Trek Review: “Amok Time”

Star Trek barely staved off cancellation, but got renewed. Most TV shows that get a reprieve and see a second season might get retooled and become worse off and then lose their popularity very quickly. In the case of Trek however, thank goodness, it did not.

The cast and crew deserved to have a few weeks off in between the two seasons, and they returned in May 1967 to being filming the second season. When it came time for all of their hard work over the summer to finally be seen on NBC, the powers that be had several excellent episodes to draw from, in my opinion.

Of all of the episodes, I think they picked the best one of the whole lot, “Amok Time,” to open the broadcast schedule on September 15th, 1967.

The story revolves around Spock, betrothed to a Vulcan woman named T’Pring at the age of seven, having to return to his home planet to answer his mating call, known as Pon Farr. He has to fight Captain Kirk to the death in a very memorable combat sequence, known not only for the visuals, but also for Gerald Fried’s awesome music.

This episode embodies just how wonderful the characterization and the concept of Star Trek is so unique in its own regard. I always put myself in Kirk’s place in this show, trying to think of “What would I have done?” In every instance, I wouldn’t change a decision he made. Spock is not only his First Officer, but his friend, and deserves more than to just be brushed off by the service because of some diplomatic mission. It’s not that easy for most people to put their career on the line for the sake of one individual, but Kirk doesn’t care. He shouldn’t care.

One plot element that makes a brief reappearance here is Nurse Chapel, played by Majel Barrett, and her affection for Spock. She tried to give him some Plomeek Soup (a Vulcan delicacy) at a couple of points. I am surprised they never explored that plot point more in future episodes, but then again, as NBC had a long standing disdain for Barrett in the first place, I can see why they didn’t.

The thing about this episode that immortalizes it for me, and for many others, is the aforementioned music score by Gerald Fried. How many TV scores that you know of are quoted in other movies? I am referring of course to the ubiquitous fight music from Act Four. It was quoted in the comedy movie “The Cable Guy” by Jim Carrey during a scene set in a medieval themed restaurant. The guitar-based theme for Spock just embodies the spookiness and logical aspects of his character so, so well. It fits like a glove. I couldn’t imagine this show without that score. Rip it away and you have only half of the story.

As I said before, this was the perfect show to open the season. This episode surely would make me and the rest of the audience feel for 100% certain that the letter writing campaign to save the show earlier in the year was worth every effort.

Next week: Greek salad, or gods, take your pick…

 

Star Trek — Continued for some, New to Others

As I noted last year, Knoxville TV screens did not get to see the adventures of Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock and the USS Enterprise in its maiden voyages on the NBC Television Network.  The program director at WATE (then the NBC affiliate) did not think Star Trek would do well on Knoxville TV screens.  They opted instead to show reruns of Rawhide, a very popular western.  Like a lot of things, times change, and in this case, one year might have made a difference.

Look at the full page from August 27, 1967 here.

It’s well documented that Star Trek barely staved off cancellation in the first place.  NBC itself was inundated with letters begging for the show to be renewed.  The network made it official on March 2nd, 1967 during the closing credits of “The Devil in the Dark” with a voiceover informing viewers that the show would continue to be seen on NBC, and to stop writing letters.  Naturally, viewers wrote more letters thanking the network for renewing their favorite show.

I wonder if anyone wrote letters to WATE asking for the show.  I think I can comfortably assume that there might have been some, but not enough to change anything.  Certainly there were protests that WATE was not carrying The Monkees, since WATE started carrying that program in February 1967.  That is an unsurprising turn of events in regards to that show, given the overall pop culture phenomenon that that group carried.

A surprising thing to point out is that the Rawhide reruns that were shown in place of Trek during 1966-67 were not shelved, but moved to Tuesday night, covering up another show, I Dream of Jeannie.  This is interesting, given that the show was very popular with most audiences, it lasted until the conclusion of the 1969-70 season.

Unfortunately, the true answers are lost to time.  Nobody thought to ask the local programming executive at any point in time what they thought about Star Trek and why they didn’t think it would work in this market at the time it debuted.  One thing is for certain, however, when it debuted, TV in Knoxville would never be the same.  I do have evidence to back this claim up, kids.  But that story will be for another day. 🙂

Aww Man, My Show’s Not On!?

