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

30 years old today!

The Human Adventure Is Just Beginning....

It doesn't seem all that long ago that I, as a wide-eyed 12-year old lad, ventured to the theater to see the all-new adventure featuring my favorite heroes from the reruns on my black-and-white television. Other than the odd comic and Bantam novel or Fotonovel, all that I had back in the days before the film to feed my Trek addiction were the adventures I created with my Mego action figures and the AMT models I built. But, here we were in 1979, carrying our overpriced movie snacks into the theater to see the buffed-up, tricked-out, super-duper refit U.S.S. Enterprise and her crew, getting set to go where they really hadn't gone before.

Despite its flaws (which are numerous, in spite of the attempts to "fix" it), it remains a special part of my childhood Trek fandom. Not "I'm willing to get in a fistfight like that kid in Free Enterprise" special, but you get the idea.

(Besides, it does contain what I still consider to be the finest Trek film score to date.)

And in honor of this momentous event, I offer you this "special edition" from a point somewhere in the insomnia-curing mass that is the middle of the film....


(WARNING: AUDIO NOT SAFE FOR WORK!!!)

Hidee-ho, neighbors!

I'm renewing my call to all Trekkies who have A) a camera, B) one or more tribbles, C) a bit of free time, and D) no shame, to snap a pic of a tribble in an odd/weird/crazy place.

See my original post on the topic here: Calling all Trekkies! Calling all Trekkies!

The wackier or more fun the situation, the better. For example, from @starfleetmom on Twitter: Who reads this crap?

I've got some other examples as already provided via e-Mail. For those who sent me links to where pics are stored, if you would be so kind as to provide such links again in the comments section for either entry I've made on this, it would go a long way toward refreshing my swiss-cheesed memory.

Thanks to everyone who's taken the time to help out so far!

Continuing the geekification of the next generation....

Addy, playing with the Star Trek dollhouse action playset my mother bought for me her.

Click to enlarge.

"Daddy, they even got Shatner's toupee right!"

For you Trekkies who are missing the late and lamented Star Trek: The Experience attraction, which stood proudly within the environs of the Las Vegas Hilton Hotel from January 1998 to September 2008, there's now something which just might fill the void, if only a bit.

Digital Properties, a firm specializing in "360-degree virtual tours" for a variety of uses from showing off houses for real estate websites to hotels and other commercial properties, has made available for public viewing a tour package they originally created for the attraction's management team as a "historical archive" as well as being a gift to the employees. The tour covers all areas of The Experience, including staff areas which only were available to the public if they took the "Behind the Scenes" tour. So far as I can tell, they don't go so far as to spoil the illusion of how certain aspects of the attractions were "brought to life," but it's still fun to drag your mouse around the different pictures and zoom in on this or that.

Check it out: Digital Properties: Star Trek: The Experience 360-Degree Virtual Tour

You can even get a look-see at Quark's Bar, which is mighty damned important, if you ask me....





Thanks very much to the staff at TrekToday.com, who brought this very cool bit of news to my attention.

So, I'm toolin' around the TrekBBS this evening, and I happen across a thread where folks are trying to turn Star Trek episode titles into something you'd hear as the title of a porn flick.

Say what you will....I thought of five or six examples just in the time it took you to read that first sentence.

Anyway, one of the posters in the thread reminds the others that the subject was covered rather well in a previous thread from some time ago. Then a link is provided to what at first seems like an innocuous dialogue, titled "How to have fun with Spock's Brain." Then, one superhuman poster, who goes by the name "payndz201" on TrekBBS (actually author Andy McDermott), took things to a whole new level. The result? A photonovel-esque journey through the classic Star Trek episode "Spock's Brain."



Yeah, you read it right. The rest of the pics pretty much take that ball -- so to speak -- and run with it. Don't say you weren't warned.

