Dayton's Blog: A pimple on the ass of the Internet.

The other day, I was reading a thread on the TrekBBS where the original poster asked about best/favorite Star Trek book covers.

( Cover musings behind the cut. )

Way back in 1977, Doug Drexler published the Star Trek Giant Poster Books, a series of magazines which unfolded to reveal a big-assed poster featuring an image from the original Star Trek series. During the Great Trek Drought of the 70s, stuff like these magazines were manna from heaven. The series ran for 25 issues before riding off into the sunset of Trek lore, of which Doug oversaw the first 12.

My favorite of the run is Issue #10, which featured a look at the state of the original Enterprise and Klingon cruiser filming models after their internment at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum. Doug has reprinted the pages from the magazine in a recent entry on his blog, and included with it the original photos which accompanied the article. Two words to describe this blog piece? Suh weet.

DrexFiles: The Smithsonian Report - Poster Book Flashback - 1977

This kind of stuff is crack to old-school Trekkies like myself. Go forth, read, and dig it. Personally, I can't get enough info and images detailing the behind-the-scenes aspects of the original Star Trek series. I particularly love finding new info on the filming model, or rediscovering articles and photos I'd all but forgotten. If I could dry this out and smoke it, I would.

Related entries:
A ship called Enterprise: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 1
The little shuttlecraft that could: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 2
How it all began: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 3
The Real Story: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 4
Sketchin' it: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 5
Waxing Nostalgic: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 6
The History of the Future: Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 7

Oh, and:

Wax that baby, while you're at it.

I was digging around in the Vault the other day, looking for some other materials which I planned to look through in preparation for a forthcoming writing project, and I came across this prized tome sitting on the shelf:



Published as a tie-in to the then recently-released Star Trek: The Motion Picture, this book was one of several produced by Pocket Books (and its now-defunct imprint, Wallaby Books) tying into the new movie. For my money, this was the coolest of the tie-ins they did for that flick (the refit Enterprise blueprints are decent enough, but they don't hold a candle to Franz Joseph's set for the original Enterprise even farther back in the day). Years before the concepts of timelines and "canon" would drive fanboys to the depths of rabid obsession, this nifty book laid out a comprehensive history of human space travel, from the earliest orbital pop shots to the brand-spankin' new U.S.S. Enterprise (movie edition).

Filled with log entries, excerpts from news sources, mission reports, personal anecdotes, and whatever else the authors, Stan and Fred Goldstein, could conjure, the book made for a fascinating version of Trek "future history" long before Gene Roddenberry decided to (essentially) start from scratch when he began developing Star Trek: The Next Generation. What really makes the book sing is the artwork by Rick Sternbach, who of course has had a long and distinguished association with Star Trek over the ensuing decades. Mr. Sternbach provided all of the book's illustrations, including "technical schematic" versions of every ship covered in the book as well as fully-painted beauty shots of many vessels, including both versions of the original NCC-1701 (No bloody A, B, C, D, E, or Abramsverse, yo.).

An abridged version of the book was released in the UK by Phoebus Books, including just excerpts from the timeline and the "fact sheets" for the more prominent vessels. Not sure what the backstory on this version is; I stumbled across a copy at a con one year.



Despite being mostly incompatible with "history" as TNG and the later spin-offs defined it in the Trek universe, the Spaceflight Chronology remains a favorite "old-school" Trek reference work for me.

Previously:
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 1
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 2
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 3
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 4
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 5
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 6

Oh, and:

Wax that baby, while you're at it.

Courtesy of the one and only Doug Drexler comes this link to a blog maintained by the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, and a couple of features detailing the museum's first restoration of the U.S.S. Enterprise filming model from the original Star Trek series.

Blog.NASM.edu: Restoration of the Starship Enterprise
Blog.NASM.edu: X-Ray Analysis of the Starship Enterprise

The model was donated to the museum in March of 1974, and was in pretty poor shape. By July of that same year, however, the old girl had been returned to something approaching her former glory. It underwent a second minor restoration in August of 1984, the result of which was what I saw when I first laid eyes upon it in January of 1986 and took these pics:



(Click to enlarge.)


There was another, more extensive restoration performed in 1991, soon after which the model was part of a long-running NASM Star Trek exhibit commemorating the original series. The model went into seclusion for a little while after that, but since the early 2000s has been on display in the museum gift shop's lower level.

