Nah. Not canon.
Why was Uhura so underused?
- Thread starter Gotham Central
- Start date
Thing is, she was not a co-star. She wasn't even a series regular. She was a recurring role. People forget that these days, but for that level of casting, she got an awful lot of screen time - so much so that the 'powers that be' were threatening to kick her off the show completely due to Union violations.
Since we're not arguing a 'canon' issue, and discussing Nichols' use in the show... yeah, gotta say that the animated series definately counts.
Not at all, and thinking that shows a profound ignorance of that period in time, how Desilu and NBC operated, as well as your hyper-partisan choice of 'conservative'.
Desilu, as a matter of record, actually sent memos to Gene Roddenberry specifically to 'color the cast'. Roddenberry and Nichols liked to claim to be 'crusaders against the network', but they were both completely and utterly full of shit. It was Roddenberry's casting that gave us the All WASP crew of the Enterprise, along with the blatant sexism found in the 'Cage'. It was Desilu that ordered the changes.
number6
Vice Admiral
QFT. There was also a sitcom around that time called Julia, starring Diahann Carroll.. and it was the first sitcom that had a balck woman in a starring role.
A lot of the accusations about sexisim GR claimed on behalf of the network were bullshit. They were more concerned that GR was pushing these unknown talents because he was sleeping with them.
I know I'm being a total dick for even pointing it out, but when someone uses "away mission" in reference to the original series, it just leaps out at me.
But it happens all the time. Not me being a dick, I mean, the use of the term (or, ugh, "away team") rather than "landing parties". Oh, what fun to be a picky a-hole. LOL
Very much so according to Inside Star Trek: The Real Story. Justman states that Roddenberry kept pushing Nichelle Nichols into the scripts even though she wasn't hired as a regular but as a day player. They finally gave her a "featured credit" instead of a higher pay rate. (Justman, Solow 154)
Moreover, Justman wasn't aware, at first, that Nichols and Roddenberry had a "more than just a platonic friendship." (153)
According to Solow, Nichols claimed that Roddenberry agreed that she'd get $1000 per episode with a ten out of 13 episode appearance plus co-star billing. Solow states that Roddenberry fully knew that the show couldn't afford that and used the network suits as a scapegoat for the reason she never got the billing or the money. (155)
The suits wanted a multi-ethnic cast but was leery of Roddenberry's "women" being shoehorned into the show especially with the more obvious Majel Barret (M. Leigh Hudac).
And this is why, as I've stated elsewhere, I come down on Roddenberry so much. It's that his 'laudization' for all his supposed 'victories' are blatant falsehoods which deliberately victimize people who not only not deserve it, but were the real champions of things that Roddenberry took credit for.
For instance, which director and producer had 'the kiss' in their resume? Hint, it wasn't Roddenberry, yet he took credit for that scene until his dying day.
For instance, which director and producer had 'the kiss' in their resume? Hint, it wasn't Roddenberry, yet he took credit for that scene until his dying day.
No, I'm not ignorant.
And no, I'm not kissing Gene's ass, either.
But you're telling me they would prefer having a black actor take a leading role when just a guy who had pointed ears and slanted eyebrows caused an uproar?
She was in the background, much like Spock was supposed to be during the early years of the show.
Julia was not until 1968. That's ONE out of many shows and I have heard many complaints and read many reviews of the era which said although they were allowed to be shown on TV, they were by no means meant to be featured in a competent light.
Even Julia was a compromise between promoting a leading black actress and the prevailing white sensibilities at the time.
Gene exaggerated but I think you are, too, Vance.
And no, I'm not kissing Gene's ass, either.
But you're telling me they would prefer having a black actor take a leading role when just a guy who had pointed ears and slanted eyebrows caused an uproar?
She was in the background, much like Spock was supposed to be during the early years of the show.
Julia was not until 1968. That's ONE out of many shows and I have heard many complaints and read many reviews of the era which said although they were allowed to be shown on TV, they were by no means meant to be featured in a competent light.
Even Julia was a compromise between promoting a leading black actress and the prevailing white sensibilities at the time.
Gene exaggerated but I think you are, too, Vance.
I'm not saying Gene exaggerated, I'm saying that Gene was an outright liar, and demonstrably so. Since the actual, honest to God letters have been posted here several times, it's pretty damn obvious where the truth is - and Gene Roddenberry had about as much respect for the truth as he did for women.
As for Spock, the only complaint that I saw in writing from anyone at NBC or Desilu that that idea of a Martian of a space alien was terrible. And, yes, Spock was supposed to be a Martian in "The Cage". If Spock's presence was really oh so offensive to the network, do you really think they would have funded the damn show?
TheLonelySquire
Vice Admiral
According to Justman and Solow, Roddenberry used her quite a bit! Oh wait, you meant on screen.
I think she had plenty of face time. Surely as much as anyone after the Big-3. She was fabulous and beautiful too.
I think she had plenty of face time. Surely as much as anyone after the Big-3. She was fabulous and beautiful too.
Not underused, but misused. Nichols demonstrated in early episodes like "The Man Trap" that she could do quiet moments and had enough range to pull off real drama. But she rarely was given the opportunity to do more than act as a switchboard operator. Occasionally she vamped and chewed scenery, as in "Mirror, Mirror, but by then, the series had pretty much shifted from thoughtfulness to a more more space opera-y approach. I will say that as much as I liked her as Uhura, and thought that she dressed up the set very well, I would cringe every time she "sang."
TheLonelySquire
Vice Admiral
I think there is a distinction between the series and the later cartoon. By that time the secondary characters were starting to be perceived by fans and some of the cast as equal to Kirk, Spock, and McCoy. Which continued into the films. But that mindset was not in place during the show's original production.
I think Scotty, Sulu, Uhura, and Chekhov grew more important through syndication viewings. Where fans studied every detail of that world. So while those characters had little significance in terms of actual plots, they were important on the Enterprise. Along with the actors' appearances at conventions during the 70s. Building relationships with the fans created demand to see more of those characters.
Don't mean to be negative, but what else could she have done?
When was there a time in an episode where one says, "why can't Uhura do that?"
Maybe, that time when an irritated Kirk scolded her for having her settings on "wide field."
When was there a time in an episode where one says, "why can't Uhura do that?"
Maybe, that time when an irritated Kirk scolded her for having her settings on "wide field."
^ I think there are many opportunities where Spock is seen doing something that could have been better suited to Uhura, such as decoding a message for example. Similarly, I tend to think that Spock has his hands in too many engineering matters that Scotty should have been tasked with. But most of that has to do with the realities of 60's television: Shatner and Nimoy (and from the 2nd season, Kelley), were the principle actors and, thus, they were expected to get the majority of the screentime. True ensemble shows really had not yet come to be.
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