andrew robertson star trek

• Skip to primary navigation
• Skip to main content
• Skip to primary sidebar

The Intriguing World Of Entertainment

Whatever Happened To Andrew Robinson, Garak from Star Trek DS9?

By Nick Lee | January 24, 2023

Andrew Robinson is an American actor who is best known for his portrayal of the Garak on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. See what this talented actor has been up to since his time on the show ended nearly 24 years ago.

Backround Info

Andrew was born on February 14, 1942 in New York City. When Robinson was 3 years old, his father tragically died in World War II; shortly after, he and his mother moved to Hartford, Connecticut.

During his childhood, he became somewhat of a troublemaker and delinquent, leading him to be sent to St. Andrew’s School—a boarding school in Rhode Island.

Robinson believes that his career truly began when he was awarded the full ride scholarship to study at the London School of Music and Dramatic Art.

It was the late 50’s and he thought of acting as an unachievable goal given to a select few. When he arrived at his school in London, he realized how achievable the goal actually was and never looked back. It was at this school that Andrew Robinson studied Shakespeare and voice training.

Acting Career

Stage acting was Robinson’s very first professional gig in the acting world, his first role being in a play in New York called MacBird!.

He continued appearing in productions in both Europe and North America, productions such as Woyzeck, Futz, The Young Master Dante, and The Cannibals.

In 1969, the 26-year-old Andrew Robinson landed his first television role on N.Y.P.D. with a guest position. Only 2 years later, he would started acting in feature films.

Dirty Harry

1971’s Dirty Harry is the film that kickstarted Andrew Robinson’s career and he would play the part of the Scorpio Killer.

Apparently, Clint Eastwood—along with Don Siegel, the film’s director—decided that Robinson was fit for the role after having seen him in a production of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s The Idiot.

The Scorpio Killer, in Dirty Harry, was based off of the real life Zodiac Killer, who was largely talked about at the time. Robinson chose to integrate aspects of the Zodiac Killer in his performance, mainly the quality of having a distorted sense of humor that he uses to taunt those who pursue him.

The iconic role got his face out to the world, but Robinson seems to think it’s what killed his film career.

He explained that when he filled the role, the whole world had suddenly only seen him as that specific character. “People don’t want to hire you for the good guy, for the poet, for the dad—for the sympathetic character, and therefore,” Robinson explained, “they’ll hire you for the heavy, but even then I was so identified with that one particular heavy because that kind of psychopathic killer was the first of its kind, really.”

After Dirty Harry Andrew ran the tv circuit and had guest roles on a number of television shows including Bonanza, The New Perry Mason, and Kung Fu. It wasn’t until 1976 that he landed a steady role on the soap opera Ryan’s Hope.

For three years and 169 episodes, Robinson played the character of Frank Ryan and would he received a Daytime Emmy nomination for his work.

After Ryan’s hope he would run the tv and tv movie circuit again until 1987, where he would land another one of his more memorable role as Larry in the 1987 horror movie Hellraiser.

Although the movie directed by Clive Barker was not a commerical hit, it became a cult classic and spawned an entire franchise with 10 movies to its name.

Robinson would not be on the only DS9 cast member to star in Hellraiser, as Terry Farrell would go on to star in its third iteration.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

In 1993 Andrew Robinson would land his most memorable and recognizable role as Garak in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine .

Robinson says he was brought onto Star Trek because the producers originally wanted a simple relationship for Dr. Bashir.

The producers thought that the relationship between the two would be interesting, but they were ready to cut the character of Garak if there was no chemistry between the actors. “From the moment we started acting together, that was no longer an issue,” Robinson says.

He remembers that the makeup that was put on him was really intense, especially because he is claustrophobic. “It’s like being put, in a sense, inside of a mobile coffin,” Robinson said. It was so brutal, he almost called his agent to get him out of the role! But when we looked at himself in the mirror, he realized how many actors dream about being truly inside of a character the way he was and he says his claustrophobia vanished and he became incredibly thankful.

In 2000, he wrote and published a book called A Stitch in Time . In the book, he talks about the privilege he was offered when given his role as Garak and he considers the novel to be the way he received “total closure” of the character.

Eventually, Andrew Robinson was given the opportunity to direct three Star Trek episodes. He directed the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode “Looking for par’Mach in All the Wrong Places” as well as two episodes of Star Trek: Voyager

He later went on to direct seven episodes of Judging Amy, a show that included Rachel Robinson—his real life daughter.

What did he do after Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

After DS9, Andrew would land small one-off roles on shows like Judging Amy, The Practice and Jag. Between 2005 and 2019, he would take a hiatus from television and movies, returning in 2019 for the short Vaseline.

What is Andrew Robinson doing now?

Although Andrew’s acting career has slowed down significantly, he still pops up in sporadic roles. In 2021 he voiced the character of Indrak in the animated Netflix series Dota: Dragon’s Blood.

In 2020 during the height of the pandemic, he reprised his role as Garak for the online reading of Alone Together: A DS9 Companion, which was streamed on Alexander Siddig’s YouTube Channel, Sid City .

With memorable roles in Star Trek and in horror movies, Andrew is also very in-demand at fan conventions, which he attends regularly.

In 2022, he appeared at a slew of conventions, including the 56 Year Mission Las Vegas convention and the Monster Mania convention. In 2023 he has a full schedule and will also be on the Star Trek Cruise.

Andrew can also be found on Cameo , where he sells personalized videos for $50 a pop.

Related Posts:

About Nick Lee

Nick is a Senior Staff Writer for Ned Hardy. Some of his favorite subjects include sci-fi, history, and obscure facts about 90's television. When he's not writing, he's probably wondering how Frank Dux got 52 consecutive knockouts in a single tournament. More from Nick

• April 26, 2024 | Michael Dorn Wanted Armin Shimerman To Play The Ferengi That Worf Killed In Star Trek Picard
• April 26, 2024 | Podcast: All Access Gets To Know The Breen In ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ 505, “Mirrors”
• April 25, 2024 | Prep Begins For ‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds’ Season 3 Finale; Cast And Directors Share BTS Images
• April 25, 2024 | Jonathan Frakes Sees Opportunities With Streaming Star Trek Movies, Weighs In On “Filler Episodes”
• April 25, 2024 | Recap/Review: ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Reflects On Its Choices In “Mirrors”

Interview: Andrew Robinson On Falling In Love With Garak’s Ambiguity In ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’

| July 7, 2020 | By: Anthony Pascale 27 comments so far

After participating in last week’s GalaxyCon virtual Deep Space Nine event , TrekMovie had a chance to speak with Andrew Robinson about shaping the enigmatic character Garak over the course of seven seasons, and even in his own DS9 novel.

During your GalaxyCon panel you talked about how DS9 was a different kind of Star Trek show. Did you know much about Star Trek and how DS9 would be different before your involvement?

No, not at all. I had no idea. DS9 wasn’t even on the air yet, so there was nothing I could watch. The only thing I could watch about Cardassians was a couple of episodes of Next Generation , in which Marc Alaimo and David Warner played Cardassians, and that was somewhat helpful, but not really. It was kind of puzzling to me and, and a bit of a challenge, to walk into that show and that character.

Now we think of how well-developed Cardassians are in Star Trek, but that is mostly due to DS9. In addition to the writers, you and Marc were a driving force for defining the Cardassians. Did you have an entry point or a real-world historical allegory that you used as a template?

Yeah. Good question. Yes, there was. When speaking to [ Deep Space Nine showrunner] Ira Behr and judging from the behavior that came off of Warner and Marc, and the storyline in which Cardassia had been the cruel occupiers of Terok Nor. The historical parallel that I glommed on to was the Germans in World War II and the Nazi occupation of a place like Paris. And they did appear to be a militant and aggressive race that did some very cruel things.

But what was nice, since it would have been boring for me to just to play a badass Nazi dressed as a Cardassian, was I was allowed to play Garak as a character with layers, in terms of his position. Was he a spy? Was he a tailor? And so forth. I often likened Garak being left behind or remaining on Deep Space Nine after the Cardassians had left as if there was this there was a German Wehrmacht officer in Jerusalem. What is this guy doing here where he is universally hated?

You have spoken in the past about one of your first roles, playing The Killer in Dirty Harry , and how it typecast and defined you in film.

Andrew Robinson in the 1971 film Dirty Harry

Star Trek has also been known to typecast actors. Were you at all concerned with playing this Space Nazi in Star Trek typecasting you again, 20 years later?

No, I actually wasn’t because the way the character was written, even in that first episode. I didn’t expect my participation to go beyond that one episode. I had no idea that they were trying to find a storyline for Dr. Bashir and that if the chemistry worked out between [Alexander] Siddig and myself, that there would be more episodes. So as far as I was concerned, that was the only episode. And the way the episode and the way the character was written took me away from, as you say, the psychopath killer role that I was kind of sick of doing.

Garak, and his relationship with Bashir, evolved a lot on the show over the years. Obviously, the writers were picking up on something because they kept bringing you back for a reason. What are some of the things that you were injecting into your performance that you feel the writers started layering into your character?

I’ve often thought of that too. Because besides the fact that that they were looking for a relationship for Dr. Bashir—and that worked out great, because Sid and I really got on and are still friends to this day. I think that was the main thing, that Sid and I got on. But then there was the ambiguity about Garak that they had written in. Who is this guy, he is a mystery and so forth. What I added to that in that first episode was a sexual ambiguity about Garak. In that very first scene when he meets Dr. Bashir it’s clear as a bell— and this was my choice—that he was sexually attracted to this good-looking young Starfleet doctor. And although they didn’t follow that up with an explicitly gay character, that ambiguity about Garak remained. And it was appropriate for what they had written about his ambiguity, is he a tailor, a spy, what is he?

