James T . Kirk James Tiberius " Jim " Kirk was a male Human Starfleet officer in the 23rd century . He was arguably one of the most famous and highly decorated starship captain s in the history of Starfleet . As the commanding officer of the starships and , Kirk served interests as an explorer , soldier , time - traveler , and diplomat . His exploits were required reading for cadet s studying Early Starfleet History in the 24th century . They included the saving of the Phylosian s from extinction , despite it being a violation of the Prime Directive , along with his saving of the Baezian s and Chenari years earlier , and a record - setting number of first contact s . This record stood until the 2370s , when Captain Kathryn Janeway set a new record by being the first Federation captain in the previously unexplored Delta Quadrant . ( ; ; ; ; ; ) Early history . James Tiberius ( " Jim " ) Kirk was a Human descendant of pioneers of the American frontier during the late 19th century . ( ) He was born on , 2233 , in Iowa , USA , Earth . He was the son of George and Winona Kirk . ( ; ; ) His parents named him after his maternal grandfather , , and his paternal grandfather , Tiberius . ( ) In 2246 , Kirk was living on the planet Tarsus IV during a food crisis that was starving the colony , which consisted of eight thousand people . Governor Kodos , sympathetic to old eugenics philosophies and unaware that relief ship s were imminent , tried to save a portion of the colony by killing four thousand colonists he deemed least desirable or able to survive . The thirteen - year - old Jim Kirk was one of only nine eyewitnesses to the massacre . ( ) Kirk first met Gary Mitchell when he was a child , in 2250 . ( ) Starfleet Academy . In 2252 , Kirk began a five - year officer training program at Starfleet Academy in San Francisco , thanks to some assistance from a man named . ( ) He later credited his father as his inspiration for joining Starfleet . ( ) As a plebe , Kirk soon caught the attention of a boisterous , bully ing Irish man named Finnegan . The upperclassman evidently hazed " Jimmy - boy " mercilessly throughout their shared time at the Academy . Fifteen years later , the Shore Leave Planet sensed Kirk ' s antipathy for Finnegan and produced that Kirk could pummel for satisfaction . ( ) As a cadet , Kirk participated in a successful peace mission to the planet , for which Starfleet Command award ed him with the Palm Leaf of Axanar Peace Mission . ( ) Kirk ' s academic studies introduced him to men he encountered later in his Starfleet career . Among his more prominent teachers was John Gill , a noted professor of history and cultural observer . ( ) Kirk studied the exploits , especially a victorious mission at Axanar , of Captain Garth of Izar , a famous captain who joined Kirk ' s pantheon of heroes . ( ) Another subject , the " Pasteur of archaeological medicine " , Dr . Roger Korby , became a man Kirk wanted to meet . ( ) When he was a midshipman , Kirk began a friendship with instructor Lieutenant Benjamin Finney that continued into their service together aboard the . ( ) During command training , Kirk confronted the " Kobayashi Maru " scenario , a simulation used to evaluate a student ' s reactions to a " no - win " battle and rescue situation . Kirk refused to accept his first two defeats . Before making a third attempt , he secretly reprogrammed the simulation computer , consequently becoming the only cadet in Academy history to beat the " no - win " scenario , and earning a commendation for original thinking . ( ) Junior officer . Kirk was commissioned as an officer in the United Federation of Planets Starfleet with the serial number SC937 - 0176CEC . In the mid - 2250s , some years after beginning his friendship with Lt . Finney , he was promoted to ensign . He served aboard the " Republic " with his friend Lt . Ben Finney . When Finney made a mistake nearly catastrophic to the ship , Kirk log ged the incident , which resulted in his friend being reprimand ed and put to the bottom of the promotion list . ( ) In 2255 , Kirk was promoted to lieutenant . As a young lieutenant , he visited Neural on his first planetary survey mission . Kirk met and befriended one of the planet ' s natives , the . Kirk ' s report described a primitive but promising culture , and Starfleet endorsed him recommending a policy of non - interference . ( ) In 2257 , upon graduating from Starfleet Academy , Kirk began his service under Captain . Kirk ' s first deep - space assignment was as a lieutenant aboard Garrovick ' s . As a phaser gun crew member , he was assigned to a phaser station . ( ) In 2257 , the " Farragut " engaged the dikironium cloud creature at the planet Tycho IV . The creature killed Captain Garrovick and two hundred of the ship ' s crew . " Farragut " s record tape s of the event included Lieutenant Kirk insisting upon blaming himself for the disaster , citing his delay in firing the ship ' s phaser bank s at the creature as he lost consciousness . The " Farragut " s executive officer disagreed , stating , " " Lieutenant Kirk is a fine young officer who performed with uncommon bravery . " " ( ) In the late 2250s , as a lieutenant , Kirk was an instructor at the Academy . ( ) The USS " Enterprise " and its five - year mission . Kirk ' s Starfleet service through the late 2250s and early 2260s was rewarded with a rapid rise through the rank s . ( ) Sometime before or in the year 2265 , at thirty - two years of age , with the rank of captain , he assumed command of the starship USS " Enterprise " ( NCC - 1701 ) from Christopher Pike , bringing Lieutenant Commander Gary Mitchell along with him . ( ) Kirk commanded the " Enterprise " on a historic five - year mission , from 2265 to 2270 , which made him a legend in space exploration . In addition to his overall mission statement – " " to explore strange new worlds , to seek out new life , [ etc . ] " " – Kirk received standing orders to investigate all quasar s , and quasar - like phenomena . Kirk was initially quartered on Deck 12 in 2266 , before moving to Deck 5 , room " 3F 121 " . ( ; ) 2265 . Kirk ' s first major task as captain , attempting to retrieve an extra - galactic probe in 2265 , proved to be a disaster . Discovering a disaster recorder from the that described a catastrophic disaster following a visit to the galaxy ' s edge , Kirk pushed on , and encountered the galactic barrier for his first time . The " Enterprise " failed to breach the barrier , and barely escaped destruction . With its warp engines badly damaged , the " Enterprise " limped under impulse power towards the Delta Vega lithium cracking station . The barrier triggered a transformation in Kirk ' s helmsman and best friend Gary Mitchell , who began developing psychic powers that progressed rapidly , with a commensurate loss of his Humanity . Ignoring Spock advising him to destroy Mitchell immediately , Kirk hesitated until after Mitchell killed navigator Lee Kelso . On the surface of Delta Vega , Kirk hunted Mitchell , and managed to kill him only with the help of another officer undergoing the same transformation as Mitchell , Dr . Elizabeth Dehner . ( ) Following the tragedy , Kirk shuffled the " Enterprise " s command crew . Lieutenant Commander Spock , a legacy officer from the former commander , Captain Christopher Pike , remained science officer and Kirk acknowledged him as first officer . A new chief medical officer , Dr . Leonard McCoy , replaced Dr . Mark Piper . Lieutenant Commander Montgomery Scott remained chief engineer . Lieutenant Nyota Uhura became communications officer and Lieutenant Hikaru Sulu was transferred to the helm . Kirk did not settle on a regular navigator for another two years . ( ) 2266 . On stardate 1512 . 2 , Kirk made first contact with the First Federation , when the " Enterprise " was detained by Captain Balok and a massive spaceship under Balok ' s command , the " Fesarius " . Both captains bluff ed ferociously , but Kirk ' s poker face held . Balok proved to be quite friendly , eager to begin a cultural exchange . ( ) On stardate 1533 . 6 , Kirk and his crew made a brief first contact with the Thasian s , an uncanny group of alien s . While interacting with Charlie Evans , a temporary visitor to the " Enterprise " , Kirk demonstrated prowess with judo , and deep - rooted compassion when Charlie ' s " teachers " wanted to return him to an isolated existence . ( ) Kirk repelled the first Romulan incursion into Federation space in over a century , on stardate 1709 . 2 . A equipped with a cloak and a powerful plasma torpedo system destroyed four Earth Outpost Station s along the Romulan Neutral Zone . Kirk engaged and pursued the Romulan ship , disabling it before the Romulan commander ordered his own ship ' s self - destruction . Kirk and his bridge crew became the first Starfleet officers to make visual contact with a Romulan , finally revealing their appearance to Starfleet . ( ) The " Enterprise " reached Exo III on stardate 2712 . 4 , where Dr . was found after years of silence , exploring and exploiting a sophisticated android manufacturing technology – the legacy of a long - dead civilization . Korby had replaced his own damaged body , transplanting his personality into an android replica , and built himself a beautiful companion , Andrea . Against Kirk ' s wishes , an android duplicate of Kirk was created too . However , the android Korby , after exhibiting madness , destroyed himself . ) On stardate 2817 . 6 , Kirk responded to a call from Dr . Thomas Leighton , a fellow survivor and witness to the horror of Tarsus IV . Leighton suspected the leader of a traveling theater troupe , actor Anton Karidian , of being Kodos " the Executioner " , a man long thought dead . After Leighton was murdered and other witnesses ' deaths were revealed , Kirk convinced Anton Karidian ' s daughter , Lenore , to bring the acting troupe aboard the " Enterprise " . Attempted murders of Kirk and " Enterprise " crewmember Kevin Riley ( another survivor ) led Kirk to confront Karidian ( who was indeed Kodos ) , discovering the recent killings were the acts of his mad daughter , trying to protect her tormented aging father . ( ) 2267 . Kirk became the first Federation starship captain to ever face a court martial , after he was accused of causing the death of Lt . Commander Ben Finney , the " Enterprise " records officer . Kirk employed Defense Attorney Samuel T . Cogley , and Kirk ' s former flame Areel Shaw acted as prosecutor at his trial , which was held on Starbase 11 , convened by Commodore . Kirk was exonerated after Finney was discovered alive , having faked his death and the evidence implicating Kirk . ( ) When Spock kidnapped his former commander , Fleet Captain Christopher Pike , who had been horribly crippled , and commandeered the " Enterprise " in 2267 , he inadvertently jeopardized Kirk ' s command . After Spock locked the ship on course to Talos IV , Kirk was a member of a tribunal that tried Spock , the other members being Pike himself , and an illusion of Commodore Mendez . Spock ' s crimes were in violation of General Order 7 and were punishable by death . Once it was revealed that Spock ' s ultimate goal was to allow Pike , a Starfleet hero , to live a semblance of normality under Talosian illusion , Starfleet declined to prosecute the matter . ( ) When the " Enterprise " passed through the Omicron Delta region , Kirk hoped to arrange for his crew ( and himself ) to take some badly needed shore leave . While Kirk and his landing party investigated a candidate planet to determine its suitability for that purpose , they were beset with manifestations of hidden desires they had . In fact , they had discovered the Shore Leave Planet , and advanced technologies which an ancient , enigmatic species had left behind . ( ) On stardate 2124 . 5 , a being calling himself " General Trelane ( retired ) , the Squire of Gothos " waylaid the " Enterprise " . Though immensely powerful and troublesome , Trelane was revealed to be nothing more than a child of his species , and a badly behaved one at that . Kirk was put on trial , albeit this time in an illusory court , by Trelane . ( ) Kirk made first contact with the Gorn Hegemony and the Metron s on stardate 3045 . 6 . Finding a Federation base on Cestus III destroyed and Gorn forces lying in wait , Kirk ordered the " Enterprise " to give chase to a Gorn starship that had been responsible for the attack , intending to destroy it . The pursuit took the two belligerents through Metron space . The Metrons , pacifistic but powerful , interrupted the engagement and declared both sides were savages . Kirk and the Gorn captain were removed from their respective ships by the Metrons and deposited on a desolate planetoid , where the Metrons forced the two captains to fight each other , threatening to destroy the loser ' s vessel . Kirk was victorious , but refused to kill the Gorn . Kirk ' s act of mercy impressed the Metrons , who allowed both ships to go free . ( ) The " Enterprise " discovered the , an ancient sleeper ship , on stardate 3141 . 9 . The vessel carried a group of genetically engineered Augment s from Earth ' s Eugenics Wars , kept alive in cryogenic freeze . Their leader , Khan Noonien Singh , seduced " Enterprise " historian Lieutenant Marla McGivers , revived his comrades , and attempted to steal the starship – before Kirk stopped him . Somewhat respectful of Khan ' s integrity and abilities , Kirk exiled Khan and his people on planet Ceti Alpha V , where the former tyrant would have a chance to " tame a world " without threatening others . ( ) On stardate 3192 . 1 , the " Enterprise " was caught up in a " civilized " interplanetary war between Eminiar VII and Vendikar , whose engagements were fought only by computers , and marked " casualties " among the citizenry dutifully reported to death chambers . After the " Enterprise " was declared a target and the crew ordered to die , Kirk destroyed the Eminiar computers , forcing them to finally treat with their enemy – or face a war that would destroy their civilization . ( ) Accompanied by Spock and McCoy , Kirk discovered the first known silicon - based lifeform , a sentient Horta matriarch , on the mining colony Janus VI on stardate 3196 . 