Back in 2011, Shepherd was interviewed by StarTrek.com about playing Morn, and he had a lot of stories from the set. Mostly, he recalls that his part wasn’t heavily scripted, and that a lot of the directors would give him some background business on the day of filming. Because he didn’t mind staying in the heavy Lurian makeup for 12-hour shifts, Shepherd became a reliable mainstay of the franchise. Shepherd also joked about the silences of the character, saying that he came up with really, really interesting dialogue, but, golly, it just got cut from the final episode. In the “Deep Space Nine” pilot, Morn is seen making a very funny joke, but all audiences hear are people laughing. Shepherd “recalls” the joke in question, saying it was:
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“Finalism finger fink. Obligatory quotient yokefellow, coconut kachina cosmological argument. Bank swallow fish story, inculpate minuteman. Stress certifier in lecithin. Hard-hearted dill, divine minded domineer, mind reader sextuplet, garden fly honey suckle garbage. Palter rimfire, green peace. Change is the ultimate solution.”
It’s 24th-century humor. You wouldn’t get it. It’s like saying “Skibidi Toilet” to anyone over the age of 11.
Morn really got his moment to shine in “Who Mourns for Morn?” (February 2, 1998,) wherein the character died. Quark (Armin Shimerman) became embroiled in Morn’s former life, discovering that he had been involved in a long-game criminal enterprise to hide a great deal of latinum from some unsavory associates. Morn, it seems, once robbed a bank, stashed the loot, and was hiding out for ten years, hoping to outlive the criminal statute of limitations. His associates arrive and spend the episode fighting over the possible take. After a shootout, they are all arrested.
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Morn, however, then re-enters Quark’s Bar. He faked his own death, hoping to draw out his associates and have them jailed. It worked. Morn, it is revealed, had been carrying the latinum inside his second stomach for a decade. That’s why he lost all his hair.
Trekkies love Morn. He was a fitting tribute to Norm.
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