Bill Blair

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Bill Blair is an actor who played various background aliens on , , and and also appeared in . His very first role in Star Trek was the part of a Klingon guard for the Deep Space Nine second season episode , filmed on , which ended on the cutting room floor. This makes the second season episode his very first Star Trek on screen appearance. Normally under prosthetics, Blair portrayed various "Westmore aliens" on the second through seventh seasons of Deep Space Nine and the sixth and seventh seasons of Voyager. On Enterprise he portrayed three different Vulcans and a Human. His costume as a Vulcan Syrrannite was later sold on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay. 
In 2011, the Guinness Book of World Records recognized Bill Blair as the record holder in the category of "The Most Special Effect Make-Up Characters Portrayed in a Career" with 202 different characters.
Aside from his performances in the Star Trek television and movie productions, he has also made another official franchise appearance as "Borg drone 6 of 9", albeit uncredited, in the movie made for the 2004 Borg Invasion 4D ride at the Las Vegas Star Trek: The Experience attraction. He has stated about this "experience", "That is the hottest makeup and wardrobe I've ever had to put on. It's a full-body suit – rubber, latex, vinyl, you name it. I had to put a latex suit on and essentially be powdered down, [then] two people stretched this onto me. With all the makeup and everything, that is like wearing a sauna suit. After a day of shooting, I'd get out of it and literally turn it upside down to pour the sweat from the feet of it." 
== Personal and non-acting ==
Blair was born in Kent, Ohio, and graduated from Kent State University in 1977 with a bachelor in science and a degree in speech – telecommunications. Blair was a member of the band Climax, who had the 1972 hit "Precious and Few", and played keyboard on the tour of Classics IV. He also toured with the band Expression in the early 1980s and worked as road manager and disc jockey for the American Hawaii Cruises in 1992. In 1983, he composed the song "The Crowning Glory" for the National Campers and Hikers Association.
In 1986, he wrote the book The Professionals and Talent Handbook: The Guide to Getting Started. Blair also teaches professional courses in industry protocol and professionalism. His resume includes various television commercials and modeling print-ads. In his early acting years, he did a Spock impersonation at a convention. Blair was married to actress Toni Blair and is an often-seen guest at several Star Trek-related conventions. As a writer, he wrote the script for the film Arizona Summer in 2003 and received credit for special assistance on the video production Countess Dracula's Orgy of Blood in 2003.
== Acting ==
His acting resume includes films such as New Year's Evil (1989), R.O.T.O.R. (1989), Dinosaur Valley Girls (1996, with Jeff Rector), (1998, starring Maurice Roëves), (2001, with Gregory Itzin, Sarah Silverman, John Cho and Morgan Nagler), and (2007).
In 1991, Blair appeared as a reporter in the first part of . Other Trek actors include Joan Collins, Robin Sachs, Tony Jay, Keone Young, Wendie Malick, Evelyn Guerrero, Jeff O'Haco, Ray Reinhardt, Renna Bogdanowicz, Phil Culotta, Bruce Dobos, Peter Eastman, Michael Echols, Melanie Hathorn, Steve Hershon, Debra Dilley, and Curt Truman.
Probably his best known on-screen work was as a regular "alien actor" on Babylon 5 (1994-98, starring Andreas Katsulas, Bill Mumy, Patricia Tallman, and Tracy Scoggins and working with fellow background performers Mary Meinel-Newport, Brita Nowak, Jack Nolan, and Rick Ryan), where he appeared in almost every episode and two of the Babylon 5 television films. Like in Star Trek, he is mostly under heavy make-up, playing Minbari, Narn, and other aliens, and this is the reason for his nickname "Alien Actor".
His resume also includes guest appearances and regular background roles on television series such as , , (starring Jerry O'Connell and John Rhys-Davies), , , (2003, with Diedrich Bader, Bill Cobbs, and Jeff Ricketts), The Waltons, Curb Your Enthusiasm (2002, with Diane Salinger), Charmed, (2010, starring Holly Hunter and Leon Rippy, with Ryan Wilcox), and (starring Eric Pierpoint and Gary Graham).
