Jim Kirk, "Superman"

[Wade]

When I was 14 years old, between 1976 and 1977, I was in the hospital for a serious injury. While there I was given a gift of an anthology of Star Trek short stories. I can remember some of the cover but, big surprise, that part that I do remember is a picture of the USS Enterprise. I know, how uncommon. What I remember, in particular, of one of the stories is that, like many, someone, Kirk in this case, had been stranded at some point in the past - 20th century Earth. He had been committed to a mental institution and the orderlies had nicknamed him "Superman" for his great strenght - He was apparently often violent.

Does anyone have a handle on the name of that anthology? I do remember enjoying it a great deal and it would be great to read it again if it's available.

Thanks.

[Christopher]

That would be "Mind-sifter" in Bantam's Star Trek: The New Voyages. Pretty sure that's been out of print for a long time, so you'd have to check used-book dealers.

[Wade]

Thanks, Christopher. I'll check it out.

[Arpy]

What the...?! Brilliant! Was he also ranting, calling the orderlies post-industrial barbarians and the nurses quasi-Cardassian totalitarians?

[Christopher]

^It would've been pretty impressive to have a reference to Cardassians in a story published in 1976...

[Wade]

I found an actual online version of the story here, http://www.simegen.com/fandom/startr...nd-sifter.html. Looks like the one. I scanned it and didn't find references to Cardassians or barbarians, but McCoy, once on the scene, did make a reference to a "barbarous contraption" (a straightjacket, I think).

[seigezunt]

A great story for its time...

[ClayinCA]

I note that Star Trek: Phase II has a story called "Mind-Sifter" as one of their upcoming productions. I wonder if it's an adaptation of this short story...?

[Captaindemotion]

Wade wrote:

---

When I was 14 years old, between 1976 and 1977, I was in the hospital for a serious injury. While there I was given a gift of an anthology of Star Trek short stories. I can remember some of the cover but, big surprise, that part that I do remember is a picture of the USS Enterprise. I know, how uncommon. What I remember, in particular, of one of the stories is that, like many, someone, Kirk in this case, had been stranded at some point in the past - 20th century Earth. He had been committed to a mental institution and the orderlies had nicknamed him "Superman" for his great strenght - He was apparently often violent.

Does anyone have a handle on the name of that anthology? I do remember enjoying it a great deal and it would be great to read it again if it's available.

Thanks.

Sounds not unlike the DS9 Benny storyline, where Sisko was a patient in 20th century earth, having visions of a 24th century space station.

[Christopher]

It's not very similar to that, no. More of an attempt to cross a "City on the Edge of Forever" period-romance vibe with the "hurt-comfort" narrative trope of fanfic.

[teacake]

It sounds both awesome and familiar.. I was the same age in the same year and read every bit of Trek that was out there, (very little). I still remember some verses from a poem in one of those early books, about Spock.

OH HEY I just looked up my poem (which I used to recite to myself when bored to death in school) and it was in The New Voyages so I must have read Mind-Sifter. I want this book now.

Here's a link to the poem, my memory was accurate:

http://littlereview.blogspot.com/200...nesday_15.html

I'm getting all misty eyed reading it.

[T'Ressa Dax]

Mind-Sifter started to feel almost familiar as I read it. Suspect I picked up New Voyages in the library at some point in the early 90s. Had fun rediscovering the story anyway.

[aelius]

I read that when it came out. I was only twelve, but it was great to read new stories not based on the show.
I loved it then, even though I recognize now that many of the stories were a rough around the edges by modern Treklit standards.

[Sky]

I have New Voyages and New Voyages II and quite enjoy them, even if they are a bit more like fanfic than treklit.

[Christopher]

^Well, they are fanfic. That was the whole idea behind The New Voyages -- to collect the best of the ST fan fiction that was out there at the time and give it broader exposure in a professional publication. Remember, at the time, the only professional Trek fiction was the Bantam novel series, most of whose entries were written by established authors who were doing it for the paycheck and weren't necessarily all that Trek-savvy. So at the time, fan fiction was generally more authentic and truer to the Trek spirit than most of the pro fiction that was available (what little there was of it). It took time for Trek Lit to mature, and TNV was a step along the way.