Star Trek as ''Wagon Train''.

[Harvey]

Do you have a decent source confirming that "To Set It Right" never aired? That detail is not mentioned in either Roddenberry biography from '94. All I can find are references online, none of them cited, and a somewhat contradictory account from Marc Cushman and Susan Osborn claiming that NBC didn't want to air the episode, but that the NAACP successfully intervened and changed the network's mind. As you can imagine, I give no credence to either source.

I was just going by Wikipedia. But IMDb says it did air on Feb. 22, 1964. Neither is a particularly reliable source.

Other data points:

- Nichelle Nichols mentions filming the episode in her memoir, but says nothing about NBC refusing to broadcast it, or any NAACP action to change their mind. If the episode was pulled, this surely is an odd omission.

- the February 18, 1964 issue of Daily Variety has an article indicating that the episode would air on NBC without a DOD seal of approval (the issue with the Pentagon is well-documented; they did not give script approval and withdrew their support for the series following the episode).

- the February 24, 1964 issue of Daily Variety has a positive review of the show.

(I don't have access to then full Variety articles, just snippets.)

It seems likely that the episode aired as planned, and that all the information circulating about it being unaired is erroneous.

 

[Christopher]

^Okay. Probably reports of the DOD's withdrawal of their support got magnified in secondhand accounts over the years into the network pulling the episode. Even so, that withdrawal of support does show that there was controversy and resistance to the story.

 

[J.T.B.]

I imagine the continued success of fantastic shows from the sixties owes a lot to those shows being widely and successfully syndicated to children and young adults. It's hard for people who aren't Matthew Weiner to be nostalgic for a show like The Defenders, a show for which simple availability is difficult, as it has never been on home video and is rarely syndicated even today.

That's an interesting point. Might reruns have had an effect on collective memory? When I was young the syndication market for hour-long shows weighed heavily toward western, crime and action-adventure shows. Dramas dealing with social issues didn't seem to be valued much. It was only in the era of digital side-channels that I got to see episodes of The Name of the Game and The Bold Ones. Not to mention The Fugitive, which was a ratings success and culturally significant, but I never saw an episode till the past year. It was an eye-opener to see stories dealing openly with abortion, race discrimination, illegal immigration and labor conditions in the 1963 first season.

 

[Trekkin]

My father had The Fugitive (including the finale) taped on VHS when I was younger, so it must have been reran at some point. They were usually mixed in with episodes of 'The Young Ones' of all things.

You can still catch Bonanza and I, Spy on reruns. Although the latter maybe not so much anymore.

 

[Harvey]

^Okay. Probably reports of the DOD's withdrawal of their support got magnified in secondhand accounts over the years into the network pulling the episode. Even so, that withdrawal of support does show that there was controversy and resistance to the story.

Yes, but the resistance came from the Pentagon, not from the studio (MGM) or the network (NBC). If either of those entities had objected, you can bet the episode wouldn't have gone before the cameras. Nonetheless, it's assured that both NBC and MGM were miffed that Roddenberry effectively lost Pentagon support with the episode, which meant that the series became more expensive overnight without the free supply of military personnel, equipment, and facilities that Pentagon support guaranteed.

That's an interesting point. Might reruns have had an effect on collective memory? When I was young the syndication market for hour-long shows weighed heavily toward western, crime and action-adventure shows. Dramas dealing with social issues didn't seem to be valued much. It was only in the era of digital side-channels that I got to see episodes of The Name of the Game and The Bold Ones. Not to mention The Fugitive, which was a ratings success and culturally significant, but I never saw an episode till the past year. It was an eye-opener to see stories dealing openly with abortion, race discrimination, illegal immigration and labor conditions in the 1963 first season.

Re-runs certainly shaped my first impressions of what television was like in the 1960s. And, based on a steady diet of things like Batman, Bewitched, The Andy Griffith Show, The Beverly Hillbillies, etc., it was easy to buy claims from Roddenberry (and others) about how ground-breaking Star Trek was compared to the rest of network television. Needless to say, those first impressions were certainly unfair.

Thanks to work, I've been able to watch The Bold Ones: The Senator. The pilot was dull and preachy, but the first two regular episodes were superb. How do the other Bold Ones shows hold up, in your estimation?

I've never seen The Fugitive (although I'm a big fan of the big screen movie, which I just re-watched over the weekend). Sounds like I should rectify that. I gather that the best way to watch it is in the complete series package that was released, since it restores all of the original music?

 

[Christopher]

My father had The Fugitive (including the finale) taped on VHS when I was younger, so it must have been reran at some point. They were usually mixed in with episodes of 'The Young Ones' of all things.

Oh, there were plenty of Fugitive reruns in syndication over the years. I caught the series on cable (probably TNT) in the '80s or '90s.

