Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 'Nog' Actor Aron Eisenberg Has Died at 50 (cnet.com) 63
An anonymous reader quotes CNET:
Actor Aron Eisenberg, who played Nog on Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, died Saturday at age 50, his wife Malíssa Longo posted on Facebook. "He was an intelligent, humble, funny, emphatic soul," Longo wrote. "He sought to live his life with integrity and truth. He was so driven to put the best he had into whatever work was put before him." The actor's cause of death wasn't released, but he underwent his second kidney transplant in 2015, StarTrek.com notes in an obituary.
Eisenberg played Nog, the first Ferengi to join Starfleet, and appeared in 40 episodes from across all seven seasons. The show ran from 1993 to 1999. His character was the son of Rom, the nephew of Quark, and the best friend of Jake Sisko, who was the son of commanding officer Benjamin Sisko.
Eisenberg was told nothing about his character when he was cast and had no idea that the part would last, Star Trek reports "I thought every episode I was doing might be my last episode," he told StarTrek.com in 2012. The site also notes that Eisenberg also played Kar, the young Kazon-Ogla, in a 1995 Star Trek: Voyager episode.
This year Aron had become the host and producer of a Star Trek-themed podcast called "The 7th Rule." And Deep Space Nine (and the other early Star Trek series) are all available through Amazon Prime.
CNET remembered the actor by sharing the Deep Space Nine scene where Nog makes a passionate speech about why he wants to join Starfleet Academy. ("My father is a mechanical genius. He could've been chief engineer of a starship if he'd had the opportunity. But he went into business like a good Ferengi...")
On Twitter 79-year-old René Auberjonois (who played Odo on Deep Space Nine) called Aron "such a pure, sweet soul and gifted artist. He was a dedicated collaborator and friend. My condolences and love to his wife and family."
Armin Shimerman, who had played Nog's bartender uncle Quark, tweeted Sunday "I have lost a great friend and the world has lost a great heart... He was a man of conviction and enormous sensitivity and the best of humanity... Flights of angels my friend... you will be missed."
And Next Generation actor Jonathan Frakes tweeted "bless his sweet soul."
Eisenberg played Nog, the first Ferengi to join Starfleet, and appeared in 40 episodes from across all seven seasons. The show ran from 1993 to 1999. His character was the son of Rom, the nephew of Quark, and the best friend of Jake Sisko, who was the son of commanding officer Benjamin Sisko.
Eisenberg was told nothing about his character when he was cast and had no idea that the part would last, Star Trek reports "I thought every episode I was doing might be my last episode," he told StarTrek.com in 2012. The site also notes that Eisenberg also played Kar, the young Kazon-Ogla, in a 1995 Star Trek: Voyager episode.
This year Aron had become the host and producer of a Star Trek-themed podcast called "The 7th Rule." And Deep Space Nine (and the other early Star Trek series) are all available through Amazon Prime.
CNET remembered the actor by sharing the Deep Space Nine scene where Nog makes a passionate speech about why he wants to join Starfleet Academy. ("My father is a mechanical genius. He could've been chief engineer of a starship if he'd had the opportunity. But he went into business like a good Ferengi...")
On Twitter 79-year-old René Auberjonois (who played Odo on Deep Space Nine) called Aron "such a pure, sweet soul and gifted artist. He was a dedicated collaborator and friend. My condolences and love to his wife and family."
Armin Shimerman, who had played Nog's bartender uncle Quark, tweeted Sunday "I have lost a great friend and the world has lost a great heart... He was a man of conviction and enormous sensitivity and the best of humanity... Flights of angels my friend... you will be missed."
And Next Generation actor Jonathan Frakes tweeted "bless his sweet soul."
I was just watching DS9 (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:I was just watching DS9 (Score:4, Interesting)
Yes, that fucking sucks. He seemed like a pretty cool guy in interviews and behind the scenes.
I recommend any DS9 fans to play Star Trek Online, where Aron reprised his role as Nog numerous times. The Gamma Quadrant story arc in particular has some great moments with Nog, with the episode "Quark's Lucky Seven" being reminiscent of the DS9 episode "The Magnificent Ferengi".
