70s Trek: Star Trek in the 1970s

Welcome to the first new 70s Trek episode in 3 years! The release of the 4K, Ultra HD version of Star Trek The Motion Picture, The Director's Edition, is such big news that co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto felt it deserved a new episode of 70s Trek. Star Trek The Motion Picture was originally released in theaters in 1979. It culminated ten years of hard work, false starts and frustrations. The movie ran 132 minutes and it brought live action Star Trek back. But because of problems during production, the film was little more that a rough-cut. The version we saw in theaters was never intended to be the final edit. But because of marketing commitments, director Robert Wise ran out of time. Flash forward to 2001. Paramount agreed to let Wise and his team re-edit the folm so it would be closer to his original vision. The result was Star Trek The Motion Picture, The Director's Edition. The team tightened the editing and inserted new, updated CGI special effects. However, this version of the film was only released in standard definition on DVD. Blu Ray had not yet been invented. So fans never got to see this verison of the film in high definition. Until now. Members of Wise's 2001 team have gotten access to the Paramount vaults and have gone back to the orignal camera negatives to restore The Director's Edition in 4K Ultra HD. Theyhave also updated the special effects, bringing them up to 4K, as well. The result is a stunning film with more color, detail and dynamic sound.

The Original Series episode Journey to Babel is considered by many to be one of the best. It featured several "firsts" for the show. Among them was seeing Spock's parents and several alien species that would play a major role in the franchise in the decades to come. Co-hosts Kelly Casto and Bob Turner explore Journey to Babel and ask the question, was it the most important Star Trek episode of the 1960s? ***

It's a place here on Earth that feels like it's an alien landscape. That's probably why we've seen it used as another world so many times in TV and film.  Including Star Trek. Vasquez Rocks, located just north of Los Angeles, has been used many, many times for “on location” shooting for the franchise. The craggy, rocky landscape has been seen in 10 Star Trek episodes from various series and 3 films. But how did this stunning landscape become what it is today? Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto explore Vasquez Rocks and share what they discovered with you in this episode of The Unofficial Trek Podcast. *** In The Unofficial Trek Podcast, hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "Unofficial" take on the Star Trek universe.  From 2019 through 2019, Bob and Kelly hosted the show 70s Trek. It was a look at the events that brought a cancelled, 1960s TV show back from the dead to become a blockbuster movie in 1979. It was a decade that created a multi-million dollar franchise. Now Bob and Kelly will look at the minutia, the concepts, the people and the news pertaining to the Star Trek Universe. It's a fascinating time for Star Trek, with a flood of content about it on the internet. Bob and Kelly will give their "Unofficial" take. Why unofficial? Because their views are just that, they are theirs and are, therefore, "unofficial." It's a fresh look at Star Trek from two lifelong fans who have been talking Trek for over 35 years! We hope you'll join Bob and Kelly for their next venture, The Unofficial Trek Podcast. Visit us at these sites: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/UnofficialTrek TuneIn:  https://tunein.com/podcasts/Fantasy--Science-Fiction-Podcasts/The-Unofficial-Trek-Podcast-p1546279/ Stitcher:  https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-unofficial-trek-podcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IrNzaWSzKyf1T7b4ngZX2 Website: https://theunofficialstartrekpodcast.libsyn.com/

One of the Star Trek productions coming in 2022 is Strange New Worlds. It will be the story of Captain Pike and the Enterprise crew before Captain Kirk commanded the ship. Since the show hasn't premiered yet, we don't know much about it. But co-hosts Kelly Casto and Bob Turner take a look at what we do know so far, and run through the cast. It's the perfect topic for some "Unofficial" takes and a Trek Chat. *** In The Unofficial Trek Podcast, hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "Unofficial" take on the Star Trek universe.  From 2019 through 2019, Bob and Kelly hosted the show 70s Trek. It was a look at the events that brought a cancelled, 1960s TV show back from the dead to become a blockbuster movie in 1979. It was a decade that created a multi-million dollar franchise. Now Bob and Kelly will look at the minutia, the concepts, the people and the news pertaining to the Star Trek Universe. It's a fascinating time for Star Trek, with a flood of content about it on the internet. Bob and Kelly will give their "Unofficial" take. Why unofficial? Because their views are just that, they are theirs and are, therefore, "unofficial." It's a fresh look at Star Trek from two lifelong fans who have been talking Trek for over 35 years! We hope you'll join Bob and Kelly for their next venture, The Unofficial Trek Podcast. Visit us at these sites: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/UnofficialTrek TuneIn:  https://tunein.com/podcasts/Fantasy--Science-Fiction-Podcasts/The-Unofficial-Trek-Podcast-p1546279/ Stitcher:  https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-unofficial-trek-podcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IrNzaWSzKyf1T7b4ngZX2 Website: https://theunofficialstartrekpodcast.libsyn.com/

In July of 2021, the YouTube channel "The Popcast” posted a video entitled "This is how STRANGE NEW WORLDS will bring OLD TREK and NEW TREK Together!" The video discussed the divide between fans of Old Trek, Star Trek episodes and movies produced between 1966 and 2005, and fans of New Trek that began with J.J. Abrams 2009 Star Trek film. The video told us of a recent survey that took place across YouTube, Reddit and Twitter. 2000 Trek fans were asked how they identified with 3 statements.  Here they are: New Star Trek is good, I wish people would just accept the changes. I'm watching because it's Star Trek, but I really hope it gets better. It's a dumpster fire! I hate it and I'll never watch new Star Trek. Here are the results: -28% said New Trek is good, and people should accept the changes. -32% said they were watching because it's Trek, but they hoped it would get better. -40% said it's a dumpster fire and they won't watch. That 40% number by itself is alarming. But it's really staggering to see that 72% don't think it's good or won't watch it at all! Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto have some opinions about why this might be happening...And of course, it's all unofficial.

With the release of the film No Time to Die in the fall of 2021, James Bond is back in the popular culture again. It's the 25th Bond film, and co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto of The Unofficial Trek Podcast thought it might be fun to have a chat about their favorite British spy. What does Bond have to do with Trek, you might ask? Well, the two franchises, Star Trek and James Bond, have a lot of crossover when it comes to their audiences. So for that reason, a Trek chat seems appropriate.

