‘Star Trek’ Actor Leonard Nimoy’s Son Details Their ‘Awkward’ Relationship: ‘We Were Both Addicts’

Leonard Nimoy knew how to soar — in his career and, eventually, with his family. His son, Adam, remembers “flying around with him in his private plane,” high above the mountains surrounding Lake Tahoe, where the beloved Star Trek actor had a summer home. “He was an excellent pilot,” says Adam. “We would fly all over the place. Spending time with him in the mountains was fun.”

It wasn’t easy being Leonard’s son, however, as Adam reveals in his new book, The Most Human: Reconciling With My Father, Leonard Nimoy. “My relationship with my dad, from the beginning, was very awkward,” Adam tells Closer. “We were both addicts. My dad was an admitted alcoholic, and I was a pothead, which made things worse for us.”

A driven Method actor, Leonard had more in common with Star Trek’s emotionally reserved Mr. Spock than he realized. His fraught relationship with his son nearly broke down completely. But Adam, 67, a lawyer, director and teacher, credits the 12-step addiction-recovery program with helping to bring them together before Leonard died at age 83 in 2015. “It was my friends in recovery who told me I needed to make amends to him,” Adam explains, which “gave me the opportunity to finally reconcile our relationship.”

Leonard Nimoy Grew Closer to His Son Before His Death

Leonard was 25 when he and his first wife, Sandra, welcomed Adam, their second child. “When I was a kid, I just did not understand this guy,” Adam says of his dad, who grew up in Depression-era Boston. “His parents came from Ukraine, and they weren’t that warm and fuzzy. I was born into a completely different world in Southern California.” Adam admits to being a rebellious kid, and though he and Leonard tried to connect on father-son outings, Leonard “was always preoccupied with his career.”

After Star Trek ended, Leonard focused more on his kids, but he was also drinking more, and, says Adam, “we couldn’t talk about stuff. There was no connection, no trust.”

To cope, Adam began attending Al-Anon meetings for people impacted by another’s addiction. Meanwhile, Leonard sent his estranged son a letter outlining “a long list of his resentments toward me,” Adam recalls, adding that the letter “devastated” him. He wanted to respond angrily, but instead decided to make amends. “Apologizing to him was not for him, it was for me to let go of my own stuff,” he explains. “And that’s when our lives started to change.”

After Leonard became sober, he and his son grew closer. When Adam’s second wife, Martha, died of cancer, “my dad was there for me all the time,” he says. Leonard was also a devoted grandfather, who was “inspirational” to Adam’s own kids. “We would have family gatherings,” he says. “He really built a big tent with everybody in it.”

Nearly 10 years after his father’s death, Adam hopes sharing his story will help other families. “I really believe reconciliation starts at home,” he says. “I was so relieved that my dad and I figured out our relationship. I have so much gratitude.”