

Well, according to Nye ... there's been a major development in this war of exes.

Nichelle Nichols, who played Uhura in the '60s TV version of "Star Trek," did better on spaceships than planes because her travelling companion was busted at LAX after meth fell out of his suitcase ... law enforcement sources tell TMZ.

We've learned the 81-year-old actress was with a male companion in his 20's at the American Airlines terminal. We're told he had attached his luggage to hers and her name tags were on his bags.

Here's the rub: Law enforcement sources tell us, his suitcase fell to the ground, opened and a bag of meth and drug scales spilled out.

The guy was arrested for drug possession. The unsuspecting Nichols was in the clear and allowed to make her flight.

Robert Picardo -- who played The Doctor on "Star Trek: Voyager" -- got more fireworks than he bargained for July 4 ... cops are investigating a domestic violence incident at his home.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... cops went to Picardo's residence Friday night after someone in the house called 911 ... then hung up. We're told officers interviewed Picardo and his wife, Linda Pawlik ... who claimed he hurt her during a fight ... he denied it and no arrests were made.

Picardo filed for divorce from Pawlik back in 2012 but the case went nowhere until May ... when Picardo hired a new lawyer.

There was no way in the world "Star Trek" writer Brannon Braga would dare pick sides in the eternal nerd debate of who was the better "Trek" captain between James T. Kirk and Jean-Luc Picard ... oh wait, YES HE DID!!!

Our photog caught up with Braga in New York City on Wednesday night and popped the question, 'cause let's face it ... dude's qualified. Braga's written for the TV shows ... "Next Generation," "Voyager," "Enterprise" ... and two of the Star Trek movies!

Rosario Dawson must be tired ... 'cause she's running around the heads of millions of Trekkies now -- after showing off her Klingon language skills.

Yes, it's an actual thing ... and yes, we're about to tell a story in the native tongue of those beautiful bastards (subtitles included).

It was only one word, but noted "Star Trek" fan Rosario Dawson busted out a little Klingon for us last night ... thus becoming the hottest woman to do so in recorded history.

Dawson has never appeared in a Trek movie, but is famous for being a super fan. Her IMDB profile even refers to her as "a huge fan of the Star Trek franchise, and even speaks broken Klingon language."

Just ask Han Solo -- or any other intergalactic smuggler you know -- "hokey religions and ancient weapons are no match for a good blaster at your side" ... and now you can own the one Harrison Ford used a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away...

Profiles in History, the auction company from the SyFy show "Hollywood Treasure" ... is putting Han's piece on the auction block -- it's the one he used in "The Empire Strikes Back" and "Return of the Jedi."

And it's not just "Star Wars" stuff collectors will be able to bid on, come Dec. 21. Other highlights include:

- a Hoverboard from "Back to the Future II"
- Michael Keaton's batsuit from "Batman"
- used Wilson from "Castaway"
- a Golden ticket from "Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory"
- LeVar Burton's cool visor glasses from the "Star Trek" flicks.

Unlike the rest of the nerd universe, Captain Kirk (aka William Shatner) isn't offended that J.J. Abrams is directing the new "Star Wars" AND "Star Trek" flicks at the same time -- in fact, he thinks it's "wonderful."

There's been a lot of backlash over Abrams' dual directing roles, particularly because of the rivalry among "Star Wars" fans and Trekkies ... who believe Abrams' involvement in both projects represents some kind of conflict of interest.

But Shatner's different -- he says he's a huge Abrams fan and can't wait to see the movies.

LeVar Burton says he's deeply conflicted about the new "Star Trek" movie ... telling TMZ there's something missing from the flick ... something extremely important.

Burton -- who famously starred in "Star Trek: The Next Generation" from 1987 to 1994 -- says he's already seen J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek Into Darkness" TWO TIMES ... but that doesn't mean he approves.

"At the end of the movie, I really care about what happens to the characters ... but I'm pretty much missing Gene Roddenberry in J.J.'s interpretation ... and at the end of the day, that's just not OK for me."

For all you non-Trekkies out there ... Gene created "Star Trek" back in the '60s and was heavily involved in the storytelling until his death in 1991.

Michael Dorn is best known for playing Lieutenant Worf -- the first Klingon main character -- in the sci-fi television show "Star Trek: The Next Generation." Guess what he looks like now!

Chris Pine (Captain Kirk) and Zachary Quinto (Mr. Spock) had a stardate at the premiere of "Star Trek Into Darkness" in Hollywood this week.

So we gotta ask ...