The blog entry features several photos from different points during the restoration. It's neat stuff for old-school Trekkies (like me!) who love reading about behind-the-scenes aspects of the original series. There's also an information page about the model's history and its current display.

Many thanks to Doug for providing the heads-up!


Related info:
Blog.SmithsonianMag.com: How Big is the Starship Enterprise?

During the weekend prior to my reporting for duty at the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps base in California in February 1986, I did some sightseeing in and around Los Angeles, Hollywood, etc. One of the places I stopped was at the Movieland Wax Museum, which was located in Buena Park.

Among the various wax likenesses of television and movie stars, music celebrities, political figures, and so on, was a certain merry band of misfits. I found these pics - again taken with my crappy little 110 camera - while digging around in some of our old photo albums:




(Click pic to enlarge)


The museum closed up shop about four years ago, and a lot of the wax figures were sold at auction. I did some Googlin', and discovered that the "Trek Seven" went for $34,000. No idea what happened to the bridge set; if it didn't go to the person who bought the figures, then maybe it'll turn up in a fan film or something one of these days ;)


Previously:
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 1
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 2
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 3
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 4
Feelin' Nostalgic, Part 5

Well, the new Star Trek flick is upon us, and though I had a fun time with it, I'm still enjoying my trip through the Wayback Machine by revisiting another book that takes a look behind the scenes of the original series: The Star Trek Sketchbook, by Herbert F. Solow and Yvonne Fern Solow.



This snappy tome offers readers an inside look at the work of four talented artists who were essential to realizing the original series' distinctive and evocative visual style: art director Matt Jefferies, costume designer William Ware Theiss, makeup artist Freddie Phillips, and prop designer Wah Chang. A section of the book is devoted to each of these talented individuals, giving them some small measure of recognition for the work they created and echoes of which remain even in the newest Star Trek movie.

From the creation of the original uniforms, phasers, and communicators to the genesis of the Gorn and Spock's ears to the design of the original U.S.S. Enterprise itself, each section of the book is fascinating reading. My favorite section is that devoted to Jefferies, and I've spent hours poring over the pages of sketches taken from his private collection for use in the book. Despite my being familiar with most of the information before I read the book, the chapters devoted to the design of the Enterprise and its interiors are noteworthy.

Special mention must be made of the in-depth look at the scale model of the sets, built by Jefferies at nights and on weekends, and representing the Enterprise interior sets as they would appear if all of them were standing at the same time. Doing so was a practical impossibility on the actual Desilu Stage 9, given the size of the soundstage and the need to strike portions of sets in order to accommodate filming equipment and so on. The scale model provided episode directors with a three-dimensional representation of the sets, allowing them to plan their shots without having to walk the actual sets, which of course were in use or struck as the shooting schedule of a given episode demanded. So taken was I with this model that when I later built my own AMT Enterprise bridge set model from the boxed kit, I mounted it in a wooden frame which allowed me to hang it on the wall, just like Jefferies did with his creation all those years ago while working on the show.

Yes, I'm a nerd. Have we met?

Anyway, fans of the original Star Trek looking to transport back in time to the days of the series' production should seek out this book. It belongs on any old-school fan's shelf.

Up next? I'm torn. I thought I'd go with Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever: The Original Teleplay That Became the Classic Star Trek Episode, but I said that last time, and the Star Trek Maps are calling to me....

As we march toward the premiere of the new Star Trek film and hot on the heels of my re-reading of The Making of Star Trek, I continue my sojourn down Memory Lane by revisiting another book that delves deep into the history of the original series: Inside Star Trek: The Real Story, by Herbert F. Solow and Robert H. Justman.



Released in 1996 as part of the celebration of the original Star Trek's 30th anniversary, this weighty tome offers us firsthand looks into the development and production of the show, from the perspectives of two men who were there from The Beginning. Along with Roddenberry, Solow and Justman (and Gene Coon, who doesn't always get the credit owed him, and deserves his own comprehensive biography, dagnabbit) more than any other people can be credited with so much of what many consider the series' -- and indeed, the entire franchise's -- bedrock principles.

