William Shatner wants to get out of his marriage at warp speed and filed divorce documents against his longtime wife. According to documents obtained by The Blast, the “Star Trek” star filed Tuesday in an L.A. County Superior Court to end his marriage to Elizabeth Shatner. The two have been married since February 13, 2001, and the star says they split earlier this year, on February 1, just days before what would have been their 18th wedding anniversary.
In the divorce petition, Shatner listed “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for breaking up. There are no minor children between the two, so there will be nothing worked out regarding child support or custody. Shatner has three adult daughters with his first wife, Gloria Rand.
This will be 88-year-old Shatner’s third divorce. He was previously married to Rand, Nerine Kidd and Marcy Lafferty. However, Kidd tragically died in 1999 when she drowned in the couple’s pool at their home in Studio City.
It also appears that there won’t be much negotiating for a settlement, because the documents claim a prenuptial agreement exists between Shatner and his wife.
Elizabeth Shatner grew up with a love of horses and has immersed herself into the equine community. Horses were a common love she shared with William Shatner, as they eventually owned many horses and participated in the business of horseracing.
According to Elizabeth’s website:
“Elizabeth is a professional equine judge and former professional horsewoman. She has always had an infatuation with nature – searching for shells, four leaf clovers and beautiful horses. She states that the activity of looking for a specific artistic shot resembles judging a horse show. It’s rewarding to observe nature’s beauty, and to share her vision and interpretation with others through her work.”
Interestingly enough, it has been reported that William and Elizabeth met and bonded after the loss of their respective partners. Shatner’s wife, Nerine Kidd, died after drowning in the couple’s pool in 1999 at their home in Studio City. During the autopsy, Kidd was found with bruising on her face and fractured vertebrae in her neck, suggesting she dove headfirst into the pool. Toxicology results also found that she had been drinking heavily and had ingested sleeping pills.
Shatner described finding his wife in his memoir, “Live Long and… What I Learned Along the Way,” and described it as one of the worst moments in his entire life.
“I found her in our pool and lifted her out of the water. The emergency responders rushed to the house but there was nothing that could be done. I saw her body lying there in the moonlight.”
Even though the death was ruled accidental, Shatner blamed himself and held onto the grief for years, explaining:
“My grief was overwhelming. This was the type of pain that makes you think either I’m simply going to die or I’m going to kill myself.”
He also admitted to trying to find his wife help for her alcoholism, but claimed the effort was futile.
“I fought and fought to save my wife from the serpent of alcoholism — but I failed. Nerine would hide bottles of alcohol all around the house where I couldn’t find them, and even hide her vodka in water bottles. Nerine’s own psychiatrist told me that, for her own good, I should divorce her… [He] said, ‘If you love her, you have to leave her’.”