Tomorrow, officers and crew of the U.S.S. Las Vegas, a Star Trek fan club based in...you guessed it...Las Vegas, are teaming up with a local Barnes & Noble bookseller to promote the release of the new Star Trek film on DVD and Blu-Ray. There will be a "Star Trek" book fair from 11am to 4pm. As the event name suggests, Star Trek books as well as DVDs and other Trek-related merchandise will be there. In addition to the crew from the Las Vegas, former performers and other staff members from the late and lamented Star Trek: The Experience will also be on hand to join in on the fun.

Also participating will be members of Trekcast, the weekly Star Trek Podcast, and they'll be holding a live edition of their show from the store. The show will stream via Ustream, and Kevin and I have been invited to join in a live interview/Q&A session during the show. For those of you who might be interested in listening to the shenanigans and perhaps throwing a question our way, you can send the Trekcast gang messages via the Ustream setup. All the details can be found on the Trekcast site by clicking right here.

For those of you in Las Vegas who might want to check this out in person, the event is being held at the Barnes & Noble at 3860 Maryland Parkway.

Here's hoping we hear from folks!

A while back, Kevin and I were asked by our friend glennhauman to write an article about Star Trek comics for his comics/genre news site ComicMix.com. The piece was intended to offer fans of the new Star Trek film some examples of good "classic" Trek comics from the more than forty years' worth of stories in which Captain Kirk and the crew of the Enterprise have appeared.

Armed with that mandate, and the knowledge that the piece would run as one of the site's "ComicMix Six" features, Kevin and I descended into our respective vaults. Once there, we began sifting through the archives and other detritus, searching for six stories which we thought offered a balanced representation of "the good stuff" from Star Trek's long history in comics. Since we're incapable of following even the simplest of instructions without finding some way to dork things up, we ended up offering seven candidates.

The result is just in time for the DVD release of the new Star Trek film! ComicMix Six: Classic Star Trek Comics You Should Read.

It's worth noting that we don't offer up these titles as what we think are "the best." Instead, we wanted to provide a worthy candidate from each of the different publishers who have given us Trek comics over the years. Hopefully, our list serves as an entry point to a treasure trove of tales featuring Kirk and Company that many fans might not even know existed.

Many thanks to Glenn and ComicMix for having us over to play!

Despite a notable lack of progress on Paths of Disharmony, my still-in-development novel for the forthcoming Star Trek: The Typhon Pact mini-series, a bit of progress on other writing fronts has been made over the past couple of days.

First, I completed my revisions and review of the copyedited manuscript for Counterstrike: The Last World War, Book II and mailed those back to Madame Editor on Thursday. The only outstanding task on that front is drafting a new section for the front of the book, a sort of recap of major events from the first novel. I dorked with that yesterday, and I'll finish it either tonight or tomorrow before sending it on to the aforementioned Madame Editor sometime before the end of the weekend.

Next, Kevin and I gathered at Stately Ward Manor to tackle our next assignment: an article for ComicMix focusing on Star Trek comics. We completed a first draft today, and once we both have a chance to read it and make any necessary tweaks, we'll likely fire it off to our editor sometime tomorrow. No idea when it might make it up to the site, but as it's intended to tie into the new Star Trek film and its pending DVD/Blu-Ray release on Tuesday, we're hopeful it will be soon.

Okay. Now I can get back to Paths of Disharmony, right?

Oh, and I still have another short story to write before the end of the month.

Why did I enter NaNoWriMo again?

My contributor's copy arrived in today's mail. Sweet!



As the cover says, this here be the "Villians!" issue, featuring an in-depth rundown on the "Top 10" villians from onscreen Trek, as well as a look at seven bad guys from "Trek Literature." Thrown in an interview with writer/director Nicholas Meyer, an exclusive sneak peek into the forthcoming Star Trek: The Art of the Film book, and an extract from David Mack's Precipice, the fifth book in Pocket Books' Star Trek: Vanguard series, and you've got a mag chock full of TrekkieGoodness(tm).

Among the TrekLit Peanut Gallery making contributions to the issue:

Christopher L. Bennett
Greg Cox
Keith R.A. DeCandido (kradical)
David R. George III
Bob Greenberger
Bill Leisner (bill_leisner)
David Mack (infinitydog)
Andy Mangels
David McIntee (lonemagpie)
Marco Palmieri
Lance Parkin

Kevin and I also contributed a piece focusing on Nero, as well as a smaller bit highlighting Adrik Thorsen, the Bad Guy du jour for the seminal Star Trek novel Federation.

