Ensign Pavel Chekov was added to the crew of the spaceship U.S.S. Enterprise in 1967, during the second season of the TV series Star Trek. Played by actor Walter Koenig, Chekov was a young and enthusiastic navigator with a haircut vaguely reminiscent of The Beatles, who were wildly popular at the time. Chekov and his ripe Russian accent joined the multinational stew on the bridge of the Enterprise, which already included characters named Scotty (of Scottish heritage), Sulu (Japanese), Uhura (African) and Spock (Vulcan). Chekov appeared in seasons two and three of the original Star Trek series and has been a dependable presence in subsequent Trek feature films and books.

Extra credit: Chekov's name is similar to that of Anton Chekhov, the Russian author of The Cherry Orchard and other plays.