1 . ( ) At the start of an initial war between the Federation and the Klingon Empire , Kirk and Spock met with the Organian Council of Elders personally and attempted to convince the Organian s , who were apparently primitive , to accept Federation protection . Shortly after the planet Organia was subsequently occupied by Klingons , Kirk and Spock began conducting a guerrilla war against the Klingon occupation , but Organians abandoned their false humanoid forms and intervened , forcing an end to the interstellar war and imposing the Treaty of Organia . Organians predicted that , in time , the antagonistic powers would eventually become friends . ( ) Responding to the Deneva colony having recently gone silent , Kirk found that a hive - mind of marauding neural parasite s had killed his brother , George Samuel Kirk , and that the colony ' s remaining population was under their influence , causing mass insanity . McCoy and Spock were able to develop a method of killing the exotic creatures . ( ) By this time in 2267 , Kirk had finally settled on Ensign Pavel Chekov as the " Enterprise " s regular navigator . ( ) Kirk diverted the " Enterprise " from an assigned ceremonial mission on Altair IV to on stardate 3372 . 7 , in order to save his first officer from the dangerous effects of his " pon farr " mating cycle . In the presence of the Vulcan matriarch , T ' Pau , Kirk was forced to participate in Spock ' s marriage ceremony . ( ) On the planet Halkan , a transporter malfunction swapped the " Enterprise " landing party with a corresponding landing party from a parallel " mirror universe " where a savage , oppressive , Terran Empire had replaced the United Federation of Planets . captained the , whose first officer was a ruthless , beard ed . ( ) A distress call led the " Enterprise " to the crippled after an ancient machine , deemed a " planet killer " , had nearly destroyed that starship . After Matt Decker , a Starfleet commodore who was now mentally unbalanced , made a suicide run with a stolen shuttlecraft , Kirk piloted the " Constellation " inside the machine , detonating the engine s and destroying the device . ( ) Kirk , Spock , and McCoy discovered Zefram Cochrane , the inventor of the warp drive , missing for 150 years , on a planetoid . An energy being Cochrane called " the Companion " had kept him alive and young all those years . At Cochrane ' s request , Kirk did not log the encounter . ( ) While visiting a Federation science colony on Gamma Hydra IV , strange radiation from a rogue comet affected Kirk and members of his party , causing rapid aging . Kirk ' s accelerated dotage forced Commodore Stocker , who was visiting the " Enterprise " , to relieve Kirk from command of the ship until Dr . McCoy discovered a cure . After Kirk was cured , he managed to maneuver the " Enterprise " out of the Neutral Zone and away from Romulan ships via a bluff . ( ) 2268 . On stardate 4523 . 6 , the " Enterprise " was dispatched to Deep Space Station K - 7 , Klingon s , Federation bureaucrat s , and myriads of cuddly but prodigious tribble s tested Kirk ' s patience . ( ; ) Unknown to Kirk , Benjamin Sisko and the crew of the observed and facilitated his actions after a Bajoran Orb brought them from the 24th century ; Sisko even got Kirk ' s autograph ( although Kirk thought he was signing a shipping order ) and told Kirk that it had been an honor to serve with him . ( ) Kirk found the contaminated society of Sigma Iotia II , based on 1920s Chicago gang culture , puzzling at first , but he quickly warmed to it . Uniting the world ' s " gangs " under one " boss " , the Iotian s became a Federation protectorate . ( ) Kirk returned to Neural , the site of his first Starfleet assignment , on stardate 4211 . 4 . Klingons had begun supplying the primitive native villagers with firearm s , leading them to war on the neighboring . Kirk decided to supply the Hill People with similar weapon ry , escalating the conflict , but putting both sides on equal footing . ( ) After John Gill failed to report in from a cultural observation mission to Ekos , the " Enterprise " was assigned to investigate . Kirk found his old professor had developed an idealization of Utopian fascism and had abandoned observation for intervention , creating a Nazi - like world government that overwhelmed Gill ' s best intentions . Kirk aroused the subverted Gill in time to avert Ekos ' impending war with neighboring , and heard Gill recant his philosophies before he died . ( ) Scouts from the Kelvan Empire in the Andromeda Galaxy hijacked the " Enterprise " for their return voyage on stardate 4657 . 5 . The " Enterprise " , modified with Kelvan technology , became the first Federation starship known to cross the galactic barrier , briefly leaving the boundary of the Milky Way Galaxy before Kirk and his senior officers overwhelmed the Kelvan s and returned to Federation space . ( ) On stardate 4842 . 6 , the " Enterprise " discovered the Amerind planet , where an ancient race , the " Preservers " , had transplanted elements of Native American cultures that had been endangered in centuries past . When an accident separated Kirk from the landing party and caused him to suffer amnesia , Spock was forced to abandon the search , in order to command the " Enterprise " in the interception of an asteroid on course to hit the planet . For several months , the inhabitants worshiped Kirk as a god called " Kirok " . During that time , Kirk took a wife . Upon the " Enterprise " s return and the restoration of his memories , Kirk was able to activate an ancient planetary defense mechanism , which the Preservers had left behind , and thereby destroy the approaching asteroid . ( ) Inexplicably to his crew , Kirk began exhibiting bizarre behavior on stardate 5027 . 3 , and ordered the " Enterprise " across the Romulan Neutral Zone . Three Romulan starships detained the " Enterprise " , and Kirk and Spock met the Romulan commander aboard her ship , where Kirk ' s death was faked . The ruse allowed Kirk , surgically altered to look Romulan , to infiltrate the Romulan vessel and steal its cloaking device . Using the device , the " Enterprise " cloaked and escaped to Federation space , taking along the captured Romulan commander . The entire operation had been designed to give the Federation deniability in case of failure , and place the culpability on Kirk . ( ) Near Tholian space on stardate 5693 . 2 , the " Enterprise " discovered the , adrift and its crew dead , trapped in a spatial interphase . Tholian commander Loskene responded to the trespass of " recently annexed " Tholian space . Kirk was lost in the interphase and presumed dead . The " Enterprise " exchanged fire with the Tholians , and the unstable region incited madness among the crew . A second joined the engagement , producing a web to ensnare the " Enterprise " . After various crew members witnessed Kirk ' s spectral image , he was retrieved from interphase , and the " Enterprise " used the rift to escape Tholian entrapment . ( ) 2269 . The " Enterprise " visited a Federation asylum on Elba II on stardate 5718 . 3 . Kirk ' s longtime hero , Fleet Captain Garth of Izar , was committed as a patient . Garth , capable of cellular metamorphosis , assumed Kirk ' s form in an attempt to escape and commandeer the " Enterprise " . Spock was able to determine which man was truly his captain , and Garth was returned to rehabilitation . ( ) A deadly plague struck the crew of the " Enterprise " before stardate 5843 . 7 . Seeking a cure on Holberg 917G , Kirk encountered Flint , a near - immortal Human . Born as Akharin , during Earth ' s 4th millennium BC in Mesopotamia , Flint had later been known as Solomon , Alexander the Great , and Leonardo da Vinci , among other famous identities . Kirk fell in love with Rayna Kapec , an android Flint had built to give him company in his final days of seclusion . ( ) A century later , Captain Janeway of the expressed some doubt about this encounter . ( ) An incredibly realistic simulacrum of Kirk ' s hero , the American President Abraham Lincoln , greeted the " Enterprise " on stardate 5906 . 4 . On the surface of the planet Excalbia , a silicon - based Excalbian re - created the historical figures Surak , Genghis Khan , Phillip Green , Kahless , and Zora . Kirk , Spock , Lincoln , and Surak were pitted against the others as means for the Excalbians to understand the nature and strength of good versus evil . ( ) 2270 . Reaching the end of its five - year deployment in 2270 , Kirk ordered the " Enterprise " set on a course returning the ship to Earth . ( ; ) Time travels . Several of Kirk ' s voyages involved travel through time , either personally through time portal s or along with the entire starship " Enterprise " via acceleration through gravity well s . According to the Federation ' s Department of Temporal Investigations , Kirk , who sometimes ignored regulations when he felt it was for the greater good , amassed seventeen separate temporal violations during his career , more than any other person on file as of 2373 . His time - travel exploits were well - known enough that , when Sisko , after he and his crew returned to the 24th century , told Dulmur and Lucsly that the vessel they had encountered in the past was the first " Enterprise " , the two DTI investigators shrugged at the realization that it was " his " ship , which Sisko proudly confirmed . Kirk was regarded by DTI as a " menace " . ( ) When the " Enterprise " traveled back in time from 2267 to Earth of 1969 but was accidentally observed by the United States Air Force , Kirk , with Sulu , beamed down to a military base in Omaha , Nebraska , to destroy photographic evidence of the " Enterprise " s appearance . By warping around the sun ' s gravity well in a slingshot maneuver , Kirk and his crew managed to rectify the situation and return to their own time aboard the " Enterprise " . ( ) In 2267 , after experiencing violent time distortions , the " Enterprise " discovered the source , the Guardian of Forever . McCoy , delusional from an accidental cordrazine overdose , entered the time portal , altering history to the extent that the Federation and the " Enterprise " no longer existed . Kirk and Spock followed McCoy , appearing in 1930 New York City on Earth . Kirk found himself and Spock shelter in exchange for work , falling in love with a beautiful , idealistic benefactor , Edith Keeler . After Spock discovered that McCoy had prevented history ' s recorded death of Keeler , Kirk was forced to restrain the doctor from saving her life again , the price for restoring the timeline . ( ) In 2268 , Kirk was ordered to repeat the recently proven slingshot maneuver , taking the " Enterprise " back to 1968 on a mission of historical observation . Intercepting enigmatic agent Gary Seven , Kirk attempted to stop his interference , but eventually cooperated with Seven ' s effort to avert a nuclear exchange between the United States of America and the Soviet Union . ( ) A visit to the planet Sarpeidon , doomed by its sun ' s impending , revealed that the Sarpeidans had escaped " en masse " into their own planet ' s past via their Atavachron time portal . The harried and ubiquitous Atoz mistook Kirk , Spock , and McCoy for tardy natives , and he thrust them into the planet ' s past . ( ) In 2269 , Kirk and Spock used the Guardian of Forever a second time , on a mission of historical observation to the dawn of Orion civilization . Upon their return , no - one but Kirk recognized Spock as the " Enterprise " first officer . Supposedly killed in his childhood , Spock returned to the Vulcan of his youth , playing the role of a nearly forgotten cousin who had saved his life during the " kahs - wan " , a Vulcan coming - of - age ordeal . ( ) Later career . The USS " Enterprise " returned to Earth in 2270 . Kirk ' s successful mission resulted in his promotion to rear admiral and a posting as Chief of Starfleet Operations at Starfleet Headquarters in San Francisco for the following two and a half years . With Spock leaving Starfleet to return to Vulcan to purge all emotion , Kirk recommended Will Decker to replace him as " Enterprise " captain while the ship underwent an extensive refit at the San Francisco Fleet Yards , but he told Decker how envious he was and how much he hoped to find a way to get a starship command again . ( ) In the mid - 2270s , " V ' ger " , an energy cloud assimilating information from ( and destroying ) objects in its path , threatened Earth . The only starship positioned to intercept it was the " Enterprise " , her refit nearly complete but still awaiting trial runs . After convincing Admiral Nogura that he was the best man to meet the threat , Kirk rushed the " Enterprise " into service , assuming the rank of captain for the duration of the mission . Decker regarded Kirk ' s command as an insult and a mistake , and pointed to his recent desk service and unfamiliarity with the ship ' s new systems , but the younger man fulfilled his duty as first officer . The entity proved to be the late 20th century NASA space probe " Voyager 6 " , having amassed great power and self - awareness in its travels . When Kirk and his party discovered the true nature of " V ' ger " and negotiated a visit to the actual probe itself , located at the heart of the ' V ' ger ' vessel , Decker used the opportunity , with " V ' ger " s protection , to fulfill his wish to merge with the " V ' ger " entity through the simulacrum of his lover Ilia , thereby uniting " V ' ger " s mechanical nature with its Human origins . The union resulted in the birth of a radically new , and benign , lifeform . ( ) Following the success of this mission , Kirk commanded the " Enterprise " in the mid - to - late 2270s . His quarters were on deck 5 . Kirk retired from Starfleet ( albeit briefly ) sometime before 2284 to pursue a number of personal goals and affairs , namely his relationship with a woman named Antonia . ( ) The wrath and wake of Khan . Kirk returned to Starfleet in 2284 and took a position in the admiralty , supervising command - track cadets at Starfleet Academy among his duties . The lack of a center seat gnawed at him , until he began to express discontent in his latest posting . If only for the chance to be back in space on his beloved former ship , he eagerly boarded the " Enterprise " , now commanded by Captain Spock , as an observer to a cadet training cruise . Khan Noonien Singh escaped from his exile on Ceti Alpha V by hijacking the , leading to his theft of the Genesis