Star Trek: 10 Things You Didn't Know About Geordi La Forge
5. He's A Rainbow
Those who grew up in the United States, and undoubtedly a good number of those who didn't, will already be eminently familiar with LeVar Burton's iconic work as host of the children's educational TV series Reading Rainbow, which ran on the PBS network from 1983-2006. The show became a veritable American institution, both it and Burton garnering a multitude of awards.
The worlds of Reading Rainbow and Geordi La Forge have intersected on several occasions. As part of the first episode of Reading Rainbow's sixth season, aired in 1988 and entitled The Bionic Bunny Show (a name also fit for one of Data's poetry recitals), Burton gives viewers quite the detailed behind-the-scenes look at the making of Star Trek: The Next Generation, then filming its first season. In the episode, audiences were also treated to the first ever TNG bloopers, including one where part of a clapperboard falls on a startled Geordi/Burton at the helm.
In 2014, Burton launched a Kickstarter campaign to vastly expand the reach of his Reading Rainbow App, "to bring Reading Rainbow back for every child, everywhere." His fellow Star Trek actors turned out in force to help. Burton hosted a series of Reading Rainbow Live! fundraising events with his TNG co-stars, and Kate Mulgrew, Jeri Ryan, and William Shatner as special guests. Star Trek: Enterprise alum Seth McFarlane also pledged to match $1 million of the whopping $5,408,916 ultimately raised by the Kickstarter.