USS Grissom - why?

[Kirby]

Is it just me or is it a little tacky to name a ship that you know will be destroyed in a giant ball of fire after an astronaut that died in a fire aboard a spacecraft?

I think it's admirable that the producers wanted to do something to remember Gus and the crew of Apollo 1, but seriously, why the ship that gets blown up? Did Grissom's family ever comment on that? I did a brief search and couldn't find anything.

 

[Smellincoffee]

Is that astronaut the only possible inspiration for the name?

 

[cultcross]

Doubt that was deliberate, somehow. Perhaps reading a bit too much into it. A Grissom is involved with the Dominion War later on, I believe.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Is that astronaut the only possible inspiration for the name?

Somehow I doubt the guy from CSI could be the one.

 

[Dancing Doctor]

Doubt that was deliberate, somehow. Perhaps reading a bit too much into it. A Grissom is involved with the Dominion War later on, I believe.

There have been two Federation starships known to bear the name USS Grissom:

• USS Grissom (NCC-638), an Oberth-class starship
• USS Grissom (24th century), a ship that saw action in the Dominion War

Courtesy of Memory Alpha.

 

[Unicron]

Somehow I doubt the guy from CSI could be the one.

You never know.

 

[cardinal biggles]

You're all wrong. They named the ship after John Malkovich's character in Con Air, Cyrus "The Virus" Grissom.

 

[Lieut. Arex]

Is that astronaut the only possible inspiration for the name?

Somehow I doubt the guy from CSI could be the one.

Well, since he's named for Gus Grissom, that wouldn't avoid the issue, just add a degree of separation.

Zuiker... along with Petersen decided to rename the character for astronaut Gus Grissom...

 

[Timo]

I guess going up in a ball of fire should be considered an occupational hazard for all astronauts, be it in the 1960s, the 2000s or the 2260s. Why avoid the "connection"? Why feel bad about naming a ship after somebody who died violently, when a great many military vessels are named that way anyway?

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Kirby]

I guess going up in a ball of fire should be considered an occupational hazard for all astronauts, be it in the 1960s, the 2000s or the 2260s. Why avoid the "connection"? Why feel bad about naming a ship after somebody who died violently, when a great many military vessels are named that way anyway?

Timo Saloniemi

Well in reality that's fine, but the Grissom had an incompotent commander, and possibly the wussiest death of a starship in Trek history, not to mention pink chairs.
At least it didn't blow up coming out of space dock.

 

[Timo]

But did a prematurely opened hatch play a role in her destruction? (Wait, that was the Tsiolkovsky.)

Timo Saloniemi

 

[TransporterBeam]

We never saw another USS Grissom did we?

 

[cardinal biggles]

Saw, no. They did refer to one several times, though. The Enterprise was supposed to be supplied by the Grissom in "The Most Toys." This ship was later destroyed during the Dominion War. According to the Encyclopedia, it was an Excelsior-class ship.

There was an Excelsior-class Grissom that Mackenzie Calhoun served on in the New Frontier novel Once Burned, so it's likely this was the same ship as well.

 

[SchwEnt]

I agree with the OP. This bothered me waaayyy back in 1984 when I first saw it.
Still does.

Very very excellent for them to have a ship named "Grissom".
(at the time, there was not nearly so much ST in existence and it was pretty special)

And yes, it *was* in bad taste to have Grissom meet a fiery demise, like her namesake.
Why? What is that supposed to be? Irony? Bad luck? Happenstance?

Really...if that's what was going to happen to the ship, name it something else that's equally great and avoid the whole messy coincidence. Hell, even switch "Grissom" and "Excelsior" in the film. Whatever.

Glad I'm not the only one disturbed by it.

 

[cardinal biggles]

Given their shoddy track record, I think this should have been the Pinto Class, not the Oberth Class.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

Oberths definitely seem cursed.

 

[Dancing Doctor]

It's not just that they suck, it's also because they're ugly.

"Dude, we've graduated from Starfleet Academy!"

"Yeah!"

"Where're you assigned?"

"Epsilon IX, that station way far away."

"Dude, I'm sorry."

"What about you?"

"I got the Grissom."

*hysterical laughter*

"OMG, STFU dude!"

Oberth-class starships: The combustible flying human shield that explodes when a Gorn looks at it cross-eyed

**Brought to you by Weyland-Yutani, in a joint agreement with Yoyodyne Propulsion**

 

[RobertScorpio]

Is that astronaut the only possible inspiration for the name?

Somehow I doubt the guy from CSI could be the one.

hah!!! good one!

 

[cardinal biggles]

Their gradual disappearance from the fleet is largely credited to the runaway success of R'lph Nadeur's Unsafe at Any Warp Speed.

 

[SeanMcC]

The Starship Pegasus met a bad end as well: Half phased in rock and almost all the crew wiped out.