Imagine flying through the galaxy, minding your own business and suddenly you see a structure that is very large. It's so big, in fact, that it surrounds a star! It's a Dyson Sphere! This week we explore the concept of a Dyson Sphere, first seen in the Star Trek universe in the Season 6 episode "Relics" from The Next Generation. First proposed in 1937, the concept was first scientifically theorized by futurists Freeman Dyson in 1960. This week hosts Kelly Casto and Bob Turner talk about this concept and what it might actually look like, scientifically speaking. ***

Imagine driving through downtown Las Vegas and looking up to see a giant, life-sized USS Enterprise. That almost happened in the early 1990s. But the project morphed into something very different and became The Star Trek Experience. Hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "unofficial" take on both projects and talk about their experiences visiting The Star Trek Experience. For those curious about the USS Enterprise project, known as the Las Vegas Enterprise, you can read about it here. ***

Here's episode 3 from The Unofficial Trek Podcast: A recent article from the website RedShirtsAlwaysDie.com reports that UPN Executives blamed beloved Star Trek Actor Scott Bakula for the bad ratings that the show experienced in its second, third and fourth seasons. Hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "unofficial" take on what led to the cancellation of Star Trek Enterprise. Here's a sneak peak: It was not Scott Bakula. Read the article here and join Kelly and Bob for a lively discussion. *** In The Unofficial Trek Podcast, hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "Unofficial" take on the Star Trek universe.  From 2019 through 2019, Bob and Kelly hosted the show 70s Trek. It was a look at the events that brought a cancelled, 1960s TV show back from the dead to become a blockbuster movie in 1979. It was a decade that created a multi-million dollar franchise. Now Bob and Kelly will look at the minutia, the concepts, the people and the news pertaining to the Star Trek Universe. It's a fascinating time for Star Trek, with a flood of content about it on the internet. Bob and Kelly will give their "Unofficial" take. Why unofficial? Because their views are just that, they are theirs and are, therefore, "unofficial." It's a fresh look at Star Trek from two lifelong fans who have been talking Trek for over 35 years! We hope you'll join Bob and Kelly for their next venture, The Unofficial Trek Podcast. Visit us at these sites: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/UnofficialTrek TuneIn:  https://tunein.com/podcasts/Fantasy--Science-Fiction-Podcasts/The-Unofficial-Trek-Podcast-p1546279/ Stitcher:  https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-unofficial-trek-podcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IrNzaWSzKyf1T7b4ngZX2 Website: https://theunofficialstartrekpodcast.libsyn.com/  

The co-hosts of 70s Trek, Bob Turner and Kelly Casto, have launched a new show called The Unofficial Trek Podcast.  In this show, hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto give their "unofficial" take on the concepts, the people and the news pertaining to the Star Trek Universe. It's a fascinating time for Star Trek, with a flood of content about it on the internet. Bob and Kelly will give their "Unofficial" take. Why unofficial? Because their views are just that, theirs and are, therefore, "unofficial." It's a fresh look at Star Trek from two lifelong fans who have been talking Trek for over 35 years! We hope you'll join Bob and Kelly for their next venture, The Unofficial Trek Podcast. Visit us at these sites: Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/UnofficialTrek TuneIn:  https://tunein.com/podcasts/Fantasy--Science-Fiction-Podcasts/The-Unofficial-Trek-Podcast-p1546279/ Stitcher:  https://www.stitcher.com/show/the-unofficial-trek-podcast Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6IrNzaWSzKyf1T7b4ngZX2 Website: https://theunofficialstartrekpodcast.libsyn.com/

Welcome to this Bonus Trek episode of 70s Trek.   We wanted to get back together and talk about the recent news of the re-merger between CBS and Paramount. And it officially happened on August 13.  Now the larger company, CBS, will absorb the newer version of Viacom which owns BET, Comedy Central...and Paramount.  

We've told the story of Star Trek in the 1970s. So this is the end.

It started as a 1955 spy novel by Ian Fleming. But it took over 24 years for the book to be made into a movie. And other than the name, the film barely resembled the book. But the producers of the James Bond movies deliberately chose this story because of what was happening in the 1970s. We chose to do this movie as a 70s Trek episode because one of our loyal listeners has been asking us to do an episode about Moonraker for some time. To be honest, we weren't sure there was a connection with Star Trek in the 1970s. Then Calvin Bowles made a point that we couldn’t ignore. The next movie scheduled after “The Spy Who Loved Me” that Bond producer, Cubby Broccoli, intended to make was “For Your Eyes Only”. In fact, at the end of the credits for "The Spy Who Loved Me," audiences read that James Bond would return in his next adventure, "For Your Eyes Only." But then a funny thing happened on the way to the production office. A little movie called Star Wars changed Hollywood forever in 1977! So producers chose to make Moonraker instead and put James Bond in space. So Moonraker is very much a product of the Star Wars phenomenon and it helped to get audiences ready for another space adventure, "Star Trek The Motion Picture." So thanks Calvin for your messages and you great information.  

This is a rebroadcast of Episode 23. Gene Roddenberry was a science fiction fan.  He loved reading the books of H.G. Wells growing up.  As an adult, he also appreciated films in the genre that made you think.  One of his favorites was 1951's The Day the Earth Stood Still. The film follows Klaatu, an alien who has landed on Earth with an important message for Earth's leaders, but he can't seem to get any help to deliver it.  The message is that Earth, after discovering the powers of the atom, is now a threat to other worlds. The people of our world were put on notice by Klaatu: Do want you want to do here, but don't threaten to extend your violent ways to other worlds, or the Earth will be destroyed. The director of Earth was Robert Wise who would go on to direct Star Trek: The Motion Picture.  Was he picked to direct TMP because of the job he did on The Day the Earth Stood Still?  Probably. It is thoughtful science fiction with some concepts that became part of Star Trek.  For kids who grew up in the 1970s, there is also a tie to that other sic-fi show, Lost in Space.  Actor Michael Rennie played the role of the Keeper in the two-part episode of the same name. If you're a curious Trek fan, you should see The Day the Earth Stood Still.

It started as an ambitious theatrical film. After performing well in theaters, Battlestar Galactica became a weekly TV series on the ABC network. But when people think of the original Battlestar Galactica, they think of it being a rip off of Star Wars, or being outdated and very stuck in the style of the 1970s.  But it’s actually a ground-breaking show. It brought cinematic special effects to TV and told a story that was very unique for the time. In addition to being a unique TV experience, Battlestar Galactica also stoked the fires for more science fiction. When it was cancelled after the 1st season, there was a fan campaign to get it back on the air, which shows how loyal sci-fi fans had become. So BG kept fans excited for more sci fi, which kept the audience yearning for more when Star Trek hit the big screen. If it suffers, it’s only because it was ahead of its time. The TV production and story telling techniques of 1978 weren’t ready for a large scale show like Battlestar Galactica. Look at Ronald D. Moore’s 2003 version. While he updated it, the core of the show remained the same and the 1978 version is very much alive and well in that 2003 version. Of course, Ron Moore is a Star Trek alum from the 1990s.  Another Trek alum on Battlestar Galactica was John Kolicos. In 1967, he played the first ever Klingon, Kor.  And if you’re talking ties, you have to mention Jonathon Harris. Even though he wasn’t in Trek, he did play Dr. Smith on Lost in Space. In BG he lent his voice to the Cylon character Lucifer.

Just three weeks after the premier of Star Trek The Motion Picture, the decade of the 1980s began.  With the new decade came an explosion in popularity for the Star Trek franchise and it all happened with The Motion Picture. For most critics and moviegoers, though, the film was a disappointment. It didn’t live up to the expectations. But luckily, the film brought in enough money for Paramount executives to consider making a sequel. It kicked off what would become an incredible, multi-million dollar franchise throughout the ‘80s and into the ‘90s. The film proved to Paramount that a substantial audience would come out and see a Trek film, which urged them to make more.

