Leonard Simon Nimoy was born in Boston, MA. The son of Yiddish-speaking Jewish immigrants Max and Dora Nimoy, young Leonard began acting when he was just eight years old. At the age of 17, Nimoy landed his first major role as Ralphie in Clifford Odets's "Awake and Sing." Nimoy's earliest features were singularly undistinguished, including the serial "Zombies of the Stratosphere" and "Francis G s to West Point" (both 1952), which continued the thrilling adventures of the famed talking mule. Nimoy did, however, do his level best in the title role of a low-budget boxing flick with religious overtones, "Kid Monk Baroni" (1952). After serving a brief stint in the U.S. Army Reserve, Nimoy returned to acting in the mid-1950s, receiving training under esteemed dramatic coach, Jeff Corey. For the next several years, Nimoy eked out a living with sporadic TV guest appearances and stage roles - including as Stanley Kowalski in "A Streetcar Named Desire" in Atlanta.Nimoy's most celebrated role howe...