Back before there were a gazillion TV channels, I’m sure you remember the scenario of sitting down to watch your favorite program and being greeted with an announcement like this:

You probably reacted with some form of sadness and despair: “Aww man, my show’s not on!? What am I going to watch now?”  Then you start flipping channels to find out what you would watch.  50 years ago tonight, Star Trek was preempted for the second time in the first season, the program replacing it was highlights of the 1967 show of the Ringling Bros. & Barnum and Bailey Circus.  As you have probably heard, that circus is shutting down this year after 146 years in operation.  Here is an ad for the airing of that show on WNBC in New York:

The interesting thing is that, while the Thursday 8:30-9:30pm time period was preempted by WATE for the Rawhide repeats, the powers that be decided not to do that and instead air this program!  Guess they like lions and tigers and bears but not Vulcans! (Oh my!)

The 3/16/1967 TV Schedule

Now, I never really was a circus fan, so I probably would have flipped over to another network and watched something else.

In case you were curious what those programs were:

CBS

8:30pm –  My Three Sons – “Charley O’ The Seven Seas” (not seen in Knoxville on WBIR – instead it would be the final 30 minutes of Theater 10 – “The Gift of Love”)
9:00pm –  Beginning of the CBS Thursday Night Movie – “Major Dundee”

ABC

8:30pm – Bewitched – “The Crone of Cawdor”
9:00pm – That Girl – “The Honeymoon Apartment”

If I were somewhere else, I probably would go with My Three Sons. If I had to choose in Knoxville, it would be “Bewitched.”

By the way, have I ever told you how much I used to love that CBS Special Presentation intro of yesteryear?

I know I’m not the only one that loved that intro!

Trek Review: “Tomorrow is Yesterday”

If you will recall, at the end of “The Naked Time,” the Enterprise traveled back in time 71 hours escaping the situation that they were in.  That was not the original way that episode was supposed to end, however.  As has been documented in countless books and documentaries, the original ending was for our heroes to end up in 1969 instead.  Well, that part two didn’t happen there, but the idea of it didn’t go away.  It was made later in the season and became Star Trek’s first foray into the past, which is almost the present, in the all-time classic “Tomorrow is Yesterday.”

Roger Perry plays Captain Christopher, an Air Force pilot who ends up on the Enterprise, which has been placed in 1969 by way of an accident after trying to escape the pull of a black hole.

All of the drama and a little hilarity that ensues is top notch Trek.  I always loved the scenes on Earth in the Air Force base.  Especially, the “What was that?”, “What was what?” (which was coyly brought up again in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home during a similar situation.)

One minor thing however, is during all of the attempt at the end of the episode to get back to their present time is that if you’re not paying attention, you probably will get lost.  There are a lot of moving parts and pieces to what’s going on, what with having to go back in time, then forward in time involving the magnetic pull of the sun.  It’s actually interesting to me, and I wonder if the theory would actually be true, or is it truly science fiction?  I probably won’t be alive if we ever achieve any level of star flight to be able to test that theory, but still, I wonder…

This episode has always been one of my top 10 favorites. That will never change.

If only it was that Part Two… if only….

Next week, Kirk is in trouble, and there is a few plot holes here and there to boot…

Trek Review: “Arena”

This is undoubtedly one of the most well known episodes of not just Star Trek, but of any TV show.  Everyone out there at one time or another has seen the Gorn, even if they don’t know a Gorn by name.  Just mention that creepy lizard-like alien, and they’ll remember this episode.

This episode has always held a special place in my heart.  I just love its scope and its depth.  Most of all, I love the planet location, Vasquez Rocks.

I love this location so much, that me and Greg went there back in March 2008 on our second trip out to Los Angeles.

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When we were there that day, there were lots of high wind warnings around.  The sand was being blown all over the park, which made it impossible to really see anything.  If it wasn’t so windy, I would have climbed up to the top of the famous rock face and pretended I was Kirk rolling down that giant foam boulder. 😛

I am sure that everyone watching this episode back in 1967 were pleasantly thrilled for the entire hour.  I find it interesting that Kirk is taking such a stance of “the aliens must be destroyed” and Spock trying to change his mind.  It makes me wonder why McCoy wasn’t there to try to interject his opinions more.  That will always remain a mystery as to why Gene Coon didn’t write it that way.  It doesn’t make the episode any less enjoyable for me anyway.

