Star Trek legend William Shatner once turned pain into hard-earned gain. Shatner didn't let a medical emergency get him down. Instead, he turned his extremely painful medical experience into something surprisingly valuable: a home for a family in need.
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The 95-year-old Star Trek legend recently revisited the bizarre story of selling his kidney stone to a gambling company in 2006, explaining how the unusual transaction benefited Habitat for Humanity. During an appearance on Dropping Names with Brent and Jonny, Shatner recalled having the stone removed while starring on the television series Boston Legal.
"I have a kidney stone and the guy takes it out, here it is, a little black pellet. Thank God it's gone," Shatner recalled. "A week later, I get a phone call from a Canadian gambling company who, by law, can't advertise. So what they do... they find ways of doing it."
'Star Trek' Legend Gives Donation
He assumed the ordeal was behind him. However, a Canadian gambling company had other plans. The company contacted Shatner about purchasing the stone as a publicity stunt. There was just one problem: The actor believed his doctor had already discarded it. Fortunately, the physician still had the unusual keepsake.
Shatner continued: "So, they said to me on the phone, 'We'll buy your kidney stone.' And I thought, 'A bloody kidney stone? It's been thrown away a week ago.' So I went to the doctor. I said, 'Have you got [my] kidney stone?' He handed me the kidney stone, and I gave it to them, and they auctioned it off for $75,000."
Shatner retrieved the stone and arranged the sale. At the time, reports from 2006 indicated that online casino GoldenPalace.com initially purchased the stone for $25,000 after Shatner rejected a $15,000 offer. However, the Star Trek legend says it actually sold for a lot more.
He then put the money towards Habitat for Humanity.
"Bought a house with ... Habitat for Humanity," Shatner said of the funds. "A home in Louisiana and a family of five, last time I checked, was living in that house. My kidney stone plus $25,000 for raised from the cast [of Boston Legal]. We gave Habitat for Humanity $100,000 to make a home for a family."
Shatner previously joked about the unusual donation in 2006, "I'd used the stone for awhile. I didn't need it any longer."
