News about the TOS 11-Footer

[TREK_GOD_1]

If we don't start from the presumption that authorities are rather authoritative when speaking about topics in their particular fields of study then we're doing something wrong.

Doing something wrong appeared to be the case in the Ed Miarecki work. The NASM & Miarecki's choices were deliberately incorrect. Take another look at this line from the linked Air & Space article on the latest resotration:

As Margaret Weitekamp, curator of the Museum’s Social and Cultural Dimensions of Spaceflight Collection, explained to an audience of Trek loyalists at a public lecture last night, the model was initially regarded more as a piece of decor than as an object deserving of preservation and scholarship in its own right. That distinction influenced the approach taken during its most recent restoration, in 1991, which included a new paint job and detailing intended to help the model live up to the memories many visitors have of the starship they originally saw on tiny, primitive TV screens. This is different from trying to make the model look as authentic as possible, or closest to its condition when used in filming the TV show.

The fan community has been critical of these efforts to improve the model’s appearance, Weitekamp said—and she sympathizes with their grievance.

So not only was this a case of making a historically inaccurate choice (in other words, not matching the final revisions made for production of the regular series), but Weitekamp acknowledges the fan complaint, which--again--begs the question: were / are the fans wrong?

If they are not wrong, then a couple of generations' worth of amateurs know what the miniature requires to be production accurate.

And why are they better qualified to offer opinions than people who dedicate their working lives to the problem of keeping historical artifacts in the best possible conditions that balance their histories, their cultural value, and the things which historians and the public of the future are most likely to want to have preserved?

See the quote, and Miarecki's work. The decades-long complaints and this conversation would not exist if those in charge of the restoration leaned in the direction of historical accuracy.

 

[Warped9]

^^

 

[feek61]

I am a bit confused about the "preserving the history of the piece" argument. It would be one thing if the miniature had a history in film or TV after Star Trek. As we know the miniature was donated by Paramount which had not used it since filming of TOS and it has been at the Smithsonian since. Why preserve the history of the museums failed efforts at making a display out of a piece that they didn't understand the value or significance of? It seems if they want to preserve history that she should be restored to the condition it was when filming ended. Not preserve the botched restorations the museum itself has done. To me there is a difference in preserving history and correcting mistakes. They need to correct the mistakes made to the Enterprise miniature since they have had her (that they themselves are responsible for). I go back to the aircraft analogy; every aircraft in the museum has been restored in some way to a new condition or a condition when it was in use. None of the aircraft in the museum have been preserved in a state that it appeared in after sitting in a junk-yard for years.

 

[Warped9]

Weitekamp has acknowledged that the last restoration is not only widely criticized, but also that it was not aimed at returning the ship to its "as filmed" condition. As such it was not preserving history because the model was being treated as a piece of decor rather than as a historical artifact.

I find her words encouraging and I hope it indicates a leaning to returning the model to its " as filmed" condition, or as close as possible.

We need to be aware that what people think of as the model's "original" condition is what they recognize as the series production version. But strictly speaking that wasn't the model's original condition. How it appeared in "The Cage" was its original condition and then it went through a number of changes before it became the most widely recognized form. And that's the form most people think of when they expect to see the TOS Enterprise.

 

[John Cooley]

The standard that has been discussed for the Enterpise is her last filmed appearance for Star Trek.

John

 

[Warped9]

The standard that has been discussed for the Enterpise is her last filmed appearance for Star Trek.

John

That's what I was referring to: the series production version.

 

[plynch]

You are all making me hopeful.

Just wondering: were there any any alterations to her once we got the production version?

 

[Warped9]

To the best of my knowledge, no.

 

[mach7]

I stopped by the NASM today to see what has become of the space the Enterprise in.

Just an empty case and a small sign.

http://i.imgur.com/P6Q9uSa.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/jdpY6a1.jpg

Plynch,

My understanding is there were no changes made to the Enterprise during production.
I also don't think it was filmed at all for the 3rd season. I'm sure some one here can confirm/deny this.