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 22. While it in fact just a collection of sets, the Enterprise in Star Trek seems like another character.  It's probably because creator Gene Roddenberry wanted that feeling to come across.  He wanted the Enterprise to be something special and other writers picked up on that idea and carried it forward in future episodes. This week co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto talk about the Enterprise and how it influenced the entire Star Trek universe. Designer Matt Jefferies wasn't given much guidance when Roddenberry said he needed a starship.  The only guidance he was given was what NOT to do.  But his eventual design helped make Star Trek an iconic show and contributed to its rebirth in the 1970s.

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 21. This week on 70s Trek, co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto wrap their look at Star Trek: The Animated Series.  It is the only version of Star Trek to win an Emmy, being named the best Children's Show for the 1974-1975 TV season. The episodes we look at include: "Bem" "The Slaver Weapon" "The Practical Joker" "Eye of the Beholder" "Albatross" "Jihad" "How Sharper Than a Serpent's Tooth."

This is a rerun of Wpisode 20. Orions, Vendorians and Tribbles!  Oh My! On this episode of 70s Trek, we continue our exploration of Star Trek the Animated Series.  Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at eight episodes from the series: "One of Our Planets is Missing," "More Tribble, More Troubles," "The Survivor," "Once Upon a Planet," "Yesteryear," " The Terratin Incident," "The Ambergris Element" "The Pirates of Orion."

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 19. Star Trek: The Animated Series is often over-looked in the history of Star Trek.  But it is noteworthy because it is the moment when Star Trek moved from being a cancelled show to a franchise. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at the Animated Series in this episode of 70s Trek. The show aired from September 1973 to October 1974 and consisted of 22 episodes. Many writers that worked on the original series lent their talents to the Animated Series, which helped the stories be consistent with the live action version.  Some were also just good stories. The Animated Series won an Emmy for Best Children's Programming.  While the animation itself might be primitive, the show remains very faithful to The Original Series and is full of detail. If you're a Trek fan, it is worth your time. This is Part 1 of our look a the Animated Series.  We discuss the following episodes: "Mudd's Passion" "The Magicks of Megas Tu" "The Lorelei Signal" "Time Trap" "The Infinite Vulcan" "Beyond the Farthest Star" "The Countercheck Incident."

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 18. Mr. Scott is perhaps one of the most beloved characters in all of Star Trek, largely because of the way he was portrayed by actor James Doohan. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at the Canadian actor on this episode  of 70s Trek. Before Jimmy Doohan was an actor, he was a war hero, having stormed the beaches of Normandy on D-Day during the Second World War.  After leaving the armed services, Doohan decided to try his hand performing.  It eventually brought him to Hollywood during TV's Golden Age. After Star Trek, Doohan supported his family through the occasionally TV episode and personal appearances. But throughout the 70s, he stayed excited for Star Trek, believing the show would be back as a major motion picture. He was right. Doohan went on to appear in all of the movies based on the original series along with Star Trek Generations.  He was the second actor from the first cast to pass away.

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 17. After Star Trek went off the air, there was a 27-month period when there wasn’t much new science fiction on TV. Then in the fall of 1971, along came the British TV show UFO. It was ground breaking with a unique style.  But more importantly, UFO gave some comfort to the growing Star Trek audience.  The fact that it was on TV said to them, “Science fiction is relevant, here’s another form of it, and it’s of to like it." It also raised the bar for sci-fi producers.  This was a smart, stylish show dealing with contemporary issues such as politics, drug abuse, adultery and divorce.  UFO was not a hokey kids show. There's a Trek connection, as well.  Series star Ed Bishop voiced the character Asmodeus in the Animated Series episode The Magicks of Megas Tu. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at this unique show on this episode of 70s Trek.

Since 2009 there has been three new Star Trek movies, one new series with another four reportedly in development. Yet enthusiasm for the franchise among die hard fans is low.  What’s going on? We’ll explore what is going on in Star Trek today in this episode. What's Going on? When it comes to connected TV and film universes, Star Trek was the first franchise to do it.  Not Marvel. But that might not happen anymore.  And it all has to do with who owns Star Trek.  But trying to figure out which corporate entity owns the property can get a bit confusing. And it’s been that way from the beginning. A lot of people think Gene Roddenberry and his production company Norway were the original owners.  They weren’t. The original owner was Desilu Studios and in 1968 Paramount Pictures, itself owned by Gulf + Western, purchased Desilu and Star Trek along with it. In 1994, Viacom purchased Paramount for $9.75 Billion!  Star Trek was still controlled and operated by Paramount, the franchise essentially had a new owner. This next fact seems unrelated, but it isn’t.  In 2000, Viacom merged with CBS Corporation. Interestingly, Viacom was created by  CBS back in 1952 as the network’s syndication division. Then it was called CBS Films but was later renamed Viacom. It was spun off into its own company in 1971. Back to the year 2000, and Viacom was then owned by National Amusements.  The majority owner of that company was Sumner Redstone. In 2005, Redstone decided to break Viacom apart into two companies, essentially undoing the 1999 merger. The entity known as Viacom became CBS Corporation. It owned all TV and radio divisions, along with Simon and Schuster publishing. CBS would also own all of the television properties, including Star Trek. The head of the new CBS Corporation was Les Moonves. The second company created was a new version of Viacom.  It held Paramount studios, MTV and BET networks. Viacom with Paramount, retains the Star Trek feature film library, and according to some, the rights to make new feature films. But the exact terms of the rights, and who can do what are not clearly known.  And this is where things get a bit murky. But you needed this background to follow and understand what’s happening today.  

Throughout the run of 70s Trek we’ve been telling you about what happened in the 1970s.  But how did we get our information?  We did a lot of digging and looked at multiple sources for each episode. This week we tell you about those sources. Anyone who has written a research paper in high school or college will remember that there are two types of sources: Primary and Secondary. Primary sources are those that are original to the event in question.  They provide firsthand evidence or testimony to what happened or what people were thinking. These include court documents, newspapers articles, autobiographies, corporate memos, letters and even photos or videos. Secondary sources are those written after the fact either using primary sources, or using other secondary sources. Here on 70s Trek, we used primary sources when we could. But most were secondary sources.

In this episode of 70s Trek, it's part 2 of our conversation with author Marc Cushman as he tells us stories from his new book, These Are the Voyages: Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek in the 1970s, Volume 1.   Cushman wrote three volumes on The Original Series entitled, These Are the Voyages. Each was an episode by episode examination of the production of each and every show. They are a must read for any Star Trek fan. Now Cushman brings the same research to the decade of the 1970s as he tells the story of how Star Trek came back from network cancellation. His book is the perfect companion to 70s Trek.

The 1970s were a fascinating time. In fact, they brought about the Star Trek franchise.  Without the ‘70s, Trek would not have had the success it experienced in the ‘80s, ‘90s and beyond. That’s why it’s so interesting that a new book is being released about Star Trek in the the decade of the 1970s. To quote a most popular Vulcan, this book is “Fascinating.” This week we have an interview with March Cushman, the man who wrote, “These Are the Voyages: Gene Roddenberry and Star Trek in the 1970s, Volume 1.” Prior to writing this volume, Marc wrote the book...or books...on Star Trek The Original Series...literally.  His 3-volume set on that show, “These are the Voyages,” are a must read for any Star Trek fan. This week on 70s Trek, we have an interview with the author, Marc Cushman.

