Star Trek icon ended up with day job at university despite finding fame on sci-fi show

The original Star Trek series is one of the most celebrated sci-fi TV series of all times. The 1960s series launched the careers of several stars including William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and Nichelle Nicols to name a few. But despite a blossoming career on the small screen, some stars returned to their day jobs after the show came to an end in 1969.

Though most fans know him as the Ferengi character Quark in the Star Trek franchise Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Armin Shimerman also played the Ferengi character Letek in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode, The Last Outpost.

But it turns out the star is a man of many talents, including acting, teaching and most recently, writing. After work dried up in the mid 70s, he returned to his day job as a teacher at the University of Southern California.

According to Trek Report, the actor taught Shakespeare to budding students. However, the actor admits that these days he mainly sees himself as a teacher.

He told the outlet: “Most everybody knows me from my television, and I’m very grateful for that. But in the present life, and from all the way through my career, I’ve always performed Shakespeare.”

The actor gushed: “I teach Shakespeare, and it’s been part of my life every day since before I graduated college. I do a lot of teaching of Shakespeare to actors, and I primarily see myself as a teacher. Even while I was acting, in my heyday, on either Star Trek or Buffy [the Vampire Slayer] I was also teaching.”

But that’s not all. In his free time, he also published a historical fiction novel, titled Illyria: Betrayal of Angels, which is set in the days of England’s Queen Elizabeth I.

Shimerman claims that the Betrayal of Angels is inspired by the teaching and studying he’s done all his life. While the actor claims his “heyday” is behind him, many may disagree.

His role as Quark is now cited as possible the move beloved character on the most improbably oddball TV bosses ever devised. Thanks to Netflix and other streaming services, entirely new generations are discovering Deep Space Nine, giving the show the attention it deserved almost 30 years after it premiered.

He gushed: “I remember telling Nana [Visitor] about five weeks into our run of Deep Space Nine... wait 20 years, and they’ll discover us. It is a great tribute to the writers, to the actors, the designers, the executive producers. We kept up the good work, and we knew one day we’d be discovered, and we are grateful for that.”

His character was so loved that there were even rumours that his character would get his own spin-off show. He teased: “When Deep Space Nine was coming to an end, there was a little bit of chatter – I found out about this years later – of creating a Quark Show.”

When asked about if he would ever return to the show if it returns in the future, he confessed: “If they said to me, would you come back and be a guest star for a couple of episodes – I would say yes – absolutely. I would jump at the chance.”