This scene from the original "Star Trek" series shows a person materializing in the
Transporter Room of the Star Ship Enterprise. Teleportation was used in the "Star
Trek" series, to simplify and reduce costs of the special effects that would have been
necessary to show the star ship landing on a planet.
(Image Source: http://www.howardandrewjones.com/star-trek/trek-week-part-3 )
By Glenn A. Walsh
Reporting for SpaceWatchtower
Science-fiction has always been an inspiration to scientists, as well as to lay people. Television's greatest science-fiction franchise marks an important milestone this evening.
The world premiere of Star Trek, at
the beginning of the 1966-1967 television season, occurred
precisely 50 years ago (from the time of the posting of this blog post), at 7:30 p.m. Eastern Daylight Saving Time
(EDT) / 23:30 Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) on Tuesday Evening,
1966 September 6.
Star Trek was originally
produced for America's NBC Television Network. However, due to the
varying schedules of the several world television networks slated to
air Star Trek, the world premiere actually occurred on the CTV
Television Network in Canada. Coincidentally, the lead television
actor on the series, William Shatner (who portrayed Captain James T.
Kirk of the U.S.S. Enterprise), was born in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.
The United States premiere of Star
Trek occurred two days later, on Thursday Evening, 1966 September
8 at 8:30 p.m. EDT / September 9, 0:30 UTC, on NBC-TV. The CBS
Television Network had considered Star Trek for the 1965-1966
television season, but instead picked-up the science-fiction program
Lost in Space, which ran from 1965 to 1968.
The original Star Trek series,
which portrayed the missions of a Star Fleet crew on the interstellar Star Ship Enterprise circa A.D.
2260, only lasted three seasons. However, unlike most other
television series Star Trek had just begun. When episodes from the
first three seasons started being broadcast in reruns, syndicated to
television stations across the country, the program started to build
a new and bigger following, than during the prime-time airings of the show. This was particularly true for children,
who would watch Star Trek every weekday after coming home from
school.
This new popularity brought-forth an
animated Star Trek series for children, on NBC-TV. Four more Star Trek
series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, Star Trek: Deep
Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, and Star Trek:
Enterprise followed beginning in the 1980s. Except for Star Trek: Voyager and Star
Trek: Enterprise which were both broadcast on the new UPN-TV network, the other two Star Trek series were not
broadcast on any television network; episodes of these series were
syndicated, first-run, to individual television stations across the country.
Star Trek: Voyager, touted as
the “show that started a. network,” was the signature show of the
then-new UPN Television Network, which later merged with the WB
Television Network to form the present CW Television Network (which
is owned by CBS). CBS plans a new Star Trek: Discovery series
for next year, to be aired on their premium, Internet streaming service, CBS All-Access.
Additionally, six full-length Star
Trek motion pictures were produced, using the cast of the
original Stat Trek television series. The cast of Star
Trek: The Next Generation starred in four additional films.
Additionally, three more films were recently made on the basis of the
original Star Trek television series, but with a new, younger
cast.
The original Star Trek series
began during the middle of the “Space Race,” to the Moon between
the United States of America and the Union of Soviet Socialist
Republics (now known as the Russian Federation). Astronomy and Space
Sciences were very important during this time period of American
history and was emphasized in the schools, similar to the STEM
(science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) emphasis in the
schools today.
This was due to the surprise of Russia
launching the first man-made satellite, Sputnik 1, into Earth orbit
on 1957 October 4. In fact, Pittsburgh's original Buhl Planetarium
and Institute of Popular Science was one of many science institutions
across the country which participated in one of the earliest
citizen-science programs, Operation Moonwatch, which asked amateur
astronomers and other interested citizens to help track Sputnik and
other satellites later launched by the United States and the Soviet
Union.
Operation Moonwatch had been organized
by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory for the International
Geophysical Year (IGY – 1957 to 1958), the year-and-a-half period
of time specified for international scientific research and
collaboration. Although the United States had planned to launch the
first satellite during the IGY, American space officials were shocked
when the Soviet Union up-staged them with the Sputnik launch.
