Tallywhacker

Discussion in 'Star Trek - The Original & Animated Series' started by Metryq, Feb 1, 2013.

  1. Metryq

    Metryq Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Shortly before TOS-R was released, I ran into a post on another forum about the CGI model having a "tellywhacker" (as that poster put it) on the underside of the saucer. The tiny army tank-like turret and barrel can be seen in this screen cap from the TOS-R "Changeling."

    [​IMG]

    I have never seen such a feature on the TOS Enterprise prior to the Revision, er, Remastered episodes. That lower cap has always been fully lit (no dark pimple in the middle), and no diagrams have ever shown that—whatever it is. I saw the original model at the National Air And Space Museum around 1979 or 1980. Considering other threads on the reconditioning of that model and the state it was in when NASM first received it, I don't know if such a tiny detail existed on the original.

    Does anyone know? After all, one of Kirk's lines in "The Naked Time" is "Now I know why it's called 'she.'" It would be a shock after all this time to learn that the Enterprise is a stallion.
     
  2. Forbin

    Forbin Admiral Admiral

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    Yes, it was there. Polar Lights faithfully includes in in there 1/350 model kit, researched by Gary Kerr. What it is, is up for grabs. Some think the intent was that it be the phaser turret.
     
    Last edited: Feb 1, 2013
  3. Draculasaurus

    Draculasaurus Commander Red Shirt

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    Maybe it's a sticky space lolly pop got stuck on the dome.
    That's probably what happened.
     
  4. Metryq

    Metryq Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I just downloaded the PDF assembly instructions. That kit also has various interior parts, such as a shuttle bay with shuttlecraft. As much as I enjoyed physical model kits as a kid, I no longer have the storage/display space. And there are various other advantages to CGI modeling—which didn't exist when I was a kid. (Actually, CAD did exist before I was born, but I wouldn't have had any access to it as a kid. Video of Sketchpad in action.)

    "A keyboard. How quaint!"
     
  5. F. King Daniel

    F. King Daniel Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    It's where it comes out when they flush.
     
  6. F. King Daniel

    F. King Daniel Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Seriously, according to the old USS Enterprise Officer's Manual Treknical fanzine, it was the infamous Ion Pod from "Court Martial"

    Diagram HERE.
     
  7. marksound

    marksound Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    I call BS.

    It was never seen in TOS, so it's utter BS.
     
  8. jayrath

    jayrath Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Children, this feature was always on the early AMT model kits, overseen by Jeffries, which were based on the small studio model besides the 11-footer.
     
  9. ZapBrannigan

    ZapBrannigan Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Beat me to it. I recall a little button on lower sensor dome of the 18-inch AMT model.

    I think I can kind of see it here

    http://www.atpm.com/7.01/washington-dc/images/enterprise-front.jpg

    but who knows if that's the original equipment. The main deflector dish and the nacelle domes were replaced, so maybe this was too.

    Edit: this looks definitive:

    http://tos.trekcore.com/hd/albums/3x18hd/thelightsofzetarhd0006.jpg
     
    Last edited: Feb 2, 2013
  10. scotpens

    scotpens Professional Geek Premium Member

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    Yes, on the AMT 18-incher, going back to the original 1967 issue, the "nipple" on the lower sensor dome was always there. I didn't lose sleep over what its function might be.
     
  11. Melakon

    Melakon Admiral In Memoriam

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    Just from the thread title, I thought this was going to be about that rock Kirk pulls from the cave ceiling in "What are Little Girls Made Of?"
     
  12. plynch

    plynch Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Bump or turret? That seems quite a difference.
     
  13. ZapBrannigan

    ZapBrannigan Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    The gun barrel in that Remastered frame is a new invention, no argument there.
     
  14. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    Yes, it was seen on screen in TOS.

    Here's a nice close up of the E from Let That Be Your Last Battlefield, original effects.

    http://tos.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/3x15/Let_That_Be_Your_Last_Battlefield_034.JPG
    http://tos.trekcore.com/gallery/albums/3x15/Let_That_Be_Your_Last_Battlefield_035.JPG

    http://tos.trekcore.com/gallery/thumbnails.php?album=90&page=2

    This should settle it.

    Great thread title, by the way, even if not entirely accurate. ;)
     
  15. marksound

    marksound Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    All I see is a little dot. BS, I say.
     
  16. CorporalCaptain

    CorporalCaptain Fleet Admiral Admiral

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  17. Maurice

    Maurice Snagglepussed Admiral

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  18. Metryq

    Metryq Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    Thanks, Maurice. That's definitive—it can't be mistaken for a trick of light, or spot of shmutz on the film. But now I'm wondering about that bump on the circular riser. Is that the lock point where the Starfleet engineers at space dock can apply the wrench to remove the lower dome?
     
  19. scotpens

    scotpens Professional Geek Premium Member

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    It's an alignment point for unlocking and removing the dome for maintenance, like the caps on those childproof medicine bottles.
     
  20. Lance

    Lance Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    I just checked, and the "tallywhacker" is definitely there on the Art Asylum model too.

    It seems to be transparent on the AA model. I never noticed it before either, but it must always have been there. I think it just stands out a bit more in the screencap posted in the OP because it's colored red.

    Captain Robert April had a sweet tooth. ;)