The studio took notice. Th ey were
baffled, but couldn’t deny what was
happening. Tr e k exploded in syndication
andbegan its tortured path toward a
returnto television. When Star Wars
brokerecords, Paramount fi nally got
serious. Star Trek: Th e Motion Picture was
a go.But even that wouldn’t be easy, with
a revolving door behind the scenes, and
playing musical chairs with directors.
Fandom was giddy and feeling
powerful. An entire genre-fueled
generation came into its own, right
alongside Star Trek.Forward Motion
Star Trek: Th e Motion Picture was our
picture. Twelve-year-old Mark Altman
said it best in the cult classic Free
Enterprise, when the ticket lady told him
that under 13s had to be accompanied by
an adult. He panicked, blurting: “Th is is
my movie! Th e Human adventure is just
beginning!” “Well,” she replied smugly, “it
will just have to begin without you!”
Mark was speaking for all of us. Th is
was our movie. We made it happen. We
kept it alive, we kept it visible, and we
kept it growing.The Makingof StarTrek, hitthestands,
andit wasa revelation.It turnedoutthat
therewasthisworldcoexistingalongside
Kirk,Spock,andMcCoy,justbeyond
thelensofthecamera.That,initself,was
sciencefiction– andthatbecameeven
morefascinatingtomethanthefictional
voyagesoftheU.S.S.Enterprise: thereal
voyagebehindtheimaginaryvoyage;the
showbehindtheshow.
NowI wasprivytosecrets,mysteries,
andcluestoanunseenuniversethat
existedrightalongsidethecrewofthe
StarshipEnterprise. The showI watched
ontelevisionwasjustthebeginningofthe
story,andI wastolearnthattherewasan
evenmoreexcitingadventure– a real-life
adventure– waitingformejustbeyond
thecamera’sfieldofview.
That fascination,andthegiftI got
fromStarTrek, ledtoanAcademyAward,
eightEmmynominationswithtwowins,a
BAFTA,a VES,anda Saturn.Sokids,watch
StarTrek! Youractualmileagemayvary,
butyoucanseetheinsaneimpactit had.
“Ifyouspenthalfas muchtime
onyourschoolworkas youdoonthat
televisionshow,”myfatherlamented,
“you’dbeokay!”
Whoknew?FandomAscendant
Intheyearsbetweentheendofthe
originalseriesandthefirstmotion
picture,fandomtookcontrolofthe
mythology,energizingit withfanzines
andconventionsthatgrewexponentially.
In 1974 weopenedaStarTrekstorein
ManhattancalledtheFederationTrading
Post.It sportedanentirewalloffanzines
onconsignmentfromeverywhereon
Earth.That wasouranaloginternet.We
wereunited,creative,andspurredonby
StarTrek.Somehow I ended up
sitting in front of Jerry
Goldsmith and his
wife. How could I have
a better seat than
Jerry Goldsmith?!
DOUG DREXLER080910A BRIEF HISTORY OF...