Tell your story of how you became involved in Star Trek
Posted: Tue Sep 11, 2012 10:02 amLotus Fleet 46th anniversary of Star Trek
(Please feel free to tell/add you on story in this thread)
Forum name, rank and position: Jeff T, Commodore: Operations XO
Real name and some personal information: Jeff T: BA MS
What does star trek mean to you?
Gene Roddenberry was more than merely a TV producer and the creator of Star Trek — he was a futurist who had a keen vision about the potential future of mankind in the midst of some very turbulent times in our society. The meaning that Star Trek has had on me will be revealed in the answers to the subsequent questions.
How did you find Star Trek?
In the fall of 1966 I was child.
My father was a college professor. A new department member had just taken residence on the other side of town and I accompanied my parents as they went over to welcome them in their new home. During the course of the evening as they were conversing in one of the rooms, I wandered over to the television set in the living room because I saw what looked like some kind of space ship fly across the television screen. It was the introduction to Star Trek… apparently a new series on NBC. No one there knew anything about it. So after the commercials, the episode began and I just stood there sort of mesmerized until the next commercial break. Then I found a seat and awaited its return. I had never seen anything quite like it before and I was hooked. From that point on, I watched every episode that I could.
Sometime after the season began while roaming the aisles of a local Woolworths, I discovered an ERTL model of the Enterprise on a shelf. It was like finding the Holy Grail! Having no money with me, I carefully stuffed the large box behind some less impressive models and stacked them up to conceal the prize lurking behind them and then I literally ran home and gathered up every nickel, dime and penny that I could find… I even resorted to begging for a few more coins from siblings to ensure that I had enough to cover the cost and the sales tax. I ran back the mile or so to the store, reached behind the façade that I built and carefully grabbed ahold of Enterprise box. I went up to the counter and paid for this coveted item with a pocket full of change; much to the chagrin of the impatient cashier. On the long walk home I stopped numerous times to pull the box out of the bag and just stared at it image and read through some of the information. I went home and began the construction process. I was amazed to realize that this was also a lighted model, so after procuring a couple of batteries and finalizing the construction process, I turned the switch and the model seemed to jump to life with its magical lighted glow. That was it… I was running through the darkened house with the lit Enterprise as if I was warping through space. This literally went on for years.
I was totally unaware of the attempts to cancel the show during the second season but it was a real struggle for me to stay up and watch it during its third and final season because NBC had switched it to Friday nights at 10:00pm. Fortunately, my parents would often go out on Friday evenings for dinner and to socialize with friends… so that enabled me to sneak out of bed and into their bedroom and quietly watch it before they returned. I did however get busted a few times when they returned before the episode was over.
To say that I was heartbroken when Star Trek was cancelled would be an enormous understatement. Nevertheless, I still shuffled off to school with my little Star Trek lunch box that was banged and bruised from several years of daily use. No one else in school really related to the show and my siblings used to tease me about it as well. It didn’t faze me at all. I also have to note: I never saw the original run of Star Trek in color. At the time we only had black & white TV’s… which was quite common back then. Then came our first color TV and the animated series. It wasn’t like having the original show back, but with the voice-overs by the majority of the original cast and some new species, planets and adventures introduced and others revisited, it was like a lush little island oasis in a sea of mediocrity. Then… syndication… reruns of the entire series… and in color! WOW I was eventually able to see all of the episodes, including some I missed when it was first aired and before I know it I could identify the title of every episode within 4-5 seconds after it began. I knew the names of planets they visited, and all of the characters and sequence of events, etc… I had collected the James Blish little books of the original episodes, a few sporadic Star Trek comics were released, rarely a few items were released, mostly models. This all changed when Star Trek the Motion picture was released in 1979. I attend multiple Star Trek Conventions along the east coast whenever I was able… mostly in Philadelphia, but also in New York and Boston MA. I attended every Star Trek Movie premiere up through the 2009 Abrams version; in which I was invited to and attended a private screening several weeks before the movie was released.
What was the first episode of Star Trek that you saw?
