Star Trek: Deep Space Nine star Aron Eisenberg died earlier this month at the age of 50. The actor played Nog, the first Ferengi to serve in Starfleet. Eisenberg was friends with actor Wil Wheaton. Like Eisenberg, Wheaton played a Starfleet cadet, Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation. Like Eisenberg, Wheaton grew up playing that role. Wheaton reveals in a post on his website that he’s decided to honor Eisenberg by watching Star Trek: Deep Space Nine for the first time. “With the passing my friend, Aron, last week, I thought that I could remember and honor him by finally watching the series he gave so many years of his life and career to,”he writes. Wheaton goes into the reasons why he’s never watched the series before and his thoughts on the first few episodes that he’s watched in the post on his website, so head over there for more of those details. He does give a special nod to Eisenberg, noting “Aron’s performance is sensational, by the way. But if you watched DS9, you already know that.”
Videos by ComicBook.com
Wheaton isn’t the only one looking to honor Eisenberg in some way. Star Trek Online players gathered in Quark’s bar on the game’s recreation fo the Deep Space 9 space station to hold a torchlight vigil in Eisenberg’s honor. A petition has been launched on Change.org that would see a statue of Captain Nog on display at Starfleet Academy in the new CBS All Access series Star Trek: Picard.
“You could almost say that Aron Eisenberg was born to play this role, if nothing else he gave us all a wonderful gift, Nog,” writes Emma Gazaway, who launched the petition that has more than 1,300 e-signatures at the time of writing. “Nog had, by far, the most interesting character arch in star Star Trek DS9, if not the whole Canon Trek universe. We grew with him, and he with us. His advancement to an officer, as the first ferengi in starfleet on its own deserves recognition in the new series. The friendship and joy that Aron himself brought us, deserves even more. Thank you Aron, thank you Nog. We love you.”
Eisenberg’s wife, Malissa Longo, broke the news of his death via Facebook. The cause of Eisenberg’s death was not revealed. Eisenberg is survived by Longo as well as his mother and his two sons, Christopher Ryan Eisenberg and Nicholas Lawrence Eisenberg. A GoFundMe fundraiser has been set up to help pay for funeral costs.