Of course, this had national defense
implications, particularly occurring near the beginning of the Cold
War between America and Russia. If Russia had the technology to orbit
an Earth satellite, it also had the technology to launch
intercontinental ballistic missiles, potentially carrying nuclear
warheads, toward the United States.
It was in the Cold War and Space Race
eras that Star Trek started its “Five-Year Mission.” Although,
initially, Star Trek was a popular television program, this
popularity did not last. Unfortunately, even today, people interested
in science and space exploration, and hence become an audience for a
science-fiction series such as Star Trek, is a minority of the
nation's population.
When Star Trek's ratings did not
improve during the second season (1967-1968), NBC considered
canceling the program. Although Star Trek's fan base was small, it
was very loyal. So, these fans, led by Bjo Trimble who had become a
science-fiction fan in 1952 while a Navy WAVE stationed at Naval
Station Great Lakes in Chicago, initiated a letter-writing campaign
to keep Star Trek on the air. After this “Save Star Trek”
campaign succeeded in allowing the original series to have a third
season (1968-1969), Ms. Trimble was also part of the successful
campaign to have the first NASA Space Shuttle named the “Enterprise.”
In addition to promoting space
exploration during the Space Race days of the mid-1960s, Star Trek
gave a very optimistic view of the future, including a U.S.S
Enterprise crew which included all races, as well as humanoid species
from other planets. This was very welcome to many television viewers
during the turbulent 1960s, when the newspapers and radio and
television news broadcasts highlighted racial tensions and the
continuing Vietnam War. This optimism for a better future was very
appealing to many Americans.
And, Star Trek seemed like a future
that could really happen. Unlike many previous science-fiction motion
pictures and television programs, Star Trek used scientific advisers
to make the science-fiction seem as realistic as possible.
Star Trek, from the very beginning, had insisted on being as scientifically plausible as possible, even though it was a science-fiction series that did take a few liberties in the science to have an entertaining, action-adventure series. The program's actors and staff toured NASA facilities, to get an idea of the future of space exploration.
For several of the Star Trek series --- The Next Generation (during the seventh and last season, also for two of The Next Generation motion pictures), Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise --- American television producer and screenwriter Andre Bormanis (who has a degree in physics from the University of Arizona, as well as a master's degree in science, technology and public policy from George Washington University) was a credited Science Consultant. Naren Shankar (who has B.S., M.S. and Ph.D degrees in applied physics and electrical engineering from Cornell University) was the credited Science Consultant during the sixth season of The Next Generation and the first season of Deep Space Nine. I do not know of any other science-fiction series that has had a Science Consultant listed in the program's credits.
Star Trek, from the very beginning, had insisted on being as scientifically plausible as possible, even though it was a science-fiction series that did take a few liberties in the science to have an entertaining, action-adventure series. The program's actors and staff toured NASA facilities, to get an idea of the future of space exploration.
For several of the Star Trek series --- The Next Generation (during the seventh and last season, also for two of The Next Generation motion pictures), Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise --- American television producer and screenwriter Andre Bormanis (who has a degree in physics from the University of Arizona, as well as a master's degree in science, technology and public policy from George Washington University) was a credited Science Consultant. Naren Shankar (who has B.S., M.S. and Ph.D degrees in applied physics and electrical engineering from Cornell University) was the credited Science Consultant during the sixth season of The Next Generation and the first season of Deep Space Nine. I do not know of any other science-fiction series that has had a Science Consultant listed in the program's credits.
An interesting result in this careful
attention to scientific detail, when designing the program and the Star
Ship Enterprise, was that several of the technical devices used on
the ship, predicted in 1966, are reality today. Of course, the Star
Trek communicator is quite similar to cellular telephones in use today.
Desk-top computers, found throughout the Enterprise, are now found
throughout offices and homes. And, when Captain Kirk once kidded Engineer Scotty about constantly reading his technical
journals, those technical journals were being read on a desk-top
computer, as many scientists and engineers today do the same thing.
