Why Walter Koenig (Temporarily) Quit Star Trek: The Original Series

The cast of "Star Trek" wasn't complete until the addition of Ensign Pavel Chekov at the beginning of the show's second season. Ensign Chekov was not only a youthful counterpoint to the stuffy Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and the stuffier Commander Spock (Leonard Nimoy), but he also rounded out the series' multicultural bridge crew. Notably, Chekov was Russian and proud of his Russian heritage. The original "Star Trek" was being produced in the late 1960s, at the height of the Cold War, so including a Russian character was a bold move. Actor Walter Koenig played Chekov with aplomb, joining the ensemble with ease. Indeed, it felt like he had always been there.

Koenig has always been pragmatic and realistic about his career. He has spoken openly that he was hired in order to appeal to a younger audience, and many fans have noted his resemblance to Davy Jones, star of the then-contemporaneous series "The Monkees." In interviews, Koenig has said he enjoyed his time working on "Star Trek" (even if Shatner got on his nerves), but he also understood that it was just a gig and that it could dry up at any time. He's been happy to return to the franchise over the years, but he would've been just as happy with any other acting work.

Case in point, Koenig even left the series for a spell to work on another project during the third season of "Star Trek" in 1968. It's not that Koenig didn't take "Star Trek" seriously, but he took it just as seriously as any other regular acting job. That is: He would play the role in front of him to the utmost of his abilities, but he would also move on to a better project if it presented itself. Appearing on the "7th Rule" podcast to talk about the classic "Star Trek" episode "The Trouble with Tribbles," Koenig affirmed that he did, in fact, leave "Star Trek" for several weeks so that he could appear in a play with Jackie Coogan.

The "7th Rule" podcast, by the way, is a "Star Trek" review series hosted by Cirroc Lofton, who played Jake Sisko on "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine," as well as "Star Trek Into Darkness" extra and fan filmmaker Ryan T. Husk. They regularly delve into individual "Star Trek" episodes and have secured guest appearances from lots of actors who have worked on the "Star Trek" franchise. Hence, when it came time to discuss an episode as famous as "The Trouble with Tribbles," it was almost a necessity for them to speak with one of the surviving members of the original "Star Trek" cast. Luckily, Koenig was game.

He talked about the episode, but he also discussed where his career was in the late 1960s and how he was still eager to take on multiple jobs, should they present themselves. Seeing as "Star Trek" wasn't terribly popular when it initially aired, the actor, at the time, didn't feel it was all that unwise to leave it for a bit. Rather, when presented with a stage job opposite an acting legend, Koenig jumped at the chance. As he put it:

"I left 'Star Trek' in the third season. I left the show. Nobody thought it was going to be picked up anyway, so nobody really cared. I left for a month and I did a play outside of Chicago with Jackie Coogan, Charlie Chaplin's old sidekick, and that was great fun. And I didn't miss being on the show because, at that point, it was really, 'Aye aye, sir,' you know? And I still wanted to perform in my chosen profession with some dignity. Dignity of participation."

Being on stage with the star of Chaplin's "The Kid" was better than being a supporting player on a failing sci-fi series, so Koenig took the job. The play was titled "Make a Million," and one can find old programs online. Koenig eventually came back and finished the series, but acting on stage, it seems, was the more gratifying career path at the time.