Device from the Regula I space station . A call from Dr . Carol Marcus alerted the " Enterprise " , which changed course to investigate . Despite Kirk ' s ( somewhat half - hearted ) protests , Spock insisted on deferring his command to Admiral Kirk , quipping that as a Vulcan " he had no ego to bruise " . The subsequent engagement with his old enemy was tumultuous for Kirk , including a near - disastrous blunder disregarding Starfleet regulations quoted by Saavik that nearly doomed his ship and crew , a meeting with his estranged son , David Marcus , a difficult subsequent battle with Khan , and the resulting death of his friend of twenty years , Spock . ( ) Kirk ' s return to Earth in 2285 was solemn . The loss of Spock affected Kirk deeply , and McCoy began to show signs of mental illness . Planning to return to the after his battle - damaged starship was fully repaired , Kirk ' s hopes were dashed when Commander , Starfleet Admiral Morrow announced that the " Enterprise " would soon be decommissioned . Ambassador Sarek approached Kirk , leading to the discovery of Spock ' s " katra " surviving in McCoy . Kirk ' s senior officer s rallied to him , conspiring to rescue McCoy and steal the " Enterprise " from Earth Spacedock in order to recover Spock ' s body from the and to bring it , and his " katra " , to Vulcan . At the Genesis planet , a Klingon Bird - of - Prey ' s attack left the " Enterprise " disabled . After setting an auto - destruct sequence , Kirk and his crew abandoned the ship for the surface . The " Enterprise " was destroyed , taking a Klingon boarding party along with it . Finding Spock ' s body reanimated by Genesis , Kirk took the Bird - of - Prey to Vulcan , where Spock ' s " katra " and body were reunited . ( ) After three months of exile on Vulcan , Kirk and his crew departed ( aboard the Bird - of - Prey renamed ) for Earth , to face their charges of violating nine Starfleet General orders and regulations . During the voyage , a mysterious probe besieged Earth and communicated only in whale song . After answering the planetary distress signal and determining the probe ' s objective , Kirk used the slingshot effect to take the " Bounty " back in time to 1986 San Francisco . With the help of cetacean biologist Dr . Gillian Taylor , Kirk successfully obtained the humpback whale s George and Gracie and returned with them to 2286 . By providing the whales that could answer the probe ' s query , Kirk redeemed Humanity ' s extermination of a sentient species , and saved Earth from an environmental catastrophe . ( ) The USS " Enterprise " - A . Following the Whale Probe incident , the Federation president declared to Kirk , " " we are forever in your debt " " . In light of their recent heroics , all charges facing his crew were dismissed , but one remained against Admiral Kirk : disobeying the orders of a superior officer . Kirk ' s punishment was a reduction in rank to captain and a return to the duty that had served the Federation so well , starship command . He was assigned to another starship , the , in 2286 . He commanded the " Enterprise " - A for the next seven years . ( ; ) After a brief shakedown cruise proved the " Enterprise " - A wasn ' t quite up to par , Kirk vacationed in Yosemite National Park with Spock and McCoy , while Montgomery Scott attended to the technical problems . The respite was interrupted after Spock ' s half - brother , Sybok , raised a small force called the Galactic Army of Light to take over the planet Nimbus III and captured the Federation , Klingon and Romulan representatives . Kirk and the " Enterprise " - A responded . Most of Kirk ' s crew fell under Sybok ' s influence and joined in his quest to meet " God " by taking the starship through the Great Barrier to the legendary Sha Ka Ree . The entity they encountered proved to be a malevolent force , imprisoned and looking for release . Sybok joined the entity in combat , sacrificing himself , permitting the " Enterprise " - A to escape . ( ) Kirk ' s career culminated in 2293 , when the " Enterprise " - A was assigned to escort Klingon Chancellor Gorkon to Earth for a peace conference . Kirk opposed the peace initiative Spock covertly negotiated . He especially resented that Starfleet had chosen " him " to be the Federation ' s olive branch . A cabal of Federation and Klingon officials instigated an attack on " Kronos One " that appeared to come from the " Enterprise " - A , and assassinated Gorkon . The Klingons arrested Kirk and McCoy , then tried and convicted them for the murder of Gorkon , sentencing them to the Rura Penthe penal asteroid . In violation of orders and treaties , Spock took the " Enterprise " - A into Klingon space , eluded detection and rescued Kirk and McCoy . Following his victory over General at the Battle of Khitomer , Kirk saved the Federation president from assassination , and the historic Khitomer Conference continued . After a final joy - ride on the heading " " second star to the right , and straight on till morning , " " the " Enterprise " - A was decommissioned , and Kirk retired permanently from Starfleet . ( ) The Nexus and death . Shortly after retirement , Kirk joined his friends Montgomery Scott and Pavel Chekov as the honored guests of Captain John Harriman on the maiden voyage of the starship . The event , featuring a media frenzy surrounding Kirk , was little more than a ceremonial cruise , as the " Enterprise " - B was not yet fully crewed or equipped for regular duty . Soon after departure , the ship received a distress signal from two ships transporting El Aurian refugees , trapped in an energy distortion called the Nexus . With the advice of Kirk , and the help of Scott and Chekov , the rescue mission was a partial success , but the " Enterprise " - B succumbed to the Nexus ' gravimetric field . Declining Harriman ' s offer to take command , Kirk volunteered to modify the ship ' s deflector relays and successfully enabled the ship ' s escape , but not before a burst of energy from the Nexus breached the secondary hull . Kirk was lost and presumed dead . Events of 2371 revealed Kirk had entered the Nexus , yet unaware of the passing of 78 years due to the non - linear nature of time in the Nexus . Captain Jean - Luc Picard of the discovered Kirk within the Nexus . Kirk agreed to leave his idyllic but unsatisfying existence to help Picard punch the deranged scientist Tolian Soran , who was going to destroy the Veridian system . As Kirk explained to Picard , the main reason he always returned to the command chair of the " Enterprise " was that it was only there that Kirk could truly make a difference . He advised Picard to refuse anything Starfleet offered him that would take him away from the current " Enterprise " , because he would thus lose the ability to make a difference in the universe . Kirk sacrificed his life to save the inhabitants of Veridian IV , as well as the crew of the " Enterprise " - D , climbing along a precariously - balanced metal bridge in order to grab the control panel necessary to disable the missile that Soran would have used , the bridge subsequently falling down a steep cliff when its support beams broke . His last words , spoken to Picard after being assured that he had made a difference , were to comment that his help was the least he could do for the captain of the " Enterprise " , as well as to assure Picard that " " It was . . . fun . Oh my . . . " " ( ) Captain Picard buried Kirk in a simple stone cairn on a Veridian III mountain top , echoing the burial of his friend , Gary Mitchell , 106 years before . ( ; ) Legacy . " In 2258 of the alternate reality , Spock encountered the on after saving his life . Spock was surprised to see Kirk who he referred to several times as " old friend " which confused the alternate Kirk as he and hated each other . Spock was further stunned to learn that this Kirk did not command the , rather it was commanded by his own alternate self . " " When questioned about his prime self ' s father , Spock told the alternate Kirk that the prime version always spoke of him as his inspiration to join Starfleet and that his father had lived to see Kirk become captain of the " Enterprise " , surprising the alternate Kirk by his prime self ' s command of the ship . Spock later beamed the alternate Kirk and to the " Enterprise " , instructing the alternate Kirk to take command as the only way to defeat Nero . Before departing , Kirk pointed out Spock ' s changing of history as cheating and Spock told him that it was " a trick I learned from an old friend " referring to the prime Kirk . " " Following the Battle of Earth , Spock and the alternate Spock met in a Starfleet hanger . There the prime Spock told his alternate self that his friendship with his Kirk was one that would come to define them both in ways the alternate Spock had not yet realized and he stayed out of the situation with Nero to enable the alternate Kirk and Spock to see the potential of their friendship taking a similar path . Spock urged his alternate self to stay in Starfleet and foster that friendship with James Kirk , something the alternate Spock ultimately chose to do . " ( ) " In 2263 , after Spock Prime ' s death , it was revealed that his belongings contained a picture of him with Kirk , as well as the rest of the bridge crew of the " Enterprise " - A , in the year 2287 of the prime reality . The alternate Spock discovered this picture and it inspired him to remain in Starfleet following the death of his counterpart and join the crew of his own reality ' s instead . " ( ) Intellect and personality . After his personality was split due to a transporter accident in 2266 , Kirk was forcibly introduced to the competing elements in his personality , described most roughly as passive and aggressive . ( ) One half of Kirk ' s dual nature manifested itself in his frequent melancholy about the state of his life : when he was aboard ship , he longed for a life of ease ; ( ) when moored , his thoughts were with the " Enterprise " . ( ) His violent tendencies ranged from his enthusiastic beating of Finnegan to his willingness to provoke Spock . ( ) Evaluating Khan in his first encounter , Kirk admitted , " " We Humans have a streak of barbarism in us . Appalling , but there , nevertheless . " " ( ) The flexibility of his nature was a large part of his success . The man sensitive enough to tread lightly among gangster Iotian s , in the manner of their culture , was the same who saw the plain necessity in destroying the war - computers that were a cultural pillar of Eminiar VII . ( ) Kirk had a strong moral center and devotion to the values he found embodied in the Federation , spending most of his life in its service and defense . In numerous incidents , he risked his life for causes he deemed just , including his final act on Veridian III . His confidence in his righteousness sometimes led him to creatively interpret , and outright disobey , his orders . ( ; ) Kirk embraced the culture and history of his homeland , especially western lore and the life of his hero Abraham Lincoln . Recognizing the document mirrored on the planet Omega IV , he could recite the preamble of the US Constitution from memory . His extensive knowledge of his ancestral background served him well on numerous occasions . In travels to Earth ' s past , or on planets mirroring Earth ' s development , Kirk was able to function and pass himself off as a native of the time or culture with ( more or less ) ease . ( ) A charismatic and successful leader , Kirk inspired loyalty from his officers , some of whom spent the bulk of their careers under his command . His command crew risked their careers at his call , conspiring to steal the " Enterprise " on a mission to save their comrade Spock . As a commander in his own right , Hikaru Sulu disobeyed orders and attempted to rescue Kirk and McCoy from Klingon imprisonment , later coming to Kirk ' s aid at the Battle of Khitomer . After Montgomery Scott ' s recovery from a transporter loop in 2369 , the old engineer ' s first assumption was that Kirk himself had taken the " Enterprise " out of mothballs to come to his rescue . ( ; ; ; ) Beyond his command skills , Kirk exhibited a comprehensive knowledge of starship systems . When Ben Finney ' s sabotage of the " Enterprise " caused the ship to lose orbit above Starbase 11 in 2267 , Kirk managed to scramble up a Jefferies tube to effect the necessary repairs . After the " planet killer " nearly destroyed the , Kirk directed Montgomery Scott and a skeleton crew to salvage the ship , recovering enough power and control functions so Kirk could pilot the hulk , solo , into the machine ' s maw . On several occasions , Kirk displayed his skill in inducing self - destruction in computers and androids by confronting them with paradox es . After the " Enterprise " s major refit of the early 2270s , Kirk ' s extended desk - duty showed in his unfamiliarity with the new systems , but he corrected the mistake in the following years . His last act of 2293 was the successful modification of the " Enterprise " - B ' s navigational deflector , saving the ship from destruction by the Nexus . ( ; ; ) Tactics . Kirk ' s historic role as an explorer was rivaled by his reputation for tactical genius . In several notable engagements , Kirk used the USS " Enterprise " effectively as a weapon of war . In 2269 , a simulacrum of Abraham Lincoln was struck by Kirk ' s propensity to take the offensive when required . He asked of Kirk , " " Do you drink whiskey ? " " Kirk responded , " " Occasionally . Why ? " " Lincoln answered , " " Because you have qualities very much like those of another man I admire greatly , General Grant . " " In 2379 , the " Enterprise " - E had a series of battle maneuvers named for Kirk , including the evasive maneuver " pattern Kirk epsilon " . ( ; ) As a means to avoid battle , or to divert his opponent long enough so he could get the upper hand , Kirk frequently " bluffed " or lied his way through a parley . In two incidents , Kirk used his corbomite gambit . ( ) He misled Khan into expecting valuable data rather than a devastating phaser strike in their encounter of 2285 . ( ) His capitulation to Kruge was a lure to draw the bulk of the Klingon crew to the " Enterprise " before he ordered its destruction . ( ) Perhaps Kirk ' s most intricate , audacious misdirection of an enemy was found in the events