Among his later projects was a background part in the episode "Six Months Ago" (2006, with Greg Grunberg, Zachary Quinto, Cristine Rose, Erick Avari, and Josh Clark) and the role of Commander Blodgett in the double episode Blood and Fire (2007), which was written and directed by David Gerrold, starred James Cawley, guest starred Denise Crosby, and stunt coordinated by Leslie Hoffman. For New Voyages, Blair also worked as special effects make-up artist.
Blair was featured as a zombie in (2010, with Pam Blackwell) and appeared in episodes of (2010, with Deborah Lacey, Ray Wise, Kevin Rahm, and Mark Colson) and (2011, with Abby Brammell and Robert Curtis Brown).
== Star Trek appearances ==
Bajoran DS9 engineer 2.jpg|Bajoran worker(uncredited)
Klingon council member 1, 2371.jpg|Klingon Council member(uncredited)
Klingon bridge officer 1, 2372.jpg|Klingon officer(uncredited)
Klingon alliance officer 4, 2372.jpg|Klingon Alliance officer(uncredited)
TyGokor Klingon 1.jpg|Klingon warrior(uncredited)
Paradan DS9 visitor 1.jpg|Paradan(uncredited)
Holographic Klingon 3, 2373.jpg|Holographic Klingon(uncredited)
Wounded alien officer, Ajilon prime.jpg|Alien officer(uncredited)
Markalian patient, Ajilon Prime.jpg|Markalian patient(uncredited)
Yridian DS9 visitor, 2373.jpg|Yridian visitor(uncredited)
Pelian DS9 visitor male, 2373.jpg|Pelian visitor(uncredited)
Klingon DS9 resident 1.jpg|Klingon officer(uncredited)
Green-skinned alien with whiskers 1.jpg|Alien visitor(uncredited)
Jem'Hadar boarding party 1, 2373.jpg|Jem'Hadar soldier(uncredited)
DS9 ops crewman 8.jpg|Starfleet officer(uncredited)
Jem'Hadar Terok Nor ops 1.jpg|Jem'Hadar soldier(uncredited)
 Klingon Rotarran officer 8.jpg|Klingon officer(uncredited)
Cardassian officer 1, 2374.jpg|Cardassian officer(uncredited)
Alien Terok Nor visitor 1.jpg|Alien visitor(uncredited)
Alien with tentacles on promenade.jpg|Alien visitor(uncredited)
Alien with head tendrils and facial spines.jpg|Alien patron(uncredited)
Farian gambler 1.jpg|Farian gambler(uncredited)
Voyager holographic Klingon 6.jpg|Klingon hologram(uncredited)
Cardassian guard 7 2346.jpg|Cardassian guard(uncredited)
Rotciv visitor, 2375.jpg|Rotciv visitor(uncredited)
Cardassian rebel 1 2375.jpg|Cardassian rebel(uncredited)
Cardassian officer 1, 2375.jpg|Cardassian officer(uncredited)
Penk's species member 1.jpg|Alien spectator(uncredited)
Male Nakan colonist 1.jpg|Nakan colonist(uncredited)
Kelis' species spectator 3.jpg|Alien spectator(uncredited)
Jye male.jpg|Jye administrator(uncredited)
Kohlars crewman 1.jpg|Klingon crewman(uncredited)
Otrin's species male 1.jpg|Otrin's species male(uncredited)
Vulcan monk 1.jpg|Vulcan monk(uncredited)
Vulcan delegate 5, 2154.jpg|Vulcan delegate(uncredited)
Vulcan Syrrannite 3.jpg|Vulcan Syrrannite(uncredited)
Human orpheus miner 5.jpg|Orpheus miner(uncredited)
Chelsea civilian 1.jpg|Chelsea civilian(uncredited)
=== Further appearances ===
* as four different aliens
* 
== External links ==
* – official site
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de: Bill Blair
Category:Performers
Category:DS9 performers
Category:VOY performers
Category:ENT performers
Category:Film performers
Category:Exhibit and attraction performers