This is the crowd I'd love to quiz as to their thoughts comparing the pilot(s) to what they later saw on TV, particularly The Menagerie.
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Watching Star Trek for the first time (again)
- Thread starter Neopeius
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This is the crowd I'd love to quiz as to their thoughts comparing the pilot(s) to what they later saw on TV, particularly The Menagerie.
Along with the beleaguered 3-footer, you can see the photographer's reflection as he takes the picture. But the Andrea model is the main subject. That must have been the screen-worn costume.
There were several screen worn costumes at the convention, including a Starfleet miniskirt and a Romulan costume worn by Roddenberry himself.
I saw that picture but didn't realize it was GR on stage. That's amazing.
Last night was.. interesting. Our first collision with "the real world" as it were.
We watched "The Naked Time" last night, and it was an interesting experience. For one, viewership was up 50% (the lure of Sulu shirtless was a strong draw).
But the other was that this was the first time we had a lot of teenagers watching it, and most unfamiliar with Star Trek.
I'm 47. My usual crowd has a median age in their late 30s. Most folks who've joined us through Discord for Trek are in their 30s to 50s, though we have at least one in her 20s.
For those of us watching at home, we watch on an analog TV via signals broadcast through the air on Channel 9. That means all the TVs in the house can tune in (don't call the FCC -- the range is pretty much limited to my house
) The experience is actually quite authentic. Everything is pre-programmed, so if folks aren't in front of a TV at 8:30, they will miss some of the episode. There are commercial breaks with period commercials. NBC bumpers. Daniel Boone comes on before and The Hero afterwards. (I even have a second transmitter and am thinking of setting up a CBS or ABC station alongside so one can channel switch).
For folks in their 30s and above, this is nothing short of miraculous. Actual television the way it used to be. Combine that with my two FM stations (again, local only) that recreate 1966 to the month, and they think it's the coolest, most immersive thing.
But teenagers...
These are folks who don't even remember analog tv. Television is something streamed through a computer or smart tv. Music is a computerized playlist or YouTube videos. It's not like when I play a record for them -- then they can see the black disc go round and round. But if something is on the TV, even if it's a big boxy thing rather than a flat screen, well it might as well be a monitor. And how big a deal is it to get any media one wants? Yawnsville.
And the radio? Music. Big deal. Songs coming out of thin air is nothing new. I wonder if kids can even tell the difference between music from good speakers and tinny cell phones? (I suppose hi-fi fans might have asked the same of their kids listening to their tinkly pocket transistors).
I think they're enjoying the show. They seemed to like Mission: Impossible, too, perhaps even more. But they're so removed from the context that they can't even imagine what the context might have been.
We did have one kid at dinner ask if, since this was 1966, we should all be racists. We had to explain that racism was both more and less pervasive than one might think, deeper and uglier and more geographically widespread than today, but still widely reviled and fought against. Kids have a little bit of political grounding in the era, at least, because of school, but it's at arm's length. I wish they'd gotten a chance to see the CBS Presents this week: "Black Power, White Backlash", hosted by Mike Wallace. Enlightening, powerful, and a bit plus ça change.
Anyway, just my random thoughts. The review for "The Naked Time" will come out next week. In the meantime, I'd be interested to hear from young fans if they grok the context for TOS, or if it's just another of many TV shows to them. I imagine most of the folks in this forum are my age and older, but I could be wrong.
We watched "The Naked Time" last night, and it was an interesting experience. For one, viewership was up 50% (the lure of Sulu shirtless was a strong draw).
But the other was that this was the first time we had a lot of teenagers watching it, and most unfamiliar with Star Trek.
I'm 47. My usual crowd has a median age in their late 30s. Most folks who've joined us through Discord for Trek are in their 30s to 50s, though we have at least one in her 20s.
For those of us watching at home, we watch on an analog TV via signals broadcast through the air on Channel 9. That means all the TVs in the house can tune in (don't call the FCC -- the range is pretty much limited to my house
) The experience is actually quite authentic. Everything is pre-programmed, so if folks aren't in front of a TV at 8:30, they will miss some of the episode. There are commercial breaks with period commercials. NBC bumpers. Daniel Boone comes on before and The Hero afterwards. (I even have a second transmitter and am thinking of setting up a CBS or ABC station alongside so one can channel switch).For folks in their 30s and above, this is nothing short of miraculous. Actual television the way it used to be. Combine that with my two FM stations (again, local only) that recreate 1966 to the month, and they think it's the coolest, most immersive thing.