leading up to his theft of a Romulan cloaking device in 2268 . ( ) The Romulan incursion of Federation space in 2266 led Kirk into a drawn - out cat - and - mouse chase against a commander in whom Kirk found an instinctual rapport . The had the ability to render itself invisible as well as delivering a powerful plasma torpedo that nearly overwhelmed the " Enterprise " . Both captains used ruses that simulated more damage than actually received . Kirk was able to briefly track the Romulan , by mirroring its movements to simulate a sensor ghost . Finally , emerging from the camouflage of a comet ' s tail , Kirk was able to disable the Romulan vessel . Before ordering his vessel ' s self - destruction , the Romulan captain remarked that under different circumstances he and Kirk might have been friends . ( ) In 2267 , Kirk found the , severely damaged and adrift in space , with only Commodore Matt Decker aboard . The " Constellation " had been attacked by a huge , ancient device , and the crew evacuated to a nearby planet , which the planet killer destroyed and consumed . Kirk directed the salvaging of the " Constellation " and Decker was sent to the " Enterprise " . Upon return of the planet killer , the unmoored Decker assumed command of " Enterprise " , endangering it in a useless attack . Kirk was able to maneuver the " Constellation " enough to distract the device . Decker was relieved , but stole a shuttlecraft he took into the maw of the device , destroying himself . Inspired by Decker ' s mad attempt , Kirk piloted the " Constellation " to the machine ' s mouth , detonating the ship ' s impulse engines and destroying the device . ( ) A textbook example of Kirk ' s ability to wield the " Enterprise " against a well - matched opponent was in the encounter with the USS " Reliant " , a starship commandeered by the Augment Khan Noonien Singh at the Battle of the Mutara Nebula ( actually a series of two successive engagements ) in 2285 . Kirk admitted to getting " " caught with my britches down , " " at first ( namely ignoring General Order 12 , which allowed the " Enterprise " to be crippled by the non - communicative ship ' s sudden attack ) , but he used his long starship experience and Khan ' s own egomaniacal psychology to level the playing field and prevail , though it came at a great personal cost . ( ) Klingons , in particular , recognized Kirk as a worthy opponent . The legendary Kor , frustrated by Organian interference that made battle against Kirk impossible , wistfully surmised , " " it would have been glorious " " in 2267 . Captain Klaa believed defeating Kirk would make him the greatest warrior in the galaxy in 2287 . General reveled in his attack on Kirk at the Battle of Khitomer , until he lost his advantage . During a visit to the 23rd century , even Lieutenant Commander Worf remarked that it would be an honor to meet Kirk . Lieutenant Commander Jadzia Dax also commented that Koloth always regretted not getting the chance to face Kirk in battle . ( ; ; ; ) Kirk also appeared fond of – or at least particularly prone to – time - travel incidents , accumulating seventeen separate temporal violations over the course of his career , more than anyone on record . ( ) Mental assaults and trauma . As a thirteen - year - old boy , Kirk witnessed the massacre of the four thousand colonist s on Tarsus IV . ( ) He also mourned the loss of his friend Gary Mitchell , ( ) his brother , George Kirk , ( ) and his son , Dr . David Marcus . ( ; ) He also had a hidden source of pain that he would not share even with Spock and Dr . McCoy . ( ) In 2266 , a M - 113 creature nearly killed Kirk . ( ) Succumbing to the effects of polywater intoxication in 2266 , Kirk contemplated aloud the heavy responsibility of command , and the price the " Enterprise " exacted from his personal life : " " this vessel . . . I give , she takes . . . She won ' t permit me my life . I ' ve got to live hers . " " Ultimately , he gathered himself , speaking directly to the " Enterprise " , " " Never lose you . . . never . " " ( ) Kirk learned something about his own nature after a transporter malfunction in 2266 . Kirk was split into two physical duplicates , one intuitive and passive , the other violent and passionate . While separated , the survival of both personalities were threatened , and a way was eventually found to recombine the two . ( ) At the Tantalus Penal Colony in 2266 , Doctor Tristan Adams used his neural neutralizer device as an instrument torture on Kirk . The device emptied a victims mind of thought , leaving it vulnerable to suggestion . Adams included conditioning that made him feel love for Dr . Helen Noel , including deep pain at the idea of her loss . Kirk was able to resist long - term damage from the device . ( ) Under the euphoric , enervating influence of Omicron pod plant s , the entire " Enterprise " crew mutinied , abandoning the ship for the planet Omicron Ceti III in 2267 . Kirk was the last to fall under the influence , but his subconscious anger at the idea of leaving the ship rose to the surface , and broke the pod plant ' s effect . ( ) Upon his second encounter with the dikironium cloud creature in 2267 , Kirk re - experienced the feelings of guilt over his actions in a previous disastrous incident , aboard the . Exhibiting a single - minded fixation on the destruction of the creature , McCoy and Spock questioned Kirk ' s emotional condition . As it turns out , phasers were ineffectual against the cloud creature , thus Kirk learns that he could not have stopped it in their previous encounter and he had nothing to regret . With the help of his former captain ' s son Ensign , Kirk lured the creature to the planet Tycho IV , destroying it with an antimatter bomb . ( ) Kirk literally lost his mind on two occasions . His mind was displaced into a receptacle in 2268 , briefly allowing the ancient being Sargon to live as a corporeal being . A bitter former lover , Dr . Janice Lester , used ancient alien technology to exchange her consciousness with Kirk ' s in 2269 . ( ) In 2287 , the Vulcan renegade Sybok offered Kirk the chance to " ease his pain " , as he had seemingly demonstrated on Spock and McCoy . Kirk refused the offer angrily , insisting " " I don ' t want my pain taken away ; I NEED my pain " " . ( ) Vitality . The demands of Kirk ' s career required his best possible health , which Dr . McCoy closely oversaw . Kirk sparred with his crew in the " Enterprise " gymnasium for exercise . Quarterly physical checks tested his physical fitness as well as general health . In spite of his evident strength and conditioning , Kirk did tend to put on a few extra pounds from time to time . When Dr . McCoy noticed a gain , he wasn ' t afraid to adjust Kirk ' s diet card , annoying his captain with a plate of dietary salad . ( ) Kirk spent a huge portion of his life aboard starships , and consequently relished the times he could spend outdoors . He was an accomplished equestrian , and kept a horse at a mountain cabin that he owned during his first retirement . Another companion at his mountain cabin was , his Great Dane . He sold the cabin sometime after his return to Starfleet . A personal challenge that nearly cost him his life was free - solo climbing the face of El Capitan mountain in Yosemite National Park on Earth . After Spock rescued Kirk from an accidental free fall , Kirk told the Vulcan and McCoy that while falling he knew he wouldn ' t die because he had always known that he would die alone , and since he , McCoy , and Spock were present during the incident , he could not die . However , Kirk ' s prediction eventually proved wrong when he died on Veridian III in the company of Jean - Luc Picard . ( ; ) Personal combat . Kirk ' s command style frequently brought him in close proximity to his enemies , often resulting in hand - to - hand combat . His idiosyncratic martial - arts style used hand chops to the neck , wrestling and judo throws , roundhouse punches , two - fisted swings and open - hand slaps in varying combinations , and even drop kicks . One or two of Kirk ' s blows overwhelmed a variety of enemy guards and henchmen . In addition , Kirk regularly performed dives and rolls , either to evade phaser fire or to attack an opponent , thereby often jumping off walls and other fixed elements . A typical example of Kirk ' s fighting style in a more extended bout occurred in 2265 on the surface of Delta Vega , in the attempt to kill his friend Gary Mitchell , ( ) while typical examples of his wrestling and Judo abilities were seen when the Orion spy Thelev assaulted him , and when he used a judo throw to disarm the Redjac entity which had taken the form of Hengist . ( ) At times , a larger , more powerful opponent clearly out - classed Kirk , leaving him to his wits , the aid of his crew , or pure luck to see him through . Pitted against the Gorn captain in 2267 , he held his own for a time , until his injuries forced withdrawal and a search for a more efficient weapon . In 2255 and again in 2268 , he wrestled a ferocious Mugato of Neural . When the massive ancient android Ruk attacked Kirk on Exo III in 2266 , Kirk could do little but hold on for the ride . ( ) On the Shore Leave Planet in 2267 , Kirk was shocked by the appearance of Finnegan , his Academy nemesis who hadn ' t seemed to age . The two proceeded to slug each other until they were bleeding and exhausted . Perhaps the longest fist - fight of his life , it was clearly the most satisfying . ( ) Kirk fought his friend and first officer Spock on three occasions when the half - Vulcan lost his normal emotional control . A series of slaps delivered to Spock in 2266 resulted in a blow that sent Kirk over a table . In 2267 , after necessarily cruel taunts , Spock tossed Kirk back and forth across the transporter room , regaining control just before he crushed his captain ' s skull . Spock ' s blood fever during his " pon farr " of 2267 made him so dangerous in the " koon - ut - kal - if - fee " ritual fight , Dr . McCoy faked Kirk ' s death before Spock could kill him . ( ) Kirk was constantly looking to improve his arsenal of combat techniques . Upon witnessing Hikaru Sulu perform a body throw on Agmar on Phylos in 2269 , he asked Sulu to teach him the technique sometime , since it might come in handy . ( ) Ailments and injuries . Early in his life , Kirk contracted and nearly died from Vegan choriomeningitis . Although he was cured , the organisms of the disease continued to be carried in his blood . ( ) Twice , aliens nearly killed Kirk . ( ) While the " Enterprise " was transporting ambassadors to the Babel Conference of 2268 , an Orion agent disguised as an Andorian stabbed Kirk , puncturing his left lung . ( ) After beaming down to the planet Gamma Hydra IV , Kirk , along with Spock , Dr . McCoy , and Scott were all exposed to a rare form of radiation sickness from a passing comet . The radiation caused the party to age very rapidly . Standard hyronalin therapy was ineffective . It was not until Spock , Nurse Chapel , and Dr . Janet Wallace were able to concoct a new type of treatment based on an old - style adrenaline radiation therapy that Kirk and his party were cured , just in time for the captain to regain his ability to command and save the " Enterprise " from a heavy Romulan attack . ( ) In 2268 , Kirk suffered amnesia while stranded on a distant planet ; ( ) aliens also captured him twice and subjected him to physical trauma . ( ) At the end of that year , the governing council of the planet attempted to use the Vegan choriomeningitis organisms in Kirk ' s blood to control their planet ' s overpopulation . ( ) Kirk was allergic to Retinax V ; as a result , he occasionally used old - fashioned corrective lenses to adjust for his increasing farsightedness . ( ) Relationships . Friendships . An approachable , gregarious individual , Kirk made many friends across a range of worlds and status , from the Hill dweller to Starfleet Admiral Harry Morrow . Those that shared his closest , personal confidence appear to be limited to a few , including Spock , Leonard McCoy , and Gary Mitchell . The core group of talented officers that he assembled in his first years aboard the " Enterprise " followed his call throughout their own careers , and were integral factors to his long success and lasting reputation . Spock . Kirk presumably first met his half - Vulcan science officer Spock upon succeeding Christopher Pike as captain of the " Enterprise " in 2265 . After the death of Gary Mitchell , Kirk came to depend on Spock ' s detached , logical analysis as a supplement to his own intuitive and impulsive nature . Their official relationship deepened into a friendship of mutual respect and love that was without a doubt the most important relationship of both Kirk and Spock ' s life . As Edith Keeler observed of Spock ' s place in the world , " " You ? At his side . As if you ' ve always been there and always will . " " ( ) He once described his Vulcan friend as " " the noblest part of myself " " and declared that Spock ' s immortal soul " " is my responsibility , as surely as if it were my very own . " " Kirk even told Spock ' s father that he would never realize how important Spock was to him , and declared that , despite losing the " Enterprise " and his son , had he not tried to rescue his friend , " " . . . the cost would have been my soul . " " ( ) The polywater intoxication that affected the " Enterprise " crew in 2266 led to a difficult encounter between Kirk and his first officer . Needing Spock at a critical moment , Kirk found him in anguished reflection , regretting his inability to express love even for his mother . Trying to bring the first officer around to the moment , Kirk slapped him . Spock ' s reaction was flat and revelatory , " " Jim , when I feel friendship for you , I ' m ashamed . " " Struck again , Spock responded in kind , sending Kirk backwards over a table . ( ) Spock was sympathetic to Kirk ' s plight after the transporter divided the captain ' s personality into opposite aspects . He referred to his own halves , " submerged . . . constantly at war with each other " . Spock believed that Kirk could survive such a contest intact , and urged him to embrace the part of himself that , seemingly ugly , was crucial to his personality and captaincy . ( ) After Kirk discovered emotional rage was the key to nullifying the effect of the Omicron