The Star Trek: Enterprise cast lost one of its prominent recurrent guest stars this week, after actor Gary Graham passed away January 22 at age 73.
Announced on Facebook by Graham’s ex-wife Susan Lavelle, the actor rose to sci-fi promenance first in 1989’s futuristic fighting film Robot Jox, then as Detective Matthew Sikes in the television adaptation of Alien Nation. That series aired on the FOX network from 1989-1990, and was followed by a series of Alien Nation television movies which aired between 1994 and 1997.
Graham made his first venture into the Star Trek franchise as Tanis, a treacherous Ocampan who attempted to exploit Kes’ nascent mental abilities in the Season 2 Star Trek: Voyager episode “Cold Fire.”
Six years after his Voyager appearance, Graham joined the recurring Star Trek: Enterprise cast as Vulcan ambassador Soval, the leading representative of Vulcan’s diplomatic relationship with Earth.
The actor appeared in twelve episodes over the show’s four-season run (including one appearance as Soval’s Mirror Universe counterpart in “In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II”), gradually shifting the ambassador from one of Captain Archer’s harshest critics to a strong supporter of Earth and the newly-formed Coalition of Planets.
After the conclusion of Enterprise in 2005, Graham returned to the Soval character one final time in a 2015 scene filmed for the controversial fan project Axanar.
Since then, the actor had been a frequent face at Creation Entertainment’s Star Trek conventions, both as a celebrity guest and as frontman for the band “Sons of Kirk,” often seen on stage at the annual Las Vegas event.
Gary Graham is survived by his wife Becky Hopkins and daughter Haleyee Graham, who shared her own comments on Twitter following the news of his passing.
Thank you all for your kind words and condolences. My dad was an amazing actor, father, and husband… he was full of faith, humor, charisma and gratitude for being alive. He loved such a beautiful life and loved and cherished all his fans so, so much
— Haylee Graham (@hayleeWRITES) January 24, 2024
Our condolences go out to the Graham family and all who knew him.