I've seen this on store shelves, so you should probably run out and buy two or three copies.

Just sayin'.

Earlier this week, Kevin and I, along with Mary Czerwinski (aka Televixen, co-host of the weekly DVDGeeks online TV/radio show/podcast), were guests on the SciFi Diner Podcast to talk a bit about Star Trek. The emphasis of the show was on the forthcoming DVD release of the new Trek flick, which you may have heard did some decent business at the box office this past summer. I'd already been a guest on the show once before, so I was totally jazzed that hosts Scott and Miles invited me back to the Diner for a second helping.

Mary's already had a chance to check out the DVD, so she dishes dirt on the various special features to be found on the different editions as well as the accompanying Blu-ray release. We also spend a good bit of time talking about the film itself, usually branching out of discussions about this or that pertaining to the DVD. We enjoyed ourselves, so hopefully it makes for interesting listening.

You can listen to the episode by clicking right here.

Speaking of DVDGeeks, their next show will be all about the Trek as they do their own coverage of the new DVD. Be on the lookout for guest, Trek expert and friend Larry Nemecek as well as a "very special guest star."

Be sure to check out both shows, whydontcha!

Admit it. You know you want a pair.

SubspaceCommunique.com: Jeff Staple-Designed Star Trek Kicks Available At Payless.



More pics available at the SubSpaceComms site.

I'm thinking the red ones might be pretty swank....

Over on his blog, Doug Drexler as has made with more of the sweet, sweet nerdy goodness, this time posting a series of photographs from the construction of the sets for the U.S.S. Defiant as seen in the Star Trek: Enterprise 2-part episode "In A Mirror, Darkly."

Of course, in the original Star Trek episode "The Tholian Web," the Defiant interiors were really just the standing Enterprise sets, so you know what that means, right?

REBUILD THE ORIGINAL SERIES HOTNESS, FANBOYS!

: Ahem. :

Anyway, check this out: DrexFiles: Reflections from the Mirror Universe

In addition to recreating corridors and and maintenance shafts as seen in this collection of photos, the crew also was able to go one step farther and show us parts of the ship never before seen, extrapolating from what was known to produce new sets that add a new dimension to what we've already seen all while evoking and remaining faithful to the classic Matt Jefferies design aesthetic.

Man, I love this stuff.

Check out the entry, and the rest of Doug's blog while you're at it. The site continues to be a treasure trove for old-school Trekkies like me.

I'm watching Spike TV's 2009 Scream Awards, which I'd recorded to the DVR and then promptly forgot about. So far, the new Star Trek is well represented, with Zoe Saldana and Chris Pine being nominated for "breakout performances" and JJ Abrams winning an award as Best Director.

The weird, yet oh-so neat part? The crowd is cheering whenever something Trek-related shows up. They're not going ga-ga at Twilight levels, mind you, but they're still giving Trek its props.

Star Trek is cool again.

Sweet. :)

I went and entered this year's National Novel Writing Month contest.

I'm just starting work on my next novel, Paths of Disharmony for next year's Star Trek: The Typhon Pact miniseries, anyway. I was supposed to start back on October 1st, but some other stuff came along which demanded my attention, and I ended up back-burnering the entire thing until November so I could clear the decks. That means the timeframe I was given to write the book isn't as big as it once was, and I was going to have to make up the lost time between now and February 2nd.

What better motivator to do exactly that, than to make myself accountable in such a public fashion? Since today is the first day I've actually sat down and started writing...you know...actual words toward the novel, it seemed like a damned fine idea. So....



I've had a good morning so far, good enough that I can with a clear conscience turn toward other writing matters. Once I'm done for the day, I'll post one of those word-count meter thingees...assuming I can figure out how to make one of them work.

Onward!

They're tough to clean, and cooking them properly is a bitch.



Just sayin'.

You, in the ears, and the funny shirt....