pod plant s , his first step in retrieving his crew was to taunt Spock into anger . Anticipating the result of a Vulcan ' s strength pitted against him , Kirk wielded a pipe for protection . After calling him an " " elf with a hyperactive thyroid " " and that he belonged " " in the circus , right next to the dog - faced boy " " , Spock indeed lost control , nearly killing Kirk before resuming command of himself . ( ) In 2267 , Spock began his " pon farr " mating cycle , and behaved bizarrely aboard the " Enterprise " . Kirk called to Spock " " the best first officer in the fleet " " and " " an enormous asset to me " " as he pled with Spock to explain his actions . When told that by taking Spock to Vulcan , against Starfleet orders , Kirk fired back " " I owe him [ Spock ] my life a dozen times over ! Isn ' t that worth a career ? " " . Joining him on Vulcan for his marriage ceremony , Kirk was drawn into T ' Pring ' s scheme to marry another , and forced to fight Spock to the death . McCoy , knowing Kirk was endangered , faked Kirk ' s death , and the marriage was not consummated . Spock , despondent that he had murdered his captain , thrilled at the sight of Kirk alive , exclaiming , " " JIM ! " " , which McCoy delighted in needling Spock about once he gained his composure . ( ) Kirk ' s understanding of Spock had an enormous impact on the parallel mirror universe , visited after a transporter accident in 2267 . As Kirk ' s party prepared to return to their proper universe , Kirk implored the to re - examine his role in the fascistic Terran Empire , insisting " " One man can make a difference " " . Mirror - Spock ' s consideration of those words led to his rise to dominance and reform of the Empire , with drastic consequences . ( ; ) When Kirk was trapped in spatial interphase during a rescue operation in Tholian space , Spock ordered the " Enterprise " to maintain her position in an effort to retrieve him , in spite of the danger the Tholians presented and the disruptive nature of the local space . After Kirk ' s assumed death , Spock and McCoy viewed the ' last orders ' Kirk had prepared . He urged Spock to use all the Vulcan disciplines at his disposal , tempered with intuitive insight . Kirk believed Spock had the latter qualities , but should they elude him , he was urged to seek out McCoy . ( ) Kirk once commented to Captain Garth that he and Spock were " brothers " . Spock only said , " " Captain Kirk speaks somewhat figuratively , and with undue emotion , but what he says is logical and I do , in fact , agree with it . " " ( ) When Dr . Janice Lester , a former lover of Kirk ' s , took over Kirk ' s body , Spock performed a mind meld on Kirk while he was trapped in Lester ' s body . Spock believed Kirk was Lester before anyone else , and when Lester as Kirk ordered his execution , he continued to stand by his friend . ( ) At the end of the " Enterprise " s five - year mission , a period marked by his frequent loss of his emotional control , Spock chose to leave Starfleet and his friends , to pursue the Kolinahr discipline of logic on . His return to " Enterprise " during the " V ' ger " threat was a cold event , without acknowledgment of his past friendships . In " V ' ger " s aftermath , Spock finally achieved equilibrium , able to express his friendship for Kirk without the influence of aliens or illness , and notably lacking any threat of physical violence . In 2285 , Spock was calmly able to tell Kirk , " " You ' re my superior officer . You are also my friend . I have been and always shall be yours . " " ( ; ) Spock ' s sacrifice of his own life , to save the " Enterprise " from Khan ' s detonation of the Genesis Device , deeply affected Kirk . At his funeral , Kirk could only bring himself to say of Spock , " " Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels , his was the most . . . Human . " " ( ) The revelation that Spock ' s " katra " , his living spirit , survived in the tormented mind of McCoy , led Kirk to risk his career , and in turn , his crew ' s . He first asked Admiral Harry Morrow for permission to retrieve Spock ' s body from the Genesis Planet , to bring it , and McCoy , to Vulcan . Kirk insisted that any chance to save Spock ' s soul was his responsibility , " " as surely as if it were my very own . " " His request declined , he told his crew , " " the word is No . I am therefore going anyway . " " With the help of Uhura , Scott , Sulu , and Chekov , Kirk rescued McCoy from confinement and commandeered the " Enterprise " from Earth Spacedock . The renegade mission saw the death of Kirk ' s ship , and his son . Finding Spock ' s body re - animated by Genesis , Kirk brought him and McCoy to Vulcan for the " fal - tor - pan " ( re - fusion ) ritual . The first person Spock recognized was Kirk : " " Jim . Your name . . . is Jim . " " ( ) During their homecoming from Vulcan , and eventually their trip to 1986 , Kirk tried to remind the resurrected Spock , suffering from memory loss , to their friendship and past adventures together . After Kirk and the crew ' s trial , Spock told his father , his " associates " are his friends . ( ) In 2287 , the trio enjoyed a camping trip together at Yosemite National Park , which abruptly ended when Spock , half - brother Sybok diverted the " Enterprise " to Nimbus III . After their adventure on and Sybok ' s death , Kirk referred to Spock once again as his " brother " , and told him and McCoy , that they ' re his real family . ( ) " When Spock later entered the alternate reality , he told of their deep friendship , despite the fact that had marooned Kirk on . During this meeting , Spock called the alternate Kirk " old friend " several times and felt it was good to see a version of James Kirk despite the terrible events of that day . Kirk , who had been accused of cheating on the " Kobayashi Maru " by the alternate Spock , told Spock Prime that his actions in changing history could be construed as cheating . Spock nostalgically admitted that it was " a trick I learned from an old friend " , referencing the prime Kirk . " " When meeting with his alternate reality counterpart , Spock Prime admitted to deceiving the alternate Kirk to force him and the alternate Spock to work together to defeat Nero rather than intervening in the situation himself to make both men see the potential of their friendship . Spock Prime explained it as " " I could not deprive you of the revelation of all that you could accomplish together , of a friendship that will define you both in ways you cannot yet realize . " " He then encouraged the alternate Spock to stay in Starfleet and foster that friendship , something Spock ultimately chose to do . " ( ) " In 2263 of the alternate reality , the alternate Spock discovered that even so long after Kirk ' s death , Spock Prime kept a picture of him and the bridge crew of the " Enterprise " - A amongst his personal things . " ( ) Leonard McCoy . Doctor Leonard McCoy became chief medical officer of the " Enterprise " after the departure of Dr . Mark Piper in 2265 . Kirk formed an easy rapport with his new doctor , giving him the moniker " Bones " ( as in the old - fashioned colloquialism " sawbones " for a doctor or a surgeon ) . Even after McCoy began a program of exhaustive ( and exhausting ) quarterly physicals and interfered with Kirk ' s usual diet , their friendship grew rapidly . McCoy was probably Kirk ' s closest friend , aside , of course , from Spock . ( ) Kirk could count on McCoy to express exactly what he thought , whenever he thought it , frequently without the courtesy of a question , and the doctor was often the sharpest observer of Kirk ' s actions and character . An early act of constructive insubordination occurred when the " Enterprise " faced the ominous spacecraft " Fesarius " and Kirk seemed to be pushing young Lieutenant Dave Bailey past his breaking point . McCoy let his opinion loose from beside the captain ' s chair , and Kirk barked an angry reply . Unintimidated , McCoy continued that behavior throughout their service together , earning a wide latitude with Kirk . ( ) The first time McCoy saved Kirk ' s life wasn ' t in surgery , but when McCoy fired a phaser ( unusually for McCoy ) in 2266 . When the M - 113 creature of planet M - 113 attacked Kirk , it appeared to McCoy as Nancy Crater , a past love and a particularly powerful impediment to inflict harm . With Spock ' s help , McCoy was able to see past the creature ' s camouflage , killing it before it killed Kirk . ( ) During the original five - year mission , Kirk recorded a tape of last orders Commander Spock and Chief Medical Officer McCoy were to play upon his death . He urged Spock and McCoy to give each other the same trust and loyalty they had each shown him . ( ) McCoy ' s retirement from Starfleet in 2270 ended abruptly when Kirk , through Admiral Nogura , reactivated McCoy ' s commission for the " ' Enterprise " s emergency deployment for the " V ' Ger " crisis . Kirk ' s plea , " " Dammit Bones , I need you , " " ended McCoy ' s objection to the unwelcome " draft " and he returned to his frequent duty station , hovering just behind the captain ' s chair . ( ) In 2285 , McCoy advised a melancholic Kirk on his birthday , " " Get back your command . Get it back before you really do grow old . " " ( ) Kirk ' s drastic action taken to save Spock ' s " katra " was also an effort to save McCoy from the anguishing burden of bearing Spock ' s " marbles " . After his moonlight requisition of the " Enterprise " resulted in the ship ' s destruction , burning through the Genesis planet ' s atmosphere , Kirk asked , " " My God , Bones . . . what have I done ? " " McCoy replied , " " What you had to do , what you always do : turn death into a fighting chance to live . " " ( ) After the assassination of Klingon Chancellor Gorkon , Kirk and McCoy were imprisoned together on Rura Penthe . With the " help " of a shapeshifter named Martia , they were able to escape together and return to the " Enterprise " . ( ) Gary Mitchell . Kirk met a young Gary Mitchell in 2250 , and the two became fast friends following Mitchell ' s admission into the Academy . Cadet Gary Mitchell was a student in Lieutenant Kirk ' s class . He ' d been warned by upperclassmen , " " you either think or sink " " . Mitchell , in 2265 , remembered Kirk as a , " " A stack of books with legs . " " In an attempt to divert his friend ' s attentions and make the class easier to get through , Mitchell set Kirk up with a " little blonde lab technician " ( see below ) , whom Kirk almost married . In the 2260s , upon receiving his first command , Kirk asked Mitchell to join him aboard that ship . Kirk and Mitchell took part in a mission to planet Dimorus , where they encountered sentient rodent - like creatures that shot poisonous darts . Mitchell took one of the darts meant for Kirk , saving Kirk ' s life but nearly dying himself . Before he assumed command of the , James T . Kirk , with his friend Gary Mitchell , came to Deneb IV . In at least three cases , Mitchell was capable of carrying long telepathic conversations with the natives , scoring 80 % or higher on comprehension . On one night , a telepathic conversation with a female native had a deleterious effect on Mitchell . Kirk later stated that he ' d been worried about Mitchell ever since that night . As a pun Mitchell referred to the girl as a . ( ) Later , in 2265 , Mitchell later served under Kirk as helmsman aboard the USS " Enterprise " . Mitchell was a part of Kirk ' s crew when the " Enterprise " departed for its five - year mission . Sadly , Kirk was forced to kill his friend that same year when a fateful encounter with the galactic barrier mutated Mitchell into a godlike , and eventually power - mad being . ( ) Montgomery Scott . Montgomery Scott , the oldest of the " Enterprise " senior officers , was also the most consistently deferential to Kirk . While not included in Kirk ' s innermost circle with Spock and McCoy , Kirk had evident faith in Scotty ' s capabilities as an engineer . Kirk pushed the " Enterprise " past her known limits many times , and the technical genius of his devoutly loyal " miracle worker " was regularly the key to success . He later admitted that a big part of his reputation was his exaggeration of repair estimates , so that Kirk could be pleasantly surprised when Scott has them done quicker than he had expected . It became a running joke of sorts between the two later on . Scott and Kirk shared a passion for the " Enterprise " , but Scotty ' s was a simpler , less complicated love for his " " bairns " " . ( ; ; ; ) As the ship ' s second officer , commanding the " Enterprise " while Kirk led a landing party , Scott ' s personal loyalty to Kirk served as a bulwark against various ambassadors or potentates who threatened mission success . Usually , Scott refrained from taking the captain ' s chair and hovered around the conn when left in command , as he always felt more comfortable in engineering than on the bridge in command of the ship . He took the center seat only when the situation was critical : scaring a Klingon ship away from Capella IV , or defiantly facing down three Romulan battle cruiser s and demanding his captain ' s return . ( ) When escape from the mirror universe via the transporter meant one of the " Enterprise " party had to stay behind to operate the controls , Scott stoically volunteered . After Kirk overrode him , Scott ' s one - word plea " " Jim ! " " was one of the few times he familiarly addressed Kirk . ( ) Scott kept his temper throughout Korax ' s barrage of taunts and insults thrown at Kirk , but a cross word about the " Enterprise " led Scott to throw the first punch in the K - 7 bar - fight of 2267 . When Kirk , a little incredulous that his engineer had failed to defend his honor , confined Scott to quarters as punishment , the engineer beamed at the chance to catch up on technical manuals . ( ) Kirk observed Scott ' s infatuation with two young and attractive lieutenants , Carolyn Palamas and Mira Romaine , with bemused detachment at first , until the " stiff - necked thistle - head " abandoned his usual solid professionalism and required Kirk ' s stern , but affectionate , scolding . ( ) Kirk ' s socialization with Scott outside of the call of duty was rare . One exception , a visit to the flesh - pots of Argelius II , was a morale - boosting effort by Kirk on Scott ' s