Nichelle Nichols Remembers Leonard Nimoy: He Made سٹار, ستارہ Trek into TV History 

More Food More Pets More Red Carpet More TV Watch More Unfiltered More Country

The Truth Behind Faith Hill\'s Neck Scar

Prince William Visits Japan\'s Recovery Zone

David Beckham on His Kids: \'I\'m Literally an Uber Driver Now\' (VIDEO)

The Style Top 5: Cara Delevingne Gets Handsy with Her BFFs and More

Prince William Becomes a Samurai – But Leaves the Wig in the Dressing Room

Swizz Beatz and Alicia Keys Introduce Son Genesis Ali

Royal Astronaut? Prince William Shares Boyhood Wish During Visit to Japan

Molly Mesnick Finally Gets a Neil Lane Ring From Jason Mesnick (For Their Fifth Anniversary!)

Prince William Honors Fallen Troops in Japan – Just as His Mother Did 20 Years Ago

What Color Is This Dress? Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato and More Weigh in on DressGate

Nichelle Nichols Remembers Leonard Nimoy: He Made

Actress Nichelle Nichols, whose role as Uhura on the original

broke barriers for the representation of people of color in television, on Friday remembered costar Leonard Nimoy as "a true force of strength and his character was that of a champion."

"Leonard’s integrity and passion as an actor and devotion to his craft helped transport STAR TREK into television history," Nichols, 82, continued. "His vision and heart are bigger than the universe. I will miss him very much and send heartfelt wishes to his family."

Nimoy died Friday morning after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. He went public with his diagnosis in 2014.

Nichols released her statement during an appearance at the 2015 Pensacon, in Pensacola, Florida.

costars have said Nimoy repeatedly stood up for them, including Nichols.

Walter Koenig told the Las Vegas Sun last year, "When it came to the attention of the cast that there was a disparity in pay in that George [Takei] and I were getting the same pay but Nichelle was not getting as much, I took it to Leonard and he took it to the front office and they corrected that."

Nimoy confirmed that incident to TrekMovie and added, "There was also the case where George and Nichelle we’re not hired to do their voices in the animated series. I refused to do Spock until they were hired. Mr. Roddenberry started calling me the conscience of

Don Johnson and Melanie Griffith Reunite To Watch Daughter Dakota Host

Little Girl with Tumor Has One Final Wish – to Dance with Taylor Swift

Sofia Vergara Sees You Staring at Joe Manganiello – and She Loves It

William Shatner Can\'t Attend Leonard Nimoy\'s Funeral: \'I Feel Really Awful\'

7 Times When Ashton Kutcher Was the Most Adorable Fiancé – and Dad – of All Time

Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Disqus.

We Found Out Dean Winters Has Strange Romantic Taste

Milan Fashion Week: Salma Brings Spring to the Runways

Khloé\'s Booty Fan Base Grows & 9 More Celeb Quotes This Week

We Tried a Ton of Jumpsuits – and This Is Officially the Best One

Look Inside These Gorgeous Celebrity Kitchens

Why Maksim Chmerkovskiy and Kirstie Alley Aren\'t Speaking

Chris Pratt Flashed Amy Poehler?! Hear His Take – And See Her Reaction

Thank you for signing up! Your request may take up to one week to be processed.