Some of the latest at Forgotten Trek, the largest online resource for Star Trek behind-the-scenes and production material... PLANET OF THE TITANS Before there was Star Trek: The Motion Picture, there was Star Trek: Phase II. And before there was Phase II, there was “Planet of the Titans”. The film was to be produced in England with Ken Adam of James Bond fame as production designer. Ralph McQuarrie, who had just before worked on Star Wars, was hired to provide conceptual drawings, many of which were speculative images, such as this depictions of the Enterprise approaching an inhabited astroid. Click here to read and see it all. FRED PHILLIPS’ GREEN GIRL Perhaps makeup artist Fred Phillips’ most memorable creation for Star Trek was the “green girl” played by Susan Oliver in the original pilot episode, “The Cage.” In our article about “Fred Phillips,” we now present an excerpt from Stephen E. Whitfield’s The Making of Star Trek that describes how the “green girl” came to be. Apparently, it took several shots before the girl finally turned up green on film! Click here to read how they got it right eventually. FRANZ JOSEPH’S BLUEPRINTS Star Trek fans will remember Franz Joseph as the author of the original Star Fleet Technical Manual (1975) as well as the Star Trek Blueprints published that same year. The Star Trek Blueprints allowed fans for the time time to discover how the ship they had come to adore looked like from the inside. They were originally sold in sets of 12 9”x30” sheets packaged in a soft plastic pocket—for just $5.00! Now you can see them at Forgotten Trek in our article, “Designing the Enterprise.”
BUILDING THE EARTH SPACEDOCK Star Trek III: The Search for Spock called for a gargantuan spacedock in orbit over Earth; the first such space-fixed installation shown on Star Trek! The Spacedock model was built by Industrial Light and Magic. The interior was represented by a large set which was destroyed after filming, so for The Voyage Home, the production crew had to rebuild the entire set from scratch. In our article, “Building the Earth Spacedock” we offer several photographs of the model under construction.
INSIDE V'GER Star Trek: The Motion Picture Art Director Richard Taylor and his team were responsible for the design of the mysterious entity known as V’Ger. Many artists contributed to the design, including Tom Cranham, Robert T. McCall, Syd Mead, David Negron, and Tony Smith. It was Smith who produced this drawing of the inside of V’Ger. Thanks to Mr Tracy Tobias of Quasar Visual Media for this image! Read all about the design of V’Ger in our article “Designing the Living Machine.”
JOANNA If Dorothy Fontana had her way, Nancy Sinatra might have featured on Star Trek! Her episode outline, “Joanna” introduced McCoy’s long lost daughter and she suggested Nancy Sinatra as well as Bobbie Gentry for the role. Thanks to Mr T.C. Tobias, we can now present the story of “Joanna.” The episode was never produced however the character of Joanna went on to live in Star Trek fandom and featured or was referred to in several novels and even a comic book! ROCKABYE BABY, OR DIE “Rockabye Baby, Or Die” is an episode outline written by science fiction author George Clayton Johnson, completed on August 2, 1966. Johnson previously wrote the Star Trek episode that would be the series’ aired premiere, “The Man Trap”. “Rockabye Baby, Or Die” featured an alien entity entering the Enterprise computers to growing to adulthood while considering Kirk as father-figure. Thanks to Mr T.C. Tobias, we can now present the full story of “Rockabye Baby, Or Die.” PHASE II BRIDGE The Enterprise bridge was described in the Star Trek II Writers/Directors Guide as “[a] circular, platformed set where Captain Kirk presides over the whole ship’s complex. [...] In the outer circular elevation of the set are various positions for Communications Officer and various Technical Crewmen [...]” This rare photograph shows one of those consoles under construction for Phase II! Thanks to Mr T.C. Tobias for this image! Read more in our article “Phase II interior design.”
We will soon have interviews with Star Trek: The Motion Picture production illustrator David Negron, Sr. and his son who worked on Star Trek: Nemesis -- David Negron, Jr. We hope to have some rare illustrations displayed along with the interviews...
DAVID J. NEGRON JR. David J. Negron Jr. followed in his father’s footsteps in the movie industry. He worked as visual effects supervisor and illustrator on many films—including Star Trek: Nemesis. Last month, Mr T.C. Tobias of Quasar Visual Media interviewed Mr Negron about his work and his involvement with the Star Trek franchise. Mr Negron was kind enough not only to provide answers but several of his artworks produced for Nemesis also. Click here to read the interview now!
DAVID J. NEGRON SR. T.C. Tobias not only interviewed David J. Negron Jr., but his father, David J. Negron Sr., also! Mr Negron Sr. worked as senior illustrator on Star Trek: The Motion Picture. His work included the storyboarding of the Spock’s spacewalk sequence and the transformation of V’Ger. Mr Negron Sr. kindly provided both insight into the production of The Motion Picture as well as many storyboards drawn by him for the film! Click here to read the interview!