If you have a tribble (Yes, a fake one...but bonus points if you can conjure a live one), a camera, and a willingness to employ them in tandem, I want to hear from you!!!

I'm working on a Trek-related project. It's nothing major...more of a side-project to something larger. However, this bit will "require" pictures of tribbles in various locales. Riding the bus. Eating lunch at Hooters. Attending a football game. Trick or Treating. Whatever. I only need a few, but if I get enough decent responses, then maybe I can convince The Powers That Be to do something with the extra pics.

(Which brings me to this important point: To play, you have to be willing to have the picture "published" in some manner, either online or -- possibly -- in print.). Not such a big deal if it's just the hairball in the pic, but if you or someone you love or hate is also in the frame, then obviously we don't want to do anything with the photo which might go against your wishes.)

If you're interested, let me know by commenting here (All comments will be screened for now.). I'll have more info on just what I'm up to in the coming days. Don't worry; it's nothing weird.

Well, nothing weird for me, anyway.

For those already on the case, you can send any pics to me via e-Mail: daytonward AT kc DOT rr DOT com, and be sure to put "Tribble Pic" in the Subject line.

Thanks!

Okay, tell me something: Is there any context, any at all, in which you might think I (or anyone else, for that matter) would -- with actual serious intent -- insert something like the following passage into a Star Trek story?

-----

"What's your name, scumbag?"

"Sir! James T. Kirk, sir!"

"T? What's the T stand for? Thumbdick?"

"Sir! No, sir! Tiberius, sir!"

"Tiberius? Well, holy shit. We've got ourselves a fucking Roman emperor here. You know the Romans were only good for two things: orgies and the second finest military force the fucking civilized world has ever seen. You best learn how to fight, Tiberius, because you don't look like you could get laid in a fucking whorehouse with gold-pressed latinum strung around your pencil neck."

"Sir. Yes, sir!"

-----

Apparently, at least one person thinks so.

And people wonder why I laugh and shake my head when I read message boards.



(For those looking at the time stamp and wondering: Yes, I'm having another bout with insomnia.)

Yeah, I laughed. :)

I am an addict, and Doug Drexler is my dealer.

This bastard, with all his pictures and graphics and stories about Star Trek as told from the point of view of someone WHO WAS THERE, working on shows every day; how dare he post such tantalizing morsels of fanboy goodness on his website and just leave them there for me to drool over? It's killing me, I tell you! I am powerless to resist. No matter how many times I say aloud, "I won't go back. He can't keep posting good stuff like that forever. He has to have run out by now," I succumb to temptation over and over again. And each time I return? There's more stuff to ogle.

DAMMIT!

What's new there since my last visit? Among the juicy tidbits and insights from Trek's past he's offering now, are two entries of particular note:

The First, posted on October 11th, showcases pictures and reminiscing of Doug and other members of the production crew in 1996, working on the re-created sets for the original Enterprise, as seen in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Trials and Tribble-ations." It's not enough that these folks get to do something like this and get paid for it. Oh, no. They have to joke around and have all sorts of other fun while they're doing it.

Rub it in, why dontcha.

The Second, also posted on the 11th, revisits a graphic Doug created for the Star Trek: Enterprise two-part episode "In A Mirror, Darkly." Yeah, the one where they got to build the original series sets AGAIN, with even more detail and AwesomeSauce thrown in this time around. The graphic is a "cutaway" technical schematic of a Constitution-class starship. Here's a taste, but you need to go to the site and see the full-sized version to really get your nerd on in first-rate fashion:


(Not responsible for any inadvertent release of body fluids you may experience upon viewing at full size You've been warned.)

Yeah, I had to change my shorts after seeing that one, too.

If the original Star Trek series is not your thing, Doug's blog is chock full of all kinds of other stuff. For example, check out this recent entry highlighting visual FX master Gary Hutzel as he works on a Piece of Sweetness for the still-forthcoming Battlestar Galactica prequel, Caprica. That'll get your pilot lit.

My name is Dayton, and I'm a fan of Doug Drexler.

"Hi, Dayton."

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. )