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STARTREKHISTORY.COM BACK ONLINE

Capt.Mac

Commander
Red Shirt
We're finally back online! We hope you enjoy the new look and format. We have previous material and new content for your perusal. Because of the time involved in recreating the site not all of the areas of interest are ready for viewing. We hope to rectify this with updating the site on a more timely basis.

http://www.startrekhistory.com

Curt
 
Thanks, Curt. I just went through the Locations stuff, and it's wonderful. So cool to see exactly where certain Trek scenes were filmed (the detail you worked out for Archons was amazing), as well as other movies and TV shows.

Doug
 
The analysis of the Culver City backlot shoots is impressive. I'm surprised at how often the various shots were consistent with one another about where the actors were in the backlot, only occasionally doing the kind of location jumps like having Kirk and Spock run into one alley in one shot and be in a different one in the next. If you compare "Arena" to the real geography of Vasquez Rocks, you can tell they're jumping all over the place from shot to shot, their movements not corresponding to reality at all (because there were only so many positions and angles you could shoot, particularly with that big "Cestus III" fortress standing nearby at the time).

Any more shots of the Desilu soundstages at Culver City? I just saw the first-season Mission: Impossible episode "Action!" which takes place in a film studio, and the studio exteriors they showed didn't seem to match the photo of Desilu's main studio (the one next to Paramount) at the front of Inside Star Trek. However, looking at the photo of the Culver City soundstage complex on the site, I think it may have been shot there. Which is odd, given that M:I was filmed on the main lot, right next door to the Trek stages. Maybe the main studio was too busy for them to film exterior scenes of a fake studio there. (How far was the Culver City "40 Acres" backlot from the Desilu/Paramount lot?)
 
Cool beans seeing this back up again! Excellent stuff.

There are a few problems with the 40 Acres section related to Miri. A few of the indicate setups and angles don't match the screen grabs accompanying them. They're minor errors, but errors nonetheless.

  • Miri - Alternate Angle: The camera is positioned on the wrong side of the street to get the angle shown. It should be on the other side of the street, because in the episode it's pointing at the pillared stoop of Andy Griffith's courthouse, not down the street indicated here.
  • Miri - Beamdown: The camera should be further to the left amongst the buildings there, as the actors are standing between that spot and the central building (Rusk Hotel in the episode). I looked at some other photos of the lot from other angles to verify this (mostly at http://www.retroweb.com/40acres.html).
  • Miri - Chase Scene: The camera looks like it's further to the left, just in front of the building marked the Rusk Hotel (with it's 2nd floor overhanging turret room), as camera position indicated here could not actually see up the length of the street beyond the theater marquee as seen in the screenshot.
Minor nitpicks, but great stuff1
 
For three years, I used to drive down W. Washington in Culver City everyday to get to my apartment. Who knew I was so close to Star Trek history.
 
The analysis of the Culver City backlot shoots is impressive. I'm surprised at how often the various shots were consistent with one another about where the actors were in the backlot, only occasionally doing the kind of location jumps like having Kirk and Spock run into one alley in one shot and be in a different one in the next. If you compare "Arena" to the real geography of Vasquez Rocks, you can tell they're jumping all over the place from shot to shot, their movements not corresponding to reality at all (because there were only so many positions and angles you could shoot, particularly with that big "Cestus III" fortress standing nearby at the time).

Any more shots of the Desilu soundstages at Culver City? I just saw the first-season Mission: Impossible episode "Action!" which takes place in a film studio, and the studio exteriors they showed didn't seem to match the photo of Desilu's main studio (the one next to Paramount) at the front of Inside Star Trek. However, looking at the photo of the Culver City soundstage complex on the site, I think it may have been shot there. Which is odd, given that M:I was filmed on the main lot, right next door to the Trek stages. Maybe the main studio was too busy for them to film exterior scenes of a fake studio there. (How far was the Culver City "40 Acres" backlot from the Desilu/Paramount lot?)

Many of the Mission: Impossible exteriors for the first season were filmed at 40 Acres (the Culver City backlot), but I don't believe any later seasons filmed there. See http://www.retroweb.com/40acres_tour.html , which includes several M:I screen captures.

Also, congratulations to Curt and crew for the re-launch of startrekhistory.com !
 
Awesome! I've got a new site in my Favorites file now! I look forward to going through the entire site at my leisure!
 
Awesome! I've got a new site in my Favorites file now! I look forward to going through the entire site at my leisure!

Agreed. I have never been to that site until last night. Loved the old pics of the models and the one where you can see the guy behind the Balok ship....

Rob
 
Cool beans seeing this back up again! Excellent stuff.

There are a few problems with the 40 Acres section related to Miri. A few of the indicate setups and angles don't match the screen grabs accompanying them. They're minor errors, but errors nonetheless.

  • Miri - Alternate Angle: The camera is positioned on the wrong side of the street to get the angle shown. It should be on the other side of the street, because in the episode it's pointing at the pillared stoop of Andy Griffith's courthouse, not down the street indicated here.
  • Miri - Beamdown: The camera should be further to the left amongst the buildings there, as the actors are standing between that spot and the central building (Rusk Hotel in the episode). I looked at some other photos of the lot from other angles to verify this (mostly at http://www.retroweb.com/40acres.html).
  • Miri - Chase Scene: The camera looks like it's further to the left, just in front of the building marked the Rusk Hotel (with it's 2nd floor overhanging turret room), as camera position indicated here could not actually see up the length of the street beyond the theater marquee as seen in the screenshot.
Minor nitpicks, but great stuff1

I believe the "Chase" scene was filmed from the roof of the polygonal building ("Rusk Hotel"). Also, you're correct that the "Alternate Angle" camera location should be across the street from the location indicated. The beamdown camera location is just east of this building (you can see the corner of this building to the left in the beamdown image)

3d_reprisal_bar&grill_ray_traced_t.jpg


Like you said, these are minor nitpicks for what is a fantastic presentation!
 
Hey, is that Floyd's barbershop from Mayberry in City of the Edge of Forever?
And Emmet's repair shop?
 
Many of the Mission: Impossible exteriors for the first season were filmed at 40 Acres (the Culver City backlot), but I don't believe any later seasons filmed there. See http://www.retroweb.com/40acres_tour.html , which includes several M:I screen captures.

Doesn't help me. Those are all shots of the backlot area. I'm looking for shots of the actual Desilu soundstage complex at Culver City, the one where the Star Trek pilots were filmed. As I said, "Action!" was set at a motion picture studio -- not a backlot, but the actual studio with soundstages and office buildings and gates and such. That's the area I'm interested in seeing pictures of.
 
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