At that time, they were still decades away from having an openly gay character in the franchise. Did any writer or director or producer ever talk to you about how you were playing it? Fans were picking up on your performance choice back in the 90s and asking the question on is Garak gay? 

[Laughs] Oh yeah. I broadcast it as strongly as I could. But you know, they never really followed up on it, we never even had a discussion about it. Deep Space Nine was already at right angles to the Star Trek franchise. It was a different kind of Star Trek show. And I think that suddenly to bring on an openly gay alien, who, who was having this relationship with Dr. Bashir. I think that was maybe a bridge too far. I’m guessing at this, but I, but I think that may be it.

But nor did they ever tell you to stop or tone it down, did they?

No, they didn’t. I think they liked it. I think Ira and the writers loved that it just added to the mystery of the guy. What is he? Who is he? Is he this or is he that? I think it just reinforced what they were already trying to do with the character.

Andrew Robinson in his first appearance as Garak, “Past Prologue”

As I understand you wrote a diary at the time in the voice of Garak, to help inform your performance. And that eventually led to your book, A Stitch in Time . Did you ever share some of these writings with the producers or writers to pitch stories?

[Laughs] No. I wouldn’t dare. As a theater actor, you do understand the difference between shit and Shinola. You know what is a good script and what is good writing and you is know what is not. And the thing about that show, which blew me away from the beginning, was that the writing was superior. And that surprised me because I was a bit of a snob along with the rest of this business thinking, ‘Science fiction and outer space stuff, how good can it be?’ And I got educated that science fiction can be REALLY good. It can be incredibly literate and challenging. When the writing is good, I butt out. I just thank my theatrical gods and get on with the job.

In the beginning that that diary of mine was just for me. It was only because I started going to conventions and I got so tired of people asking me how long it took to put on my makeup and answering questions, which was okay but not terribly interesting or edifying for the fans. It was only then that I started reading excerpts from the diary and people dug it. Then it just grew as I got did more and more of a character, I fell in love with this character. I really did, I fell in love with the idea of Garak.

It was a tool for actors to do a biography. You know where your character came from what his education was and know what happened to him, so that you have that as a subtext. But I also fell in love with the idea of creating Garak’s world and the world of Cardassians. Because at the time, there was nothing about Cardassia on the show. So I had, I had free rein.

Only four episodes in for you and the writers came up with “The Wire.” That was such an intense episode with a serious subject matter and really asked a lot of you as an actor. Were you surprised after only appearing in three episodes?

Blown away! I’ll never forget when I read that episode, I thought, ‘Holy shit! This is major.’ And it scared me. You had you to be so totally on your game to do this. It’s a tricky thing. While the guy is lying, and while the guy is telling several stories, which, you know, all of which, or some of which at least are not true, the emotions are real. The passion is real. Because it’s coming from this, the suffering that’s being caused by his addiction

A lot of my family suffered from the addiction of alcoholism. Like what happens to a lot of families with addiction, it really puts a dent in our family life. So to come to grips with that addiction. All I can say about that episode is two things. One is, I was eternally grateful to Robert Hewitt Wolfe who wrote that episode and I thanked him many times. The second thing I want to say about that episode is that I have never done better acting in my life. There are times when I tried to use that as a sample when you when you’re up for a job and they want to see film on you. I’ve tried to send that out and this goddamn business is so biased against science fiction. They say, “Well, yeah, that’s interesting, but you can, but can you show us something that’s real.” I’m thinking, ‘What a dolt.’ There’s nothing more real than I’ve ever done in my life than that performance.

And that was back when they were cranking out 26 episodes for each series every year and shooting them in a week. How much time did they give you to prepare?

Not a lot. There were times when they’d start to shoot a scene, and I’d be in the middle of it, and the emotions just started carrying me, where I had no idea what I was saying. No idea! I thought, ‘Oh, my God, they’re going to kill me because I’m just ad-libbing here.’ There was a certain amount of what I was saying that was not in the original text. But for the most part, somehow I stayed on point with the text. The other thing that was really a challenge with something like that is the technical stuff. It’s hard enough learning lines for an emotional scene. But when there is a whole technical world that suddenly is inserted into that, it’s kind of sadistic. [laughs]

Andrew Robinson in “The Wire”

You say you grew to fall in love with Garak and even though you thought it might be just one, you appeared in almost 40 episodes. It sounds like you were satisfied with the arc from season one to season seven. You didn’t feel they missed out on any opportunities?

Oh, no. I couldn’t believe what they were doing with Garak, especially in those last two seasons and that whole arc of the Dominion war. It was extraordinary. Bringing in Garak’s past, bringing in Enabran Tain, bringing in Mila, and all of those. There was no way I could have said, “This is great, but could you add this or that?” There is NO WAY. It was fabulous. I’m not saying anybody was jealous about the amount of material I was getting, but some of the regulars would laugh and say, “Jesus, you’re getting a good bite out of this.” And it’s true. If I fell in love with Garak, I think it’s because the writers fell in love with Garak. As a matter of fact, I know they did.

Thanks to your winning of a couple of Drama Critics Awards, you were able to convince Rick Berman let you step behind the camera to direct a few episodes of both DS9 and Voyager. What was that transition like to go from being a guest actor to a director?

The first episode [“Looking for par’Mach in All the Wrong Places”] was a nightmare because obviously, I’d only directed theater. And even though Rick and Ira were very good about making sure that I trailed other directors and I was basically sent to school, because I had never directed film before. Still that first episode featuring the love story between Worf and Dax, it was rugged.

They agreed to give me three episodes, that one for DS9 and two on Voyager and I have a feeling if they hadn’t agreed to give me three, I think they after the first one, they just would have pulled the plug on me. Thankfully, I was able to do the two on Voyager which, having gotten that first episode under my belt, the next two were fine. I had a great time. And the actors on Voyager were really very generous and very kind with me, and so was [ Voyager executive producer] Jeri [Taylor].

Also, Star Trek had these fabulous DPs, like Jonathan West and Marvin Rush. They were really smart and creative. That one episode I did of Voyager where a lot of it takes place on the underground tunnels and I had the idea of doing handheld camera and Marvin was excited. And he picked up the camera himself. He’s as strong as a bull and for hours he would march around with that goddamn camera on his shoulder.

During your panel you talked about how it was serious on the DS9 set; were things lighter over with Voyager ?

Much lighter. Much lighter. They had more fun than we did. [Laughs] We were a very serious crew. I have often wondered about that. I think it’s because our show was written as a gray world. It wasn’t black and white. We weren’t a bunch of heroes marching on to defeat the bad alien of the week and going from planet to planet solving problems. It all took place on this in this in this one place. I think Garak is emblematic of how gray the world was and how complicated. And there were real issues. Not just “The Wire,” but I also spoke about “Duet,” which is essentially based on a Nazi who is remorseful over when they did in the concentration camps. There was light stuff too but they were not afraid to deal with issues.

The one issue that Ira said he wished he had dealt with, and he only told me this after it was all over, he wished he got more into the gay themes and the bias against LGBTQ people. But you can’t do everything, and we were a show of our time.

Speaking of darker, serialized shows, with LGBTQ characters, have you had a chance to see the new Star Trek shows, Discovery and Picard ?

Yeah. It’s funny because there it is. We are moving along, which I think is really healthy for the franchise. When we have to move forward. And considering what’s going on right now with Black Lives Matter and the coronavirus and this perfect storm that’s assailing all of us. I am eager to see how this is all going to affect the Star Trek narrative as it moves forward.

Recently, you reunited with your old friend Alexander Siddig and you are doing remote readings together with something called Alone Together: A DS9 Companion through his website Sid City . What can you tell us about this new project?

It takes place 25 years beyond the show and the book that I wrote. I don’t want to give away the story.  Garak and Bashir have had very little contact over the years. But Garak has contacted Bashir because he needs his help with the problem that he’s having. It’s really a script reading thing. It’s on the Zoom thing. I need to get more used to working in this format.

Going back to Star Trek: Picard , they have so far included a number of what they call “legacy” characters on the show. If the call ever came, would you be willing to put all that makeup on again?

In a New York minute! I would be more than happy to get back into the saddle as that guy again.

Andy Robinson the Virtual Fan Experience

Andy’s next online event is a Creation Virtual Fan Experience on July 18. More details and tickets at stageit.com .  You can also keep up with Andrew Robinson on his Facebook page .

Keep up with all of TrekMovie’s exclusive interviews .

Related Articles

DS9 , Lower Decks , Star Trek: Picard

Michael Dorn Wanted Armin Shimerman To Play The Ferengi That Worf Killed In Star Trek Picard

Lower Decks , Section 31 , Star Trek: Legacy , Strange New Worlds , TNG

Jonathan Frakes Sees Opportunities With Streaming Star Trek Movies, Weighs In On “Filler Episodes”

Comics , DS9 , TNG , VOY

The Fight Against The Space Parasites Isn’t Going Well For B’Elanna In Preview Of ‘Star Trek: Defiant’ #14

Discovery , Interview

Interview: Sonequa Martin-Green On Facing Her Past On ‘Star Trek: Discovery’ And Her Hopes For The Future

Okay, what would Mr. Robinson think about doing an episode tribute to Casablanca? Quark as Rick, Odo as the police chief, Garak in Peter Lorre’s role (except he doesn’t get killed) and Dukat as the bad guy?

It would have been great to see that on DS9, for sure!

Rene is dead, alas.