But, up until this time, most
science-fiction television programs had been broadcast in
black-and-white (i.e. monochrome). Even though most people at this
time did not own a color television, could you really display Star
Trek as a futuristic show with cutting-edge technology, while it is
broadcast in black-and-white?
By 1965, all three American commercial
television networks were in the process of converting their
programming, particularly during evening prime-time [which originally
was 7:30 to 11:00 p.m., but later shifted to 8:00 to 11:00 p.m., due
to new Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulations], to color
broadcasting from the monochrome or black-and-white transmissions
that had been typical since the beginning of commercial television
broadcasting in 1941.
In 1965, CBS, which now owns the Star
Trek franchise, broadcast the first season of Lost in Space in
black-and-white, while the last two seasons were broadcast in color.
However, all three seasons of the original Star Trek program (and of
course, ultimately, all seasons of all Star Trek spin-offs) were
broadcast in color.
NBC was then owned by RCA (Radio
Corporation of America), which was the largest producer of color
televisions. So, to help RCA sell more color television sets, NBC
pioneered color broadcasting ahead of the other two networks. Up
until 1966, usually, a new program on NBC would be broadcast in
black-and-white for one year; if the program was popular enough to be
renewed for a second year, it would automatically convert to a color
broadcast. In fact, during the 1965-1966 television season, NBC only
broadcast two new programs in black-and-white, while all other
programs were broadcast in color.
Then, at the beginning of the 1966-1967
television season, NBC-TV declared themselves the “Full-Color
Network.” From then on, all NBC programs were broadcast in color.
The other two commercial networks soon did likewise.
However, Star Trek did not seem to
follow the normal NBC rules. Even Star Trek's very first pilot
episode, filmed in 1964, was in color. It may be that they felt a
futuristic, science-fiction program should be in color. But, the
question remains, if CBS had picked-up Star Trek in 1965, instead of
Lost in Space, would the first season have been in color?
Star Trek was not the only
science-fiction television series to premiere during the 1966-1967
television season. A day after the American premiere of Star Trek,
The Time Tunnel premiered on the ABC Television Network, on
Friday Evening, 1966 September 9 at 8:00 p.m. EDT / September 10 at
0:00 UTC. In The Time Tunnel, also telecast in color, at a
secret American installation a time machine known as the Time Tunnel
was constructed. Two scientists transported through the Time Tunnel
and appeared in a different time and place, often close to an event in
world history, during each of the 30 episodes of the one and only
season of the program.
Although ratings for the program were
relatively good, and it was expected to be renewed for a second
season, an ABC executive lobbied for The Time Tunnel to be
replaced by a new program called The Legend of Custer. After
poor ratings and poor media reviews of The Legend of Custer,
it was canceled after 17 episodes. The Time Tunnel never
returned to the ABC schedule.
Star Trek also included several
time-travel episodes. One episode (the last episode of the second
season, originally aired Friday Evening, 1968 March 29), was even a pilot for a possible spin-off program:
Assignment: Earth. However, this proposed spin-off was not
picked-up by NBC for a separate program.
At the beginning of the “Assignment:
Earth” episode of Star Trek, the U.S.S. Enterprise travels
back in time to 1968, to conduct “historical research” regarding
how Earth avoided a nuclear holocaust during the mid-1960s. It is
curious that no history professors, specializing in 20th
century Earth history, accompanied the Enterprise crew on this
historical research mission!
Soon after arriving in Earth orbit in
1968, a mysterious man in a 20th century business suit is
intercepted by the Enterprise's transporter, having teleported from a
thousand light-years away. Known as Gary Seven, he claims to be a
human, who grew-up on an alien planet, specifically on a mission to
come back to Earth and help Earth survive a world with nuclear
weapons.
During a briefing in an Enterprise conference room, Mr. Spock mentions that current crises (at that time
in 1968) could fill a “tape bank.” He says, "There
will be an important assassination today...” This episode, the last
episode of season 2, aired on 1968 March 29. A few days later, on
1968 April 4. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated in Memphis,
followed by riots in many U.S. cities.
