Star Trek actress Nichelle Nichols dies at age 89

Pioneering TV actress Nichelle Nichols, who famously played Lt. Nyota Uhura in the original “Star Trek” series has died aged 89.

Her family announced on Nichols’ Facebook page on Sunday that she died of natural causes.

“Last night my mother, Nichelle Nichols, succumbed to natural causes and passed away. However, her light, like the ancient galaxies now seen for the first time, will remain for us and future generations to enjoy, learn from and be inspired by,” her son Kyle Johnson wrote.

Nichelle Nichols
Her family announced on Nichols’ Facebook page on Sunday that she died of natural causes.
Dimitrios Kambouris/WireImage
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura and William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk in the STAR TREK episode, "Plato's stepchildren."
Nichelle Nichols as Uhura and William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk in the STAR TREK episode, ‘Plato’s Stepchildren’.
CBS via Getty Images

“Her life was a life well lived and as such a model for all of us.

“I, and the rest of our family, would appreciate your patience and forbearance as we grieve her loss until we can recover enough to speak further. Her services are for family members and the best of her friends and we ask that her and our privacy are respected.”

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