The Way I Heard It with Mike Rowe - 147: Her Biggest Fan

Episode Date: January 21, 2020

The doctor told her not to sing... but she did anyway.

This is the way I heard it. The lieutenant had always dreamed of performing for a packed house. And today, she was finally getting her wish. It was an impressive turnout, made all the more memorable by the guest of honor, the doctor who had first diagnosed her condition, the doctor who prescribed the remedy that literally saved her career. As she sang for the guest of honor, the lieutenant couldn't help but recall the fundraiser where they'd met

or the remarkable conversation that led to this performance. Your work on the ship has been simply extraordinary, the doctor had told her. I'd say you're due for a promotion. Thank you, the lieutenant had replied, but I'm afraid my tour of duty is over. I'm leaving the ship and hanging up my uniform. The lieutenant recalled the look of surprise that had flashed across the doctor's face, surprise followed by disappointment. But why? Look at all you've accomplished in that uniform. Why would you walk away now?

The lieutenant had blushed and looked over her shoulder, aware that others were watching and listening. Well, to be honest, she said, I've always dreamed of singing on Broadway. I'm headed to New York to make that dream a reality. Had it really been just a year since they'd met? It seemed like she'd known him forever. And now, as she sang for the man who changed the course of her career, the lieutenant recalled his exact words on the day they met. She remembered the way he had lowered his voice before diagnosing her condition with a measure of candor she had not anticipated. With respect, Lieutenant, your dream is a selfish one. Who do you suppose will wear the uniform if you hang it up? What do you think that person will look like?

And what do you suppose that will mean for the rest of us? The doctor's words had cut like a knife. The truth was she had not considered the impact of her departure on anyone but herself, not on her shipmates, not on her captain, not on her country. But the doctor had, and what he said next would change everything. I want you to know something, Lieutenant. I want you to know that I am your biggest fan. I also want to thank you for being a hero to my children.

You have shown them what's possible. So please reconsider this dream of yours. They'll be time for singing later. As usual, the doctor had been right. And now, barely a year after their chance meeting at that fundraiser in Beverly Hills, Here he was, the guest of honor in a packed house, and here she was, singing for the man whose prophetic words had convinced her to remain in that uniform. That's why, when she finally hung up her regalia once and for all, it was no longer the red dress

of a young lieutenant. It was the uniform of a seasoned commander. That's also why she was selected by NASA to become. a space ambassador, a role that allowed her to assist actual astronauts aboard a real spaceship as they analyze the atmospheres of Mars and Saturn during a high-altitude public relations mission that helped pave the way for women and minorities in space. That was perhaps her most important performance, and one the doctor would have surely applauded, but alas, he never learned about her work with NASA, nor did he ever hear the lieutenant sing.

Even though he was right there in front of her on that fateful day in April, way back in 1968, the day a make-believe lieutenant sang for a packed house on that, the occasion, of his funeral. No, it wasn't the crowd she had dreamed of entertaining or the stage. she had dreamed of occupying, but by all accounts, those assembled were most appreciative of the performer who sang for them that day. The actress who boldly went where no black woman had gone before, onto a primetime network show in a role that would challenge racial stereotypes and destroy the assumption that a black woman in a uniform on television had to be a maid.

Such was the larger role of Lieutenant O'Hura, a groundbreaking character brought to life by an aspiring singer who deferred her dream so that the next generation might see what was possible. A selfless choice made by an actress named Nichols, who chose to remain at her post aboard the Starship Enterprise, with a little encouragement from her biggest family. a doctor who had a dream of his own, a Trekkie named Martin Luther King, Jr. Anyway, that's the way I heard it.