In addition to the authors' recollections, the book is stuffed with excerpts from memos and letters thrown back and forth throughout the show's troubled life, as well as many rare photos, sketches from art director Matt Jefferies, and examples of other illustrations and art used to market the series. While not without a few flaws here and there, it's a treasure trove for fans of the show that started the whole Trek train a'rollin'. The audiobook version is also fun to hear, as it's read by Solow and Justman, with their casual, conversational approach to the reading almost making up for a truly savage abridgment.

This reminiscing brought to you for no particular reason, other than it's a quiet Friday evening and I'm relaxing after a long week at the office.

Next up: Harlan Ellison's The City on the Edge of Forever: The Original Teleplay That Became the Classic Star Trek Episode.

With all the talk about the new movie burning up various corners of the internet, I've been going through my collection of Star Trek crap stuff. Digging around in one box unearthed one of the (at least) three copies I possess of this rather worn tome:



I couldn't resist adding it to the stack of books already weighing down my nightstand, and I've been re-reading it in fits and starts when I get a few minutes here and there.
If you're a Star Trek fan and you've never read this book, surrender your NerdCard and your pointed ears, and consider yourself dismissed.

First published in 1968, and only covering up to the point that the original series is to be renewed for a third season, The Making of Star Trek by Stephen E. Poe (writing as Stephen E. Whitfield) remains one of the genuine benchmarks of "behind the scenes" books for film or TV. Written while the show was in active production, it contains all manner of memos, anecdotes, and assorted trivia direct from the mouths and typewriters of cast and crew. It's a time machine, whisking the reader to the Desilu studios and into the realm of the men and women who labored to create what at the time was widely believed to be little more than an expensive failure by anyone not actually involved in the production. Despite this, the pride and conviction of the people involved comes through on every page of this truly fascinating book.

Inside Star Trek: The Real Story by Herb Solow and Bob Justman is also a pretty good look inside the development and production of the series. Its lack of a "You are there, as it happens!" vibe is ably compensated by the recollections of the authors, who along with Gene Roddenberry were there from Day One. For those interested in similar insight to other Star Trek series, Terry Erdmann's Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Companion is an outstanding choice, and Poe's own A Vision of the Future - Star Trek: Voyager is also pretty decent, but the original Making of Star Trek remains a timeless classic.

Yes, it's a quiet evening as I wind down from a long day at work, without much on TV.

Inspired once again by reading Doug Drexler's blog, I went digging and found this photo:


(Click to enlarge)

This was the restored "prop" of the Shuttlecraft Galileo from the original Star Trek series. It was restored in the early-mid 1980s by a person or party whose name I can't remember, and displayed at the Creation Star Trek 20th Anniversary Convention in L.A. in 1986. The area around the shuttlecraft was cordoned off, and even though I stepped back as far as I could, I still couldn't get the entire thing into a single shot with my crappy 110 camera. Therefore, I took two shots and tried to marry them up. Didn't quite work out.

EDIT: Friend David Mack (infinitydog) took my photo and "fixed" it with some of that PhotoShop-Fu. Now when you click on the pic, you get a cleaned-up version. Thanks, dude!

There are a couple of threads on Doug's blog about the Galileo, with folks trying to determine the shuttle's current situation/ultimate fate, which if you're an old-school Trek fan will break your heart:

Days of Future Past 2

The Search for the Galileo 7

Lots of really cool stuff on Doug's blog. It's making me want to go digging in The Vault and see what goodies I can unearth.

I've been having one hell of a fun time reading Doug Drexler's blog, in which he offers up pictures and anecdotes from his rather lengthy and storied association with Star Trek. Some of the stuff he's put up dealing with the original series has been fantastic.

Some of the recent discussions made me pull out an old photo album and retrieve a couple of pictures I took back in 1986. During my first-evah visit to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C., I was excited to discover the filming model of the Enterprise from the original series, hanging on proud display in one of the galleries. For those wondering, it was Gallery 113, at the extreme east end of the building on the first floor, near the Moon Lander exhibit and what is now the entrance to the food court.

Shot 1, looking up from the floor

Shot 2, taken from a stairway landing adjacent to the gallery

(This was prior to the major restoration work performed on the model. Note the crappy nacelle end caps and the replacement deflector dish which is not the same shape as the one used during filming of the series. All that was redone during the later restoration.)

I know I have other shots somewhere, as well as a whole bunch of newer pics from where the model now resides in the museum's lower level book/gift store. You know, like this one:



Anyway, I just sorta felt like sharing. Embrace the nerdity.