New life and new CIVILIZATIONS

[KirkPicard]

After being a hardcore TOS fan for over 30 years, just recently observed that Kirk's opening monologue has a nuanced difference in delivery between Season 1 and Season 3. I always thought the monologue was recorded once during production of "Dagger of the Mind." Listen to Season 1 and you will hear "civilizations" and Seasons 2-3 "civil-I-zations" Anyone else observe this over the years?

 

[ZapBrannigan]

The long I sound as third syllable is the Canadian pronunciation. Kirk also pronounced docile (Wink of an Eye) and futile (Spock's Brain) with a long I.

 

[Prax]

Interesting. Kirk says "Prime Directive" like Dər-rective, but Tracey pronounces it like Dye-rective.

 

[Winterwind]

The long I sound as third syllable is the Canadian pronunciation. Kirk also pronounced docile (Wink of an Eye) and futile (Spock's Brain) with a long I.

Heh. I thought everyone used the long "I" in those words. I've never consciously noticed if Americans don't.

 

[johnnybear]

Do you mean Do-Cile or Dossill? And which one do you say Kirk says?
JB

 

[Push The Button]

Tronquility

 

[Lance]

After being a hardcore TOS fan for over 30 years, just recently observed that Kirk's opening monologue has a nuanced difference in delivery between Season 1 and Season 3. I always thought the monologue was recorded once during production of "Dagger of the Mind." Listen to Season 1 and you will hear "civilizations" and Seasons 2-3 "civil-I-zations" Anyone else observe this over the years?

The long I sound as third syllable is the Canadian pronunciation. Kirk also pronounced docile (Wink of an Eye) and futile (Spock's Brain) with a long I.

Interesting. Kirk says "Prime Directive" like Dər-rective, but Tracey pronounces it like Dye-rective.

See also Sabot-ahge vs Sabot-arge.

Nimoy's pronunciation of words is interesting, too, in TOS he often pronounces words like Chance with the Recieced Pronunciation, where later during the movies this was an aspect of his performance he dropped.

 

[johnnybear]

One minute he stepped through and the next therough in All Our Yesterdays! Not sure if that was a slip or what?
JB

 

[drt]

Heh. I thought everyone used the long "I" in those words. I've never consciously noticed if Americans don't.

Maybe a regional thing, everywhere I've lived in the Western US the predominant pronunciation is with a long "i".

 

[johnnybear]

If we're getting onto ways the actors speak then I've always noticed Leonard Nimoy's use of the word Duktorr and DeForest Kelley missing out some D's in his sentences like Barren Worll or Her's is the mind of a chile instead of child!
JB

 

[ZapBrannigan]

If we're getting onto ways the actors speak then I've always noticed Leonard Nimoy's use of the word Duktorr and DeForest Kelley missing out some D's in his sentences like Barren Worll or Her's is the mind of a chile instead of child!
JB

Nimoy would say senSOR to make Spock sound different, exotic, and somehow smarter or more serious than the rest of us. "And on my moniTOR screen, I could Mitchell smiling each time it happened." I didn't notice it as much on Doctor.

Kelley was going the other way, making McCoy sound down-home and folksy to American Southerners.

 

[johnnybear]

A good old country gentleman!
JB

 

[Qonundrum]

Toe-mate-oh, Tom-ah-to, gerbil-goo, it's all the same thing.

 

[johnnybear]

Levver or Le-ver as well as Left-Tennant to Lew-Tennant! The list goes on and on...
JB

 

[Ssosmcin]

I knew we talked about this recently. It was changed in the first season...

https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/star-trek-s1-intro-narration-variation.297383/

 

[KirkPicard]

Were both "civilizations" variants recorded during the same session I wonder?

 

[ZapBrannigan]

Were both "civilizations" variants recorded during the same session I wonder?

I would guess he took direction during one session, surely the earliest one, and went his own way in the later recording. I remember Shatner saying somewhere (possibly in Star Trek Memories) that he re-did the narration several times because he was never quite happy with it.

 

[FormerLurker]

Nimoy would say senSOR to make Spock sound different, exotic, and somehow smarter or more serious than the rest of us. "And on my moniTOR screen, I could Mitchell smiling each time it happened." I didn't notice it as much on Doctor.

Kelley was going the other way, making McCoy sound down-home and folksy to American Southerners.

Early on Nimoy was trying to play Spock as if English was his second language, and as such his diction was intentionally more precise so natural English speakers wouldn't misunderstand him. This slowly faded over time, and by the movie era, Spock was apparently comfortable enough with his English that he developed certain quirks that Nimoy no longer attempted to keep out of his portrayal.

 

[johnnybear]

Good theory and maybe Spock was brought up with more Vulcan language than English as a child!
JB

 

[Tenacity]

^ Amanda's first language could of something other than English. With English a second, and vulcan her third.

One of the early fan fictions had Amanda working as a linguist developing a updated universal translator software program, this is how she met a low level vulcan diplomat (Sarek).