Didn’t they already do a CASABLANCA style story with Mary Crosby as a Cardassian version of Ilse? Whatever that show was called, when I had it taped on vhs, I had it listed as DS9Rick’sPlace (and I don’t think that was a Berman joke.)

He did an excellent job with his character.

I keep seeing these headshots without the headlines and fear the worst, that Andrew Robinson had died!

Good interview tho

I don’t think I remember ever seeing an interview discussing with him how the Decker audition went with Robert Wise. Based on RETURN TO TOMORROW, I’m thinking it was either him or Frederick Forest that Wise was leaning toward, till Jon Povill told Wise that the actor in question had a tendency to sound whiney on film, and after they looked at film on the actor, Wise agreed and they went on to cast Collins. Forest and Tim Thomerson would have been my choice out of the people I’ve seen listed reading for the role, but Robinson might have been good in a different way. Like I said, the book doesn’t say which actor was the one Wise wanted, but the whiney sound I think could have been Forest or Robinson, certainly not Thomerson or Richard Kelton, who also read that day.

Of course it is possible that a 15-minute read from 40 years ago is something he doesn’t even remember … paramount casting was pretty weird, bringing in nearly everybody who had appeared on the NBC SF comedy QUARK (Kelton, Robinson, Thomerson) seems like somebody was showing a lack of imagination, only auditioning people who had worn weird space costumes or something.

Wow, had no idea they considered Robinson for the Decker role in TMP. Seeing how disgraced Collins has become now maybe this would have been the better choice, although if this happened I doubt he would have gotten the Garak role.

Absolutely my favorite character on DS9. Which is impressive given how stellar (pun intended) the rest of the cast was.

If it was up to me, I’d get Robinson, Jeffrey Combs and JG Hertzler for Picard in whatever role they can find for them. It doesn’t necessarily have to be their legacy characters.

To cast Warner as a Cardassian was as close as you can get casting an actual German . Warner played some serious German roles. I think the three nations best suited to play Cardassians are Russians, Turks and Germans. Would have been cool if they had used actors of these nations portraying different sections of Cardassians. Dukat played by a Russian, Garak by a German and Damar by a Turk.

As a Turk, I agree that more diverse nationalities are needed in the Star Trek universe portrayed by even more international actors. After all the Federation is not just one country. But I also object to your associations of Turks with Cardassians. You seem to imply that we are best suited for villainous or violent characters. I know in the modern context the view of our country internationally is not very good, but there are also quite different and liberal Turks out there as well who wish for the betterment of all mankind not just our own.

We certainly could use even more diversity in Trek and I’m hoping Strange New Worlds takes advantage of that as the leading trio (Pike, Spock, Number One) are already Caucasian. For Middle Eastern ethnicity in past Trek I can think of Siddig as Bashir and Pakistani Shazad Latif as Ash Tyler/Voq over at Discovery, but more ethnicity is always welcome (Asians, Middle Easterns, African, Hispanic, etc.)

Cue for the people to come in here blaring its an American tv show and you shouldn’t expect any “international” point of view in there (my call for more Asians as the truly lacking group, relative to their international import/size was resoundingly ignored and turned into the opposite, as if it’s something bigoted to want more than a truck load of token blacks as a measure of ‘liberal’ – as per usual) Once again exposes this “diversity” as fake and hypocritical as it is!

If I offended you, kusura bakma. But my intention was far from suggesting that Turks are villainous or violent people. In contrast I chose one of the most positive Cardassian to be played by a Turk. [SPOILER] Damar fought and died for freedom in the end. In my oppinion Russians, Turks and Germans are very similar people with a strong longing for freedom. I sympathise.

Oh, thanks, sorry it was my misunderstanding then. Usually I get really fed up when there is that stereotypical image of the Turks in Europe and other parts of the world. Thanks, and agreed about strong longing for freedom.

Oh just give us fans what we want, CBSAA, and fund DS9 season eight. Great interview! Garak was the best of the best and Andy Robinson was criminally ignored by the Emmys.

Classy actors portraying subtle well thought out well written parts. Now just a memory in the age of Kurtzman’s erratic two dimensional diabolically badly written drivel.

You mean ONE dimensional of course ;)

I am going to be 100% honest here and in an odd way a little embarrassed about it because it NEVER hit me, not once, that Garak was suppose to be gay lol. I watched every single episode he was in at least a half a dozen times at this point and it never even dawned on me in all that time. It wasn’t until he mentioned it in the doc What We Left Behind and the joke about how much he wanted to have sex with Bashir (and that got the biggest laugh in the theater) was the FIRST time I even realized it.

And now I CAN’T not see it lol. It’s pretty funny. But as so many have said here (and said for years) I love Garak to death. He was one of those characters you could NEVER imagine on TOS or TNG. Someone who is so complex and probably did a lot of evil things in the past with his own agenda but you root for him every second he’s on the screen. His entire persona represents DS9 in so many ways.

I know if I keep saying I hope to see so and so on Picard then I would probably run out of characters at this point lol (Ok, NO Neelix, I’m putting my foot down!). But yeah of course I would love to see Garak on this show. But with SO MUCH Star Trek coming in the next few years, anything is possible I guess.

Anthony Pascale, great interview. Thank you to the Trekmovie team.

“Was he a spy? Was he a tailor? And so forth. I often likened Garak being left behind or remaining on Deep Space Nine after the Cardassians had left as if there was this there was a German Wehrmacht officer in Jerusalem. What is this guy doing here where he is universally hated?”

Very good points. I’ve sometimes wondered about this too.

Logical explanation: The Federation government formally gave Garak asylum as a political refugee, but he had to tell Starfleet Intelligence everything he knew about Cardassian intelligence operations, as a condition of being granted asylum. (Garak wouldn’t actually have told them *everything*, of course — just enough to be effective).

Fun explanation: As a condition of being granted asylum, Starfleet Intelligence also secretly recruited Garak as an “asset”.

Really fun explanation: *Section 31* also recruited Garak as an operative. (In fact, it was a little too easy for Garak to sneak into Vreenak’s shuttle and plant those explosives, don’t you think? But not if S31 authorised the whole thing). Along with being S31’s “eyes and ears” for covert activities via DS9, Garak was also “grooming” Bashir to potentially be headhunted into S31 all along. He was actually Bashir’s “handler”, but Bashir never realised it ;)

I could actually see Garak as being an agent for almost every secret intelligence organisation at one time or another, including the Tal Shiar, and feeding them all false information. What better way to make sure his skill at lying was kept sharp?

one of my favorite characters and actors on DS9.

My all time favourite TV character from my favourite TV show. In the hands of less talented writers and actor, Garak would have just been the one dimensional bad guy. But, he was the most complex character on the show…always seeming conflicted about who’s side he wanted to be on, and where he belonged, where his place was. I also thought he was the saddest and most sympathetic character on the show…the one character who was truly alone. I know he had his friendship with Bashir, but even he never really trusted him fully. Robinson is absolutely right about the bias that people have against sci-fi shows. Had he given that level of performance in another genre of show, he would have been a shoo-in for an Emmy…or, at the very least, a nomination.

Garak was one of the most underrated and unique characters in Star Trek and Robinson did a fantastic job with him.

Amazing actor, him, wenyun(sorry for spelling) and odor stole the show. Played it so well I’d love to see him and the doctor back on TV. They should try and do a mini series like mandalorion but with different characters from the past so we see what they are doing now. I watched it as a young child so I was only 11 and I never realised how gay he played the character but it makes total sense now. I remember him being very touchy feely with Bashir but as a kid I never realised but makes sense now. I’m not sure how the doctor would of reacted to garrak if he did make a move lol. Me looking back the doctor was very hetrosexual with an open mind so who knows…

I must say, I’m a bit creeped out by him describing even a theoretical Nazi role as “badass.”

“But what was nice, since it would have been boring for me to just to play a badass Nazi dressed as a Cardassian.”

• REVIEW: ‘Cathy’s Curse’ is revamped for new Severin release
• INTERVIEW: Pat Kinevane on his latest solo creation, now playing LA’s Odyssey Theatre
• INTERVIEW: Dr. Alex Schnell unearths ‘Secrets of the Octopus’
• INTERVIEW: Byeong Woo Lee makes NY debut, and he’s bringing ‘Mother’
• INTERVIEW: Jayne Atkinson returns to NY for new stage role

INTERVIEW: Andrew Robinson on the joy of playing Garak on ‘Star Trek: Deep Space Nine’

Image courtesy of Creation Entertainment / Provided with permission.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine regularly ranks at the top — if not the very top — of most polls for best Star Trek series of all time. And on the show, the character of Elim Garak, portrayed by veteran actor Andrew Robinson, proves to be a fan favorite, even more than 20 years after his debut on the series.

Robinson, an accomplished actor who has appeared in everything from Dirty Harry to Hellraiser , will talk about Garak and his experiences on the DS9 set today, July 18 at 12:30 p.m. PDT (3:30 p.m. EST) at a special virtual Q&A courtesy of Creation Entertainment and StageIt. For those fans who want to go even deeper with Robinson, there are auction tickets available for an exclusive virtual meet and greet, set for Wednesday, July 22 at 3 p.m. PDT (6 p.m. EST).

“It’s a unique thing,” Robinson said in a recent phone interview about the whole convention scene. “I came to it fairly late in my career. Up until when I started doing Deep Space Nine and being asked to conventions, I had never done anything like this. It was a unique situation to get to meet the people who basically support you.”