The first originally aired episode that I saw was ironically the first one filmed with the change in cast… the 2nd pilot… but was actually the 2nd one aired on Sept 22, 1966: Where No Man Has Gone Before.” I never saw “The Man Trap” until syndication. (No great loss… certainly not a favorite of mine)
What movie/series is your favorite?
I actually really like all of the series… but if I were forced to list them in order:
1. The Original Series
2. The Next Generation
3. Voyager
4. Enterprise
5. Deep Space Nine
Movies:
1. The Wrath of Khan
2. The Undiscovered Country
3. The Voyage Home
4. The Search for Spock
5. First Contact
6. Generations
7. The Motion Picture (director’s edition)
8. Insurrection
9. Nemesis
10. The Final Frontier
11. Star Trek (Abrams)
Which episode is your favorite?
TOS (in no particular order)
-The Cage
-The Menagerie (Parts 1 & 2)
-Balance of Terror
-Operation- Annihilate
-Amok Time
-The Doomsday Machine
-Mirror, Mirror
-What Are Little Girls Made of?
-The Deadly Years
-The City on the Edge of Forever
-The Devil in the Dark
-Space Seed
-This Side of Paradise
-Who Mourns of Adonais?
-The Trouble with Tribbles
-Journey to Babel
-The Gamesters of Triskelion
-The Enterprise Incident
-The Ultimate Computer
-Plato's Stepchildren
-The Tholian Web
What did you learn from Star Trek?
-Respect: for all cultures and appreciate the many differences among people
-Teamwork, leadership and the importance of following a chain of command
-Work to remain optimistic: despite all of the negativity, selfishness and cruelty around me
- Virtue: Generally speaking, the cast of the Enterprise seemed to be guided by an intrinsic moral compass that demonstrated honesty, bravery and honor.
-Skillfully competent: the crew members from Scotty to Geordi took pride in their work and were constantly working toward self-improvement and having the ship operate and function at the highest capacities; often going beyond the specs with innovative approaches.
-Intelligence is revered, especially when balanced with emotional considerations.
-Purpose oriented: Each character was relatively clear about their role in the exploration of the galaxy. It had nothing to do with greed, money or the accumulation of status symbols.
-Maturity: the characters maintained a sense of self-discipline and duty that carried beyond duty shifts and basic responsibilities within their department.
-Humor and playfulness were also valuable tools: from recreational activities to holodeck sequences… incorporating imagination and fun into one’s life enriched it tenfold.
Is Star Trek over or do you see it continuing?
Star Trek will continue and evolve in a variety of capacities into and beyond the next millennium as it has over the past 45 years already. It will also continue to inspire humans around the globe for generations to come. Who could have imagined 45 years ago that there would have been the first space shuttle launched named Enterprise? That there would be cell phones like communicators carried and used by humans everywhere, that Star Trek conventions would begin and still occur and grow in countries and cities throughout the world, that college courses would be taught based on Star Trek principles and ethics, that merchandise and Star trek related objects would be collected and traded daily through a variety of venues, that 5 new series and 11 motion pictures thus far have been created, that countless novels, comics, games, websites, etc… would be actively engaging people everywhere… in a variety of languages, cultures, generations, mediums? It has now become a viable part of human mythos; people gravitate toward Star Trek because they want to believe that we as a human society can mature beyond our primitive and destructive instincts and attitudes and evolve into a more peaceful and productive civilization. Star Trek presents hope and the possibility of a better future.
What do you think of JJ Abrams' version of Star Trek?
It was Star Trek in name only. No soul or heart… a commercialized version that rushed to have all of the main character meet quickly under forced circumstances and had them acting in manners inconsistent with what was known about them. The timeline and cannon were just thrown away… out of laziness and a selfish “I’ll ignore everything out there and just do what I want to do… regardless.” More fantasy than true Science Fiction, more silly unbelievable and unnecessary Star Wars-like chase/action sequences and events… then the thought-provoking aspects that we as fans expect and hope for in a Star Trek film.
Give a short description of what it means for you to be a Trekkie.
Trekkie…Trekker to me means striving toward higher aspirations of mankind and away from small-minded reactionary basal instincts toward selfish and greedy actions and egocentric pursuits.
