I realize that. However, from personal experience I know the author is correct that at some point the episode was shown in that form, if not necessarily when it was first broadcast. Any viewers here from 1966?
Fact-Checking Inside Star Trek: The Real Story
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I realize that. However, from personal experience I know the author is correct that at some point the episode was shown in that form, if not necessarily when it was first broadcast. Any viewers here from 1966?
I too recall that when I watched "Where No Man Has Gone Before" in syndication (Channel 5 KTLA on Sat. and Sun. at 5:00 PM) in the 1970ies - Shatner's opening narration of: "Space...the final frontier...et. al." was noticeably absent. Whether it was that way when it aired on NBC originally or in summer repeats IDK as the first 'first run' episode I remember watching on NBC myself was "Elaan of Troyius".
For what it's worth, this is what Memory Alpha (which as a Wiki, is of course subject to errors being added) has to say:
The aired version of this episode features a different version of the first season opening credits, which does not have William Shatner's opening narration, and uses a different orchestration of the main and end title themes. These orchestrations were used until mid-season during the original run and the initial syndication showings. However, in the 1980s, Paramount withdrew the prints from syndication and redistributed remastered and pre-cut episodes with standardized opening and closing credit music for the first season (using the Fred Steiner arrangement created for the back half of the season). These remastered prints were also used, in their uncut form, for the video and laserdisc releases. Only this episode was permitted to keep the original Alexander Courage arrangement. The 1999 DVD volumes, and later season sets, however, restored the opening credits to their original form, while leaving the end credits in their altered state (again, except for this episode which remains as originally aired).
The aired version of this episode features a different version of the first season opening credits, which does not have William Shatner's opening narration, and uses a different orchestration of the main and end title themes. These orchestrations were used until mid-season during the original run and the initial syndication showings. However, in the 1980s, Paramount withdrew the prints from syndication and redistributed remastered and pre-cut episodes with standardized opening and closing credit music for the first season (using the Fred Steiner arrangement created for the back half of the season). These remastered prints were also used, in their uncut form, for the video and laserdisc releases. Only this episode was permitted to keep the original Alexander Courage arrangement. The 1999 DVD volumes, and later season sets, however, restored the opening credits to their original form, while leaving the end credits in their altered state (again, except for this episode which remains as originally aired).
Again, until the original broadcasts can be confirmed, there's no way I'd take a wiki entry or Cushman's books or even the DVDs as concrete evidence. Too much has been altered over the years. If the original DMEs could be transferred and evaluated, that will provide the definitive answer. Until then it's just 40+ year old memories and guessing.
The season 3 DME I had contained the bumpers from Nimoy and Shatner. I remember Nimoy saying, "This is Leonard Nimoy. Stay tuned for exciting scenes from our next 'Star Trek'".
Neil
The season 3 DME I had contained the bumpers from Nimoy and Shatner. I remember Nimoy saying, "This is Leonard Nimoy. Stay tuned for exciting scenes from our next 'Star Trek'".
Neil
I clearly recall this in syndication until the mid-80s as well, along with the "silent phasers" in Balance of Terror (i.e. no photon torpedo sound effect). I had almost forgotten because the broadcast tapes my local station (WICS in Champaign IL) showed starting around 1985 were heavily edited so I completely stopped watching TOS until the first DVD box sets in 2004.
During the whole decade of the 1970s, when I watched the show in strip-syndication religiously, I heard a Nimoy voice-over like that only once. It was at the end of "The Menagerie, Part I" when they showed the trailer for Part II. Other than that single evening, they never showed the bumpers and trailers at all.
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1985 is about the time Paramount re-mastered the series and distributed it to syndication markets on video tape. The new transfers were better-looking than the worn 16mm prints, and the cuts for commercial time were done as a great-many very brief cuts, instead cutting a few whole scenes, the way local stations had been doing with the film prints.
In New York, they didn't run the previews, but in Connecticut they did. WTNH, I believe. I was able to pull the signal in with a fancy rotor my uncle hooked up and I got to watch pretty uncut Star Trek. When I first saw the trailers, I freaked. I was so used to the WPIX abominations, with whole scenes sliced and stepped on, that these Connecticut prints were a revelation.
Later, I discovered WTXX in CT ran the series, but I don't remember the previews being on those.
Wouldn't "Where No Man..." been completed well before the series proper began filming? Maybe there was no opening narration when it was presented to NBC? And possibly made it to air that way.
Seems silly that they would've spent time to re-edit it when they were already pressed for time getting incomplete episodes done.
Seems silly that they would've spent time to re-edit it when they were already pressed for time getting incomplete episodes done.
Probably not. Looking back at the unearthed copy of "Where No Man..." (special features from the season 3 Blu-ray), they would've had done some massive editing for airing. Plus, the theme isn't the same one used in the syndication version.
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From the latest blog by @Harvey: “'Where No Man Has Gone Before'” was being re-cut as of August 29, 1966, and therefore it wasn’t ready to air, either."
The version presented to NBC didn't have the familiar season 1 main theme (also used in "The Cage") and the electric violin version of the main titles was recorded at "The Man Trap" sessions, months after WNMHGB was screened for NBC. You can view the pilot version on the season 3 Blu-ray set.
Neil
The Fact Check article speciffically mentions the editing for the broadcast version done on August 29. The editing was not as massive as that done on the "The Cage" when it was inserted into "The Menagerie". I wonder if there is anyplace online or elswhere discussing the changes made for the 1970 syndication prints by Paramount (before local stations made their own cuts). Most discussion concerns the ones made for the 1985 ones and various home video format releases
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Probably hadn't been washed/drycleaned 50 times yet.
The current version of the series on DVD and Blu-ray was re-mastered in a way that brings out the green in Command shirts, a lot more than any previous versions ever seen. And it's not just WNMHGB, it's the whole series.
I prefer the yellow shade myself, which is how that yellow-green dye was always supposed to photograph under bright light.
Fantastic work Harvey, as always.
I hadn't heard about the audio bumpers from Nimoy and Shatner. I've tracked one down on Youtube Does anyone know if more exist?
While I'm on the subject. Does anyone know if the audio exists for the NBC announcement which went out on the first broadcast of The Devil In The Dark saying that Star Trek would return for a second season?
That's an interesting take on the subject. Do you have any facts to support this theory — which goes against all documented evidence to the contrary?
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