When Robinson signed on the dotted line and agreed to portray the Cardassian known as Garak, he thought it would be a one-time-only performance. The character was meant to have a tiny arc and essentially be relegated to a guest star; however, the role and the storyline proved to be such a favorite amongst fans and the creative team behind the show that Robinson was invited back and eventually logged dozens of episodes.

“The thing is I didn’t know that I was going to be on the show beyond the very first time I was on it,” he admitted. “I thought it was just a one-shot deal, and then gradually, it was maybe two, maybe even three years when suddenly they started asking me back. And I realized that this character I was playing, Garak, it blew my mind that he became so popular, so it took awhile for me. Once it hit home, I realized that things would never be the same again. … It exceeded my expectations. I had no idea that this character would figure in so importantly at the end of the show and in terms of how things turned out.”

Robinson said he loved the mystery behind the character and the obvious secrets he was holding back. The fact that Garak is not easily categorized as good or bad made him a joy to play — a real challenge for a veteran theater actor like Robinson. Helping him along the way were cast members like Armin Shimerman, Nana Visitor, Alexander Siddig and the late, great René Auberjonois.

“Some of the people, like Armin, like René Auberjonois, these are people that I had known before and worked with before, and I only got to do the show more than once because Siddig and I really got along very well,” Robinson said. “Basically they brought Garak in to give Siddig’s character, Dr. Bashir, a storyline, and they were only going to go with me as long as Sid and I had some chemistry. And we did. We became very friendly. I mean, we still are good friends.”

The legacy of Deep Space Nine continues to grow, with old fans ranking the series as one of the best, and new fans binge-watching the show in record time. There was even a successful documentary a couple years ago thanks to series showrunner Ira Steven Behr. What We Left Behind looked closely at the impact of the seminal show and in particular at the Garak character.

“For me, I always thought it was the best show,” Robinson said. “The show as a whole was ambiguous. It was an ambiguous universe, unlike the other Star Trek shows. You couldn’t identify the good and evil quite so clearly. It wasn’t that clearly delineated, and I think at the beginning a lot of people were upset because we weren’t following that standard procedure of a Star Trek show. But I think over the years as we’ve become as a society more complex and certainly ambiguous, I think people appreciate the kind of world that was created on Deep Space Nine .”

Many fans have interpreted Garak as an early Star Trek character who was gay. Although his sexuality was never explicitly mentioned throughout the series, Robinson believed there was an obvious connection between his character and Bashir.

“That was always my choice,” he said. “That was part of my little shtick, that when he first meets Dr. Bashir there is as much a sexual attraction as there is a stratagem of a spy.”

Working on the DS9 set was fun, but difficult. Robinson talked about being in makeup and costume for 10-15 hours per day, and the series cast members were a “pretty serious lot.” But the hard work paid off with thrilling episodes and multi-episode arcs, like the Dominion War sequence. For Robinson, the long hours and grueling time in the makeup chair all helped him carve out a believable (albeit alien) character.

“I have to go deep on a character with any performance,” he said. “The challenge here was the fact that nobody knew much about Cardassians, and so how do you play an alien for one thing, someone who is not a human being. … Klingons were there from the beginning. Romulans were there from the beginnings and so forth, but Cardassians were fairly new. There were just a couple before me, and so I had to create a whole thing about Cardassians. And that’s one of the reasons that got me writing my book about Garak [ A Stitch in Time ]. It started out as just a personal bio of the character, and then it expanded into a book that eventually got published. But the entire instigation to write that book was to find out who this character is.”

Robinson was a trailblazer with A Stitch in Time , the 27th book in the Deep Space Nine canon. He was an actor writing the backstory to his Star Trek character, which is fairly unprecedented. Today, although the book is out of print (though available in e-book form), back copies sell for northward of $100 on Amazon and eBay.

One might think Robinson would make a good memoirist as well. After all, his career has spanned decades and included so many memorable roles, both in front of the camera and behind the camera. His film work actually started with Clint Eastwood’s Dirty Harry.

“It was great,” he said of the job. “It was insane because it was my first movie, and then to play somebody who was so obviously over-the-top insane and evil. … I came directly from doing an off-Broadway play into that movie, so it was like going down the rabbit hole. … I knew what to do. I was nervous as hell, but I knew how to do my job and how to create a character. So that was really important. If you walk into one of those situations, and you don’t know what to do, you’re cooked.”

Other movies included The Drowning Pool, Mask, Cobra and 1987’s Hellraiser with Clive Barker. “I go to the occasional horror conventions, and Hellraiser I find a lot of people who love that movie, especially if conventions gather together a lot of the cast,” Robinson said. “A whole bunch of fans come out of the woodwork for that.”

The directing for Robinson began with Deep Space Nine , and then he helmed a few Star Trek: Voyager episodes. His longest stint in the director’s chair was for Judging Amy .

“I love that show,” he said. “The cast was great, Amy [Brenneman] and Tyne Daly. The production, everything about it was superb. As a matter of fact it was such a great experience — because I eventually ended up on the roster of directors — that after seven years when the show ended I didn’t want to direct any more television because I knew it was not going to be as good as Judging Amy . The experience wasn’t going to be as good.”

Much of Robinson’s professional life has been upturned because of the coronavirus. He has not been able to appear in any theatrical productions, which is his preference nowadays, and his convention appearances have been moved online. He’s hoping that the country and the world get back on track at some point.

“The thing is, if you’ll pardon the expression, our leaders, our government f—ed up,” he said. “It’s a killer, literally a killer. So many people have died unnecessarily, and people are going hungry and out of work. It’s just been so mishandled, so I have no idea. I’m hoping that we’ve learned something, and that the resurgence of this virus is going to teach us that now we really have to buckle down and get rid of the f—er. Otherwise we’re going to be doing this until they come up with some type of vaccine, and I ain’t holding my breath for that either. … This whole thing about blaming China and us pulling out of the World Health Organization, this is f—ing insane. It’s insane.”

Art and artists can help pave a path forward. Robinson knows that writers will be responding to this pandemic for years to come. (He even admitted that he has been writing some essays and thinking about another fiction project.)

“While they’re going underground at this point, I think a lot of writers are going to be coming up with stuff,” Robinson said. “They’re going to be projects that are going to be dealing with the changes that we have to make. I feel very positive about that, and I think the artists and the industry can be and will be enormously helpful. It won’t be business as usual.”

For Robinson, at this point in his life and career, he likes to look ahead to better days, but he’s also protective of the past and still cherishes his time with his fellow Deep Space Nine cast members.

“I really move ahead, but the thing is at my age I do cherish my memories,” he said. “And I find the older I get the more grateful I am for the memories I have. That sounds a bit corny, but it’s true. I do try to keep moving forward.”

By John Soltes / Publisher / [email protected]

Andrew Robinson will appear at a virtual Q&A today, July 18 at 12:30 p.m. PDT (3:30 p.m. EST), courtesy of Creation Entertainment and StageIt. His exclusive meet and greet is set for Wednesday, July 22 at 3 p.m. PDT (6 p.m. EST). Click here for more information.

• INTERVIEW: Richard Starkings continues to ‘Ask for Mercy’
• NEW ON BLU-RAY: ‘The Wild Goose Lake’

John Soltes

John Soltes is an award-winning journalist. His writing has appeared in The New York Times, Earth Island Journal, The Hollywood Reporter, New Jersey Monthly and at Time.com, among other publications. E-mail him at [email protected]

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Andrew Jordt Robinson

An unofficial fan site

Andrew Jordt Robinson was born in New York City, USA on February 14th 1942. Andrew attended St Andrew’s School after becoming a juvenile delinquent. After leaving high school Andrew attended the University of New Hampshire, he then transferred to The New School For Social Research where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in English.

He has also directed an Episode of Deep Space 9 (Looking for par’Mach in all the wrong places) and two episodes of Voyager (Unforgettable and Blood Fever)  as well as episodes of the courtroom drama Judging Amy.

Andrew has been nominated for several awards one which was an Emmy for Outstanding Actor in a Daytime Drama Series (Ryan’s Hope). He has won several L.A. Drama Critics Circle and Ovation Awards for both acting and directing.

He helped found The Matrix Theatre Company in Los Angeles.

He has written a novel called A Stitch In Time where he continues the life of Elim Garak. He has also written a short story which featured in Star Trek Prophecy And Change called The Calling.

Andy Was a Professor of Theatre Practice at the University of Southern California’s School of Dramatic Arts where he created the MFA Professio nal Actor Training Program, but has recently retired from the programme to go back to acting.

Star Trek: Deep Space Nine (1993–1999)

Andrew robinson: garak.

• Photos (113)

Photos 

Quotes 

Garak : [Cornered by a group of Klingons in his store]  Well, let me guess! You're either lost, or desperately searching for a good tailor.

Doctor Bashir : [Shoots at Garak and inspects the injury]  You'll be fine, it's just a flesh wound.

Garak : That was awfully close. What if you killed me?

Doctor Bashir : What makes you think I wasn't trying?

Garak : Doctor, I do believe there's hope for you yet.

Release Dates | Official Sites | Company Credits | Filming & Production | Technical Specs

• Full Cast and Crew
• Release Dates
• Official Sites
• Company Credits
• Filming & Production
• Technical Specs
• Plot Summary
• Plot Keywords
• Parents Guide

Did You Know?

