Shatner to be inducted into TV Hall of Fame

Canadian actor William Shatner will join television legends such as Lucille Ball and Johnny Carson in the U.S. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame this year.

Though he began his career in theatre and was among the early performers at the fledgling Stratford Festival in the early 1950s, the Montreal-born Shatner is best known for his turn as Captain James T. Kirk in the original Star Trek TV series and films.

The Emmy Award-winning actor is now seen on ABC's Boston Legal and has also branched out as a director, producer, author and recording artist.

Other familiar faces to be inducted into the TV Hall of Fame this year include retired NBC anchor Tom Brokaw and popular talk and game show host Regis Philbin.

Two influential, behind-the-scenes stars will join them: sitcom producer and director James Burrows, whose credits include Will & Grace, Cheers, Taxi, Frasier and Friends, and Leonard Goldberg, a producer and former studio executive whose TV credits include themovies Brian's Song and The Boy in the Plastic Bubble andseries such as Charlie's Angels, Starsky and Hutch and Fantasy Island.

"The Television Academy's Hall of Fame honors a lifetime of excellence and is a special recognition for those who have made significant contributions that will leave an indelible mark on the television business," academy chair Dick Askin said in a statement Monday.

"This year's inductees have each helped shape our industry and serve as inspiration for everyone involved in our business."

Along with Ball and Carson, past inductees include Walter Cronkite, Milton Berle, Walt Disney, Bob Hope, Mary Tyler Moore, Barbara Walters, Angela Lansbury and Oprah Winfrey.

The academy accepts nominations for its Hall of Fame from its membership and the TV industry. Aselection committee then votes on each year's inductees.