Does anyone know what happened to the bridge chairs from TMP? I believe the last time they were seen on screen was in the first season of TNG way back in 87. I can't recall if they were featured in the Christie's auction or not and I'd like to hope that some of them found their way into private collections. I remember seeing an auction posting for a section of the ceiling from TMP along with a railing portion, but it seems as though most relics from TMP sets were thrown out. The sets for the Enterprise in that film were great designs, IMHO, and whenever they do recreations for events or for something like The Tour they always end up using TNG designs or sets from TOS. The early movie (pre-Okudagram) sets go largely ignored.
I want to see more of the TMP era. Ever since ST:IV the interior designs have gone downhill and look cheap.
The TMP set is covered with what I'd call Colegraphs, as designed by Lee Cole, who did the instrumentation and a lot of the signage for the film. The TMP set is probably unique in that at least SOME though was given to what the controls were or would actually be. The weapons console is the only one we get any good look at (in TMP and TWOK), but you can see that there's some thought given to how it works. EDIT: A while while I was helping to graphics for Starship Exeter I analyzed the TMP weapons console so that I could make sure the Exeter's defense station had some instrument commonality (like and antecedent) to TMP, and in the process created diagrams of the weapons and defense screens from TMP. Here they are: Diagram of TORP LOAD STATUS display. The red and blue indicators light up as the sliders are pushed up on the PHOTON TORPEDO panel. (In TWOK they pulled them DOWN, which actually shuts off the console above.) Diagram of PHOTON TORPEDO arming controls. At top are four sliders for setting the torpedo energy levels. Some of the labeling is not clearly visible and thus indicated by ???. The ON and OFF buttons were practical switches on the console face, painted black, that allowed the actor to turn on this part of the console. Diagram of PHASER CHARGING controls. At top are four sliders for setting the power levels, and at bottom right are four mechanical push buttons for transferring warp power. Diagram of FIRE CONTROL controls. At top left are buttons for firing phasers in the indicated direction, and at lower right are hexagonal buttons for firing torpedoes. One of the labels is not clearly visible and thus indicated by ??? Diagram of DEFLECTOR SCREEN controls. The labels for the square blue lights appear to be in jokes for the art department, with DMAL for Dan Maltese, MINR for Mike Minor, LCLE for Lee Cole and SBAC for Rick Sternbach. The text labels for the hexagonal buttons at lower right are not clearly visible in and references found to date. Finally, here's a photo of half-scale console built for insert shots of graphics appearing on the large display (center). You can see how the various panels fit on it. I didn't boither drawing up the COMPTR pannel
Those are amazing! I've been working on 3D computer models (insides and out) of some TMP era ships. I've had to research and create my own graphics, and I have to say these are truly high quality stuff. P.S. edit: Those question marks on the phaser/photon fire control... From my screen caps, I've always thought that read CONTINUITY Just thought that might help.
Neat. Forgive me if this is a silly question, but are you aware of the Enterprise Flight Manual, a document that Lee Cole made for the Phase II/TMP actors showing the details of all their consoles and how the controls worked? That could help fill in details of other consoles that aren't visible onscreen and allow creating similar graphic recreations for them. (Since the tactical console was heavily reworked from Phase II to TMP, the book only has a rough sketch for the TMP version, hand-drawn by Rick Sternbach. It doesn't have the details you've recreated here. So your post is very informative.)
The "Enterprise" Flight Manual , trust me, I have a copy and scoured it! It's mostly accurate on some consoles, but not entirely. Some appear to have been partially reworked for TMP. For instance the COURSE STEERING panel in the diagram becomes something quite different on film. TGT: thanks for the reminder about DMAL
The Enterprise manual was made for Phase II so there were likely to be changes between that and the first 2 films
These designs are great! Fantastic work. I always thought these console designs looked more believable and functional than the later Okudagrams. The scenic work done for Trek I-III may not have been so technically correct details wise, but I think the work that Cole and others did made the ship as a whole seem more realistic and believable. When TNG came out I loved the clean, sleek design of the Okuda graphics, but after a while they got kind of crazy with the backlit art under black plexiglass and all flashing video monitors... it make the sets look more like disco clubs rather than functioning starships.
It's definitely got that functional thing going for it but aesthetically I never really enjoyed all those simple polygons. They always looked kinda childish to me. Childish as in they made it very easy for me as a kid to turn my dad's camper into a spaceship.
^^^Childish? As opposed to the Okudagrams full of rounded rectangles? Personally, while I like Mike and think his stuff looks good at a distance, up close it's just rubbish as a practical interface. Here's a new one for ya to stew on... From the HELM. Diagram of VELOCITY controls to the right of the manual throttle. PULSAR CO-ORD appears to be some readout to show that certain pulsars have been triangulated upon in order to know the ship's current position via trig. I smell Jesco Von Puttkamer all over this... Sliders are used to set the ship's velocity at WARP or IMPULSE. I tlooks like the number actually indicates the next major tick mark. Odd. The DOPPLER COMP would seem to show how much doppler compensation is required for a given velocity. These probably light up depending on the ship's velocity.
Well, that's right there in dialogue with Sulu's "warp point-six, warp point-seven," etc. Besides, TNG impulse isn't "capped" at 0.25c; that's just its standard maximum, observed for normal operations in order to avoid time-dilation effects and because it's rarely necessary to go faster for short-range travel. The drive is certainly capable of going faster if the need arises.
And Kirks order to go to "Warp point five"... Full impulse is .25C anything above that is a "warp point X"
^^^ Full impulse is .25c according to WHAT? The TNG tech manual? I discount that re TMP if that's the case.