Lois Jewell amassed a filmography of just two acting credits, but one of them was Star Trek: The Original Series -- and it was a life-changer. Jewell -- who died at the age of 76 on December 20, 2014, in California, after a battle with cancer, though the news was not widely publicized, which is why we're only reporting it now -- played Drusilla, the beautiful blond slave assigned by Proconsul Claudius Marcus to Captain Kirk – in advance of Kirk’s impending execution the next day – in the episode “Bread and Circuses.”
Jewell started her career as a fashion and cosmetics model in New York and in Europe. At one time, she was with modeling agency legend Eileen Ford and ultimately in 80 commercials. A friend convinced her to relocate to Los Angeles to try her hand at acting. "I did the pilot for The Flying Nun," she told StarTrek.com in an early 2014 interview. "I did some other pilot, but that didn’t make it (which is why it’s not list on IMDB)." As for Star Trek? "I got a call for it," she recalled. "I went in and was interviewed, and I got the job. Lo and behold, I was in Star Trek. I don’t think I’d even heard of Star Trek when I got the role."
Jewell worked for several days on "Bread and Circuses." She told StarTrek.com that the cast and crew were "all very pleasant" and "accommodating," and that, specifically, "Mr. Shatner... was such a professional that it made it very easy for me to work with him." Jewell deservedly earned her place in Trek history as one of the franchise's most-beautiful women. Informed of that distinction by StarTrek.com, she said, "Oh, am I? Thank you very much." She credited much of that to her unforgettable costumes. I was Drusilla the slave girl, and the first costume was gray and drab, and it was short," she recounted. "I had fishnet stockings that they wanted me to wear, and then I had this thing that I wore at the top. Then the next costume was the main costume, which I wore in my scene with Captain Kirk, with Mr. Shatner. That was a very exotic costume. It was made by the designer who designed everything for Star Trek. It wasn’t like they went, 'Well, let’s throw this on.' It was designed and it was made, and they had to make sure, in the fitting, that it fit properly. And I wore that. I still get a lot of comments when I’m at the Star Trek shows about that costume. Everybody talks about that costume."
Though she received offers to appear in other projects, Jewell ended her acting career with Star Trek. "I didn't like the parts that they were offering me," she explained. Asked in 2014 what she'd been up to since TOS in 1968, Jewell replied, "For a while, I fooled around looking for various different jobs as an actress. I did a little more modeling. And then I just decided to step away from it. I retired, so to speak, and my husband (caricaturist/entertainer Ted Jewell) said to me, 'Why don’t you make a business for me, and manage it.' And that’s what I did. We’re still in business together." Jewell also attended Star Trek conventions and autograph shows, during which she met many a Trek fan. "It was like another door opened up in my life that I didn’t even know existed," she told StarTrek.com. "I just enjoy pleasing the fans. If the fans are there and they want me to sign pictures for them, then I’m very happy to do so."
Jewell is survived by her husband, Ted. Please join StarTrek.com in belatedly offering our condolences to her family, friends, colleagues and fans.
from Star Trek Latest News
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