"He Walks Among Us"-- lost Spinrad script

[Turtletrekker]

A lost, unproduced, Star Trek script by The Doomsday Machine" author Norman Spinrad has been uncovered and can be purchased for the Kindle here.

The only question I have before purchasing is- is this Spinrad's original script, or is it the "unfunny comedy" that he claims Gene Coon turned it into?

[Therin of Andor]

Turtletrekker wrote:

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The only question I have before purchasing is- is this Spinrad's original script, or is it the "unfunny comedy" that he claims Gene Coon turned it into?

Spinrad's first draft, July 1967. I downloaded it yesterday.

The above article says, "Spinrad is now offering copies of the script via Amazon Kindle." He'd hardly be offering the Coon rewrite.

It's not that "lost"/"rare", though. I saw many copies of this script for sale in the dealer's room of a Creation Con in New York in 1984, and it was also available through various mail order firms in the 80s and 90s. (I don't recall seeing the Coon rewrite bootlegged the same way.)

[YARN]

Turtletrekker wrote:

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A lost, unproduced, Star Trek script by The Doomsday Machine" author Norman Spinrad has been uncovered and can be purchased for the Kindle here.

The only question I have before purchasing is- is this Spinrad's original script, or is it the "unfunny comedy" that he claims Gene Coon turned it into?

More like the money fans lost paying for a script that was never produced.

[Maurice]

I haven't purchased it, but in the sample pages on Amazon I like that he's included Uhura on the landing party, and there's some procedural stuff about getting the local outfits made, etc.

That said, $9.00 is ridiculous for a script, when whole physical paperback books can be had for that price.

[CorporalCaptain]

I'll be passing on this because of the medium; I'd be happy to purchase it in hardcopy form, though.

[Praetor_Shinzon]

CorporalCaptain wrote:

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I'll be passing on this because of the medium; I'd be happy to purchase it in hardcopy form, though.

same here.

[toonloon]

Has anyone read it?

[Doug Otte]

I downloaded it, but haven't read it yet. I plan to start during lunch today. It has a nice picture (painting? CGI?) of the Enterprise on the first page. It looks like they cleaned it up. I was afraid it would be a straight scan. Hopefully, somebody proofread it. Many Kindle editions of older (e.g. 1950s) books I've bought have a lot of typos where the software misinterpreted what was scanned.

I don't mind paying $9.00 to read a script that's new to me, and I figure Spinrad could use the dough after it was bootlegged for so many decades.

Doug

[Doug Otte]

I guess I was wrong. It's full of typos, incorrect line breaks, varying margin sizes, etc. The original page headers ("CONTINUED" etc.) are in the original places, so they don't match up w/ the Kindle page, either. It looks like they just scanned it and let the OCR handle it. It's certainly readable, but for $9.00, I would have expected them to put a little effort into it.

It's an interesting read (I'm 20% into it), but I can see why it wasn't considered as written. It isn't a particularly original or compelling story.

I like how some scriptwriters do as much as possible to ensure that their work can be produced within budget. For example, Spinrad wrote: "INT. GREAT HALL OF BAYNE...Or as great as our budget will allow" and "INT. BAYNE'S QUARTERS...finished...with earth-type furniture around."

Doug

[Temis the Vorta]

From the story synopsis, it sounds pretty dreadful. Is that your impression from the script?

[davejames]

I read the Kindle sample that's available, and it didn't strike me as terribly original so far. Although it definitely sounds and feels like TOS, so it might be cool to read through the rest anyway.

[GSchnitzer]

davejames wrote:

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I read the Kindle sample that's available, and it didn't strike me as terribly original so far. Although it definitely sounds and feels like TOS, so it might be cool to read through the rest anyway.

Well, I think the "not terribly original" is due partly to the fact that you're reading the script 45 years too late. It probably was a bit more original back in 1967--before there was 45 years' worth of Star Trek and science fiction in general that has now covered much of the same territory.

[toonloon]

^ Well said.

[Patrick O'Brien]

Maybe the cast of Star Trek Phase II will produce the script? It would be cool, if the story is any good?

[GSchnitzer]

Patrick O'Brien wrote:

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Maybe the cast of Star Trek Phase II will produce the script? It would be cool, if the story is any good?

Yes, we've already announced it. Shooting tentatively set for November. Mr. Spinrad has graciously agreed to direct the episode himself. It'll be great to work alongside a living legend.