Star Trek Hits the Big 4-0

by Libby Pelham | More from this Blogger

08 Sep 2006 07:01 AM

For a little show that only lasted three years, Star Trek has certainly made a name for itself. Most shows that last such a short amount of time are lucky if they even make it into syndication. Today is the 40th anniversary of the first showing of Star Trek on NBC. Unlikely as it sounds, it premiered right after Daniel Boone.

But if you doubt the cultural significance of Star Trek, consider the impact it has had on the entertainment industry. Star Trek has spawned four spin-offs (The Next Generation, Voyager, Deep Space Nine, and Enterprise), an animated series (The Animated Adventures of Gene Roddenberry's Star Trek), and ten movies (First Contact, The Wrath of Khan, The Voyage Home, Star Trek: The Motion Picture, Insurrection, The Undiscovered Country, Generations, Nemesis, The Search for Spock, and The Final Frontier). This is not even counting the books, video games, and other merchandise that is just too vast to mention.

Even people who were not fans of the original show know the names of the main stars (William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy) and those of their characters (Captain Kirk and Spock). If you live and breathe Star Trek, then you are a Trekkie, the name given to those die-hard fans that know the show inside and out and often attend conferences about the show, dressed as their favorite character.

So here's to 40 years of Star Trek, the sci-fi show that has surely influenced all those since its creation! Here are a few facts you may not have known about Star Trek and those who worked on it:

Two people involved in the show (James Doohan, the actor who played engineer Scotty and creator Gene Roddenberry) had their ashes blasted into space on a rocket.

Christopher Pike (played by Jeffrey Hunter) was the captain of the Enterprise before Kirk.

Actor Martin Landau was originally slated to play Spock, but turned down the role.

Captain Kirk never said, "Beam me up, Scotty" in any episode, despite popular belief.

There are real blueprints for the USS Enterprise. The blueprints, released to the public in 1975, show that the Enterprise had among other things, a bowling alley, a garden, and a swimming pool.

Learn more about Libby Pelham

Libby Pelham is a work-at-home mom located in Jacksonville, NC. She has a beautiful little boy, Will, born in July of 2004.

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Teresa McEntire (2984) 08 Sep 2006 09:29 AM

I love Star Trek and remember watching the show with my parents as a little girl, well at least the reruns. I also enjoyed Next Generation and Voyager and looked forward to seeing them every week. The later two I didn't enjoy as much and felt they lost some of their "trekiness." I've never attended a trekkie conference but I definately enjoyed the show.

Libby Pelham (12965) 08 Sep 2006 10:07 AM

I guess I am a freak of nature Teresa, I only enjoyed the original series. The others just seemed like sequels to me - LOL! If it didn't have Spock and Kirk, it wasn't Star Trek! I had friends who used to go to the Trekkie conventions.

Heather Long (16954) 08 Sep 2006 10:33 AM

I went to fan conventions quite a bit in my teenage and early 20s years. I remember getting in trouble in one of the debate rooms once where they debating which show was better TNG versus TOS and I said it was hard for me to give them an honest opinion on a series that was canceled before I was born. Still -- Star Trek gives us a very positive look at the future and that continued through each subsequent series -- my two favorites were DS9 and Enterprise -- but then I'm a bit more of a freak than most about my tastes -- I like strong character driven tales

Tristi Pinkston (10839) 08 Sep 2006 10:43 AM

I didn't ever get in to the original series -- it played as reruns during my teenage years and it was a little too campy for me. The Next Generation, though -- now there was a show!

Libby Pelham (12965) 08 Sep 2006 11:53 AM

Oh Tristi, I think it was probably campy when it originally aired, but that is part of the fun of it for me - LOL!