Star Trek The Motion Picture not only marked the return of Trek, but it also changed The Star Trek universe in multiple ways. In fact, it would never be the same again. In some ways those changes were good and in some ways they caused problems. Consider the conundrum that the new Klingon foreheads represented! But the film took the universe in a completely new direction. The Animated Series was very much a continuation of The Original Series. Meanwhile, Phase II was to be an evolution of the 60s show. But The Motion Picture revolutionized what Star Trek was so it could compete with other science fiction franchises such as Star Wars. The impact of those changes was felt in every version of Star Trek that followed in the 1980s, ‘90s and early 2000s.    

This is a re-Broadcast of Episode 16.   They did it in a way that had not been done before.  Star Trek fans literally shocked the world in the 70s with their numbers, their devotion...and sometimes their behavior. They demonstrated that there was an audience for the show.  Studio executives who thought Star Trek was a dead property began tot are notice as fans published their own magazines and newsletters, attend conventions by the thousands, forced up the shows ratings in syndication and demanded that their president name the first-ever NASA space shuttle after their beloved starship, Enterprise. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at Trek fandom in the 70s on this episode of 70s Trek.

During the 1970s, it was one of the most widely read magazines by kids. Dynamite Magazine  was published by Scholastic, Inc. from 1974 to 1992. During its run, it was the most successful magazine for the company...ever!   Dynamite was an educational magazine that was distributed through schools.  So it was widely read by kids.  If you were a public school kid in the 1970s and 80s, you probably remember it. The publication covered things that young people were into: Athletes, actors, musicians, and popular TV shows and films. It especially featured sci-fi adventure shows and movies.  That included Star Trek. So this week, Dynamite gets the 70s Trek-treatment as we tell you all about it.  

Gene Roddenberry and Paramount had been working on it for 4-½ years, and fans had been waiting for over ten. In December 1979, it was finally here. Star Trek The Motion Picture was in theaters. And this week we will be going to the movies as co-hosts Bob turner and Kelly Casto finally talk about this film. It was December 7, 1979. The decade of the 1970s only had three weeks left. Fans were finally getting a chance to see Star Trek The Motion Picture.  For them, this movie was the answer to their hopes and dreams. Star Trek was returning, and being a Trekkie was being validated with a major motion picture in the theaters. For Gene Roddenberry there had to be a feeling of relief and exhilaration, as well. He had been through so much frustration during the decade as he tried to bring Star Trek.   Finally, it was up there, on the big screen. During this week's show, Bob and Kelly will look at the movie based on their recollections and try to answer the following questions:    Is it a traditional Star Trek Story?    Is the film well-executed?    What works and what does not?    Does it hold up today? What would you change?  

He was one of the original producers of Star Trek and helped launch the show. John D. F. Black was hired in 1966 as an Executive Story Consultant. He passed away in November 2018 at the age of 85. With his passing so recent, we felt it appropriate to remember him on this episode of 70s Trek.  

It was the 10th episode to air in the first season, but was actually the first one to go in front of the cameras after Star Trek had been sold to NBC. The Corbomite Maneuver aired on November 10, 1966. And despite it being made over 50 years ago, it is still a really good episode. As 70s Trek approaches Star Trek’s first movie, we thought it would be fitting to look back to Star Trek’s first episode. We wanted to draw an imaginary line between the first Trek episode filmed, and the first movie. The episode was filmed in late May 1966 and it was the first time that the whole cast was together.  DeForest Kelley and Nichelle Nichols did not appear in the 2nd pilot, Where No Man Has Gone Before. Corbomite was also the first time we saw the characters in the positions they would be in for the rest of the series.  Sulu was the helmsman, Uhura the communications officer, and so on. This is the first time that the crew's "look" was finally established, as well. The men are wearing the colorful uniform shirts with the black collars that we’ll see in the rest of the series. We also see the famous mini skirts and plunging necklines on the female officers, as well. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto talk about the production an some of the stand out, on-screen moments on this episode of 70s Trek.

It was the first major film adaptation of a TV show...A show that had been off the air for ten years!  December 7th, 1979: It’s the day Star Trek The Motion Picture premiered. And fans had been eagerly awaiting this day for ten years. In his book “Star Trek Creator,” David Alexander described that Gene Roddenberry and Robert Wise worked on the film until the last minute. He wrote, “...perhaps not finishing the film so much as simply doing as much as they could in the time permitted...and then stopping.” Robert Wise took a print of the film with him for the premiere that was fresh from the lab. When arrived in DC, there was a lot of excitement and anticipation for the film.  In her book “The Making of Star Trek The Motion Picture,” Susan Sackett writes, “The fans had been mentally standing in ticket lines before the lines ever existed.  As early as February 1979, The Star Trek production offices were swamped with requests for premiere tickets.”

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 15.   One of the reasons Star Trek has always been popular is its use of language.  That can really be seen in its episode titles. There’s something lyrical about them.  They sound like they were pulled from classic works of literature...and in fact, some of them were.   Consider these titles: "For the World is Hollow and I have Touched the Sky." "Requiem for Methuselah." "The City on the Edge of Forever." "The Conscience of the King." They’re not straight forward explanations about each episode.  In Fact, 50 years later, many of these titles still confuse fans. Star Trek's episode titles were unique in the 1960s and continue to be today.  In fact, it is a hallmark of every Trek series to have show titles that sound a bit "high-brow." This week co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto discuss their favorite Star Trek show titles. 

The tagline of 70s Trek has been, “The decade that built a franchise.” This week, we take a deep dive into the 1970s. The show has been about how Gene Roddenberry, Paramount Pictures and others worked in the 70s to bring Star Trek back. But it’s also our contention that the decade itself was a major player in Trek’s return, too.  So this week, we’re talking the 70s. And that could include anything from the Vietnam War to...The James Gang! The Decade So when we think about the 1970s, it’s a mashing of images and sounds.  The 70s was this great blending of clothing styles, musical styles and colors. The 70s started, obviously, where the 60s ended. So there is a carry over of what was happening in 1969.  Things like The Vietnam War, protests about the war, the hippie culture, and student unrest were extended well into the 1970s. But in the 70s, it seems like a harsh dose of reality kicked in and the psychedelic 60s came to an end.  There is perhaps no event that symbolizes this idea more than the Kent State shootings in May 1970.  Four students were shot and killed by the Ohio National Guard after four days of riots and protests on the campus of Kent State University in Ohio.  That event was such a big deal that the band Crosby, Stills Nash and Young wrote a song about it called, ”Ohio.”  It was getting national airplay just two weeks after the shootings. This tragic event has been called, "The Day the 60s Died."  And unfortunately, it typifies a lot of the sad events that happened during the decade. While the decade had its share of rough times, there was plenty of fun, too.  Listen to this episode of 70s Trek as we explore the 1970s.

