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  April 30, 2009

  Greg Grunberg Talks to TrekMovie.com

  TrekMovie.com talked to Greg Grunberg (best friend to J.J. Abrams, who directed the "Star Trek") to talk about TalkAboutIt.org, the new "Star Trek" movie (and his semi-cameo), working with Chris Pine (Captain Kirk) and Zachary Quinto (Spock), and "Heroes." Plus we find out what part he wants in the "Star Trek" sequel!
  
  An excerpt from the interview:
  
  TrekMovie.com: What was the impetus for you to create talkaboutit.org?
  
  Greg Grunberg: Well it isn’t just me, it is also Ken Lowenberg from the Epilepsy Foundation. Because the epilepsy world has not had any significant celebrity presence - from time to time somebody will say ‘I have it’ - but no one has stepped forward as the spokesperson and represent the 3-5 Million people in the US who are dealing with epilepsy, at all different levels and degrees of severity. We have gone through the ringer on it. Jake started off with staring spells and mild seizures to having full fall-down seizures and every kind. It got so bad that we went to the last resort, which is brain surgery. Because of that, I have experienced all different levels of this as a parent. And it is so needed that there is one place for all the organization to come together, and they need a voice.

  So the impetus was at one of these functions and I was talking to all the top doctors from all over the world and people who are struggling and the one common thread was ‘if we could just remove the stigma, if we could just get people to talk about it.’ So just before I went on to speak I ran downstairs to the business center and bought the website talkaboutit.org. It isn’t ‘talkaboutepilepsy.org’ because that is a red flag and sounds scary, so we will fool them. I know all these celebrities and the truth is they all want to help. Just talking about it can lead to everything that we want, whether it is a cure or finding tips on raising a child or learning how to handle a seizure. So what we decided to do was start talkaboutit.org and it is not a horror story, because that is the first thing you find when you research any disease online. It is a place where people can exchange information and you are responsible for your own information. So now we can talk about it, the way people talk about cancer or AIDS and no one has to hide from this disease anymore. 
  
  TM: What do you think are the biggest misconceptions about epilepsy?
  
  GG: Well a long time ago the biggest misconception was that people were possessed by the devil, and I mean like only forty of fifty years ago, and in some countries, third world countries, they still feel that way. But the immediate misconceptions are the old wives tales. like if some has a seizure you should stick something in their mouth so they don’t choke on their tongue. Absolutely never ever should you stick anything in someone’s mouth if they are having a seizure. Second thing, that if you see someone having a seizure you should hold them down — absolute 100% wrong thing to do, you should just make sure they are comfortable and nothing falls on them, and just be a friend and wait it out and they will be fine, they will come out of it.
  
  TM: You got a lot of celebrities involved, including Zach Quinto who you work with on Heroes, but you also got Chris Pine to join him for a video, how did that come about?
  
  GG: I met Chris on the set of Star Trek and then one night we had dinner with JJ and Chris and Bryan Burk, and that guy is so great, he is so funny and he really fits this movie and Kirk so well. Anyway we hit it off and he immediate said, as do most celebrities who I meet — everybody wants to help. They came in together and they did their bit and it gives me chills. For people in the epilepsy community to have all of these celebrities behind it and to make it, I hate to say it, but ‘cool.’ We are going to get people talking about this. And to see those two guys, and they didn’t talk about Star Trek, but clearly it is Spock and Kirk! It was incredible and so moving. It is exciting they did this for us.
  
  TM: Speaking of JJ, as his best friend, what affect has this long process of making the Star Trek movie has had on him.
  
  GG: I think he has got incredibly excited. This is the second time he has been asked to jump onto a franchise that is so ingrained and established and to try and re-invigorate it. This thing is so huge. It is like giving someone a Faberge egg and saying ‘make a box out of it.’ For him to not be scared to tackle that is a huge thing. And this is not just JJ, without Bob and Alex and all of them — they are this creative machine that is at the right place at the right time. I have seen the movie twice now and I love it. And again I am not the typical fan — it is just a great movie for everyone.
  
  Read the entire interview at TrekMovie.com.

  Source: TrekMovie.com

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