(Please feel free to tell/add you on story in this thread)
Forum name, rank and position: Jeff T, Commodore: Operations XO
Real name and some personal information: Jeff T: BA MS
What does star trek mean to you?
Gene Roddenberry was more than merely a TV producer and the creator of Star Trek — he was a futurist who had a keen vision about the potential future of mankind in the midst of some very turbulent times in our society. The meaning that Star Trek has had on me will be revealed in the answers to the subsequent questions.
How did you find Star Trek?
In the fall of 1966 I was child.
My father was a college professor. A new department member had just taken residence on the other side of town and I accompanied my parents as they went over to welcome them in their new home. During the course of the evening as they were conversing in one of the rooms, I wandered over to the television set in the living room because I saw what looked like some kind of space ship fly across the television screen. It was the introduction to Star Trek… apparently a new series on NBC. No one there knew anything about it. So after the commercials, the episode began and I just stood there sort of mesmerized until the next commercial break. Then I found a seat and awaited its return. I had never seen anything quite like it before and I was hooked. From that point on, I watched every episode that I could.
Sometime after the season began while roaming the aisles of a local Woolworths, I discovered an ERTL model of the Enterprise on a shelf. It was like finding the Holy Grail! Having no money with me, I carefully stuffed the large box behind some less impressive models and stacked them up to conceal the prize lurking behind them and then I literally ran home and gathered up every nickel, dime and penny that I could find… I even resorted to begging for a few more coins from siblings to ensure that I had enough to cover the cost and the sales tax. I ran back the mile or so to the store, reached behind the façade that I built and carefully grabbed ahold of Enterprise box. I went up to the counter and paid for this coveted item with a pocket full of change; much to the chagrin of the impatient cashier. On the long walk home I stopped numerous times to pull the box out of the bag and just stared at it image and read through some of the information. I went home and began the construction process. I was amazed to realize that this was also a lighted model, so after procuring a couple of batteries and finalizing the construction process, I turned the switch and the model seemed to jump to life with its magical lighted glow. That was it… I was running through the darkened house with the lit Enterprise as if I was warping through space. This literally went on for years.
I was totally unaware of the attempts to cancel the show during the second season but it was a real struggle for me to stay up and watch it during its third and final season because NBC had switched it to Friday nights at 10:00pm. Fortunately, my parents would often go out on Friday evenings for dinner and to socialize with friends… so that enabled me to sneak out of bed and into their bedroom and quietly watch it before they returned. I did however get busted a few times when they returned before the episode was over.
To say that I was heartbroken when Star Trek was cancelled would be an enormous understatement. Nevertheless, I still shuffled off to school with my little Star Trek lunch box that was banged and bruised from several years of daily use. No one else in school really related to the show and my siblings used to tease me about it as well. It didn’t faze me at all. I also have to note: I never saw the original run of Star Trek in color. At the time we only had black & white TV’s… which was quite common back then. Then came our first color TV and the animated series. It wasn’t like having the original show back, but with the voice-overs by the majority of the original cast and some new species, planets and adventures introduced and others revisited, it was like a lush little island oasis in a sea of mediocrity. Then… syndication… reruns of the entire series… and in color! WOW I was eventually able to see all of the episodes, including some I missed when it was first aired and before I know it I could identify the title of every episode within 4-5 seconds after it began. I knew the names of planets they visited, and all of the characters and sequence of events, etc… I had collected the James Blish little books of the original episodes, a few sporadic Star Trek comics were released, rarely a few items were released, mostly models. This all changed when Star Trek the Motion picture was released in 1979. I attend multiple Star Trek Conventions along the east coast whenever I was able… mostly in Philadelphia, but also in New York and Boston MA. I attended every Star Trek Movie premiere up through the 2009 Abrams version; in which I was invited to and attended a private screening several weeks before the movie was released.
What was the first episode of Star Trek that you saw?