This site has some great info on the changes the filming models went through.

http://enterproject.wordpress.com/category/first-pilot/

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I also don't think it was filmed at all for the 3rd season. I'm sure some one here can confirm/deny this.

This would—to say the least—really surprise me if it were so, given some of the exceptional shots seen only in the third season, such as the beautiful approach to closeup in "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield".

 

[plynch]

Tholian Web has orig footage, I thought.

 

[Warped9]

I don't know who verified this, but as I understand it all shots of the ship were done by the end of the second season. So shots we see in third season were actually shot earlier, but not yet used.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I don't know who verified this, but as I understand it all shots of the ship were done by the end of the second season. So shots we see in third season were actually shot earlier, but not yet used.

Well, that would be very interesting if it were so.

 

[Warped9]

I don't know who verified this, but as I understand it all shots of the ship were done by the end of the second season. So shots we see in third season were actually shot earlier, but not yet used.

Well, that would be very interesting if it were so.

For some reason Shaw comes to mind about this issue, but I'm not certain.

On the other hand here's an interesting reference source about shots of the ship: http://www.trekplace.com/tosfxcatalog.html

It references that only one new shot appeared during the third season and that one shot was likely filmed during the second season.

I also have feelers out to get this question answered.

 

[feek61]

I mentions that in this pretty cool shot break-down located here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_I1DgMPyi_8qgpyoTnMiC7eATR0kBg_6a2edU6WpWJM/edit

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I don't know who verified this, but as I understand it all shots of the ship were done by the end of the second season. So shots we see in third season were actually shot earlier, but not yet used.

Well, that would be very interesting if it were so.

For some reason Shaw comes to mind about this issue, but I'm not certain.

On the other hand here's an interesting reference source about shots of the ship: http://www.trekplace.com/tosfxcatalog.html

It references that only one new shot appeared during the third season and that one shot was likely filmed during the second season.

This is what that reference says about the shot I mentioned:

Lower Sensor (That Which Survives - Let That Be Your Last Battlefield) [2]

Eleven Foot

The last new shot of the series! A track in that ends with a close up of the lower sensor dome on the saucer. While not used until season three, I suspect it was filmed in season two. It was never seen "clear". In “That Which Survives” it has a shake effect and in “Let That Be Your Last Battlefield” it has the episode’s titles superimposed on it.

---

I mentions that in this pretty cool shot break-down located here:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1_I1DgMPyi_8qgpyoTnMiC7eATR0kBg_6a2edU6WpWJM/edit

That appears to be the same article from Trekplace that Warped9 cited, by William P. “Tallguy” Thomas.

 

[Green Shirt]

I stopped by the NASM today to see what has become of the space the Enterprise in.

Just an empty case and a small sign.

http://i.imgur.com/P6Q9uSa.jpg

Does the ship look strange to anyone in the photo above?

The saucer appears too thick, and the bridge sensor dome looks way too high. Maybe the photo is compressed.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Does the ship look strange to anyone in the photo above?

The saucer appears too thick, and the bridge sensor dome looks way too high. Maybe the photo is compressed.

I think the sign is foreshortened because the camera was not facing it straight on. Either that, or the sign was made from a distorted photo, like if it wasn't flat when it was scanned.

 

[Warped9]

According to Gary Kerr there might have been one change to the model after it was modified from 2nd Pilot version to Series Production version. He thinks that maybe the bridge dome might have been damaged or even lost because (to him) the bridge dome seems to look somewhat different later on. He doesn't know exactly when this might have happened.

Regarding when the last shots of the 11 footer were filmed. It does make sense that they would build a library of stock shots and use them throughout the series as needed. Since it appears that there is only one new shot seen in 3rd season (in "That Which Survives") and it looks very similar to a shot seen during the 2nd season then it does seem likely that all filming of the miniature was completed during the 2nd season.

 

[Mudd]

First picture of restored Enterprise released!

Spoiler: first photo

Love it!

I suspect -- though I hate it -- the grids were darker in person than shows up in photos.

Of course they were.

You can see the shading on the secondary hull and bottom of the saucer in some black and white stage photos of the model if you heighten the image contrast.