Next week, we go back in time… to not quite the present:

Trek Review: “The Squire of Gothos”

Greeting and felicitations!  With those words, Trek fans were introduced to one of the most interesting, dynamic characters of the Original Series.

Trelane, the lonely Squire of Gothos, who in reality is a very superior being.  Except for one thing, he’s a very young child, or at least what we would consider a child.

When I first saw this episode, I honestly did not have any idea until the reveal at the end of the episode that Trelane was, in fact, a child.  I thought he was just what was he was being presented to be up to that point, a very omnipotent being with no regard for what he was doing.  That’s exactly what they wanted us to think!  I have to give a clever tip of the cap to the production team, they had me fooled.

William Campbell’s portrayal of Trelane is very exquisite.  I still chuckle every time when, in the “hunt” with Kirk, he exclaims to him “YOU BROKE MY SWORD!”

What would the audience of 1967 have thought?  Probably the same as I did, that they would have been left guessing for the whole hour just who this Trelane fellow really was, and then the realization at the end hits, “Aha!”

Something of note that has always interested me about the character of Trelane:  there was a novel written by Peter David called “Q Squared” in which he suggests that Trelane is a member of the Q Continuum.  I could buy that, even though the novels are considered non-canonical.  It still is an interesting theory.

Next week, one of the most remembered alien encounters that is often quoted in pop culture…

Nick’s Mix Thoughts on Current Game Shows

In the mix today, my thoughts on some of the current game shows on prime time TV.   Granted, I should probably be watching “Hollywood Game Night”, but I still catch most of the others.

In the video below, I discuss my thoughts on “Match Game” and “To Tell the Truth” along with my first impression of the upcoming NBC game show “The Wall.”

Nick’s Mix – Thoughts on “This Is Us”

Oh a whim, back in September, I decided to watch the pilot of a new show called “This Is Us.”  It was kind of a blind shot in the dark for me.  I hadn’t read much about the show prior to that first time I watched it.   Boy, was I amazed, mesmerized, and blown away all at the same time.

If you want a description of the show, I won’t waist your time here.  Try Wikipedia for that.  I’ll just go right into my thoughts.

This is one of the greatest shows I have seen in the last decade.  It’s very rare to have such a high quality, family oriented drama that brings back the great hallmarks of what a TV show used to be and should be.   This is the kind of show that is touching yet modern.

The writing and editing are top notch.  It’s so impressive how they can weave and connect the past of the Pearson family to the present so seamlessly that you’re always having an “aha” moment.  For example, in last night’s Thanksgiving episode, “Pilgrim Rick,”  the hat and the ball of yarn that came from young Kate’s sweater.

I could go on for hours and hours about this show, but I promise you that if you just watch the show, you will be very impressed.  For starters, you can go here and watch it on your favorite device.  Mark my words, this show will be an Emmy contender.  Trust me, you’ll be glad you did.

No Trek for Knoxville

As everyone knows, “Star Trek” premiered on NBC on September 8th, 1966. One might assume that the show debuted on stations from coast to coast. However, as I recently discovered, that was not the case… at least in my current city of residence, Knoxville, Tennessee.

Above are portions of an article that appeared in the Knoxville News-Sentinel on August 28, 1966. The article was looking ahead to the new NBC shows on WATE-TV 6, at the time Knoxville’s NBC affiliate. As you see above, the station’s program director at the time, John Reese, passed on “Star Trek” for the Knoxville market.  The Sentinel’s writer, Frank Weirich, didn’t think much of the show either, calling it a “far-out space thing.”   As you can also see, WATE also passed on “a bit of nonsense” called “The Monkees.”  (Davy Jones and gang finally did appear on Knoxville screens starting on February 6th, 1967 for the final 8 shows of their first season.)

In hindsight it’s easy to see why both of these programming decisions could be lauded as terrible.  However, when you look at the demographics of Knoxville at that time, you can see why the decision was made.  To further prove that point, here is what they aired instead:

Instead, they aired the popular western series “Rawhide,” which aired on CBS from September 1959 to December 1965.  Westerns were very popular with TV audiences, and I can gather from this decision that Reese felt more confident that Rawhide would do better against the other programs, “My Three Sons” and the first 30 minutes of the Thursday Night Movie on WBIR (CBS) and “The Tammy Grimes Show” (which was cancelled after four weeks) and “Bewitched” on WTVK (ABC).

