Kirk Douglas he has focused on renewing his spiritual and religious life. He lives with his second wife (of years), Anne Buydens, a producer. Douglas was born Issur Danielovitch Demsky () in Amsterdam, New York, the son of Bryna "Bertha" (née Sanglel; 1884–1958) and Herschel "Harry" Danielovitch (c. 1884–1950; citations regarding his exact year of birth differ). His parents were Jewish emigrants from Chavusy, Mogilev Region, in the Russian Empire (present-day Belarus), and the family spoke Yiddish at home. His father's brother, who emigrated earlier, used the surname Demsky, which Douglas's family adopted in the United States. Douglas grew up as Izzy
Star Trek (film) Abrams said that he had never seen "Star Trek: Nemesis" because he felt the franchise had "disconnected" from the original series. For him, he said, "Star Trek" was about Kirk and Spock, and the other series were like "separate space adventure[s] with the name "Star Trek"". He also acknowledged that as a child he had actually preferred the "Star Wars" movies. He noted that his general knowledge of "Star Trek" made him well suited to introduce the franchise to newcomers, and that, being an optimistic person, he would make "Star Trek" an optimistic film, which would be a refreshing contrast