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William Shatner will be heading to Salt Lake City this weekend for FanX and will use it as an opportunity to poke his cheek at the absurd death claims that were recently splashed all over in the tabloids. The 93-year-old actor invited all his fans to come and see him “before another tabloid tries to kill me off,” producing a lot of relief, even chuckles from his fanbase.
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Happy Shatner, who rarely let that nonsense down. Turning to his preferred social media platform, he announced his upcoming attendance at the FanX Salt Lake Comic Con. Of course, his post contained a perfectly Shatnerian twist-a wisecrack against the absurd claims by the tabloids that had him declared dead not so long ago. “Better come see me before another tabloid tries to kill me off!” followed by the perfect tongue emoji. This was life-affirming, and from that point on remembered him for generations with a bit of self-deprecation. Uncle Bill is clearly still full of life.
It was perfectly timed; almost every fan that heard the ridiculous rumors would immediately fret about it, and then the man himself conveniently arrives to confirm that he is still alive and kicking. The responses were quite immediate and lively.
Another gentleman struck the science-fiction nerve: “F@ck tabloids sir, if the Klingons couldn’t do it, how could they?” Which is very true. If the fictitious alien warriors couldn’t take down Captain Kirk, what chance does some supermarket gossip rag have? Another comment took on a bittersweet tone, putting into perspective how such shady rumors do actually cause despair: “I just remembered about the rumors from yesterday and had to google; I’m glad you’re okay, Mr. Shatner!” This only intensified the effect of Shatner’s humorous rejoinder.
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More jokes kept coming: “Are you sure you’ll be there? I have it on Totally Misleading Zeitgeist (TMZ) that you’ll be dead that day.” Meta-joking of this sort, mocking the very source of misinformation, always proves the fans are still complicit in the joke with Shatner. Then some seriously sincere ones: “Glad to hear the gossip was untrue!” and “A legend never stops being a legend! God bless you, sir – and may you outlive all useless tabloids.