Things would change for the fate of “Star Trek” on Knoxville TV screens.  That story, however, is for another day.

Before The Trek Began

It’s almost the 50th anniversary of the premiere of “Star Trek” on NBC.  As a tribute to a show that I have enjoyed since I was a kid (way back in the early 90’s), I plan to watch every episode of the Original Series each week, on their respective airdates.  However, I am taking a different approach as we navigate through this exciting time.

I thought recently, “What if I were my current age, never heard of this show, and saw the promos/advertisements for the show, and my curiosity piqued.  What would I think after I watched the premiere?”

So, I am going to take the approach of an average viewer and try to give an impression of what an average TV viewer would have thought of this show when it premiered on September 8th, 1966.

At this stage, all I would have to go on are a few rumblings in the press and trade publications about the pilot being picked up to series and who was starring in it.  By about this point, when this article is being published (August 26th), mentions of it might have appeared in newspapers.  But for certain, I and others would have seen this promo airing either during NBC network programming or during local time:

 

The artwork seen in the promo was done by James Bama based on promotional photos from the second pilot, “Where No Man Has Gone Before” shot the previous summer.  It’s quite good artwork when you look at it, but you can see the obvious misinterpretation of what propels the ship in the photo.

jamesbama_trekart_1966

 

I’ll admit, the NBC promo was very limited, using one the one rendering scanned in different places.  But, with the show coming dangerously close to not meeting airdates, it’s the best the promo makers at NBC could have done to tantalize the audience.

You will also notice that NBC was going to premiere Star Trek on September 15th on their annual “NBC Week.”  But the program planners at NBC had a trick up their sleeve.  They decided to give special “Sneak Previews” of their new fall shows.  So the previous week became the “Sneak Preview” week.  Star Trek had it’s special Sneak Preview episode on September 8th.   ABC apparently got wind of this and decided to copy the stunt and call it “Advance Premieres.”

trek_nbcweek_tvguide66

The actual TV Guide fall preview issue didn’t come out until the week of the Sneak Previews (which would be listings for the following week), so I’m guessing that I wouldn’t have seen that information before the Thursday night premiere.  I remember that when we had a TV Guide subscription in my house in the late 90s that we would get the next issue sometime around Wednesday or Thursday.  It’s probably likely that the issue was on newsstands by the day of the September 8th premiere.

tvguide_fallprevew_startrek

So based on all of this, would I, assuming the guise of the average TV viewer had been excited?  Yes, I would have been.  Based on my sensibilities and tastes, even if I had been alive in that era, I can safely say that I would have been enthusiastic about what I was reading about the show and what I had seen in that promo.  Looking at what was on against the show on the other two networks…

1966_TV_Programs_cropped

“The Tammy Grimes Show” was very forgettable.   I doubt I would have wanted to watch that show.  “My Three Sons” on CBS was a true ratings success,  plus the show has a funny concept, so I might have wanted to watch that one as well.  Remember kids, there were no VCRs/DVRs/etc.  in 1966!  At 9:00pm, you could flip over to “Bewitched” on ABC, or the beginning of the “CBS Thursday Night Movie.”  Tough choice there, since CBS usually programmed big blockbuster movies in that slot.  In the case of the premiere night, CBS showed the 1961 Jerry Lewis comedy “The Ladies Man.”

In hindsight, I can see where the majority of viewers might be turned off by the sight of a Sci-Fi series like “Star Trek.”  Imagine the reaction of the average household at that time:

“That show looks too complicated!” 

Or…

“That looks like a kiddie show!”

I would bet more on the second of those reactions being what more households who might have seen one of the promos above might have thought.  So, they’ll probably stick with the Douglas family, or Sam and Darren, or just turn the TV off and spend time with their family and/or go to bed.

So, that sets the stage for the “Sneak Preview” of Star Trek.  The next post will be the day after the premiere, with my thoughts on what I would have thought after I had watched the premiere on September 8th, 1966 on NBC.