On this episode of 70s Trek, we’ll discuss the man who designed V’Ger. Syd Mead was brought in to do one job: That was designing something strange and unusual for the alien craft seen in Star Trek The Motion Picture. What he created was actually the second V’Ger model.  The first was made by Abel and Associates. It didn’t turn out so well...just like so much that was connected with this film.  The model was only four-feet long and looked like a submarine. After Abel and Associates were fired, the new visual effects supervisor, Douglass Trumbull, hired Syd Mead to do a new design.  The resulting model was 68-feet long!  Big enough to show on screen how large and imposing V'Ger was meant to be. His creation looks like it has organic origins, like it was grown, rather than built. Unfortunately, we never get to clearly see the whole model in the theatrical version of the film, only sections up close.    

This week we are wrapping up Gene Roddenberry’s novelization of Star Trek The Motion Picture. This was Gene’s only book and was based on an early script by Harold Livingston.  Of course, the script was based on a story by Alan Dean Foster, the author of the Log books during the 70s.   In this episode, Bob Turner and Kelly Casto will look at chapters 14 through 28 and give their thoughts on the book. Listen to 70s Trek Episode 115 for part 1 on this novel.

It’s the first Star Trek novel published by Pocket Books, and the only book Gene Roddenberry ever wrote. The novelization of Star Trek The Motion Picture was based on an earlier version of Harold Livingston’s script.   Because of that, there are some distinct differences between the movie and the book. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto tell you what they are on this episode of 70s Trek. When it was released in the fall of 1979, the novel for Star Trek The Motion Picture immediately landed on the Bestseller’s list, selling nearly one million copies. The novel is important because it establishes Kirk’s middle name as Tiberius.  It also states that Will Decker’s father was Commodore Matt Decker. That character appeared in The Original Series episode, The Doomsday Machine. Neither of these things was ever mentioned on TV or in films. The book also gave a name to the type of Klingon Battle Cruiser we see in the film. It is known as the K't'inga Class. Of course, of all the novels written over the decades, this is the only one that can be considered canon. After all, it was written by The Great Bird of the Galaxy himself.  

When Star Trek The Motion Picture hit theaters, fans saw two new additions to the cast. During The Original Series, we got to meet guest characters that helped to tell that week’s story. But they were never members of the crew. But when we meet Decker and Ilia, they are the first, new, significant crew members to join the ship since Ensign Chekov in the 2nd season. While we only see these characters in this movie, they do have meaningful roles in the film. That could be due to the fact that the script for The Motion Picture was originally to be the pilot film for the aborted TV show, Star Trek Phase II.  That story was called In thy Image. Had Phase II gotten the green light and moved into production, Decker and Ilia played by Collins and Khambata would have been ongoing, major characters.   This week we’ll tell you about actors Stephen Collins and Persis Khambata.

As the promotion for Star Trek The Motion Picture geared up, Paramount made sure there was plenty of merchandise released to promote the film in December 1979. One of those items was a comic adaptation of the film.  Gold Key Comics had been publishing its Star Trek series since 1967.  With a new Star Trek movie about to be released, Paramount decided it was time to end Gold Keys involvement. The last Gold Key issue to be published was issue 61, marked March 1979, just months before the premiere of The Motion Picture. Paramount wanted a fresh new take in the comics, and one that reflected Star Trek’s new direction.  So they decided to go with Marvel, the home of Spider-Man, The Hulk and the Fantastic Four. This week we’ll tell you about Marvel's involvement with Star Trek, starting with the adaptation of The Motion Picture.

This is a replay of episode 14. It’s the story of a United Planets cruiser following up on a lost colony expedition to a far away world.  There the young captain is faced with a mystery.  The leader of the lost expedition very much wants to be left alone. Does this plot sound familiar? Fans of Star Trek might think we're talking about the plot of "Man Trap," "Requiem for Methuselah" or even "This Side of Paradise."  But it's none of those. It is actually the plot to the 1956 film Forbidden Planet.  This was one of Gene Roddenberry's favorite films and is a big influence on the creation of Star Trek. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at this classic film on this episode of 70s Trek.

