Potential Misattribution[]
It's very likely that this "actor" was actually the writer James S. Shapiro, a prominent current-day English professor who specializes in Shakespeare and the Early Modern period. His rise to prominence coincides very closely with the release of the episode "The Defector," however, there is obviously no means to corroborate that this is the Shapiro to whom Data refers. That being said, I find it incorrect to identify the Shapiro that Data mentions as an "actor" when he merely lists the name as a person worthy of study. – The preceding unsigned comment was added by BugMeNot666 (talk • contribs).
- Data: "I plan to study the performances of Olivier, Branagh, Shapiro, Kullnark..."
- Picard: "Data, you're here to learn about the human condition and there is no better way of doing that than by embracing Shakespeare. But you must discover it through your own performance, not by imitating others."
- As this reflects on his present actions, and given the two verified names there are actors, the implication basically suggests otherwise. –Gvsualan (talk) 01:05, 6 February 2021 (UTC)