Editing Newsletter/Winter 2009 (section)

=='''Ricardo Montalban: The Passing of a Great Star Trek Villain'''==
An extraordinarily talented individual has departed from us. Ricardo Montalban passed away the morning of January 14, 2009 at the age of 88. Though the exact cause of death has not been identified, his son-in-law Gilbert Smith claims that he died from complications of advancing age. 

The Mexican actor first came to Hollywood in 1943 and had a career spanning seven decades of multiple noteworthy roles including that of Mr. Roarke of ''Fantasy Island'' and as Khan Noonian Singh back in 1967 in ''ST:TOS'' which he reprised in ''Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan'' in 1982.  There are those Star Trek fans who feel that Montalban gave the franchise new popularity with his magnetic portrayal of Khan.

This gifted actor’s checkered career included radio shows, Broadway musicals, television, westerns, WWII films, and voice over work in commercials.

A spinal injury occurred caused by being thrown off a horse, knocked out and then walked on by another horse, all during the filming of ''Across the Wide Missouri'' in 1951. [[Image:Khan Singh.jpg|275px|right|thumb|Montalban as Khan Noonian Singh, the ultimate alpha male]]The actor suffered terribly with pain that grew worse for the rest of his life, despite surgical procedures to attempt to correct the damage. He went from walking with a cane to delivering his lines from a wheelchair or in a sitting position during his later roles.

Ricardo Montalban later formed the ''Nosotros ("We") Foundation'' in 1970 to advocate Latinos in acting and the performing arts. The Foundation later created the Golden Eagle Awards, a televised annual award show that features and recognizes Latino achievements in the television and film industry. Having been himself a victim of stereotyped roles and prejudice, Montalban wished to show the world that Latinos could be exceptionally talented and gifted in the performing arts. 
 
In 1980, Doubleday published his autobiography, ''Reflections: A Life in Two Worlds''.

A devout Roman Catholic, he once said that his faith was the most important thing in his life. In 1998, the actor was named by Pope John Paul II as a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great, one of the highest honors the Catholic Church can bestow upon a lay person. 

Montalban’s last role was the voice of a cow in an episode of Seth MacFarlane's series ''Family Guy'', in which he paraphrased lines from his role in ''Star Trek II''.