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Many other Star Trek actors did voice work for STO too, including:
Leonard Nimoy
Walter Koenig
Michael Dorn
LeVar Burton
Rene Auberjonois
Nana Visitor
Armin Shimerman
Alexander Siddig
Max Grodénchik
Andrew Robinson
Jeffrey Combs
Salome Jens
Chase Masterson
J.G. Hertzler
Tony Todd
Denise Crosby
Bumper Robinson
Tim Russ
Robert Picardo
Jeri Ryan
Robert Duncan McNeill
Garrett Wang
Ethan Phillips
Kim Rhodes
Lisa LoCicero
Re: (Score:2)
And a lot of Jeffery Combs, at that. :)
Re: (Score:2)
Yes, that fucking sucks. He seemed like a pretty cool guy in interviews and behind the scenes.
I had a chance to meet him in person a few years ago at a convention and got a few minutes to talk to him as I got lucky that there was nobody else waiting behind me at that moment. He was a really nice guy and happy to talk about his work on Deep Space Nine. I started following him on Facebook after that because I had a very positive experience with meeting him. He was one of the good guys.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: I was just watching DS9 (Score:2)
As luck would have it DS9 is loaded. A ferengi evening today. Jusr started with the siege of AR558 and of course it's only a paper moon after that.
Will finish on a lighter note with treachery, faith and the great river....
Still, in ar558 there's Quark's excellent speech about 'the hoomans'
https://youtu.be/-D2SHNqkjbY [youtu.be]
Oh man (Score:5, Insightful)
Right now I feel really old. I realize actors tend to play under their ages for roles like that, but I remember Nog as a kid on that show (while I was already an adult at that point).
Plus 50 is too young to die for anyone. Rest well, Aron. Peace to your family.
Re:Oh man (Score:5, Informative)
Just a random follow-up: Aron Eisenberg was 24 at the start of Deep Space Nine. Cirroc Lofton (Jake Cisco) was 15. But Aron was, to my eyes, completely believable as Jake's young friend.
Re:Oh man (Score:5, Interesting)
Re: Oh man (Score:2)
Wow, i never would have guessed. Excellent actor!
Re:Oh man (Score:5, Informative)
For playing young roles believably, it helped that he was quite short - five foot nothing, apparently.
Re: (Score:2)
For playing young roles believably, it helped that he was quite short - five foot nothing, apparently.
I think almost any age-uncharacteristic traits on DS9 would have been mentally filed away as being because he's Ferengi. Like if a human teen doesn't walk or talk like that, well maybe a Ferengi teen does. He's in pretty heavy makeup too and TV in the 90s didn't exactly have razor sharp footage. Don't get me wrong he was a great actor, but the height and voice pitch is probably all you need to pass as Jake's age.
Re: (Score:2)
That was due to a kidney transplant he underwent as a teenager. It stunted his growth.
He had a second kidney transplant (in 2013 I believe) and has apparently had ongoing issues there. They haven't announced a cause of death at the moment but if I were to guess it would be kidney related.
Nog was a deep character played by a great actor (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Nog was a deep character played by a great acto (Score:5, Informative)
Yes, that was after Season 7 Episode 8 "The Siege Of AR_558" in which he lost his leg in battle. One of my most favorite episodes.
Re:Nog was a deep character played by a great acto (Score:5, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
Horrors that technology couldn't hide. e.g. regeneration.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Nog was over the course of the show someone who started off as essentially a joke character, emphasizing the Ferengi cultural norms for laughs
You've described Rom, not Nog. Nog started off just to give Jake Sisco someone his own age to associate with for his own character development.
Re: (Score:3)
They both began as humorous foils. One of the great strengths of that Star Trek show was that humorous foils became very "real" characters.
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
That really was quite groundbreaking. People getting killed and maimed in star trek wasn't new at all. BUT Trek always glossed over the consequences. Someones got a hole in them, beep boop computer makes it better, onto the next episode. But this arc had Nog , carrying a serious injury and dealing with serious war trauma. And to be clear it wasn't just that battle, he'd also been involved in the escapade with the cadet crew that got stuck behind enemy lines. He was becoming unhinged and that battle just bro
Flights of angels my friend... (Score:1)
Since he was a progressive Atheist, he didn't believe in God or Angels.
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:3)
I don't believe in God or angels either, but I can still respect the sentiment. And assuming that Aron Eisenberg was a decent human being, I'm sure he would have as well.
Indeed. Most respectful atheists just ignore religion because pouncing on things and screaming you don't believe will just lead to an argument. Leave people alone and let them believe what they want.