But teenagers...
These are folks who don't even remember analog tv. Television is something streamed through a computer or smart tv. Music is a computerized playlist or YouTube videos. It's not like when I play a record for them -- then they can see the black disc go round and round. But if something is on the TV, even if it's a big boxy thing rather than a flat screen, well it might as well be a monitor. And how big a deal is it to get any media one wants? Yawnsville.
And the radio? Music. Big deal. Songs coming out of thin air is nothing new. I wonder if kids can even tell the difference between music from good speakers and tinny cell phones? (I suppose hi-fi fans might have asked the same of their kids listening to their tinkly pocket transistors).
I think they're enjoying the show. They seemed to like Mission: Impossible, too, perhaps even more. But they're so removed from the context that they can't even imagine what the context might have been.
We did have one kid at dinner ask if, since this was 1966, we should all be racists. We had to explain that racism was both more and less pervasive than one might think, deeper and uglier and more geographically widespread than today, but still widely reviled and fought against. Kids have a little bit of political grounding in the era, at least, because of school, but it's at arm's length. I wish they'd gotten a chance to see the CBS Presents this week: "Black Power, White Backlash", hosted by Mike Wallace. Enlightening, powerful, and a bit plus ça change.
Anyway, just my random thoughts. The review for "The Naked Time" will come out next week. In the meantime, I'd be interested to hear from young fans if they grok the context for TOS, or if it's just another of many TV shows to them. I imagine most of the folks in this forum are my age and older, but I could be wrong.
A nice bit of business about our 50th anniversary rewatch for the first year and a half was that the days and dates lined up the same, so we were actually watching on Thursdays as the NBC Peacock intended.
Oh that is cool. Yes, it's a shame about the day difference, although since we work from home, what are days anyway?
Did you have a big group for your rewatch?
Several of us were watching individually and posting about it in this thread.
Even after the days and dates fell out of sync (for 50th anniversary business, they keep falling in and out every two years as the respective eras' leap years aren't in sync), for Trek and the other shows that I was watching as anniversary business, I tried to keep in rough day of the week sync, as it seemed more immersive than the calendar date. It can feel like a Thursday, but what does the 8th of the month feel like?
Of course, as I added more shows, I was pretty rough about exactly when I watched them, as long as it was the right week. The point for me was to watch the shows, not to authentically miss them.
Even after the days and dates fell out of sync (for 50th anniversary business, they keep falling in and out every two years as the respective eras' leap years aren't in sync), for Trek and the other shows that I was watching as anniversary business, I tried to keep in rough day of the week sync, as it seemed more immersive than the calendar date. It can feel like a Thursday, but what does the 8th of the month feel like?
Of course, as I added more shows, I was pretty rough about exactly when I watched them, as long as it was the right week. The point for me was to watch the shows, not to authentically miss them.
Of course, as I added more shows, I was pretty rough about exactly when I watched them, as long as it was the right week. The point for me was to watch the shows, not to authentically miss them.
Hahaha. Yes. Though if you have a summer rerun program, you can catch them then. That's how I got into Addams Family and I, Spy, for instance. I kept catching snippets and come summer made a concerted effort to watch them. And I had time because I'd spent the first run season watching other stuff.
I do work back-viewing into the hiatus season, but it's usually other series, not "missed" episodes from the main season (unless they weren't available to me at the time).
Tonight was "The Enemy Within" -- back to normal viewership levels (partly because Lorelei had to babysit so we didn't have all her friends over). The assault scene was...hard to take. I know Janice (the Journey's editor, not Yeoman Rand) is going to be discussing it in her part of our coverage.
I was fascinated by "evil Kirk". After all, he's as much Kirk as "good Kirk" and I found myself really intrigued by what was going on in his mind. How relieved he must have felt when he first stepped off that transporter not to have that pesky conscience holding him back.
It was difficult to see earlier Spock. The out-of-order viewing makes for inconsistent watching and must have been rather confusing to the average viewer.
Our coverage of "The Naked Time" went up this morning. Enjoy!