He is an unsung hero from The Original Series. Associate producer Bob Justman was a key figure in keeping the production side of Star Trek functioning on time ...and on budget. He came to Star Trek in 1965 and started at the beginning, working on the first pilot, The Cage. Justman stayed until 1968, working on 14 of the 24 shows in the third season. Like Gene Coon, Bob Justman had a real impact on the show while he was there. He was a major player in getting Star Trek off the ground and functioning as a production. On this episode of 70s Trek, co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto tell you about Associate Producer Bob Justman. Show Notes          Robert "Bob" Harris Justman was born July 13, 1926 in Brooklyn          ⁃        As a boy he really liked Science Fiction          ⁃        His father Joseph Justman was in the produce business. He and his partners did very well.          ⁃        In 1944, Bob signed up for the draft. He didn’t get drafted so he went to the draft board and asked why he wasn’t drafted. They said he wasn’t needed. He told them he wanted to go so they sent him the PE building in LA for a physical. He failed due to his eye sight. He protested so they sent him to Ft MacArthur to get a real physical and made it.          ⁃        While Bob was in the Navy during WW II his father, Joseph, founded the Motion Picture Center studio          ⁃        He rented it to Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz and in 1950 they bought. The studio became part of Desilu Studios.          ⁃        When Bob returned from the navy he worked at the produce firm. He didn’t get paid very well so when his dad asked him to come to LA to work in the motion picture business he decided to leave the produce firm and go to LA.          ⁃        He hung around the studio for a time until his money ran out. He then went to one of the producers and asked for a job. This landed him his first job working on the film “Three Husbands” as a production assistant Justman had quite a career in film and TV as a Production Assistant and Assistant director prior to TOS          ⁃        Production assistant on such films as          ⁃        1951's          ⁃        The Scarf (featuring Celia Lovsky),          ⁃        New Mexico (featuring Jeff Corey and John Hoyt)          ⁃        M (featuring Norman Lloyd and William Schallert)          ⁃        He Ran All the Way (also with Norman Lloyd),          ⁃        1952's          ⁃        Japanese War Bride (with George D. Wallace),          ⁃        Red Planet Mars          ⁃        Abbott and Costello Meet Captain Kidd (with Leonard Mudie)          ⁃        1953's          ⁃        The Moon Is Blue - made in 2 version an english version and a german version          ⁃        The Moonlighter.          ⁃        Assistant Director and producer          ⁃        To be an assistant director you had to be in the Director’s Guild. At the time, to get in the Guild you had to be either the son of a member or be nominated by a studio which was only allowed one nomination a year. He didn’t have either but he requested to be accepted anyway. After waiting an agonizing 30 minutes for an answer the president of the Assistant Directors Counsel, Bob Aldrich, went to him, shook his hand and said, “Welcome brother”          ⁃        everyone starts as a 2nd assistant director. It only took Justman about a year to become 1st assistant director which was unheard of          ⁃        After Superman Justman was approached to be 1st assistant director on a series of 3 films called “The Americans” which never saw the light of day          ⁃        As an assistant director, Justman worked with director Bob Aldrich on several projects.          ⁃        They first worked together on the 1952-53 NBC series The Doctor, - This was his first AD job          ⁃        after which they collaborated on such films as Kiss Me Deadly (1955) and          ⁃        Attack (1956, featuring William Smithers).          ⁃        Justman's other films where he was assistant director included;          ⁃        The Big Combo (1955, featuring John Hoyt and Whit Bissell),          ⁃        Blood Alley (1955, starring Paul Fix),          ⁃        While the City Sleeps (1956, with Celia Lovsky)          ⁃        Director - Fritz Lang          ⁃        Noticed Justman looking at his set plans and Lang spent time to explain the plans to him even though Justman was the 2nd AD          ⁃        This was technics that Justman used in the future          ⁃        Lang had issues with John Drew Barrymore          ⁃        Barrymore looked to his wife for direction instead of Lang which did not make him very happy          ⁃        Green Mansions (1959, starring Nehemiah Persoff), and          ⁃        1962's Mutiny on the Bounty (featuring Antoinette Bower, Torin Thatcher and stunts by Paul Baxley).          ⁃        Justman was also an assistant director on television shows such as          ⁃        The Adventures of Superman (1953-58, 78 ep)          ⁃        associate producer for all 78 episodes and          ⁃        assistant director on the classic series during its 1954-55 season.          ⁃        Justman says that George Reeves was a trooper given what he was put thru          ⁃        One time the wire broke and he dropped down to the cement          ⁃        Justman learned early to schedule certain shots very carefully. As an example he tells a story about how Reeves would drink his lunch so when he would do the spring-board jump out the window he sort of missed and hit his knees on the window sill          ⁃        The Thin Man (1958-59, 31 ep)          ⁃        Northwest Passage (1958-59, 13 ep)          ⁃        Philip Marlowe (1959-60, 26 ep)          ⁃        Alcoa Presents One Step Beyond (1959-1961)          ⁃        Produced at the same time as the more well-known The Twilight Zone (1959)          ⁃        Some stars included Cloris Leachman, Warren Beatty, Jack Lord, Christopher Lee, Elizabeth Montgomery, Donald Pleasence, and William Shatner,          ⁃        Dr. Kildare (1961-66, 6 ep)          ⁃        Was asked by the President of MGM TV if Justman new any composers. Justman had heard some of Jerry Goldsmith’s scores and recommended him. As we talked about in Episode XXX This was one of Goldsmith’s breakout opportunities.          ⁃        Justman and Goldsmith have never met          ⁃        The Outer Limits (1963-65, 20 ep)          ⁃        He served as the assistant director for all 20 episodes and a Production Manager in 1964          ⁃        Appeared in the 1964 episode "A Feasibility Study" (directed by Byron Haskin, written by Joseph Stefano, and starring David Opatoshu)          ⁃        Worked with Shatner on “Cold Hands, Warm Heart” (1964)          ⁃        Sally Kellerman, James Dohan          ⁃        Lassie (1965-66, 4 ep)          ⁃        My Friend Flicka (1956-57)          ⁃        While the City SleepsFritz Lang          ⁃        In Oct 1964 Justman met GR at Desilu to talk to him about Associate Producer role for the first TOS pilot “The Cage”. Justman recommended Byron Haskin saying that he (Justman) did not have enough post production experience          ⁃        first to call Gene Roddenberry "The Great Bird of the Galaxy," drawn from a throwaway line from the original series episode "The Man Trap" That takes us to October 1964. Gene Roddenberry was in pre-production for Star Trek’s first pilot, The Cage and he needed an associate producer. An Associate Producer’s job is to do the dirty work on a show. This person makes sure both the production and post-production phases are running smoothly for every episode. They are also responsible for making sure each episode doesn’t run over budget. So with a show as complicated as Star Trek was going to be, Gene needed an experienced hand. He asked James Goldstone who had worked with Gene on The Lieutenant if he had any suggestions. He recommended Bob Justman. Justman met with Gene for about 30 minutes and Gene offered him the job. While Justman really wanted it, he turned down Roddenberry’s offer. He felt Star Trek’s post-production needs would be great, and he was afraid he didn’t have the experience to get the job done. But they also needed an experienced assistant director. Justman was, at the time, working on The Outer Limits. But Desilu’s Executive in Charge of Production, Herb Solow, called and asked if Justman could work for Star Trek temporarily, just 6 weeks. And that was it. The deal was done and Justman came to Star Trek. Now the original position that Justman had interviewed for, associate producer, went to Byron Haskin. He was an experienced producer, but was hard to get along with. And as work started on The Cage, he and Roddenberry butted heads a lot. Rodenberry would want a certain effect on a shot, and Haskin would tell him it couldn’t be done. Period. He gave Gene no alternative ideas. Often times, Justman was in the middle of these disputes trying to nudge Haskin to come up with something Work on The Cage finished, and NBC rejected it. But invited Roddenberry to try again. When Star Trek was offered to do the second pilot, Gene asked Justman back. This time, though, he gave him the job of associate producer. Gene had had enough of Haskin. Because of the budget on the 2nd pilot, when post-production finished on it, so did Justman’s job. This was the summer of 1965. But Desilu had attracted a number of pilot projects that needed produced. So Solow decided to make Justman the associate producer on all of them. This way he could stay at Desilu and be close by if Star Trek was picked up. Some of the work he did included Desilu’s other big show, Mission Impossible. Star Trek was picked up by NBC in March 1966. And Justman’s first task was to move the starship sets from the soundstage where the 2nd pilot was shot, to a new soundstage that would be its home for the series. This was actually a monumental task. Each section had to be removed, crated and put back into place on the new soundstage in exactly the same configuration. The move resulted in some of the sets being redesigned, and reworked for the series. One of those sets was the bridge that got a big make over. As the show started production, it was Justman’s job to make sure all the little details were taken care of. Some of this work included analyzing scripts and establishing production budgets for them, Making sure production on one episode, production and post production on a 2nd were all moving forward simultaneously and on schedule. Any issues for any shows in any of these stages, were Justman’s to work out. Along with his day-to-day duties, Justman also acted in one episode of the series, though he is not creditied for it, He is the voice of a security guard in the episode Conscience of the King. He also found time to come up with a story idea. He came up with the basic story for the episode Tomorrow is Yesterday. In fact, he laid that story out in a memo to Gene on April 12, 1966. When he didn’t hear anything for 8 months, he sent a reminder to Gene about the idea. At that point, the show was hungry for scripts, so Roddenberry approved of the idea and assigned Dorothy Fontana to write the screenplay. But in his second memo, you cans ee a little of Justman’s wit. He wrote at the end, “Please let me hear from you at your earliest convenience, as otherwise I feel I shall be forced to sell this story idea to “Time Tunnel.” ” That’s just one example of Justman’s wit, and it is pretty legendary. He would often let his sarcastic sense of humor and dry wit fly in memos. An example of his humor can actually be seen in the closing credits of the show. For Herb Solow’s credit, Justman intentionally chose a picture of the Balok dummy from the Corbmite Maneuver and positioned Solow’s credit just under the glaring eyes of Balok. Justman later wrote in the Book Inside Star Trek, “I thought it a fitting tribute, as did Herb, who thanked me profusely, thereby depriving me of some heavy-duty gloating. I still have the original credit and display it in my office at home, suitably framed in the cheapest, junkiest frame I could find.” And there’s another incident that speaks to Justman’s humor. The show was shooting a script that was still being written by Roddenberry. The last shot was about to be completed, and if they didn’t get the new pages for the next scene, they would be forced to shut down production. That costs money! So Justman went to Gene’s office. Roddenberry kept writing away, and didn’t acknowledge Justman. Justman waited a few minutes and finally asked, him, “How much longer Gene?” Roddenberry ignored him and kept writing. Justman waited some more. At one point Gene looked up, thinking about something, ignored Justman, and went back to work. Justman later wrote, “He shouldn’t have done that. I climbed up onto his desk and stood there, looking down at him. ‘That’ll teach him to ignore me, I thought.” After a few minutes more, Gene finally ripped the pages free of the typewriter, finished scribbling on them, and without looking at Justman, reached up and handed them to him. Without saying anything, Justman jumped down and went to the set. This became a standard routine through the 1st and 2nd seasons of the show. Whenever Gene was still writing, Justman would jump up on his desk and wait for the pages. But there’s a little addendum to this story. There came a time when Justman tried to get in Gene’s office and the door was locked. He realized that there was an electronic latch on the door that, when Justman entered the outer office, Gene’s secretary would activate. Not to be out done, Justman waited until the secretary left on an errand. Found the switch and unlocked Gene’s door. Then without saying a word, he entered Roddenberry’s office, walked past Gene who was busy writing, and exited through another door at the other end of the office. Justman wrote, “We never discussed it, not even in later years. It was our own private joke and it helped cement an already close friendship.” The 2nd year of Star Trek was by far its best. It’s when all the right people were active in the right positions. Speaking of positions, Justman told Roddenberry at this time that he wanted to move up to a full producer’s position for Star Trek’s third season, and Gene agreed it was probably time. With the letter writing campaign at the end of the 2nd year, Star Trek’s third season was guaranteed. But it wasn’t going to go the way anyone thought it would. NBC first told Roddenberry that Star Trek would be on at 7:30 on Monday. Then it changed the position to Friday at 8:30. But, it finally settled on Fridays at 10pm, a time when Star Trek’s core audience would not be home watching TV. It was this move by NBC that prompted Roddenberry to move out of his producer role and become the Executive Producer of the show. That position is further up the chain of command, and has nothing to do with the day-to-day operations. Roddenberry had, in effect, quit Star Trek. As pre-production for the third season began, the show had no story editor. So Justman jumped in and started reading and analyzing stories and scripts. Then he would forward his thoughts to Gene. Roddenberry never responded and seldom read Justman’s reports. To make matters worse, there was no one to rewrite scripts. Justman urged Roddenberry to hire someone. Gene finally got back to him and said, “Good news Bob, Star Trek’s going to have a new producer this year.” Justman thought gene was about to say, “It’s you.” Instead, Roddenberry said, “Fred Freiberger’s coming in as our new producer…” Hustman was stunned. “Gene, I thought I would be producer.” “You will,” said Roddenberry. “You’ll be a co-producer.” The new studio, Paramount, and NBC wanted an experienced hand at the help of such a complicated show. Justman was viewed as a nuts and bolts guy, and Roddenberry didn’t fight for him. Justman’s attitude toward Star Trek never recovered. In fact the morale of the entire cast and crew began to sink. Star Trek was not a fun place to work anymore. Gene was now gone. Frieberger had to labor to understand the show. And the bulk of the daily chores fell on Justman. He later wrote, “I was alone, struggling against insuperable odds.” Without Roddenberry, the writing process was no longer about good stories. It was now just budget-driven. Justman wrote, “There were no highs and no lows---just a boring in-between…The Star Trek I knew, and was proud to be a part of, was no more.” He expressed his concerns to paramount’s head of TV, Doug Cramer. Cramer asked Justman to stay and promised him his pick of future pilots to work on if he did. Justman said he’s love to do a pilot for Cramer, but he wanted out of his contract. Paramount came back and offered more money, but that wasn’t what Justman wanted. Justman was burned out. That’s when Herb Solow called. He was now the head of MGM Television and he offered Justman a full producers job on the pilot for “Then Came Bronson.” He quit Paramount the next day and, according his own words, became persona non grata at Paramount for the next 18 years. After Star Trek, Justman went on to work on shows like Search and Man from Atlantis. In 1987, he rejoined Gene Roddenberry and others from The Original Series on Star Trek The Next Generation. He served as Supervising Producer for 17 episodes in the first season. In 1996, he and Herb Solow published their book, Inside Star Trek: The Real Story. If you haven’t read this one, it is a very captivating look at what was going on behind the scenes at Star Trek. Bob Justman died of Parkinson’s Disease in 2008.