Hell for some religion is absolutely necessary. People of sufficient mental capacity are perfectly capable of acting ethically without religion, but there are many in society who without the threat of punishment in the afterlife would simply run wild.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Allowing delusional people to believe whatever they want causes problems, including war, which affects all of us. Delusion and ignorance should be actively fought.
Re: (Score:2)
Anyone who can't restrain their dark impulses needs be restrained in a dark cell.
Problem is, they often kill people or commit horrible crimes BEFORE it gets to that point.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
I think Hitchens said something to the effect of if religion is the only thing that keeps you from raping and murdering, then I hope you say religious.
Re: (Score:2)
Except that religion is also often the source of a world view that divides the world into the believers and the heretics, the pious and the sinners, the righteous and the wicked. If you're looking for a bunch of assholes to judge rape victims by their sexual promiscuity the deeply religious are a good bet. No doubt that also feeds into potential rapists that they're nothing but sluts and whores. And the grudges, oh my... like I feel most have forgiven the Germans for WWII by now, at least nobody cares about
Early? (Score:2)
Re: (Score:1)
Re:Early? (Score:4, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
I think maybe it'd be like...
TOS and TAS are 1st gen Star Trek,
TNG, DS9, VOY, and ENT would be 2nd gen.
Discovery and Picard are 3rd gen.
Ignores the movies, so that first/second gen has some overlap.
Re: (Score:1)
Original series - Classic Trek, corny and experimenting to find its way.
TNG-DP9 - Early Trek/Golden Age of Trek. The best, most iconic, must pure trek.
Voyager-Enterprise - New Trek. Shiny action heavy trek. In many ways a step back to the TOS space cowboy style, but with a big budget and serious writing.
Re: (Score:2, Interesting)
He was put in there because Star Trek wanted a JEW character as a nod to the SJWs.
William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy are Jews. The Vulcan salute was based on a Jewish religious ceremony. Spock is Jewish via his human side in the Star Trek novels. The reason why you have no explicit Jewish characters in Star Trek was because Gene Roddenberry was an anti-Semite, but that didn't stop him from hiring Jewish actors.
Re: (Score:1, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
He was put in there because Star Trek wanted a JEW character as a nod to the SJWs
I'm not sure if the SJWs would really appreciate the idea that the "Jewish aliens" are the super short race with big ears and noses who hoard all the money and only do things that are financially profitable.
Tragically unexpected, possibly not unsurprising (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
There are a lot of ways for kidneys to fail. Diabetes and high blood pressure are two of the big ones.
Was just watching an ep. of DS9 earlier today (Score:3)
Nog (Score:2)
7th rule? (Score:1)
I liked the rules Quark and Jadzia once bantered about (don't remember which episode):
"Peace is good for business" and "War is good for business. It's easy to confuse them..."
I liked Nog, being a fellow engineer. I, like him, probably don't have the "lobes for business."
Re:7th rule? (Score:4, Informative)
What was the 7th rule of acquisition? (I assume that's the reference)
The rule is : Keep your ears open.
That's a pretty fitting title for a podcast.
Funny story about a dumb episode (Score:5, Interesting)
I never did care much for the whole "play baseball against the Vulcans" episode, coming as it did in the middle of the closing story arc and totally not fitting in with it, but it apparently required a LOT of acting on his part because while the DS9 crew was incompetent at baseball, Eisenberg was actually quite an enthusiastic and skilled baseball player. They had to send him out with the glove on the wrong hand to make him look suitably incompetent, and even then he was too good.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
The best part of this? Check out the name of his favorite baseball coach:
https://twitter.com/AronEisenb... [twitter.com]
"When I was 11-12, I played on a baseball team that won the championship. I had the best coach I ever had that season who taught me more about the game than anyone prior & utilized my perceived weaknesses as strengths. His name? Coach Cisco!"
good (Score:1)
DS9 is surprisingly re-watchable now. (Score:2)
I don't know about the first three seasons, but seasons 4-7 are exceptionally good and make a single multi-season arc with multiple characters growing and changing between the seasons and a lot of character development.
A thoroughly enjoyable show that I didn't like at first because watching a season over the course of a year didn't give the episodes as much of a punch as binge watching it later on.
I just rewatched it a year ago and it's one of the few shows I would happily rewatch again in a few years.
Saddened (Score:1)
Godspeed, Aron.