One Star Trek Actor Couldn't Do Spock's Vulcan Salute

The well-known Vulcan salute first appeared in the "Star Trek" episode "Amok Time," and was invented by Spock actor Leonard Nimoy. The salute consists of a raised palm with thumb extended, and the fingers spread down the middle to form a "v" shape. Nimoy took the salute from a two-handed gesture made by rabbis during funerary practices, and one can see the gesture on certain Jewish headstones. The Vulcan salute became one of the more striking details of "Star Trek," and gave Trekkies something they could eagerly present to one another at conventions. The Vulcan salute is, in the real world, a quick shorthand for "Star Trek" superfans. 

Of course, just because Nimoy could easily perform the salute, doesn't mean that everyone could. Indeed, there is a comedic scene in the episode "Journey to Babel," wherein Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelley) has trouble separating his fingers properly. You, reading this right now, are likely trying out the gesture on yourself. Can you do it easily, or do you need to physically separate your fingers? Can you extend your thumb as well, or must you keep it pinned to your hand? It takes a certain level of dexterity to make a Vulcan salute, and not everyone has it. 

One actor who lacked the proper dexterity was, perhaps ironically, Zarchary Quinto, who played a younger version of Spock in J.J. Abrams' 2009 "Star Trek" feature film. Quinto played Spock as a slightly more snippy version of the character, more prone to expressing annoyance than the older version Nimoy played. And, as it so happens, he needed glue on his fingers to properly make a Vulcan salute. This was revealed by the Daily Mail back in 2009.

According to an unnamed source cited in the Daily Mail article, Quinto could do the salute, but he, like Dr. McCoy, had to manually pry his fingers apart off-camera and keep them positioned that way when he stepped on. For scenes when Quinto wansn't able to perform such a preparation, some stagehands were nearby to apply glue to his fingers, and glue them into place. The unnamed source pointed out that the glue they used was skin-protective super-glue, the type used in hospitals to temporarily hold wounds shut. It was strong, but not so strong that Quinto's hand would be permanently stuck into a Vulcan shape.

The Mail article also pointed out that Nimoy's "Star Trek" co-star William Shater was also incapable of giving a proper salute, although Shatner recalled (in his memoir "Star Trek Memories") that the producers used small lengths of fishing line to tie his fingers together, which seems like a much cheaper solution than a tube of hospital ready surgical glue. 

During the press tour for the 2009 "Star Trek" film, Quinto seems to have improved his saluting techniques, and one can find plenty pictures online of Quinto standing next to Nimoy (who played the older version of Spock in the 2009 film as well) proudly holding up the Vulcan salute. These days, actor Ethan Peck is playing Spock in the "Star Trek" prequel series "Star Trek: Strange New Worlds." Peck, however, has no issues making the Vulcan salute.