When it comes to special effects professionals from the 1970s, two names came to mind: Douglas Trumbull and John Dykstra. When Doug Trumbull was brought in to do the effects on Star Trek The Motion Picture, he was given carte blanche to get them produced on time. To do this, he recruited a team of some of the best visual effects people in the world. That included his friend, John Dykstra. He served as the supervisor of visual effects on projects like the original Battlestar Galactica and Star Wars. In 1979 he jumped in to help create over 500 visual effects for The Motion Picture. But the workload ahead of them was considerable: They needed to create more special effects than those in Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind...combined!   Of course for Dykstra to work on The Motion Picture, he had to have a pretty significant background. Silent Running Back in 1971, Trumbull was recruiting recent college grads to work with him on the film Silent Running.  This was to save money due to the film’s low budget.  Dykstra’s job was to film the movie's models. In 1975, George Lucas tried to get Doug Trumbull to work on his new film, Star Wars. ButTrumbull was already working on Close Encounters of the Third Kind. So he recommended Dykstra. While working on that film, Dykstra developed a new computer controlled camera system for the visual effects, the first of its kind, ever! However, Lucas saw Dykstra's development work as tinkering, and not focusing on the shots he needed produced for his movie. When Lucas finished principle photography, he dismissed Dykstra. Battlestar Galactica From there, Dykstra was hired to do the visual effects for the three-hour premiere for Battlestar Galactica.  While the effects are impressive and ground-breaking, 20th Century Fox filed suit against Universal, claiming that Battlestar was plagiarized from Star Wars.  They argued that the TV show had similar design style and visual effects. The suit was eventually settled out of court.

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 12. After Star Trek's cancellation, the show's creator, Gene Roddenberry, faced limited prospects.  The opinion of many industry execs was that Star Trek was a failed and dead property and Roddenberry's reputation suffered because of it. But he did work.  He wrote a movie script and tried to sell several TV show concepts. But always under the surface in the early 70s was Star Trek, now on TVs around the country in syndication.  It bubbled in our collective consciousness, always there.  By the middle of the decade, it was clear that the show had a huge audience and Paramount was ready to try again. Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at Gene Roddenberry's activities in the early years of the 1970s, and the events that led to him returning to write a Star Trek movie in 1975.

