The Original Star Trek

 By Bruce Shawkey

From Entertainment Weekly, Sept. 27, 1991

CAPTAIN'S LOG, STARDATE 090891:

THE ENTERPRISE has assumed orit around a Class M planet inhabited by the oddest race of creatures we've ever encountered. They call themselves "Trekkies"-some insist on the word "Trekkers"-and their entire civilization seems to be based on an ancient TV show about a band of space-age pioneers.

They worship in hives called "conventions," where they don silly velour uniforms and plastic pointy ears. Mr. Spock says these strange beings are harmless, but I'm not so sure. Something about them

seems disturbingly familiar.

Of all the worlds the starship Enterprise

has visited since its launch 25

years ago t his month-Rigel 7, Janus

VI, Omicron Ceti III, and other s- the

most hospitable has always been its

home planet, Ear th. We Terrons can't

get enough of Star Trek: The original series

is sti]]. broadcast in the U.S. more

than 200 times a day. It has been tr anslated

into 47 languages, including Hebr

ew, Portuguese, Dutch, and Swedish.

Its sequel series, Star Trek: The Next

Generation, is one of the most popular

syndicated shows in the country, seen

by more than 17 million a week. The five

Trek movies- the sixth is due in December-

have been among the most

successful science fiction films ever

made, earning a total of $398 million.

When you add in 25 years' worth of Trek

toys, posters, and lunch boxes, you're

talking about one of the most profitable

cult franchises in entertainment history.

The irony is that Star Trek was a flop

.when it first aired on NBC (Sept. 8, 1966,

to June 3, 1969), never climbing above

50th in the Nielsens and lagging behind

such powerhouse programming as Mr.

Terrific and The Tarnrny Grirnes Show.

Three times NBC tried to cancel it, each

time triggering an avalanche of fan letters.

In 1968 alone, the network received

more than a million- including ones

from New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller

and sci-fi author Isaac Asimov.

Over the past 25 years, fans have

multiplied faster than those furry little

fuzzballs called Tribbles. Today there are

more than 200 Star Trek clubs nationwide,

hundreds of annual Trek conventions and more than 500 Trek fanzines.

For thousands of Americans, Star Trek

isn't just a TV show-it's a way of lifeon-

other-planets. To those fans- and to

anybody else who's ever tuned in-we

devote these pages. Herewith, ENTERTAINMENT

WEEKLY's bold look back at

25 years of warp-speed TV.

R T R E K A T 2 5

WITH 'VI' YOU GET AMORE

What may be the crew's last f ilm voyage finds Spock in love

WHEN LAST SEEN in 1989's Star Trek V The Final Frontier, William Shatner,

Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley were huddled around a campfire,

singing "Row, Row, Row Your Boat." Neither critics nor audiences were

amused. The $52 million in ticket sales, less than half of what the previous Trek

film had earned, seemed sure to send the Enterprise into permanent dry dock.

But, at the urging of ex-Paramount chairman Frank Mancuso, Nimoy

dreamed up one last story line, which he took to Nicholas Meyer, director of

the lively Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. His premise for what would supposedly

be the Enterprise's final voyage: The Federation has begun peace negotiations

with the warlike Klingons, when suddenly ... With Meyer directing,

the film began shooting April 16 under heavy secrecy. But t his much is known:

For much of the movie, Captain Kirk and Dr. McCoy (Kelley) are together in

prison and George Takei's Mr. Sulu is separated from the crew. Nimoy's Mr.

Spock discovers a Vulcan love interest in Kim Cattrall's Lieutenant Valeris.

And there have been hints that political intrigue within the crumbling Klingon

empire bears a prescient resemblance to recent events in the Soviet Union.

Even though the studio insists Star Trek VI, to be released Dec. 13, will be the

original cast's last flight, the final day of filming was remarkably unsentimental.

''By the time we finished the last scene, which extended longer than we expected,

there was a sense of irritation," Shatner says. "We raised a glass of champagne,

but everybody was actually a little antsy." Despite unconfirmed rumors of Kirk's

demise, Meyer insists all the main characters survive. Which suggests that, the

box office willing, it may not be all that final. As Meyer admits, "In a funny way,

once you've killed a character"-as he dispatched Spock in Star Trek II- "and

brought him back to life, there is no such thing as a final ending." 

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I was never a formal Trekker, but I loved this show, and watched it faithfully every week when it aired on Thursday evenings at 8:30 PM on NBC and numerous other channels when it ran on syndication.

Shatner was married four times to Married four times to : Elizabeth Anderson Martin (2001 - 2020), Nerine Kidd (1997 - 1999), Marcy Lafferty (1973 - 1996), and Gloria Rand (1956 - 1969). I don't think he was the easiest person to get along with.