• Crazy Credits
• Alternate Versions
• Connections
• Soundtracks

Photo & Video

• Photo Gallery
• Trailers and Videos
• User Reviews
• User Ratings
• External Reviews
• Metacritic Reviews
• Episode List

Related Items

• External Sites

Related lists from IMDb users

Recently Viewed

Latest Tweets

• December 2023
• August 2022
• February 2021
• January 2021
• December 2020

Andrew Robinson Chats ‘Deep Space Nine’, Garak, ‘What We Left Behind’ Documentary

As a longtime  Star Trek: Deep Space Nine  fan, this has been a super surreal week of work interviews, readers. Seriously. You can kind of sort of get the impression of fulfilling a fangirl’s dream when I got to speak with  Nana Visitor , who played Major Kira Nerys on the third live-action  Star Trek  series (which  you can read here ), Armin Shimerman who played Ferengi bartender Quark (which you can read here ), and continued with  Andrew Robinson  who played Cardassian tailor and spymaster Elim Garak.

I also managed to sneak a  Hellraiser  reboot question in too!

The  DS9  family granted some interviews to chat about the upcoming long-gestating documentary,  What We Left Behind , which will have a theatrical release on  Monday May 13th thanks to Fathom Events and SHOUT! Studios, the latter holding the worldwide distribution rights for the incredible doc.

[This interview has been edited for clarity, and attempts to lessen the fangirl reactions.]

Andrew: Hello there, how are YOU doing today?

Mab: Gotta be honest, this is the most surreal day for someone who’s favorite  Star Trek is Deep Space Nine . It’s amazing. I wish I could go back in time and tell middle-school me this would be happening.

Andrew: [laughs] Right, with all of these chats.

Mab: So. Andrew. You were Garak, you still kind of are Garak, since no one else ever was or will be.

Andrew: I was indeed.

Mab: You continued playing the character in the various video games as well, which doesn’t always happen. In a way, you never really stopped.

Andrew: In a sense it’s really so unique as an actor who started on a show way back when, we’re not only still talking about it, but celebrating it. With the video games, and the documentary, it’s pretty extraordinary.

Mab: How much of you, Andy, was in the character?

Andrew: The thing is, you get a role, and you pray it’s well-written. When I say that, I mean that it’s fleshed out, specifics about the character, that there is dimension. Perhaps the most important part of Garak was that he was well-written. Beyond that, everything else was me. Even though I’m not as skilled a liar as Garak is, I learned how to lie well. It’s not something you’d think of as being a positive to learn, but as an actor, it’s important to learn how to lie well. It’s probably the only thing I had to work harder on.

Mab: Oh so you knew how to sew then!

Andrew: [laughs] No! No no, I didn’t, but honestly I never did learn how to sew.

Mab: One of the wonderful parts of the documentary (of which there are SEVERAL) has questions of fans about their favorite characters. Garak was a common answer, him being one of the best characters in the series, how does that make you feel as the man behind the neck ridges?

Andrew: Surprised as hell. Hearing that of the 170 episodes, I was in 39. I’m grateful, indeed grateful. And Garak may be emblematic of the series as a whole, in that he was neither good nor bad. He was not a black or white character, just as Deep Space Nine wasn’t your conventional star trek series. More ambiguous, more grey to it. And the mystery of Garak over the years, you don’t really know where he’s coming from, or what he represents. The mystery of him is what holds up.

Mab: One of the things Ira [Stephen Behr] says in the doc is if he were to do the show again, if it were on right now, he would go forward with the notion that Garak was gay.

Andrew: I had kind of hoped they would have explored that a little more, but that’s ok. The times were the times, and now is a different time than then. I came up with the idea, not so much of Garak being gay, but when I first got the job, I didn’t know what a Cardassian was. I had to figure out how to play a Cardassian, what are the tastes and behaviors of a Cardassian.

When I was first introduced in that first episode, to get involved in a relationship with Dr. Bashir, what is that initial attraction? Is it just me being calculating to exploit this young man, to get information from him? I thought “yeah I could do that,” but as an actor, I wanted to make the more interesting choice. So for me, as an actor, I chose to be sexually attracted to Dr. Bashir. And then that leads into a deeper and longer lasting relationship.

Mab: Was there anything you discovered about the character during the documentary? Something that maybe you weren’t aware of during filming, or something that just came to light during the production of the doc? 

Andrew: Not really, because I was playing Garak as he came to me. As each script came to me, and as the character evolved over the years. For the, probably the most satisfying aspect was how he grew. And it was clear that the writers loved writing for him. I eagerly awaited each episode Garak appeared in, because we knew there was always something knew revealed about him

And then in the last season, when Garak basically became a freedom fighter, the story arc, I was just blown away by what they wrote for him. I feel like he was complete, when the series ended, I was thoroughly satisfied.

Mab: What would you tell someone just coming to the series for the first time? Someone suddenly discovering the show, what would you tell them about it or your character?

Andrew: Start from the beginning. Start from the beginning, and just see what eventually became a great series, how it evolved. Because in the beginning, it was more conventional, as each individual episode was self-contained, each had it’s own story, and they were brilliant, social and politically conscious stories like “Duet”, “The Wire”, and “By Pale Moonlight”.

But stay with it, watch how the storytelling changes, how it evolves into the long narrative arc that is common-place for television series that wasn’t a thing at that time. You can see that shift happening. Because of the unique circumstances that Ira Behr, not only had his wonderful cast of series regulars, but how we brought in all of us, the Jeffrey Combs , the Casey Biggs , the Chase Mastersons , the Max Grodénchiks , the Andy Robinsons , to come in and fill that universe so that he created this huge canvas to tell this epic story, in an epic narrative.

Mab: My last question isn’t a Star Trek one, but has to do with some news that just came out, that there is going to be a Hellraiser reboot . [Andrew was in the original Clive Barker film as Larry] And I was wondering if maybe you had any thoughts about it?

Andrew: I don’t know how they would improve!! Hellraiser was unique. Clive Barker wrote and directed it. if they do it, it’ll be a very different thing. That original Hellraiser was one of a kind. [laughs] It was the weirdest, and in a sense strangest and most disturbing film I’ve ever done.

Thank you again x1000000 to Shout for organizing the interview, and to Mr. Robinson for his time.

What We Left Behind  hits theaters for one night only on Monday May 13th through Fathom Events.

About Mary Anne Butler

Bleeding Cool News Editor Mary Anne Butler (Mab, for short) has been part of the fast-paced world of journalism since she was 15, getting her start in album reviews and live concert coverage for a nationally published (print) music magazine. She eventually transitioned to online media, writing for such sites as UGO/IGN, ComicsOnline, Geek Magazine, Ace of Geeks, Aggressive Comix (where she is still Editor-in-Chief), and most recently Bleeding Cool.



Over the past 10 years, she’s built a presence at conventions across the globe as a cosplayer (occasionally), photographer (constantly), panelist and moderator (mostly), and reporter (always). 



Interviews, reviews, observations, breaking news, and objective reporting are the name of the game for the founder of Harkonnen Knife Fight, a Dune-themed band with an international presence. 



Though she be but little, she is fierce. #MabTheProfessional

(Last Updated May 10, 2019 2:50 pm )

Source: www.bleedingcool.com

Keeping up with a Cardassian: Star Trek's Andrew Robinson is coming to town

Andrew Robinson’s career has taken him from the East Coast to the West Coast to the edge of the galaxy. Andy is best known for the role of Garak, the morally ambiguous Cardassian on "Star Trek Deep Space Nine," but he has been a working stage and screen actor since the 1960s. Robinson will be a celebrity guest this weekend at Pensacon . He spoke this week with Bob Barrett, who asked him about one of his earliest roles, the Scorpio Killer in the original "Dirty Harry."

Andrew Robinson: Oh, well, that was my first film, so it was an introduction to a whole new world for me. But I loved the experience of working with a great director, working with Clint, and working in San Francisco. I was on the East Coast at the time when they hired me. So, that was such a pleasure and a real introduction to the world of film.

Bob Barrett: From the beginning of that film, did you see the 'Dirty Harry' character resonating with the public as much as it did?

Robinson: No. But I mean, when I first got it the script, I'd never done a film. I was a stage actor in New York, and I didn't even know how to read a script. A friend of mine who was more experienced had to help me out, because when I read the script, I thought, this is pretty boring, and this character doesn't seem to do much except kill people or threaten to kill people. And I thought I wasn't even sure that I wanted to do it. I did want to act in film, but I had no idea what this was about. But then my friend assured me, 'No, this is really an interesting character.' And then he helped me understand how you can build a character on film, and it's a different way of building character (than) on stage, which I knew how to do. I had done a lot of theater at that point. And then, sure enough, when I got out to San Francisco and started working, it was a real revelation to me. It was an eye-opener. I so loved the process. Of course, I was working with a great director, Don Siegel, who had done a lot of really wonderful films. He was the perfect person for me to make my sort of film debut. And then, of course, working with Clint, who's at that point, he was a huge star, but very workmanlike. He was very professional. Basically, he was just another actor that I was working with. And that's the way he wanted it. It was a magical time. I mean, it was really an amazing time. And when I saw the film in a screening the first time, Don Siegel invited me to a screening at Warner Brothers, I think it was, and I saw it. It took my breath away. I had no idea. I had no idea that, first of all, the film has a lot of power. It still does. The film holds up. It has incredible visual power. And Lalo Schifren's score underscores the power of the story. But then my work, I thought, my God, I had no idea I was capable of this kind of thing. It was an adventure.

Barrett: You certainly had quite the head of hair.

Robinson: (chuckles) Yes, indeed. Yes, I did.

Barrett: And did I read correctly that your stepson had a minor role in that?

Robinson: Yeah, actually, the very final sequence where Harry kills the Scorpio killer, and the killer grabs this kid who's fishing on a dock, in a quarry, and holds him hostage. That was, Steve. Dear Steve. And I had to scare the hell out of him. At one point, the director said to me, he said, 'You know, listen, he's not scared enough. You're going to have to scare him.' And I said, 'Come on, Steve, don't do this. To know your mother will kill me if I abuse you.' But it worked out great. He was properly scared.