^Okay. Probably reports of the DOD's withdrawal of their support got magnified in secondhand accounts over the years into the network pulling the episode. Even so, that withdrawal of support does show that there was controversy and resistance to the story.

Yes, but the resistance came from the Pentagon, not from the studio (MGM) or the network (NBC). If either of those entities had objected, you can bet the episode wouldn't have gone before the cameras. Nonetheless, it's assured that both NBC and MGM were miffed that Roddenberry effectively lost Pentagon support with the episode, which meant that the series became more expensive overnight without the free supply of military personnel, equipment, and facilities that Pentagon support guaranteed.

Details aside, the point is that there definitely was some cultural resistance to dealing with controversy and that television producers who told controversial stories often found themselves penalized for it. I don't know why you seem to want to dismiss that as a myth. Certainly it's well-documented that Rod Serling faced such resistance and thus developed The Twilight Zone as a way of cloaking his statements in allegory. Surely you're not suggesting that Serling was as big a blowhard and exaggerator as Roddenberry was.

I've never seen The Fugitive (although I'm a big fan of the big screen movie, which I just re-watched over the weekend). Sounds like I should rectify that.

I probably don't have to tell you that the series is nothing like the movie aside from the basic premise. It was a drama rather than an action series, and was the template for later series like The Incredible Hulk, Nowhere Man, and other "lone hero wanders from city to city and gets involved in guest stars' lives" shows. Also, the pursuing lawman was police Lt. Philip Gerard (Barry Morse, who was terrific) rather than US Marshall Sam Gerard.

 

[Kor]

A famous episode of The Defenders entitled "The Benefactor," dealing with abortion, almost wasn't broadcast because the show's regular sponsors withdrew due to the controversial subject matter.

And this incident was dramatized about half a century later on Mad Men. (otherwise many of us would probably be unaware of it )

Kor

 

[Melakon]

I've never seen The Fugitive (although I'm a big fan of the big screen movie, which I just re-watched over the weekend). Sounds like I should rectify that.

Watch the 2-parter finale "The Judgment" last, because it wraps everything up. I believe it got the highest Nielsen ratings ever at the time.

 

[J.T.B.]

My father had The Fugitive (including the finale) taped on VHS when I was younger, so it must have been reran at some point.

Oh I'm sure it was. But not where I lived, where there were three network affiliates and one independent station, and no cable on my street till after I finished high school.

Thanks to work, I've been able to watch The Bold Ones: The Senator. The pilot was dull and preachy, but the first two regular episodes were superb. How do the other Bold Ones shows hold up, in your estimation?

I've only seen a handful, but I thought the Lawyers episodes were excellent. It might have been a little preachy, too, but Burl Ives could do it in his affable grandfather way. The New Doctors and the cop one I only saw one of each. They were good too, though I still think of David Hartman as the goofy Good Morning America guy. I never saw a Senator episode. A show for further research, for sure. So many shows...

I've never seen The Fugitive (although I'm a big fan of the big screen movie, which I just re-watched over the weekend). Sounds like I should rectify that. I gather that the best way to watch it is in the complete series package that was released, since it restores all of the original music?

I will defer to someone with more knowledge of the show than me, but that's what I think I will do before too long. I didn't keep up with the broadcast eps, and I'm sure they are cut up quite a bit.

 

[Harvey]

Yes, but the resistance came from the Pentagon, not from the studio (MGM) or the network (NBC). If either of those entities had objected, you can bet the episode wouldn't have gone before the cameras. Nonetheless, it's assured that both NBC and MGM were miffed that Roddenberry effectively lost Pentagon support with the episode, which meant that the series became more expensive overnight without the free supply of military personnel, equipment, and facilities that Pentagon support guaranteed.

Details aside, the point is that there definitely was some cultural resistance to dealing with controversy and that television producers who told controversial stories often found themselves penalized for it. I don't know why you seem to want to dismiss that as a myth. Certainly it's well-documented that Rod Serling faced such resistance and thus developed The Twilight Zone as a way of cloaking his statements in allegory. Surely you're not suggesting that Serling was as big a blowhard and exaggerator as Roddenberry was.

All I wanted to dismiss as a myth was the notion that writers like Roddenberry moved to sf to get thoughtful stories past the network censors (specifically meaning broadcast standards departments).

I also wanted to suggest that television in the 60s tackled more weighty issues than it is generally given credit for.

So, no, I certainly didn't mean to suggest Serling had Roddenberry's skill towards self-flattering exaggeration.

 

[xortex]

GR was Star Trek. Get used to it. You'll sleep better knowing there is a God. I don't think he would be happy with JJ's shoot em up atmosphere where winner takes all.

 

[Nerys Myk]

As long as the check cleared he'd get over it.

 

[xortex]

I thought the first scene was going to be Spock crying on his way to the bank. I'd rather have Brutus and Barrabbas back in the writing chairs. Er, Braga and Berman.