William Shatner marked his 95th birthday on Sunday by sharing life advice with fans, including one key tip: "Never waste a good cigar."
The Canadian actor posted a collage on Instagram featuring one image of himself smiling at the camera and another of him smoking a cigar.
"At 95, I'm still smokin'!" he wrote in the caption. "I've learned two things: Never waste a good cigar. Never trust anyone who says you should 'act your age.'"
Shatner remains widely recognized for his role as Captain James T. Kirk in the "Star Trek" franchise, a character he first portrayed in 1966 in "Star Trek: The Original Series."
He continued to reprise the role in multiple films, concluding with 1994's "Star Trek Generations."
Beyond that defining role, his career has included appearances in television series such as "T.J. Hooker" and "Boston Legal," as well as films including the comedy "Miss Congeniality," according to People.
Shatner has also been open about aging and mortality in recent interviews.
In a 2023 interview with Variety discussing his documentary "You Can Call Me Bill," he addressed his awareness of his limited time.
"I've turned down a lot of offers to do documentaries before," he said. "But I don't have long to live.
"Whether I keel over as I'm speaking to you or 10 years from now, my time is limited, so that's very much a factor. I've got grandchildren.
"This documentary is a way of reaching out after I die."
His reflections on mortality have also been shaped by a widely publicized 2021 spaceflight aboard a Blue Origin rocket developed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, which made him the oldest person to travel to space.
Describing the experience to The New Yorker, Shatner said, "This comforter of blue that we have around us. We think, Oh, that's blue sky. And then suddenly you shoot through it, all of a sudden, like you whip off a sheet when you've been asleep, and you're looking into blackness. Into black ugliness."
He continued, "There is mother and Earth and comfort, and, there ... is — is there death? Is that death? Is that the way death is?" He characterized the journey as "the most profound experience" he could imagine.
In a separate interview with Den of Geek, Shatner said the trip had lasting emotional effects, calling it "rejuvenating" in a way that "compels you to worry about the future."
"Whereas when you get to a certain age — I remember hearing an author say, 'Well, I'm not worried about that. I'm out of here soon,'" he continued. "That phrase has rung in my mind for a long time.
"I know I don't want to utter it, 'I'm not worried about rising seas, because I'm out of here.' I'm worried about rising seas, and rejuvenating my worry, because of my family."
He also highlighted a long-standing birthday tradition centered on charity work.
Speaking last year in an interview with People, he described a long-standing tradition tied to charity work.
"For the last many years, I have celebrated my birthday by working on a very successful charity called The Hollywood Charity Horse Show," he said. "We have been doing it for 35 years and raised millions of dollars for children and veterans."
He also noted plans at the time to celebrate with relatives, saying, "It's going to be a family experience in that wonderful, entertaining city. I'm really looking forward to it."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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