I was fascinated by "evil Kirk". After all, he's as much Kirk as "good Kirk" and I found myself really intrigued by what was going on in his mind. How relieved he must have felt when he first stepped off that transporter not to have that pesky conscience holding him back.
It was difficult to see earlier Spock. The out-of-order viewing makes for inconsistent watching and must have been rather confusing to the average viewer.
Our coverage of "The Naked Time" went up this morning. Enjoy!
A second point, one that I can only really share here:
Watching Trek with period commercials is an experience I highly recommend. It's how Trek was meant to be watched -- not with several minutes cut out of every episode, not with modern commercials in between, not with janky already outdated special effects. The short commercial break is a brief pause, a chance to reflect and catch one's breath. When the music sting and the captain's log brings you back from the break, it's all the more thrilling.
Which brings me to a point Janice brought up. These commercials feel old. Even to a 1966 mindset, they tend to be conservative (many are aimed at older people whose fashion and sensibilities fossilized in the 40s and 50s). Star Trek feels modern, timeless. To get wrenched into 1966, particularly the world portrayed in commercials, can be a little jarring.
So this is what the Journey in general, and this rewatch in particular, brings to the table. It revives an experience very few of us got to experience firsthand, and if we did, there's little chance our memories are unalloyed after fifty five years. We're enjoying it. I hope you're enjoying hearing about it.
Watching Trek with period commercials is an experience I highly recommend. It's how Trek was meant to be watched -- not with several minutes cut out of every episode, not with modern commercials in between, not with janky already outdated special effects. The short commercial break is a brief pause, a chance to reflect and catch one's breath. When the music sting and the captain's log brings you back from the break, it's all the more thrilling.
Which brings me to a point Janice brought up. These commercials feel old. Even to a 1966 mindset, they tend to be conservative (many are aimed at older people whose fashion and sensibilities fossilized in the 40s and 50s). Star Trek feels modern, timeless. To get wrenched into 1966, particularly the world portrayed in commercials, can be a little jarring.
So this is what the Journey in general, and this rewatch in particular, brings to the table. It revives an experience very few of us got to experience firsthand, and if we did, there's little chance our memories are unalloyed after fifty five years. We're enjoying it. I hope you're enjoying hearing about it.
You've heard that television rots your brain? It is the commercials that do the rotting.
"Mr. Spook" -- hahahahaa!
It ain't easy, but I have to maintain enough ads as episode bumpers for the rest of the station (currently 30 hours of programming) so I have them close at hand. Not only do I collect them, but I make sure they're the right aspect ratio and clean up the colors as best I can. Then I https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIzbXI8gA5EX67SbloB321ghttps://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIzbXI8gA5EX67SbloB321g so others can enjoy them.
No, no -- it's shows like Batman and Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea that do the rotting!
*ducks*
FANAC.org has PDFs of a lot of old fanzines. I’ve been reading Juanita and Robert “Buck” Coulsons’ fanzine YANDRO from that era — they were at Tricon, and were early Star Trek fans. I really enjoy reactions from established SF fans reacting to Trek “live”, as it were. Not to mention all their coverage of the “stf” world of the time. YANDRO 167 has a letter from Roddenberry, which, coming some time in late 1966, has to be one of his first interactions with sf fandom, after Tricon, that is.
Thanks for that. Yes, I have been going through FANAC's newszines since 1960. I print them out as they come out and enjoy them. Sadly, Science Fiction Times has become irregular and much-delayed. It's a pity as they were amazing for years.
Some friends run a Trek 'zine archive and I currently have access to every extant 1960s Trek zine. The collection starts in January '67 (not counting the YANDRO you mention) and we'll have reading parties for them.
Going back to the original theme of the thread, here's a threefer from last night's (10-07-66) episode of Laredo:
Kodos the Executioner, when he was still in the Mexican Army.
An long-distant ancestor of Lt. Marlena Moreau.
John Hoyt once again makes a turn as a Mexican.
and, as a special bonus, here's Vic Tayback as a schmuck of a goon on The Monkees on 10-03-66:
Kodos the Executioner, when he was still in the Mexican Army.
An long-distant ancestor of Lt. Marlena Moreau.
John Hoyt once again makes a turn as a Mexican.
and, as a special bonus, here's Vic Tayback as a schmuck of a goon on The Monkees on 10-03-66:
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