'Star Trek: The Next Generation' actor Jonathan Frakes reflects on the show's 25th anniversary

Jonathan Frakes is the answer to a trivia question: What actor appeared on screen with characters from every "Star Trek" TV show? Frakes, who portrayed Commander William T. Riker, reflected on the show's 25th anniversary in an interview this week.

We were so green and tentative in terms of our interrelationships. . . . I was told by "Star Trek" creator Gene] Roddenberry that he wanted Riker to be like Gary Cooper -- a Midwestern glint, no smiling, all about honor and duty. That was fine for the character, but it was a strange, limiting box for me as an actor because I'm a little more flamboyant. Eventually, that all worked itself out. As I watch those first-season shows, we're all a little stiff, but I'm particularly stiff, I think. Fortunately, we lasted long enough that we found a way to relate to each other.

Oh, the incredible skepticism. I was not aware of the cultural phenomenon that "Star Trek" was when I first got the job. I quickly learned because the Kirk-Spock-and-Bones "Star Trek," and that triangle, the magic of that ironic, sarcastic relationship that developed on that show, was something that Patrick [Stewart] and Brent [Spiner] I always aspired to and never quite were able to achieve because the writing was different and the characters were obviously different. . . . When we were finally on our third or fourth season, when we'd found our rhythm, the audience began to find room in their hearts for both shows.

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People have favorite characters, they have favorite episodes, they have favorite moments, and with very few exceptions, they're not a Romulan ship exploding or going into the wormhole. Though some people enjoy and love that aspect of the show, they're generally about things that happen to and because of the characters.

Unlike some shows, ours provided us, in some miraculous way, with lifelong friends. We've all stood up at each others' weddings and are godparents to each others' kids, and still get together for lunch and for dinner. . . . I think that's part of the success of the show, that the actors liked each other as much as the characters did. And still do.