Barrett: Well, let's talk about the role that so many people are going to be interested in. Your role on "Star Trek Deep Space Nine" as the Cardassian tailor, Garak. That seemed to be a great role because you never really knew where that guy was coming from, did you?

Robinson: No, never. And it was. And for that reason, it was a great role. I mean, he had a subtext and an inner life that was all his own. That role was a gift from the acting gods. I miss playing that role, actually. I don't miss the makeup or the prosthetics, but I do miss playing that role.

Barrett: How difficult is it working with that much stuff on your face, just trying to convey emotion?

Robinson: Well, after a while, you get used to it. I mean, when I first put it on, I thought, 'God, this is going to kill me.' And I'm claustrophobic to begin with. And so it was like one of the most uncomfortable costumes, and makeup experiences, or probably the most, uncomfortable one that I've ever had. But once you get going and you start acting, then you just forget about it. And the technology of the makeup is so high quality. The facial pieces that they put on you, the latex, it doesn't encase you as much as it looks. And there is a certain amount of flexibility so that facially, I can express what's happening, and, not just through the eyes.

Barrett: Who was the most famous real live person you ever portrayed?

Robinson: Probably John Kennedy, I would think. You know, Liberace is up there, too.

Barrett: Those were the two I had written down.

Robinson: Yeah, yeah, there are a few others, but not as famous.

Barrett: Was Liberace still alive when you played him?

Robinson: No. He had died a few years before.

Barrett: That must have been fun, though.

Robinson: Oh, it was great. And what was also great about it was that they had his real costumes and his jewelry that I was able to use. So that was quite amazing, putting on his stuff. And the man was, he was a powerful, physically powerful person. And you could tell because the weight of his costumes nearly killed me. They were so heavy. And his jewelry, I mean, his jewelry was huge that they wore in his fingers, and obviously, he had big hands, and so they had to tape that, the rings on me. It was pretty funny.

Barrett: Could you talk just for a little bit about making the movie 'Hellraiser,' because you were the lead in that movie, and that took some people aback.

Robinson: No, it was a strange film. It was probably the strangest film I've ever done in my life. And also at the time, that was the late 80s. It was a groundbreaker in terms of horror. And again, I met this, at the time, young man, Clive Barker, who wrote and directed it. And I couldn't believe that he (wrote this) because he looked like this choir boy from Liverpool, and with this incredible imagination. But I had a great time because I was able to play those two characters. You know, the good brother and then finally the bad brother. It was an eye-opener for me, actually, because I always thought that horror films were a certain genre. That’s fine. But this one, this one had depth to it. And I was also working with wonderful people. I mean, Clive, of course, who's a genius, and then Claire Higgins, one of the best actors in England at the time. It was such a pleasure.

Barrett: When you go to conventions and meet the fans, what do they want from you? What do they want to talk about?

Robinson: They just want to talk. They just want to introduce themselves. I'm always flattered, I'm honored that they felt strongly enough about my work, that they would come, and I basically will talk about whatever they want to talk about. And it's a pleasure. I actually have a good time doing it. And as you know, fans come from all walks of life, everything from soup to nuts. I don't mean crazy people. Well, I've run into a few of those too, but not many, thankfully. But it's always interesting to me what gets them into this genre. Why "Deep Space Nine," and "Star Trek," has grabbed their imagination. So it's a pleasure, it gets me out. And it's also, interestingly enough, I've been doing this for a long time. Going to these conventions was the first time I ever had a chance to meet the people who actually support me, to meet the fans. Before I never did, there were no conventions, that I ever went to, until I started going to the "Star Trek" conventions. And now, because of "Hellraiser," I'll also go to horror conventions as well, but they're totally different from "Star Trek"

Barrett: And, obviously, there are no "Dirty Harry" conventions.

Robinson: No. (chuckles) And that’s fine. That was way back in the day.

AR: I was originally approached to play the role of Odo, the shape-shifter, but then Rene Auberjonois got the part and I was asked to read for Garak instead. He was created to be a friend for Dr Bashir, to give him more to do, and the producers thought we made a great team. We worked so well together that they kept having me back.

The producers soon realised what an interesting character Garak was, and what a unique situation he was in, being the last Cardassian on the station, a tailor, and a spy. The mystery surrounding Garak was very attractive and they got more and more interested in unravelling it. Eventually, by the end of the show, I was right at the centre of the action.

RG: Did you have any influence as to how Garak was portrayed, and what happened to him?

AR: It was a strictly scripted show and that's what I liked about it. The writers always came up with high quality material. They paid close attention to what the actors were doing though, observed our behaviour and factored that into their writing. They were very smart that way. It was a dream, it really was.

RG: How much of a nightmare was the make-up process? Michael Dorn [Worf] was well known for moaning about it. Are you glad you don't have to do that any more?

AR: Michael whinged constantly about his make up! It was hard. Long hours in the chair and difficult on the skin. The more make-up you wore, the earlier you had to get to work, so my days were significantly longer than, say, anyone who just had to slip on a uniform and brush their hair. I'd remind myself, though, that without the make-up there would be no Garak and I must say, if I had a chance to be him again, I'd be willing to go back in that make-up chair.

RG: Would you say that the character only really came together, for you as an actor, once you had the full make-up on for the first time?

AR: That's very true. When I first got the job I had no idea what a Cardassian was or how I was going to play Garak. But when I finally got into full make-up and costume, there he was, there was the character, and instinctively I knew what to do with him.

RG: Would you say that working on a long-running television series offers a greater range of acting challenges than you'd get on a film?

AR: It's wonderful to be able to develop a character over seven years. That's an exquisite luxury and especially when you're not a regular. If you're a regular it becomes a grind, you do show after show after show, and it's exhausting. But to do it irregularly as a recurring character, the way that I did Garak, was perfect. When you do a film you have just one opportunity to get the character right. Of course, you have longer to make a movie than you do a single episode of a show, two months as opposed to a week and a half, but you can't beat seven years if you really want to explore a character inside and out.

RG: Now that the show's behind you, how do you feel about Garak?

AR: Garak is one of those guys, we all know someone a bit like him, who you can't trust as far as you can spit. The moment you see him you put your hand on your wallet, and the moment he opens his mouth you know he's going to lie to you, but yet, somehow, you'd rather be in his company than with almost anybody else. He's a charming rogue, you can't deny it. Even I get sucked in by him. Although it's me playing him, when I see Garak on TV, I swear to god this is true, I'm fascinated.

RG: What was your favourite episode of Deep Space Nine ?

AR: The second season episode The Wire . Bashir helps Garak come off an addiction and that was some of the best acting I've ever done. And the script, by Robert Wolfe, was wonderful.

RG: It's well documented that spirits often ran high on the set of The Next Generation . Was it the same on DS9 ?

AR: It was different. It wasn't as free and easy certainly as the Voyager and Next Generation sets. They were always joking around and playing tricks on one another. The DS9 set was a bit lower key. Not that we weren't friendly, we were just a bit more serious.

RG: Originally billed as Siddig El Fadil, the actor known as Julian Bashir changed his name to Alexander Siddig during the show's run. Didn't he try to change it again?

AR: He really wanted to change his name every season. It drove the producers crazy. They let him do it once, and that was all. We always called him Sid, though, no matter what the credits said. I'm glad to say we're still very good friends.

RG: You've also directed DS9 and Voyager episodes. What was that like?

AR: I was very grateful to the producers for giving me a chance to direct because that opened up a whole new career for me. It was funny directing the cast because suddenly it was me calling the shots, making the decisions and ordering everyone around. I liked it, though!"

RG: Finally, how do you feel about the fans? They're certainly more vocal than most.

AR: Fans pay my bills, they're the people who support me. I expect them to be in my face because that's the deal. I don't understand actors who feel put out by the attention. On the whole I'd say Star Trek fans are very decent, generous, considerate people who have this love for the genre. I certainly find them to be a lot more civilised than, say, football fans.

RG: Thank you for your time.

With thanks to Frederique Slezak at Paramount's Press Office

Season Three of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine is available to buy from Paramount Home Entertainment from 23 June 2003 RR P £84.99 (DVD)

For a list of other relevant sites click here .

Return to...

• Skip to main content
• Skip to secondary menu
• Skip to primary sidebar

Good e-Reader

Rediscovering a beloved ‘Star Trek’ classic: Andrew Robinson’s Audiobook – A Stitch in Time

4 August 2023 By Sovan Mandal 3 Comments

The boundless cosmos of the Star Trek franchise has introduced to us a myriad of captivating characters. Among these, one enigmatic figure stands out, capturing the adoration and passion of fans with unparalleled intensity. As The Mary Sue pointed out, Andrew Robinson’s portrayal of Elim Garak on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine has etched a lasting place in the hearts of Trekkies, leaving an indelible mark on the rich tapestry of this beloved sci-fi universe.

Among the constellation of recurring players, Garak emerged as a once-unknown supporting character, introduced to the audience as a mysterious possible villain-of-the-week for Starfleet Doctor Julian Bashir, portrayed by Alexander Siddig. But fate had greater plans for Garak, and Robinson’s brilliant performance alongside Siddig’s undeniable chemistry breathed life into the character, earning him a coveted spot as a recurring presence in the series. Though his appearances were limited compared to others, Garak’s multifaceted persona as a former spy of the Cardassian Obsidian Order and a master tailor resonated deeply, endowing him with a cherished status within Star Trek’s cherished history.

