Calgary Comic Expo welcomes Spock lookalike who sounds just like Leonard Nimoy
Vulcan impersonator will be doing mind melds and selfies with Trekkie fans
Five years ago, Paul Forest travelled to Las Vegas to escape the Canadian winter and play a little roulette.
He left with a set of Vulcan ears, a Star Trek Enterprise uniform and a new alter ego.
But not a new voice — which sounds uncannily like Leonard Nimoy.
"People say, 'He's got the same voice!' So I go, 'OK — if you say so,'" Forest said.
"So this is you and your regular voice?" pried David Gray, host of the Calgary Eyeopener during an interview Thursday morning.
"Yes sir, that's me."
Forest only realized his potential as Spock 2.0 after a chance meeting with Superman and a young King of Pop.
The pair were working as impersonators on Fremont Street, the famous strip with neon lights in the heart of Sin City.
"I was talking to them about their job and they just said, 'Man, you look like Leonard Nimoy. You should dress up like Spock and come work with us.' And I looked at the little Michael Jackson and he was like, 'Yep.'"
The rest is history.
Today, Paul Forest travels across North America as Spock Vegas. Over the last year and a half, he's attended 52 Comic Expos.
"It's almost non-stop, almost every week."
And all he has to do is stand around and wait.
"People just flock to me. Their reactions are incredible," said Forest. "[They] know a lot more about the show and the character than myself, I mean some Trekkies know how to speak Vulcan and Klingon. I'm not there yet."
You can meet Spock Vegas at the Calgary Comic Expo this weekend. He charges $3 for a selfie and $5 for a full photo.
"This is non-profit for me. I barely survive. I'm absolutely not rich. I do this for Epilepsy Canada when I'm in Canada and the Epilepsy Foundation when I'm in the States."
With files from the Calgary Eyeopener