Mr. Spock
continues, during the briefing, saying, “...and, this could be
highly critical, the launching of an orbital nuclear warhead platform
by the United States, countering a similar launch by other powers."
As the major plot of this episode, Gary Seven's goal was to take-over
the U.S.'s orbiting nuclear warhead platform, and cause it to almost
set-off World War III. It was Gary Seven's hope that this would scare
all of the major powers to give-up orbiting nuclear warhead
platforms.
In
reality, the Outer Space Treaty, which took effect about a half-year
earlier (1967 October 10), forbade any nation signatory to the treaty
from placing weapons of mass destruction into Earth orbit. This
treaty had been opened for signature, on 1967 January 27, in the
capitals of three countries: United States, United Kingdom, and
Russia (then known as the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics); by a
tragic coincidence, the late afternoon of that same day, U.S.
astronauts Gus Grissom, Ed White, and Roger Chaffee were killed in a
fire during a test of their Apollo 1 space capsule. The “Assignment:
Earth” episode script may-well have been substantially written
before the treaty went into effect, and Star Trek
creator Gene Roddenberry may have decided to go-ahead with the
episode.
Early
in the episode, Gary Seven, who had escaped from detention on the
Enterprise and was now in a private office in New York City, was
trying to, verbally, get information from his large office computer, but the computer
refused to give him any information without proper authentication.
Finally, Gary Seven explained his mission to the computer saying, "Problem: Earth technology and science have progressed faster than political and social knowledge. Purpose of mission: To prevent Earth's civilization from destroying itself, before it can mature into a peaceful society."
My father, William
L. Walsh, who was a Senior Research Chemist for the Gulf Oil
Corporation (but had such an interest in history and public affairs,
that he almost became a history professor), impressed upon me, as we watched this episode together, the
importance of the first sentence of this particular statement. That
we may have developed great technology (and, our technology in 2016
is much greater than it was in 1968), but the peoples of the world
must learn to live together or the technology could destroy us.
Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry often placed important social messages, such as this one, into episodes of Star Trek.
Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry often placed important social messages, such as this one, into episodes of Star Trek.
Internet Links to Additional Information ---
NBC-TV Science-Fiction program, Star Trek:
Link 1 >>> http://www.startrek.com/
Link 2 >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series
Transcript of "Assignment: Earth" episode of Star Trek:
Link >>> http://www.chakoteya.net/StarTrek/55.htm
Star Trek Fan & Navy WAVE Bjo Trimble: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bjo_Trimble
Navy WAVES: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WAVES
NASA Astronaut Mike Fincke, Buhl Science Academy alumnus of Pittsburgh's original Buhl Planetarium and Institute of Popular Science, appears in series finale of Star Trek: Enterprise, 2005 May 13:
Link >>> http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/bio/finckestartrek.html
Day, Dwayne A. "Boldly inspiring no more."
The Space Review 2014 Nov. 24.
Regarding the first (1964) television pilot of Star Trek, and how its influence in inspiring the Space Program may be fading.
Link >>> http://www.thespacereview.com/article/2648/1
Cho, Adrian. "Big step for quantum teleportation won't bring us any closer to Star Trek. Here's why."
Science Magazine 2016 Sept. 19.
Link >>> http://www.sciencemag.o'Starrg/news/2016/09/big-step-quantum-teleportation-won-t-bring-us-any-closer-star-trek-here-s-why
Heller, Karen. "This 'Star Trek'-inspired gizmo could win its inventors $9 million."
The Washington Post 2017 March 21.
Regarding an XPrize for development of a real medical tricorder.
Link >>> https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/the-10-million-quest-to-build-a-home-health-device-inspired-by-star-trek/2017/03/21/f277946a-081e-11e7-a15f-a58d4a988474_story.html?utm_term=.780b4eb2f559
"Space Race" of the late 1950s and 1960s: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Space_Race
Sputnik 1, First Artificial Satellite, Launched by Russia in 1957:
Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sputnik_1
Operation Moonwatch: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Moonwatch
International Geophysical Year (IGY - 1957 to 1958):
Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Geophysical_Year
Outer Space Treaty: Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Outer_Space_Treaty
CBS-TV Science-Fiction program, Lost in Space:
Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_in_Space
ABC-TV Science-Fiction program, The Time Tunnel:
Link >>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Time_Tunnel
Related Blog Posts ---
"Star Trek 'Universal Translator' Realized by Microsoft." 2012 Nov. 11.
Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2012/11/star-trek-universal-translator-realized.html
"Star Trek Tricorder Becoming Reality." 2012 March 30.
Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2012/03/palm-sized-star-trek-tech-may-be-closer.html
"Star Trek's 'Universal Translator' Becomes Reality." 2012 March 19.
Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2012/03/star-treks-universal-translator-becomes.html
2016 Sept. 6.
2016: 75th Year of Pittsburgh's Buhl Planetarium Observatory
Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2016/01/astronomical-calendar-2016-january.html
Like This Post? - Please Share!
Want to receive SpaceWatchtower blog posts in your inbox ?
Send request to < spacewatchtower@planetarium.cc >.
gaw
Glenn A. Walsh, Project Director, Friends of the Zeiss: < http://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/fotz/ >
& SpaceWatchtower Editor / Author: < http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/weblog/spacewatchtower/gaw/ >
Electronic Mail - < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
Twitter Feed: < https://twitter.com/spacewatchtower >
SpaceWatchtower Blog: < http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/ >
LibraryWatchtower Blog: < http://librarywatchtower.blogspot.com >
South Hills Backyard Astronomers Blog: < http://shbastronomers.blogspot.com/ >
Barnestormin Blog: Writing, Essays, Pgh. News, etc.: < http://www.barnestormin.blogspot.com/ >
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
* Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh:
< http://www.planetarium. cc >
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago:
< http://adlerplanetarium. tripod.com >
* Astronomer, Educator, Optician John A. Brashear:
< http://johnbrashear.tripod.com >
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries:
< http://www.andrewcarnegie. cc >
* Civil War Museum of Andrew Carnegie Free Library:
< http://garespypost.tripod.com >
* Duquesne Incline cable-car railway, Pittsburgh:
< http://inclinedplane.tripod. com >
* Public Transit:
< http://andrewcarnegie2.tripod. com/transit >
2016: 75th Year of Pittsburgh's Buhl Planetarium Observatory
Link >>> http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/2016/01/astronomical-calendar-2016-january.html
Like This Post? - Please Share!
Want to receive SpaceWatchtower blog posts in your inbox ?
Send request to < spacewatchtower@planetarium.cc >.
gaw
Glenn A. Walsh, Project Director, Friends of the Zeiss: < http://buhlplanetarium.tripod.com/fotz/ >
& SpaceWatchtower Editor / Author: < http://buhlplanetarium2.tripod.com/weblog/spacewatchtower/gaw/ >
Electronic Mail - < gawalsh@planetarium.cc >
Twitter Feed: < https://twitter.com/spacewatchtower >
SpaceWatchtower Blog: < http://spacewatchtower.blogspot.com/ >
LibraryWatchtower Blog: < http://librarywatchtower.blogspot.com >
South Hills Backyard Astronomers Blog: < http://shbastronomers.blogspot.com/ >
Barnestormin Blog: Writing, Essays, Pgh. News, etc.: < http://www.barnestormin.blogspot.com/ >
Author of History Web Sites on the Internet --
* Buhl Planetarium, Pittsburgh:
< http://www.planetarium.
* Adler Planetarium, Chicago:
< http://adlerplanetarium.
* Astronomer, Educator, Optician John A. Brashear:
< http://johnbrashear.tripod.com >
* Andrew Carnegie & Carnegie Libraries:
< http://www.andrewcarnegie.
* Civil War Museum of Andrew Carnegie Free Library:
< http://garespypost.tripod.com >
* Duquesne Incline cable-car railway, Pittsburgh:
< http://inclinedplane.tripod.
* Public Transit:
< http://andrewcarnegie2.tripod.
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