While Garak’s intriguing journey unfolded on live-action television, his story traversed far beyond the boundaries of the small screen. The cosmos of extended universe media, including video games, comics, and most notably, novels, bore witness to the continuation of his enigmatic exploits. Among the treasured literary works, one novel stands out as a true gem: “A Stitch in Time,” a literary creation penned by none other than Andrew Robinson himself. Inspired by a series of intimate journal entries written during his time on the set of Deep Space Nine, Robinson embarked on a voyage to explore Garak’s innermost thoughts and emotions. Encouraged by the enthusiastic response from fans, who reveled in hearing these personal musings during conventions, Robinson transformed the journal into a proper novel—a gift to the devoted fanbase.

“A Stitch in Time” transcends the conventional boundaries of a typical Star Trek novel, evoking a unique fascination among fans of the Garak/Bashir dynamic. While the constraints of ’90s television norms prevented overt expressions of romantic connection between the characters on screen, Robinson’s heartfelt confirmation of Garak’s profound interest in Doctor Bashir breathed a new dimension into their relationship. Beyond the confines of the TV show, Robinson and Siddig brought their characters to life through fanworks and live performances at conventions, forging a deep connection with fans. The novel itself, presented as a poignant letter from Garak to Bashir, offers a glimpse into the depths of the enigmatic ex-spy’s soul—unveiling a breathtaking display of vulnerability and truthfulness.

Originally published in June 2000, “A Stitch in Time” became a coveted treasure for diehard Trekkies, sought after with zealous determination. However, the cosmic winds of fate have aligned once again, heralding an exciting revelation for fans. Simon & Schuster’s announcement of Andrew Robinson recording an audiobook version brings new hope to all who seek to experience the magic of Garak’s tale. With the actor himself lending his voice to his literary creation, this unprecedented milestone marks the first time in Star Trek history that an original TV character is both the author and narrator of a novel. As the cosmic pages turn, fans can immerse themselves in the velvety tones of Robinson’s voice, rediscovering Garak’s captivating journey within the boundless reaches of the Star Trek universe.

Now, the celestial curtain rises, and “A Stitch in Time,” the captivating audiobook written and narrated by Andrew Robinson, takes its rightful place among the constellations of cherished Star Trek lore, beckoning fans old and new to embark on an unforgettable voyage filled with intrigue, passion, and the timeless spirit of exploration.

Sovan Mandal

With a keen interest in tech, I make it a point to keep myself updated on the latest developments in technology and gadgets. That includes smartphones or tablet devices but stretches to even AI and self-driven automobiles, the latter being my latest fad. Besides writing, I like watching videos, reading, listening to music, or experimenting with different recipes. The motion picture is another aspect that interests me a lot, and I'll likely make a film sometime in the future.

A Stitch in Time

• View history

The enigmatic Garak – Cardassian -in-exile on space station Deep Space 9 – refers to himself as "just a simple tailor ", but everyone knows that there's more to him than that. Why was he banished from his home planet? And why does he choose exile on Deep Space 9? This novel answers these questions, as well as detailing the role he plays in the reconstruction of Cardassian society following the Dominion War .

On 21 June 2023 , it was announced that an audiobook, read by Robinson himself, would be released on 1 August 2023 . [1]

• 2 Memorable quotes
• 3.1 Characters
• 3.2 References
• 4 External links

Summary [ ]

Memorable quotes [ ].

" The Obsidian Order? " I asked. " What do you know about us? " " Nothing. " " That's a good start. "

Background information [ ]

• This is the final Pocket DS9 numbered novel.
• This book is written by Andrew Robinson , who played Elim Garak in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine . Robinson recalled the process which led to the writing of the novel: " I started writing about Garak because, coming to the Star Trek franchise and being cast as an alien, a Cardassian, I had no idea what that was. I barely know about Human beings. But then suddenly to be cast as an alien… it was a challenge. So I decided to write about the character and create the world of the character and I did this in the form of a diary that Garak kept: every day he would write about his experiences and so forth. And then I started going to conventions, like this one, and I started reading from the diary and the fans, the audiences loved it. So I started writing more, and I started crafting it more and, like a lot of people, I've always wanted to write a novel! That's when I started working into a novel. Then the people at Simon and Schuster, the publisher, agreed to let me do it, and it was a bit of a big deal because I was the first actor to write a novel without what they call a ghost writer, or with someone else writing it for me. Because I wanted to write it by myself, I didn't want anybody else writing it. " [2]
• Robinson was encouraged to turn his journal into a novel by Star Trek author David R. George III , who introduced him to the Pocket editors. ( Voyages of Imagination , p. 255)
• Robinson was interviewed regarding the novel in Star Trek: The Magazine  Volume 1, Issue 14 , pp. 30-33.
• Among other plot points, the book reveals that Mila was Garak's mother, recalls Garak's days at the Obsidian Order 's training academy, and recounts how Garak came to be assigned to the Cardassian embassy on Romulus (and why his cover was being a gardener ). The book also further develops the backstories of the Oralian Way and the animosity between Garak and Dukat .
• The novel, along with the anthology The Lives of Dax , was later retroactively inserted into the ongoing Deep Space Nine relaunch series , which commenced the following year. Robinson wrote a follow-up short story named "The Calling" in Prophecy and Change and Alone Together: A DS9 Companion which he and Alexander Siddig performed during the COVID-19 pandemic. [3] Robinson commented, " It takes place 25 years beyond the show and the book that I wrote. I don't want to give away the story. Garak and Bashir have had very little contact over the years. But Garak has contacted Bashir because he needs his help with the problem that he’s having. " [4]
• An audio adaptation was announced in 2022.
• The maps featured in the novel were created by Alan Kobayashi .
• An extract from this novel appeared in Star Trek Monthly  issue 67 .
• This novel contained Chapter Ten of the serialized novel Starfleet: Year One .

Characters [ ]

References [ ], external links [ ].

• A Stitch in Time at Wikipedia
• A Stitch in Time at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• 3 ISS Enterprise (NCC-1701)

Did Star Trek: Deep Space Nine's James Bond Parody Go Too Far?

• Bashir in "Our Man Bashir" transformed fan opinions, crucial to his character’s evolution on Star Trek.
• “Our Man Bashir” was a James Bond parody, causing MGM to complain
• MGM's concerns about James Bond parodies in DS9 led to toned-down references in the sequel episode.

TV LEGEND : Star Trek: Deep Space Nine had to tone down its James Bond parodies from "Our Man Bashir" when it did a sequel episode, due to complaints from MGM over the episode.

When Star Trek: Deep Space Nine launched in 1993, audiences seemed to have a bit of a hard time with one character in particular on the series, which was about the space station, Deep Space Nine, which was near a wormhole that connected Federation territory to the Gamma Quadrant on the edges of the Milky Way. The station was built by the Cardassians during the time that they had conquered the planet, Bajor, which was nearest to the station. Bajor fought for, and eventually won, its independence, and Bajor then requested the Federation to come in and co-manage the space station with Bajor. Avery Brooks' Commander Benjamin Sisko was the Federation head of the station.

The character that viewers seemed to have a problem with was the station's Chief Medical Officer, Julian Bashir, played by Alexander Siddig (although he used his real name, Siddig el Fadil, for the show's first three seasons). Bashir was arrogant, and off-putting, and fans really didn't seem to care for him. Siddig noted that the episode that changed everything for his character was Season 4's "Our Man Bashir," which saw Bashir get caught up in a malfunctioning holosuite during a spy story. He noted to StarTrek.com :

I think 'Our Man Bashir' was probably one of the most important in terms of changing attitudes towards Bashir. I think that was probably one of the most-influential episodes. I don’t know if it’s one of the best, but it is certainly super-influential. I remember opinions began to change after that episode. So that would probably be an important one, historically.

The episode was intended as a parody of the James Bond films, coming out right when the Bond films were returning to theaters with Pierce Brosnan taking over the role of Bond in 1995's Goldeneye . As it turned out, though, the episode was TOO close to Bond for MGM, leading to the sequel of the episode being a lot different!

Why was an Adventure Time Episode Forced to Become About Soup?

What was "Our Man Bashir" about?

A common theme in episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation had been holosuite adventures gone horribly wrong , so Star Trek: Deep Space Nine intentionally planned to avoid doing any episodes like that, and just kept the holosuite references to normal examples of the characters describing amazing adventures they were having in the holosuites offscreen. However, Assistant Script Coordinator Bib Gillan came up with a concept that the show's producers liked enough that Ronald D. Moore turned it into a screenplay.

The concept was to combine the malfunctioning holosuite concept with a malfunctioning transporter. The main cast members of Deep Space Nine are in a transporter accident, and they are saved, but they are stored, in effect, digitally, while trying to be restored to their flesh and blood form. They then end up being mixed into a holosuite game/novel that Bashir was playing with his friend, Garak (Andrew Robinson), that is based on spy stories of the 1960s (James Bond, obviously). So the other crew members all begin to show up in the roles of the game, but the problem is that since these are the real crew members, Bashir and Garak have to make sure that none of them die, because they would then die for real. Similarly, the malfunction removed the safety protections, so Bashir and Garak could ALSO die in the story!

It's a really clever story, especially how Bashir wins the day by actually letting the evil villain's plot (to flood the whole world) occur, to buy enough time to get everyone out of the holosuite. As Garak joked, Bashir "saved the day by destroying the world."

Why Grease's Iconic Dance Sequence Didn't Make Any Sense

How did MGM change Deep Space Nine's sequel to "Our Man Bashir"?