behalf . If Scott noticed the motivation , he didn ' t seem to care . Even after the horrific encounter with the Redjac entity , the " old Aberdeen pub - crawler " was eager to join Kirk on a second expedition to the planet . By 2285 , Kirk knew enough about Scott ' s off - duty habits to detect the residue of a " wee bout " of shore leave at first glance . ( ; ) When the " V ' Ger " threat forced the newly refitted " Enterprise " into duty , Scott protested with a litany of complaints about the rush and unready state of the starship . After Kirk revealed he had convinced Admiral Nogura to return his command , Scott responded , " " Any man , who could manage such a feat . . . I would ' na dare disappoint . She ' ll launch on time , sir , and she ' ll be ready . " " ( ) In 2293 , Scott accompanied Kirk , along with Chekov , to the christening ceremony of the . Kirk expressed to Scott his surprise over Hikaru Sulu finding the time to make a family after encountering his daughter Demora . Scott reminded Kirk of a saying he always said , " " If something ' s important , you " make " the time . " " Scott also commented on Kirk ' s seeming restlessness , asking him if he found retirement to be a little lonely . " " You know , I ' m glad you ' re an engineer . With tact like that , you ' d make a lousy psychiatrist " " , Kirk replied to him . Later , Kirk was believed to be lost in a hull breach in deflector control caused by an energy tendril from the Nexus . Making his way to the heavily damaged area , Scott mourned the loss of his former commanding officer . ( ) Upon being rematerialized in 2369 after spending 75 years in the ' s transporter buffer , Scott immediately remarked to Riker and La Forge that Kirk must have taken the " Enterprise " out of mothballs to come looking for him . ( ) Hikaru Sulu . Though Hikaru Sulu was briefly an " Enterprise " physicist , he was transferred to the command division under Kirk ' s command , where Sulu became the ship ' s senior helmsman throughout the historic five - year mission . ( ) Kirk relied on Sulu as a capable officer he could trust with the " Enterprise " conn in battle situations ( ) and on away missions as delicate as the timeline - risky visit to the 498th Air Base in Omaha , Nebraska , on Earth in 1969 . ( ) Sulu risked his career for Kirk on two occasions . Conspiring with his friends , he assaulted a security guard to liberate Dr . McCoy , and piloted the stolen " Enterprise " out of Earth Spacedock to the Genesis planet in 2285 . ( ) As captain of the in 2293 , he penetrated the Azure Nebula in Klingon territory in an effort to rescue his former captain before he was forced to turn back , ( ) and later joined Kirk in halting the Khitomer conspiracy . ( ) Outside of their careers , the friendship between Kirk and Sulu wasn ' t especially close . Kirk was surprised to discover Sulu had a daughter , Demora , on the maiden voyage of the " Enterprise " - B . Chekov had to remind him that he ' d actually met her before , twelve years prior . ( ) Janice Rand . Starfleet assigned Janice Rand as Kirk ' s personal yeoman in 2266 . Initially , he complained about the idea of a female yeoman , leading McCoy to flatly ask , " " What ' s the matter , Jim ? Don ' t you trust yourself ? " " Kirk said he already had a female to worry about : the " Enterprise " . Kirk warmed to Rand , but an undercurrent of sexual attraction between the two became obvious in stressful situations . Suffering from polywater intoxication in 2266 , Kirk confided his attraction for Rand to Spock , shouting that he had " a beautiful yeoman ! " Kirk later reached out to her hesitantly , longing for her , but couldn ' t approach but for his duty . ( ) A transporter malfunction created a duplicate of the captain that contained his negative qualities , such as hostility , lust , and violence . That version of Kirk was consumed with lust and desire for Rand and went " on the prowl " to find her . Eventually , when they both were alone in her quarters , he slowly approached her . Besides being a little startled by his presence , it looked and felt normal for her , until she noticed the captain drinking from a bottle of Saurian brandy . Obviously drunk , he started telling her that she was " too beautiful to ignore " and " too much woman . " As he stalked closer to her , he claimed that they ' d both been " pretending too long . " Then , he suddenly grabbed her and began kissing her fiercely . The Kirk duplicate tried to pin her to the floor to rape her but Rand defended herself , leaving a large scratch on her attacker ' s face , which helped the crew differentiate between the two Kirk " halves . " After the situation was resolved , Rand continued as Kirk ' s yeoman until a reassignment in 2267 . She returned to the " Enterprise " as transporter chief in the 2270s . ( ; ) Kirk and Rand repeatedly felt an attraction for one another , but resisted discussing or acting on their feelings openly . During one mission , Rand , Kirk and other members of a landing party were trapped on a planet where only children survived ; adult s quickly developed a deadly virus which had been accidentally created by a life prolongation project on the planet . When Rand became upset , Kirk held her close in his arms and comforted her . Miri , a teenage girl whom the team had befriended , witnessed this and became jealous . She felt that Rand was her " competition " and briefly betrayed the landing party by letting the other children abduct Rand . The captain ' s love for Rand became obvious when he was under stress from the disease , as he became distraught and obsessed in finding " his Janice " , even grabbing Miri and shouting , " " Where is she , Miri ? Where is she , Miri ? Where ' s Janice ? Has something happened to her ? Where is she ? I ' ve got find Janice ! " " ( ) Ben Finney . When Kirk was a midshipman , he befriended Academy instructor Lieutenant Ben Finney . Some time later , Ensign Kirk and Finney served together aboard the USS " Republic " . The two became so close that Finney named his daughter , Jame , after Kirk . A rift developed between the two friends while aboard the " Republic " when Kirk logged a mistake that Finney had made which could have caused the destruction of the ship . Because of this , Finney was put on reprimand and his name was sent to the bottom of the promotion list . Finney blamed Kirk for his subsequent inability to gain a command of his own . Though their friendship was effectively over , Lieutenant Commander Finney served aboard the " Enterprise " in 2267 , as records officer . Kirk was unaware that Finney ' s old grudge had been growing larger over the years , and Finney had passed into madness . To take his revenge , he staged his own death and manufactured evidence of Kirk ' s negligence . Finney was successful to a point , and Kirk became the first Federation Starfleet starship commander brought before a court martial . With the help of the eccentric lawyer Samuel T . Cogley and Spock , Finney ' s deception was revealed and charges against Kirk were lifted . Finney was arrested and faced trial , represented by Cogley . ( ) Jean - Luc Picard . Although their association was brief , James T . Kirk and Jean - Luc Picard had profound personal effects on one another . Very much like Spock and Leonard McCoy , Picard was instrumental in helping Kirk find meaning in his life after his greatest adventures were essentially over . In fact , it could be argued that Picard was one of the most significant persons in Kirk ' s entire life , as he embarked on his final adventure with him and passed away knowing that he had " made a difference . " Picard laid Kirk to rest on that obscure planet and was his lone mourner . ( ) Romances . Kirk was notably successful in attracting women , and enthusiastic in their pursuit , yet notoriously unsuccessful in establishing any lasting relationships with women . By design or coincidence , his most significant affairs were with women fundamentally incompatible with his life in Starfleet . In weighing the balance of starship versus a settled home life , the gross tonnage of the " Enterprise " usually tipped the scale . While attending the Academy , Kirk was romantically involved with at least two women . In 2252 , another lover was a woman named Ruth . In 2267 , he was greeted by a replica of Ruth that the Shore Leave Planet , in the Omicron Delta region , created . ( ) Kirk had a year - long relationship with Janice Lester while she also was at the Academy . He professed loving her , but the romance ended badly after " " the intense hatred of her own womanhood made life with her impossible . " " The two were reunited in a truly bizarre manner in 2269 , when Lester , extremely jealous of Kirk ' s successful career , traded her consciousness with that of Kirk ' s to take his place as captain of the " Enterprise " and then exact a double revenge by killing both Kirk and her womanhood . ( ) In the late 2250s , as an instructor at the Academy , Lieutenant Kirk was romantically involved with a " blonde lab technician " whom Gary Mitchell had introduced him to . His relationship with her grew serious , as he almost married her . ( ) Kirk was involved with Dr . Carol Marcus prior to taking command of the " Enterprise " . She bore his son , David Marcus , but the relationship dissolved as their careers drove them apart . In 2285 , the fractured family unit was briefly reunited . ( ) Kirk was involved with the future Janet Wallace in 2261 ; this relationship was also called off due to their difference in careers . ( ) In 2263 , Kirk broke off a relationship with Areel Shaw . Kirk was reunited with Shaw four years later , when she was assigned as the prosecutor in his court martial , though Shaw was pleased when she lost the case and Kirk was exonerated of any wrongdoing . ( ) During an " Enterprise " lab ' s Christmas party in 2265 , Kirk met Dr . Helen Noel and dance d with her . He used her first name to address her and engaged in brief flirtation with Noel that ended unsatisfactorily for Kirk . He later exhibited irritation when McCoy assigned her to help Kirk investigate Tantalus Penal Colony , and Kirk insisted on using her surname while working with her . Testing the neural neutralizer , Noel conditioned Kirk to believe that their previous encounter had been a sweeping romance . The colony ' s mad doctor , Tristan Adams , used the suggestion of love and loss of Noel to torture Kirk . ( ) In 2266 , the evil side of Kirk tried to assault and seduce Yeoman Rand . ( ) Later that year , the M - 113 creature tricked Kirk into thinking he saw Nancy Crater ; disguised as Nancy Crater , it nearly seduced and killed Kirk . ( ) Also in 2266 , Kirk met a girl called Miri , who was young - looking and was soon about to enter puberty but was actually at least as old as 300 years . Kirk attracted her to him by calling her " pretty " when they first met , and they went on to develop a close friendship . When the " Enterprise " left Earth Two ( where Miri lived ) shortly thereafter , Janice Rand told Kirk that Miri had really loved him . He accepted that but said that he never got involved with older women . ( ) Later the same year , while on Planet Q , Kirk met Lenore Karidian at a party and entered into a brief romance with the then - nineteen - year - old blonde girl . As with many of Kirk ' s love affairs , the two fell in " love at first sight . " Kirk was clearly enamoured with Lenore , but the true depth of his feelings – and the importance of those feelings relative to his duties as a captain – were conveyed only through insinuation . When Leonard McCoy directly asked Kirk whether he really cared for the hopelessly insane Lenore , the captain paused pensively , then evaded the question with a navigational order : " " Ahead warp factor one , Mr . Leslie . " " McCoy ' s reply , " " That ' s an answer , " " presumably indicated that he understood Kirk ' s unstated position : as captain , Kirk ' s priority was always the ship , despite his personal feelings for women such as Lenore . ( ) In 2267 , Kirk and Spock traveled back to the 1930s to repair damage to the timeline Leonard McCoy accidentally caused . While searching for McCoy , Kirk met and fell in love with the compassionate and far - seeing social worker Edith Keeler . Keeler ' s death was found to be the focal point in history needing repair . As she crossed a street to meet Kirk , he was forced to hold McCoy back while an automobile struck and killed her , thus restoring the timeline . ( ) In 2267 , the alien tried to seduce Kirk into giving her the transmuter . ( ) " After 2267 , Kirk had a near romance with . " ( ) In 2268 , while Kirk , Spock , and McCoy were held captive in a 20th - century Roman Empire , a slave woman named Drusilla " seduced " Kirk . ( ) In the line of duty , to recover the " Enterprise " hijacked by Kelvan s in 2268 , Kirk seduced Kelinda , in order to arouse jealously in her commander , Rojan . Kelinda recognized Kirk ' s attempt at seduction , but welcomed his continued efforts . ( ) On a peace mission to the war - torn Tellun system in 2268 , the " Enterprise " transported Elaan , Dohlman of Elas , to her diplomatically - arranged wedding on Troyius . Kirk ' s antagonistic relationship with the arrogant and spoiled Dohlman changed sharply after her Elasian tears infected him . Under their powerful biochemical influence , Kirk became instantly and deeply infatuated with Elaan . He ultimately resisted the more compelling effects of the tears and fulfilled his duties , but both Elaan and Kirk experienced a tangible sense of loss at their melancholy final parting . ( ) In 2268 , when captured for the gladiatorial combats of Triskelion , Kirk was assigned to the tutelage of the drill - thrall Shahna . Kirk introduced Shahna to the wider universe around her , and the Human concept of love . ( ) In 2268 , Kirk , with amnesia , married Miramanee . ( ) In 2269 , the criminally - insane , pathologically - lying Orion inmate of the Elba II penal colony , Marta , became infatuated with Kirk while tending to him after torture . The fact that she loved him meant she had to kill him , but she failed in the attempt . Garth of Izar ' s jealousy led him to use Marta as a demonstration of a new explosive , killing her . ( ) Prime Minister Hodin of , a world greatly suffering from overpopulation , abducted Kirk and forced