The first originally aired episode that I saw was ironically the first one filmed with the change in cast… the 2nd pilot… but was actually the 2nd one aired on Sept 22, 1966: Where No Man Has Gone Before.” I never saw “The Man Trap” until syndication. (No great loss… certainly not a favorite of mine)
What movie/series is your favorite?
I actually really like all of the series… but if I were forced to list them in order:
1. The Original Series
2. The Next Generation
3. Voyager
4. Enterprise
5. Deep Space Nine
Movies:
1. The Wrath of Khan
2. The Undiscovered Country
3. The Voyage Home
4. The Search for Spock
5. First Contact
6. Generations
7. The Motion Picture (director’s edition)
8. Insurrection
9. Nemesis
10. The Final Frontier
11. Star Trek (Abrams)
Which episode is your favorite?
TOS (in no particular order)
-The Cage
-The Menagerie (Parts 1 & 2)
-Balance of Terror
-Operation- Annihilate
-Amok Time
-The Doomsday Machine
-Mirror, Mirror
-What Are Little Girls Made of?
-The Deadly Years
-The City on the Edge of Forever
-The Devil in the Dark
-Space Seed
-This Side of Paradise
-Who Mourns of Adonais?
-The Trouble with Tribbles
-Journey to Babel
-The Gamesters of Triskelion
-The Enterprise Incident
-The Ultimate Computer
-Plato's Stepchildren
-The Tholian Web
What did you learn from Star Trek?
-Respect: for all cultures and appreciate the many differences among people
-Teamwork, leadership and the importance of following a chain of command
-Work to remain optimistic: despite all of the negativity, selfishness and cruelty around me
- Virtue: Generally speaking, the cast of the Enterprise seemed to be guided by an intrinsic moral compass that demonstrated honesty, bravery and honor.
-Skillfully competent: the crew members from Scotty to Geordi took pride in their work and were constantly working toward self-improvement and having the ship operate and function at the highest capacities; often going beyond the specs with innovative approaches.
-Intelligence is revered, especially when balanced with emotional considerations.
-Purpose oriented: Each character was relatively clear about their role in the exploration of the galaxy. It had nothing to do with greed, money or the accumulation of status symbols.
-Maturity: the characters maintained a sense of self-discipline and duty that carried beyond duty shifts and basic responsibilities within their department.
-Humor and playfulness were also valuable tools: from recreational activities to holodeck sequences… incorporating imagination and fun into one’s life enriched it tenfold.
Is Star Trek over or do you see it continuing?
Star Trek will continue and evolve in a variety of capacities into and beyond the next millennium as it has over the past 45 years already. It will also continue to inspire humans around the globe for generations to come. Who could have imagined 45 years ago that there would have been the first space shuttle launched named Enterprise? That there would be cell phones like communicators carried and used by humans everywhere, that Star Trek conventions would begin and still occur and grow in countries and cities throughout the world, that college courses would be taught based on Star Trek principles and ethics, that merchandise and Star trek related objects would be collected and traded daily through a variety of venues, that 5 new series and 11 motion pictures thus far have been created, that countless novels, comics, games, websites, etc… would be actively engaging people everywhere… in a variety of languages, cultures, generations, mediums? It has now become a viable part of human mythos; people gravitate toward Star Trek because they want to believe that we as a human society can mature beyond our primitive and destructive instincts and attitudes and evolve into a more peaceful and productive civilization. Star Trek presents hope and the possibility of a better future.
What do you think of JJ Abrams' version of Star Trek?
It was Star Trek in name only. No soul or heart… a commercialized version that rushed to have all of the main character meet quickly under forced circumstances and had them acting in manners inconsistent with what was known about them. The timeline and cannon were just thrown away… out of laziness and a selfish “I’ll ignore everything out there and just do what I want to do… regardless.” More fantasy than true Science Fiction, more silly unbelievable and unnecessary Star Wars-like chase/action sequences and events… then the thought-provoking aspects that we as fans expect and hope for in a Star Trek film.
Give a short description of what it means for you to be a Trekkie.
Trekkie…Trekker to me means striving toward higher aspirations of mankind and away from small-minded reactionary basal instincts toward selfish and greedy actions and egocentric pursuits.