Principal photography wrapped on Star Trek The Motion Picture on January 26, 1979. Most of the cast and crew headed off to other work. But director Robert Wise and those working on the film’s post production stayed on the job.  They had less than 11 months to get the film ready. The Final Shot The last scene shot for the film was the one that saw Decker and the Ilia-probe merge. The lighting for this shot was so bright that actors Stephen Collins and Persis Khambatta both complained about vision problems the following day. Of course, their vision did eventually clear. When that shot was complete, everyone went home and director Robert Wise went on a short vacation. When he returned, it was time to start editing. They had a lot to do in a short period of time because of delays.   Visuals Were Behind the Eight Ball Production on the film had run over schedule. On top of that, the visual effects were essentially non-existent.  Abel and Associates, the company contracted to create the film's visual effects, had accomplished very little by the end of January 1979. That firm was fired and Douglas Trumbull was brought in.  He had 500 special effects shots to create and only six months to do them. We cover Trumbull and the visual effects in Episode 102 of 70s Trek. Music Another area that needed completed was the musical score. Composer Jerry Goldsmith had been hired to create the soundtrack. It proved so complicated, though, that Goldsmith was still recording music on December 1, just five days before the premiere. Editing Of course, the film needed to be edited. Todd Ramsay had been piecing together shots since production started in August 1978. But as the production on the visual effects and the musical score dragged on, it pushed the editing of the film back further.  By the fall of '79, it became obvious that there would not be enough time for a preview of the movie. So as the final elements were added the film had to be copied for the over 3,000 theaters that were to show it around the country. Shipping Rows upon rows of film canisters sat on the floor of a MGM sound stage waiting for the final reel to come out of the developer so they could all be shipped. The Motion Picture did arrive in theaters on time, but director Bob Wise didn't think of this version as a final cut. He felt that things had been rushed so much that the film that went out was really just a rough cut.

The premiere of Star Trek The Motion Picture was set for December 7, 1979. As that date grew closer in the fall of '79, there was a flood of products released into stores, all designed to help promote the film. On this episode of 70s Trek, co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto discuss some of the products that tied into the film. The merchandise that was released took many forms. There were books, comics, models, games, toys and more that all tied into the movie. Some were unique such as the gold, 14-inch Mr. Spock Grenadier decanter. Or first-time products such as the McDonald's Star Trek Meal, the first-ever tie-in promotion for a Happy Meal. Some were curious, too. Such as Paramount's decision to release The Motion Picture for the home viewing market on Super 8 film. This choice came as Betamx and VHS tapes were growing in use and the home film market was dying. Interestingly, the move by Paramount makes Star Trek The Motion Picture the only film or program in the franchise to be released on Super 8.      

This is a re-broadcast of Episode 11. If you grew up in the 70s, and were a Trek fan, you probably came across the Star Trek series of books by James Blish.  Co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto take a look at these books in this episode of 70s Trek. James Blish started writing the episode adaptations for Bantam Books in 1967. He is credited for writing 11 books through 1975. That's when he died from cancer. His wife Judith Lawrence finished Star Trek 12 in 1977. Blish also wrote the first Star Trek novel for adults in 1970, Spock Must Die.  It was a sequel to the episode Errand of Mercy. But more importantly, it marked the beginning of publishing original Star Trek novels that continues today. The Blish books proved that there was an audience for written Star Trek material, and it was large! From 1967 through 1975, the Blish adaptations sold over 4 million copies, which was unheard of for the science fiction genre.

With his work on Star Trek The Motion Picture, he created the musical template for the franchise for the next 26 years. Composer Jerry Goldsmith re-imagined what Star Trek music could be in 1979.  He created a score unlike anything that had come before. This week, co-hosts Bob Turner and Kelly Casto talk about this award-winning composer who made a lasting impact on the franchise. It’s safe to say that the legacy of Jerry Goldsmith is that he set the standard, and in deed the template, for what Star Trek music would be for the following 26 years. Even if he didn’t work on it, every movie and TV show that followed through 2005 all had his influence. They were all the same musically. And it’s all because of the work Jerry Goldsmith did for The Motion Picture.

When it was revealed at the end of Star Trek The Motion Picture that a Voyager probe was actually the mysterious V’Ger, moviegoers experienced instant recognition. Voyager 1 and 2 had launched just two years before and in 1979, both probes were in the news again as they approached Jupiter. So audiences easily recognized the name and the shape of the Voyager probe in the movie.  Talk about being timely! The star Trek production team hit a home run with this surprise reveal. NASA Inspires Livingston and Roddenberry It’s brilliant what Harold Livingston and Gene Roddenberry did. By placing a Voyager probe at the center of the story for The Motion Picture, they tied their futuristic movie to real events that were happening in 1979. Voyager 1 was in the news in the fall of 1978 as it approached Jupiter. Clearly Livingston and Roddenberry heard the news, and decided to make it part of the story. And Voyager 1 and 2 remained in the news from January to August in 1979 as both probes passed by Jupiter. So audiences heard the name Voyager, and saw images of the probes for 8 months in 1979. So all of it was still fresh in their minds when they watched Star Trek The Motion Picture in December 1979. On this week's episode of 70s Trek, Bob turner and Kelly Casto tell you about the two Voyager space probes that inspired The Motion Picture.

In 1978, a movie hit theaters that showed just how far special effects had come. Superman The Movie Wowed audiences and set the bar really high when it came to special effects. The tagline in the marketing campaign for Superman The Movie was, “You’ll believe a man can fly.”  That tagline was something of a message to the creators of the new Star Trek movie. By December 1978, principle photography was wrapped and it had moved into post-production. But you could say that with Superman’s impressive special effects and story, Star Trek needed to ensure that audiences, “would believe space travel is real.” And pressure was already mounting internally on the production as it ran over schedule and budget. Visual effects were going poorly, as well, as the company in charge of producing them fired not long after. Then, there was Superman The Movie, a huge blockbuster hit in the same genre. That had to add the pressure to the production team.  But Superman did something else for The Motion Picture. It got audiences ready. It’s safe to say that the two franchises probably share fans. So Superman just got that fan base jazzed up and excited.  After the dust settled from Superman and we were well into 1979, fans most likely began looking to December for the premiere of Star Trek The Motion Picture.

In 1979, visual effects supervisor Doug Trumbull walked into an impossible situation on The Motion Picture and completely turned it around. Douglas Trumbull It’s fair to say that when you think about visual effects from the 1970s, two names come to mind: John Dykstra and Doug Trumbull.  During the 1960s and 70s, Trumbull developed an impressive resume. When he finally came to Star Trek in 1979, he had worked on four of the biggest sci-fi movies in the previous 11 years. And it was that experience that helped him do the impossible on The Motion Picture.  Trumbull came to Star Trek late, and as a result had very little time to execute on a huge amount of work. The company that had previously been hired to produce the effects, Abel & Associates, had produced practically nothing that could be used. Trumbull joined the production after Abel had been fired. He only had 6 months left until the premiere date and had 525 special effects shots to produce.  This was a near impossible task. Added to this situation was the impending class action law suit that theater owners threatened to bring if The Motion Picture did not arrive by December 7, 1979, its opening date. So Trumbull needed to produce the needed shots or there would be, literally, hell to pay.  The pressure was immense. In this episode of 70s Trek, we’ll tell you about Doug Trumbull, who could easily be called, “The Man Who Saved Star Trek The Motion Picture.”