him to spend time isolated with his daughter , Odona , in 2269 . As a carrier of Vegan choriomeningitis , it was hoped Kirk would infect Odona , and the rest of the population . The couple became quite affectionate in their time spent together , though Odona said Kirk " behaved like a perfect gentleman . " ( ) In 2269 , Kirk ' s encounter with the near - immortal Flint led to their competition for the love of the android Rayna Kapec , and resulted in her destruction . Kirk was heartbroken . Spock took an extraordinary liberty with his grieving friend , melding with Kirk without his consent , whispering the word " forget " . ( ) Kirk fell in love with Antonia after his first retirement from Starfleet in 2281 . The two lived together for some time before Kirk decided to rejoin Starfleet . Later in life , he regretted not having proposed to her . He would later be reunited with a life like illusion of Antonia during his 75 years in the Nexus , which was , from a chronological standpoint , his longest - lasting romance . ( ) In 2293 , Martia had a brief romance with Kirk to put him off his guard so he and McCoy could be killed trying to escape . ( However , it turned out to be Martia who was ultimately double - crossed and killed . ) ( ) As Kirk became more and more well - known , these exploits became the stuff of legend ; when Jadzia Dax , upon seeing Kirk while aboard the " Enterprise " during the " Defiant " crew ' s trip over a hundred years into their past , mentioned how much more handsome " he " was in person , Captain Sisko responded that Kirk had " quite the reputation " in terms of his dealing with women – though Dax then admitted that the " he " to whom she had referred was actually Spock . ( ) Family . The Kirk family ancestry included settlers who pioneered the American frontier in the 19th century , and the Kirks of the early 23rd century rediscovered the impulse for untamed spaces . After his early childhood on Earth , Kirk lived on Tarsus IV by the age of thirteen , and his brother ' s family later lived on colonies as well . ( ) Kirk ' s father , Lieutenant George Kirk was serving as first officer of the during the time of Kirk ' s birth . Kirk would often credit his father with inspiring him to join Starfleet . His father proudly lived long enough to see his son achieve command . ( ) George Samuel Kirk ( called " Sam " only by his brother ) was a researcher , hoping to transfer to the Earth Colony II research station in 2265 . Sam , along with his wife Aurelan and three sons , joined his younger brother for a farewell visit before the " Enterprise " departed for her five - year mission . It was the last time Jim saw Sam alive . Sam ended up on Deneva , with his wife and son Peter by 2267 . The neural parasites invaded Deneva that year and killed the couple , but Peter survived the attack . ( ) Kirk recognized the impact his life in Starfleet had on his family life . In 2287 , while camping with his friends in Yosemite , he referred to himself , Spock , and McCoy as the only family that men like themselves were likely to have . ( ) Miramanee . In 2268 , on the surface of the Amerind planet , an accident induced amnesia in Kirk and separated him from the " Enterprise " landing party . For several months , Kirk lived among the Native American inhabitants , worshiped as a god called " Kirok " . His mind at ease from the pressures of command , he took a wife , Miramanee , who became pregnant with his child . When the tribal worship of Kirok was dispelled , he and Miramanee were stoned – fatally injuring both the young woman and their unborn child . ( ) David Marcus . Kirk ' s romance with Carol Marcus produced a son , David Marcus . At Carol ' s request , Kirk stayed out of David ' s early life . David knew something of Kirk , referring to him as " the over - grown boy scout " his mother used to know , but not that Kirk was his father . Carol kept David ' s father ' s identity a secret , fearing that Kirk ' s adventurous life would draw David away from her . In spite of the separation , Carol told Kirk that David was " a lot like you , in many ways . " In 2285 , David was working with his mother at the Federation research station Regula I as part of a team developing Project Genesis when Khan Noonien Singh attacked the station . After fleeing to the Regula planetoid , Kirk rescued David and Carol . Kirk did not immediately recognize his son at their awkward meeting , and later became melancholy when considering an alternate life as a father . He observed David ' s dislike of him , complaining to Carol " " I have a man I haven ' t seen in fifteen years , trying to kill me , and you show me a son who ' d be happy to help him " " . After witnessing Kirk ' s victory at the Battle of the Mutara Nebula and the funeral for Spock , David consoled his father and admitted he was " proud , very proud , to be [ his ] son . " ( ) Later in 2285 , David was an advisor on the starship , researching the Genesis planet he had helped to create . Taken hostage by Klingon s , David interrupted an attempted execution of Lieutenant Saavik , wrestling a Klingon warrior briefly before being killed with a stab to the chest . The news of David ' s death led Kirk to stumble to the deck in grief , telling Commander Kruge " " you Klingon bastard , you ' ve killed my son . " " Kirk subsequently killed Kruge and all but one of his crew . ( ) Kirk kept David ' s memory close , with a picture of his son in his quarters aboard the " Enterprise " - A . Kirk ' s opinion of Klingons , once enemies he could occasionally respect and even share a laugh with , grew into hatred . In 2293 , during the diplomatic mission to the Klingon Empire instigated by the destruction of Praxis , he logged " " I ' ve never trusted Klingons , and I never will . I ' ve never been able to forgive them for the death of my boy . " " The log entry was used against him during the trial for the assassination of Chancellor Gorkon , and the incident forced him to come to terms with his hatred for Klingons . ( ) Specific accomplishments include : Memorable quotes . The wit and wisdom of Starfleet Captain James T . Kirk . Existential Kirk . " " Above all else , a god needs compassion ! " " " " This vessel . . . I give , she takes . She won ' t permit me my life , I ' ve got to live hers . " " " " Why me ? I look around that bridge , and I see the men waiting for me to make the next move . And Bones . . . What if I ' m wrong ? " " " " No beach to walk on . " " " " I wanna live ! " I wanna live ! " " ( ) " " " Don ' t tell me that again science officer ! It ' s a theory , It ' s possible ! We may go up in the biggest ball of fire since the last sun in these parts exploded , but we ' ve got to take that one - in - ten - thousand chance ! " " " " . . . Nothing is more important than my ship . " " " " You said you wanted freedom . It ' s time you learned that freedom is never a gift , it must be earned . " " " " In every revolution , there ' s one man with a vision . . . " " " " Death , destruction , disease , horror . . . that ' s what war is all about . That ' s what makes it a thing to be avoided . You ' ve made it neat and painless . So neat and painless you ' ve had no reason to stop it . And you ' ve had it for over five hundred years . Since it seems to be the only way I can save my crew and my ship , I ' m going to end it for you , one way or another . " " " " All right . [ War is ] instinctive . But the instinct can be fought . We ' re Human beings with the blood of a million savage years on our hands , but we can stop it . We can admit that we ' re killers , but we ' re not going to kill today . That ' s all it takes ! Knowing that we ' re not going to kill . . . today ! " " " " It ' s a true Eden Jim . There ' s belonging and love . " " " " No wants . No needs . We weren ' t meant for that . None of us . Man stagnates if he has no ambition , no desire to be more than he is . " " " " Well , that ' s the second time man ' s been thrown out of paradise . " " " " No , no , Bones . This time we walked out on our own . Maybe we weren ' t meant for paradise . Maybe we were meant to fight our way through . Struggle , claw our way up , scratch for every inch of the way . Maybe we can ' t stroll to the music of the lute . We must march to the sound of drums . " " " Excuse me , Gentlemen . . . I ' m a soldier , not a diplomat . I can only tell you the truth . " " " " Mankind has no need for gods . We find the one quite adequate . " " " " Human flesh against Human flesh . We ' re the same . We share the same history , the same heritage , the same lives . We ' re tied together beyond any untying . Man or woman , it makes no difference . . . We ' re Human . We couldn ' t escape from each other even if we wanted to . That ' s how you do it , lieutenant . By remembering who and what you are . A bit of flesh and blood afloat in a universe without end . The only thing that ' s truly yours is the rest of Humanity . That ' s where our duty lies . " " " " What is a man but that lofty spirit , that sense of " enterprise ! " That devotion to something that cannot be sensed , cannot be realized , but only " dreamed " , the " highest " reality ! " " " " War isn ' t a good life , but it ' s life . " " " " Do you know the one , ' all I ask is a tall ship . . . ? " ' " " " It ' s very old . " " " " 20th century Earth . ' All I ask is a tall ship , and a star to steer her by . ' You could feel the wind at your back in those days , the sound of the sea beneath you . And even if you take away the wind and the water , it ' s still the same . . . The ship is yours , you can feel her . And the stars are still there , Bones . " " " " You could serve as Human sacrifice . " " " " No I wouldn ' t enjoy that at all . Besides you seem to need me alive . " " " " I . . . am . . . KIROK ! " " ( ) " " I don ' t believe in the no - win scenario . " " " " We learn by doing . " " " " The needs of the one outweigh the needs of the many . " " " " Don ' t tell me . . . You ' re from outer space . " " " " No , I ' m from Iowa . I only work in outer space . " " " " Dammit , Bones , you ' re a doctor . You know that pain and guilt can ' t be taken away with the wave of a magic wand . They ' re things we carry with us , the things that make us who we are . If we lose them , we lose ourselves . I don ' t want my pain taken away . I " need " my pain . " " " " You have restored my father ' s faith . " " " " And you have restored my son ' s . " " " " I was out saving the galaxy while your grandfather was in diapers . " " " " Don ' t let them promote you , don ' t let them transfer you , don ' t let them do anything that takes you off the bridge of that ship . Because while you ' re there , you can make a difference . " " Kirk on death . " " I ' m used to the idea of dying . But I have no desire to die for the likes of you . " " " " Poor Matt . . . He gave his life in an attempt to save others . . . Not the worst way to go " " " " What a terrible way to die . " " " " There are no good ways , Sulu . " " " " How we deal with death is at least as important as how we deal with life . . . " " " " Lieutenant Saavik was right . . . You never have faced death . " " " " No , not like this . I haven ' t faced death . I ' ve cheated death . I tricked my way out of death . . . and patted myself on the back for my ingenuity . I know nothing . " " " " My God , Bones . . . What have I done ? " " " " What you had to do . What you always do . Turn death into a fighting chance to live . " " " " I ' ve always known . . . I ' ll die alone . " " In Harm ' s Way . " " This is the captain of the " Enterprise " . Our respect for other lifeforms requires that we give you this . . . warning . There is one critical item of information that has never been incorporated into the memory banks of any Earth ship . Since the early years of space exploration , Earth vessels have had incorporated into them , a substance known as . . . corbomite . It is a material and a device which prevents . . . attack . . . on us . If any destructive energy touches our vessel , a reverse reaction of equal strength is created , destroying . . . " " " " You now have two minutes . " " " " . . . DESTROYING the attacker . It may interest you to know . . . that since the initial use of corbomite more than two of our centuries ago , no attacking vessel has survived the attempt . Death has . . . little meaning to us . If it has none to you . . . then attack us now . We grow annoyed at your foolishness . " " " " They used to say if man could fly , he ' d have wings . . . but he did fly . He discovered he had to . Do you wish that the first Apollo mission hadn ' t reached the moon , or that we hadn ' t gone on to Mars or the nearest star ? That ' s like saying you wish that you still operated with scalpels and sewed your patients up with catgut like your great - great - great - great - grandfather used to . I ' m in command . I could order this . But I ' m not . . . because . . . Dr . McCoy is right in pointing out the enormous danger potential in any contact with life and intelligence as fantastically advanced as this . But I must point out that the possibilities , the potential for knowledge and advancement is equally great . Risk . . . risk is our business ! That ' s what this starship is all about . . . that ' s why we ' re aboard her ! " " " " Khan . How do we know you ' ll keep your word ? " " " " Oh , I ' ve given you no word to keep , admiral . In my judgment you simply have no alternative . " " " " I see your point . . . stand by to receive our transmission . . . " ( whispers ) " Mr . Sulu , lock phasers on target . . . " " " " Time ' s up admiral ! " " " " Here it comes . Now , Mr . Spock . " " " " Sir , you did it ! " " " " I did nothing ! Except get caught with my britches down . I must be getting senile . " " " " Kirk . . . you ' re still alive , my old friend . " " " " Still . Old . Friend ! You ' ve managed to kill just about everyone else , but like a poor marksman , you KEEP MISSING the TARGET ! " " " KHAAAAAAN ! ! ! " ( ) " " We tried it once your way Khan , now are you game for a rematch ? Khan . . . I ' m LAUGHING at the superior . . . intellect . " " " " Sorry about your crew , but as we say on , Earth , " c ' est la vie " . " " " " I . . . have had . . . enough of you ! " " " " SHOOT HIM ! ! ! " " " " Excuse me . . . but what does God need with a starship ? " " " " Don ' t believe them ! Don ' t trust them ! " " " " They are dying . . . " " " " Let them die . " " " " Risk is part of the game , if you want to sit in that chair . " " Kirk on women . " " When I get my hands on the headquarters genius who gave me a female yeoman . . . " " " " What ' s the matter Jim , don ' t you trust yourself ? " " " " You ' re too beautiful to ignore . Too much woman . " " " " Uh , there are things you can do with a lady , uh , Charlie , that you . . . Uh , there ' s no right way to hit a woman . I mean , man to man is one thing , but , um , man and woman , uh , it ' s , ah . . . is , uh . . . Well , it ' s , ah , another thing . Do you understand ? " " " " Worlds may change , galaxies disintegrate , but a woman . . . always remains a woman . " " " " You ' ll learn something about men and women . . . the way they ' re supposed to be . Caring for each other , being happy with each other , being good to each other . That ' s what we call . . . love . You ' ll like that too . A lot . " " " " Mr . Spock , the women on your planet are logical . That is the only planet in this galaxy that can make that claim . " " " " You sleep lightly , captain . " " " " Yes , duty is a good teacher . I see you ' ve changed your dress - maker . " " " " Release me ! " " " " So you could attack me again ? That would be foolish . " " " " Call the guards if you ' re afraid , captain . " " " " I ' m not afraid . In fact . . . I find this rather enjoyable . " " Kirk and Spock . " " Spock , I think I ' m in love with Edith Keeler . " " " " Jim , Edith Keeler , " must die . " " " Alright , you mutinous , disloyal , computerized half - breed , we ' ll see about you deserting my ship . . . You ' re an overgrown jackrabbit . An elf with a hyperactive thyroid . . . What else would you expect from a simpering devil eared freak whose father was a computer and whose mother was an encyclopedia . . . Your father was a computer , like his son . . . from a planet of traitors . A Vulcan never lived who had an ounce of integrity . . . You ' re a traitor from a race of traitors . Disloyal to the core ; rotten like the rest of your sub - Human race , and you ' ve got the GALL to make love to that girl . Does she know what she ' s getting , Spock ? A carcass full of memory banks who should be squatting on a mushroom , instead of passing himself off as a man . You belong in a circus , Spock , not a starship . RIGHT NEXT TO THE DOG - FACED BOY ! " " " Spock , I ' m sick of your half - breed interference ! " " " " Analysis , Mr . Spock ? " " " " Very bad poetry , captain . " " " " No , it was a calculated risk . Still , the Eminians keep a very orderly society and actual war is very messy business . Very , very messy business . I had a feeling they would do anything to avoid it , even talk peace . " " " " Feeling is not much to go on . " " " " Sometimes a feeling , Mr . Spock , is all we Humans have to go on . " " " " Captain , you almost make me believe in luck . " " " " Why , Mr . Spock , you almost make me believe in miracles . " " " " Kill Spock ? That ' s not what we came to Vulcan for . " " " " Of my friend , I can only say this : Of all the souls I have encountered in my travels , his was the most . . . Human . " " " " Oh him ? He ' s harmless . Back in the sixties , he was part of the free speech movement at Berkeley . I think he did a little too much LDS . " " " " . . . either you ' re with me or you ' re not ! " " " " I am here , captain . " " " " That ' s a little vague , Spock . . . " " " " I lost a brother once . . . I was lucky . . . I got him back . " " " " You ' re a great one for logic . I ' m a great one for rushing in where angels fear to tread . We ' re both extremists . Reality is probably somewhere in between . " " " " You know , if Spock were here , he ' d say I was an irrational , illogical Human being for taking on a mission like that . . . Sounds like fun ! " " Appendices . Appearances . James T . Kirk appears in : Background information . Actor William Shatner played James T . Kirk throughout TOS , TAS , and the first seven . Don Eitner served as body double for Shatner as the pair of Kirks in . Actress Sandra Smith also played Captain Kirk ( in Janice Lester ' s body ) in . The only episodes from and in which Kirk does not appear are the first pilot , , and the animated episode . Kirk also appears in the episode , and his voice is audible in the " " finale , . Although he never appears in " " or " " , both shows refer to him on many occasions . Kirk is the only example of a lead character in " Star Trek " who meanwhile served as an admiral , doing so in the films , , , and most of . ( Although lead character Kathryn Janeway was shown as an admiral in , she wasn ' t the lead character in that film , with Jean - Luc Picard instead filling that role ) . William Shatner was not the first choice to play Kirk . The producers first approached actors Lloyd Bridges and Jack Lord for the role ; both turned it down . Both Bridges and Lord have since passed away . Gene Roddenberry , in his original pitch to television producers , described the character ( originally named Robert April , then Christopher Pike ) that later came to be known , eventually , as Captain Kirk : The name for Kirk wasn ' t decided until . In a memo written by Gene Roddenberry to researcher Kellam de Forest on , sixteen names were under consideration . These names were : This memo was reprinted in " The Making of Star Trek " and " " . " James Tiberius Kirk " was the final choice of name chosen to adorn the new TV show ' s hero . " James " , derived from the Hebrew name Jacob , means " grasps the heel " or " grasps the bottom " ; a colloquial equivalent would be " he gets it " or even " he groks " . " Kirk " is the Lowland Scots word for " Church " . " Tiberius " was first identified in , and mentioned again in . was the second Roman Emperor , known for his darkness and corruption , from the death of Augustus in 14 AD until his death in 37 AD . " Tiber " was the Latin name for the river that ran through the city of Rome . The name might also possibly have been influenced by the maverick Roman politician Tiberius Gracchus . " ( See also : Apocrypha ) " NBC ' s early - sales brochure ( reprinted in " " ) described Kirk thus : William Shatner was to have reprised his role as Captain Kirk on " " . The writers / directors guide for that series , written , among others , by Gene Roddenberry and Jon Povill between May and , described Kirk as follows : In order to play Kirk , William Shatner attempted to stay physically fit . " " I ' ve tried to stay limber , and I ' ve tried to keep myself in shape , " " he related . " " Not for a little reason . For a great reason , because I ' m playing Captain Kirk , and I wanted to be ready for each movie and not act my age . " " ( " Strange New Worlds : The Valley of Fire " , DVD / Blu - ray ) Regarding the death of Kirk , Ronald D . Moore , co - writer of the script in which Kirk died , wrote : Years later , Moore added : William Shatner personally found portraying the final appearance of Kirk , in " Star Trek Generations " , was " kind of strange and sad . " ( " Uniting Two Legends " , DVD / Blu - ray ) ' s writers , Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman , intended the alternate reality to be given a hologram of Kirk Prime by Spock Prime to convince him of their friendship . His message would have bookended the young Kirk ' s promotion to captain and explained Spock ' s offer to become his first officer . However , the filmmakers opted to drop the idea without proposing it to Shatner , as the actor was vocal about having a substantial role in the film and not a cameo . Kirk ' s lines were as follows : Ambiguities . Accepted canon regarding Kirk ' s early life before the " Enterprise " , and gaps between events portrayed in films , are scarce and ambiguous . The following notes attempt to reconcile the " mysteries " of Kirk and canon , but these questions may never be satisfactorily answered . One of the ambiguities was when Lieutenant Kirk was an instructor at the Academy . According to , there was an age requirement of 16 years for cadets . Assuming that Gary Mitchell was born in 2242 , the earliest that he could have entered the Academy was in 2258 . Of course , this raised the probability that the blonde lab technician might be Carol Marcus . Speaking of his time at the Academy as an instructor , he said in a line of dialogue from the script of " Where No Man Has Gone Before " that , " " I sort of leaned on cadets I liked . " " There was then the issue of the dates on the gravestone . Considering that the stardates used in " Where No Man Has Gone Before " were chronological , with 1087 . 7 being the earliest stardate mentioned ( Gary Mitchell ' s birthdate ) and 1313 . 8 the latest ( the last stardate of the episode ) , then 1277 . 1 would fall within this range , being much closer to 1312 . 4 – the stardate on which the episode began – than 1087 . 7 . This would imply that Kirk was born later than Gary Mitchell . The " C " which preceded 1277 . 1 was not defined further ; one interpretation was that it could mean captain as " C " was an abbreviation used for captain in occupation and positions . The producers of have stated – including on the audio commentary – that many of the events of the alternate reality could have taken place in the original timeline . Some possible events include : Roberto Orci , co - writer of , had said that in an early draft of that film , dialogue confirmed that in the prime reality , Kirk was born in Iowa and not aboard the : " " If not for the attack from the " Narada " , the Kelvin would ' ve reached earth and Kirk would ' ve been born in Iowa . The attack made Winona Kirk go into labor early . " " The dialogue in question was likely Prime Spock ' s line in which he tells the alternate that he was born on a farm in Iowa , to which Kirk corrected him , stating he ( the alternate Kirk ) was born on a starship . This line appears in the novelization of the film , which used an early draft of the screenplay as a basis . In March 1985 , when the town was looking for a theme for its annual town festival , Steve Miller , a member of the Riverside City Council who had read " The Making of Star Trek " – a book that lists Kirk ' s year of birth as 2228 rather than 2233 as established in – suggested to the council that Riverside should proclaim itself to be the future birthplace of Kirk . Miller ' s motion passed unanimously . The council later wrote to Roddenberry for his permission to be designated as the official birthplace of Kirk , and with Roddenberry ' s consent , developed a tourist industry around the idea . then established on screen that Kirk was from Iowa . On the infamous and incorrect " James " R . " Kirk " tombstone , created by Gary Mitchell in , Kirk ' s middle initial was R , not T . According to D . C . Fontana in the introduction for " " , when the mistake over the middle initial was discovered , Gene Roddenberry decided that if pressed for an answer on the discrepancy , the response was to be " " Gary Mitchell had godlike powers , but at base he was Human . He made a mistake . " " Stephen E . Whitfield ' s 1968 book " The Making of Star Trek " stated that " " Kirk rose rapidly through the ranks and received his first command ( the equivalent of a destroyer - class space ship ) while still quite young . " " In the canon , the class of the ship was never mentioned , and the only reference to this first command occurred in the episode " Where No Man Has Gone Before " . In the final draft script of , Kirk referred to himself as having visited prior to the events of the episode ( which are set in 2266 ) . Precisely when he did so was left ambiguous , however . Kirk ' s second five - year mission in command of the " Enterprise " , following the " V ' Ger " incident , was never canonically established , but it was widely accepted by fans based on the fact that " " was to depict a new five - year mission . That show was abandoned and its pilot episode became , while two other scripts were recycled for the second season of when a writer ' s strike hampered production . Apocrypha . Outside of filmed canon productions , the character of Kirk had appeared in many novels , comics , games , and collectibles . While Kirk was the hero of nearly every TOS novel , he was notably the star of a series of novels by William Shatner ( with Judith and Garfield Reeves - Stevens ) which starred Kirk , reborn after his 24th century death when the Borg - Romulan alliance resurrected and brainwashed him , intending to use Kirk to kill Picard . However , surgery performed by Doctor Julian Bashir , aided by Admiral McCoy , removed the implant controlling Kirk ' s actions , and the residual ' programming ' was removed thanks to a mind meld with Spock . After his condition was stabilized and the Borg - Romulan alliance was destroyed , as well as a fatal blow delivered to the Borg Collective , Kirk went on to form a close , albeit sometimes strained , friendship with Picard , as well as once again encounter the mirror universe as his other self returned to kill him . He even goes on to have a child with Teilani , a genetically - engineered Romulan / Klingon hybrid . According to Gene Roddenberry ' s " Star Trek : The Motion Picture " , Kirk was named " James " after his mother ' s " first love instructor " as well as " an uncle " ( his " father ' s beloved brother " ) , and " Tiberius " because the Roman emperor fascinated his grandfather " Samuel " ( " See also : background " ) . According to " " , Kirk was born on 28 July 2182 on Farside Base , Luna to parents Eugene Claudius Kirk and Marjorie Wimpole . According to several novels ( such as " " and " Best Destiny " , both by Diane Carey ) Kirk ' s father " George Samuel Kirk , Senior " was a Starfleet commander who was a close friend of Robert April and briefly the " Enterprise " s executive officer on its first mission . The novel " " by William Shatner gave James Kirk ' s father ' s name as " George Joseph Kirk " . The name of Kirk ' s mother was said to be " Winona Kirk " . " Crisis on Centaurus " stated George died on the planet Hellspawn in 2250 , but this was overruled canonically in the 2009 film with Spock stating George Kirk saw James taking command of the " Enterprise " . In " Star Trek Cats " , Kirk is depicted as an orange tabby cat .