The world said goodbye to Leonard Nimoy last week, and for those who identify as serious fans of Star Trek, the loss felt unexpectedly personal. Once the news hit, social media feeds exploded with an outpouring of grief.

NASA tweeted, “Many of us at NASA inspired by Star Trek. Boldly go….” President Obama posted “Long before being nerdy was cool, there was Leonard Nimroy…I loved Spock.” Nimoy’s last tweet, which ended with “LLAP” (Spock’s signature “live long and prosper”) was re-tweeted more than 275,000 times.

The emotional reaction may be difficult to understand for someone who doesn’t identify as a fan. Fans who had never met Nimoy, who weren’t even born when the original Star Trek aired on the (tiny) television screens of 1966, nevertheless felt the void of his passing. Star Trek was so pivotal to the beginnings of what we now call “fandom” that it’s hard to quantify the depth of his contribution.

The term fandom refers to a community of people who are passionate about something, whether it’s a film, a band, a television show, a book or a sports team. They’re fans who don’t just casually watch an episode when they happen to be home, but who set up their DVRs, watch a show live – and then go on to buy the show’s DVD sets. They’re fans who are so inspired by a film’s characters that they want to share their passion with others, whether it’s through writing fan fiction, creating fan art, or saving up to attend a fan convention.

A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP
— Leonard Nimoy (@TheRealNimoy) February 23, 2015

For many, Star Trek was their gateway to fandom. It was the one show my little brother and I were allowed to stay up late to watch, and I was instantly fascinated by Mr. Spock (my brother, on the other hand, wanted to be Captain Kirk). Much later, my own children and I crowded around a (much larger) television set to watch Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Today, fan conventions are ubiquitous with franchises like Comic Con and Creation Entertainment. Yet the very first fan conventions were for Star Trek, and brought the show’s actors face to face with the passionate viewers whose letter writing campaigns had kept their struggling show on the air. Those early attempts to influence network decisions were the predecessor to every campaign launched to save a floundering show, whether it was Jericho or Arrested Development.

One of the Family: Leonard Nimoy’s Impact on Fandom