Okay, so, again, very well-received episode by fans (it also received two Emmy nominations, for Outstanding Music Composition for a Series and Outstanding Hairstyling for a Series), and as Siddiq notes, fans started to change their minds about Bashir, and he slowly but surely became a fan favorite.

Someone who WASN'T a fan, though, was MGM, which felt that the James Bond references in the episode (which were PLENTIFUL) had gone beyond fair use, and were just essentially doing James Bond without license.

So when Bashir's secret agent holonovel was revisited in Season 5's "A Simple Investigation," it was both reduced in scope (it was not the main part of the episode at all), but also in terms of James Bond references...

The reason why the secret agent plot was chosen in the first place was, in part, because it was more reasonable, in terms of budget, for the show to film, and yet the episode STILL ended up going over budget because of the fact that "Our Man Bashir" was the longest shoot in the history of the series, due to how much care went into the episode.

So while the show might very well have won any sort of actual lawsuit by MGM, it really wasn't worth it to the show's producers to pursue, and it was much simpler to just comply with the request to back off on the James Bond references going forward.

The legend is...

STATUS : True

Be sure to check out my archive of TV Legends Revealed for more urban legends about the world of TV. Click here for more legends specifically about Star Trek .

Feel free (heck, I implore you!) to write in with your suggestions for future installments! My e-mail address is [email protected]

• Kindle Store
• Kindle eBooks
• Science Fiction & Fantasy

Promotions apply when you purchase

These promotions will be applied to this item:

Some promotions may be combined; others are not eligible to be combined with other offers. For details, please see the Terms & Conditions associated with these promotions.

Audiobook Price: $15.62 $15.62

Save: $2.63 $2.63 (17%)

Buy for others

Buying and sending ebooks to others.

• Select quantity
• Buy and send eBooks
• Recipients can read on any device

These ebooks can only be redeemed by recipients in the US. Redemption links and eBooks cannot be resold.

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required .

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

Image Unavailable

• To view this video download Flash Player

Follow the author

A Stitch in Time (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Book 27) Kindle Edition

• Book 27 of 27 Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
• Print length 396 pages
• Language English
• Sticky notes On Kindle Scribe
• Publisher Pocket Books/Star Trek
• Publication date May 1, 2000
• File size 4810 KB
• Page Flip Enabled
• Word Wise Enabled
• Enhanced typesetting Enabled
• See all details

• Customers Also Enjoyed
• In This Series
• Science Fiction & Fantasy
• Space Opera

Editorial Reviews

About the author, excerpt. © reprinted by permission. all rights reserved..

Copyright © 2000 by Paramount Pictures

Product details

• ASIN ‏ : ‎ B000FC0UXU
• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Pocket Books/Star Trek (May 1, 2000)
• Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 1, 2000
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• File size ‏ : ‎ 4810 KB
• Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
• Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
• Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
• Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
• Print length ‏ : ‎ 396 pages
• Page numbers source ISBN ‏ : ‎ 0671038850
• #60 in Star Trek Series
• #1,302 in First Contact Science Fiction eBooks
• #1,838 in Science Fiction Adventure

About the author

Andrew robinson.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

Customer Reviews, including Product Star Ratings help customers to learn more about the product and decide whether it is the right product for them.

To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. Instead, our system considers things like how recent a review is and if the reviewer bought the item on Amazon. It also analyzed reviews to verify trustworthiness.

• Sort reviews by Top reviews Most recent Top reviews

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. please try again later..

Top reviews from other countries

• Amazon Newsletter
• About Amazon
• Accessibility
• Sustainability
• Press Center
• Investor Relations
• Amazon Devices
• Amazon Science
• Sell on Amazon
• Sell apps on Amazon
• Supply to Amazon
• Protect & Build Your Brand
• Become an Affiliate
• Become a Delivery Driver
• Start a Package Delivery Business
• Advertise Your Products
• Self-Publish with Us
• Become an Amazon Hub Partner
• › See More Ways to Make Money
• Amazon Visa
• Amazon Store Card
• Amazon Secured Card
• Amazon Business Card
• Shop with Points
• Credit Card Marketplace
• Reload Your Balance
• Amazon Currency Converter
• Your Account
• Your Orders
• Shipping Rates & Policies
• Amazon Prime
• Returns & Replacements
• Manage Your Content and Devices
• Recalls and Product Safety Alerts
• Conditions of Use
• Privacy Notice
• Consumer Health Data Privacy Disclosure
• Your Ads Privacy Choices

• More to Explore
• Series & Movies

Andrew Robinson First Person Video Part 1

Andrew Robinson is best known to Star Trek fans for playing the recurring Cardassian tailor/spy Garak on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. His first film role was as the infamous Scorpio killer opposite Clint Eastwood in "Dirty Harry." This interview contains clips and photos from the following episodes. Star Trek: Deep Space Nine -- ST:DS9 442 - "The Wire" ST:DS9 467 - "The Die Is Cast"

Screen Rant

Star trek: tng has a surprising fleetwood mac connection.

A member of Fleetwood Mac made a surprising appearance on an episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

• Mick Fleetwood, drummer of Fleetwood Mac, made a cameo in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2 episode "Manhunt" as an alien ambassador.
• Fleetwood was a big Star Trek fan and requested to be part of the show, shaving his beard for the role and beaming on board the USS Enterprise-D.
• Many musicians have made surprise appearances in Star Trek, including Michelle Phillips, Iggy Pop, and Tom Morello, showcasing the franchise's appeal to diverse celebrities.

Classic 1970s rock band Fleetwood Mac has a surprising connection to Star Trek: The Next Generation . Beginning with its two-episode premiere in 1987, TNG brought live-action Star Trek back to television for the first time since the cancelation of Star Trek: The Original Series . While many fans of TOS were initially nervous about a Star Trek series that didn't feature Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner) or Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy), Star Trek: The Next Generation went on to become a massive hit and one of the greatest science fiction series of all time.

Thanks to reruns and syndication, Star Trek: The Original Series developed a significant fanbase in the years following its cancelation. Many celebrities have talked about their love of Star Trek over the years, but some went even further, requesting a role in a Trek project. For example, Whoopi Goldberg reached out to TNG's producers and eventually took on the role of Ten Forward bartender Guinan, who appeared in 29 episodes of Star Trek: The Next Generation , as well as the movies Star Trek Generations and Star Trek: Nemesis . Mick Fleetwood, the drummer and leader of Fleetwood Mac, was also a huge Star Trek fan. After requesting a role in Trek , Fleetwood appeared in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2, episode 19, "Manhunt" as an alien ambassador.

10 Star Trek Guest Star Actors You Forgot About

Mick fleetwood was in an episode of star trek: tng, fleetwood was unrecognizable in a cameo in tng season 2, episode 19, "manhunt.".

Mick Fleetwood plays an Antedian dignitary in the Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2 episode, "Manhunt." Both of whom spend most of the episode in a catatonic state. Fleetwood was a big Star Trek fan and wanted to be a part of the show in whatever way he could, although he did have one request. In a 2015 interview with the Vancouver Sun , Fleetwood spoke about his TNG role, saying he told producers that he would shave his beard " if you promise me that I get to beam down or beam up." Due to the extensive prosthetics required to play the fish-like Antedian, Fleetwood did shave his beard, and the Antedians were beamed onto the USS Enterprise-D at the beginning of the episode. Despite being unrecognizable, Mick Fleetwood got his wish to be part of the Star Trek universe.

In Star Trek: The Next Generation season 2 's "Manhunt," the USS Enterprise-D picks up two Antedian dignitaries, including Mick Fleetwood who need transportation to a conference on Pacifica. Soon after the Antedians arrive, the USS Enterprise-D receives a message that Lwaxana Troi (Majel Barrett) will also be traveling to the conference. The mother of Counselor Deanna Troi (Marina Sirtis), Lwaxana has entered a part of a Betazoid woman's life known as The Phase, and she is determined to find a husband. She initially sets her sights on Captain Picard, but ultimately leaves the Enterprise without a partner. Before she departs, however, Lwaxana reveals that the Antedian dignitaries are actually assassins who were planning to set off a bomb at the conference.

Lwaxana Troi had previously been introduced in Star Trek: The Next Generation season 1, episode 11, "Haven," and, in total, she appeared in six episodes of TNG and 3 of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

Star Trek Has Other Surprising Musician Cameos

Star trek has a long history of celebrity cameos, including multiple rock stars and singers..

Mick Fleetwood was not the only musician who popped up in Star Trek over the years. Before Fleetwood's appearance on Star Trek: The Next Generation , Michelle Phillips of the pop group The Mamas & the Papas portrayed Picard's former flame, Jenice Manheim, in TNG season 1, episode 24, "We'll Always Have Paris." The "Godfather of Punk," Iggy Pop appeared in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine season 6, episode 10, "The Magnificent Ferengi," as a Vorta named Yelgrun. DS9's executive producer Ira Steven Behr was responsible for casting Iggy Pop, as he was a big fan of the musician.

Tom Morello, former guitarist for Rage Against the Machine and Audioslave, was such a big Star Trek fan that he reportedly contacted producer Rick Berman to request a role in Star Trek: Insurrection . Although Morello briefly appeared as a member of the Son'a species, his character was uncredited and barely seen. Because of this, he was asked to return for Star Trek: Voyager season 6, episode 20, "Good Shepherd," in which he portrayed Starfleet Crewman Mitchell. With its massive and dedicated fanbase, the Star Trek franchise has had quite a few memorable celebrity cameos, including several famous musicians.

Star Trek: The Next Generation

Star trek: deep space nine, star trek voyager.