William Shatner’s Finest TOS Performance?

[Maurice]

A number of adventure shows that had gone a tad silly recoiled from that after the Batman boom went bust. The Man From U.N.C.L.E. sure did in its final truncated season. Roddenberry sold Trek as an adult sci-fi action adventure. While his memos demonstrate that he liked humor that was appropriate to the story and in character, he was always concerned that the show not get silly or ridiculous.

I think the third season was a bit of an overcorrection, but the show was moved to an adult-time timeslot, and Freiberger was trying everything he could to retain viewers and grab new ones, which included the Melvin Belli stunt casting and the interracial smooch (that he advertised in Variety and The Hollywood Reporter).

 

[willa6276m]

But I dunno where people got the idea Roddenberry disliked comedy. ...

I think people got the idea because it's true.
David Gerrold, screenwriter of "The Trouble with Tribbles," is one source.

Gerrold discussed the Tribbles controversy on the Enterprise Incidents podcast for that episode. He was on set for filming of many scenes, and was very clear on the podcast that Roddenberry was furious at the comedy in Tribbles. Quoting:

"[The scene where hundreds of tribbles fell on Kirk] "was the beginning of the falling out [between Rodenberry and Coon]. There's no question in my mind that 'The Trouble with Tribbles' was the reason Gene L. Coon got fired.... He loved Star Trek. And being fired off Star Trek was a major issue for him, major blow."

 

[willa6276m]

IIRC, NBC had the option to pick up a few more episodes, but didn't exercise it, and the show would have known that in advance. The network could often be slow to give orders, but that's beyond last-minute. And I'm pretty sure there were no other scripts in the production pipeline, but I could check.

A thread in this forum said the name of the episode Shatner was scheduled to direct was "The Joy Machine."

https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/unfilmed-3rd-season-episodes.310313/

According to Memory Alpha:

"The Joy Machine" was set to be produced as the 25th episode of the season, and the directorial debut of William Shatner. However, NBC cancelled the series after only 24 episodes of the third season, thus making "Turnabout Intruder" the last episode produced.

https://memory-alpha.fandom.com/wiki/Undeveloped_Star_Trek:_The_Original_Series_episodes

 

[Maurice]

@willa6276m, we're coming at things from two very different trajectories.

Spoiler: Details about Fact Trek most longtime members here know

Us: Anecdotes are not fact. Hence "Fact Trek".

That's a mantra we've repeated in many of the articles we've published. Human memory is faulty. Oral history is subjective. Deborah Arakelian (assistant to the producers on Star Trek II and a production assistant on Star Trek III) told a story about John Belushi visiting the Trek II set the day before he died, and we thoroughly debunked that (link). That Gerrold has had an ax to grind with the Great Bird since TNG makes anything said since caveat emptor territory.

Memory Alpha is a wiki that often doesn't cite sources, and it's only as accurate as the people who write/edit it; people who are mostly fans. (For years the entry on Madlyn Rhue contained a story about her that was based on a fan anecdote and ended up being a case of citeogensis).

Here's what we know about "The Joy Machine" from primary sources:

The last writers report in the Roddenberry papers at UCLA from 3/28/68 (wrapping up the second season reports—there are none for the third) indicates Sturgeon delivered a "The Joy Machine" script on 11/13/67, and the status for that is "rewrite needed."

The last extant memo we've found on the subject is two days after Sturgeon turned in his script. To wit (emphasis ours):

[To:] John Meredyth Lucas
[From;] Bob Justman
cc: Gene Roddenberry
D.C. Fontana
November 15, 1967
REVISED TELEPLAY
"THE JOY MACHINE'
by
Theodore Sturgeon

(Dated: 11-8-and
11-13-67)

Dear John:

I have read Ted's re-write of this property. I still must say that the concept contained within the story idea is marvelous. However, this teleplay lacks some things. And they are logical construction, correct characterizations, and believability. There are a few fascinating sequences contained within the teleplay, but they are fascinating in and of themselves. They do not blend correctly within the framework of what the story is in its present shape, A "STAR TREK" cannot be a succession of individual vignettes, which are like pearls on a string. Each sequence, I feel, should develop out of the preceding sequence and should build toward the climax at the end of the story. The conflict contained within this show is more like a "non-conflict". It seems as if whenever Captain Kirk pushes against a situation, the situation gives and there is no resilience to it.

I fear that we shall not be able to get a revision on this property in time to shoot this season, since there is evidently so much to do. Hopefully, we will have a third season of "STAR TREK", in which case we can put someone on it to re-write it from scratch.

Regards,
BOB

That bolded sentence means, in so many words, Sturgeon's assignment was cut off, and they planned to give the story to someone else to rewrite the following season.

The known paper trail ends with a Meyer Dolinsky rewrite dated October 21, 1968 (I have it open right here, and it's awful), but it's just a writer's draft. Nothing in the extant record suggests it went any further than that. In short, there appear to be no scripts ready or even close to ready for additional episodes beyond the 24 NBC already ordered, Joan Winston's account of her set visit to "Turnabout" notwithstanding.

 

[willa6276m]

@willa6276m, we're coming at things from two very different trajectories.

Spoiler: Details about Fact Trek most longtime members here know

Us: Anecdotes are not fact. Hence "Fact Trek".

That's a mantra we've repeated in many of the articles we've published. Human memory is faulty. Oral history is subjective. Deborah Arakelian (assistant to the producers on Star Trek II and a production assistant on Star Trek III) told a story about John Belushi visiting the Trek II set the day before he died, and we thoroughly debunked that (link). That Gerrold has had an ax to grind with the Great Bird since TNG makes anything said since caveat emptor territory.

Memory Alpha is a wiki that often doesn't cite sources, and it's only as accurate as the people who write/edit it; people who are mostly fans. (For years the entry on Madlyn Rhue contained a story about her that was based on a fan anecdote and ended up being a case of citeogensis).

Here's what we know about "The Joy Machine" from primary sources:

The last writers report in the Roddenberry papers at UCLA from 3/28/68 (wrapping up the second season reports—there are none for the third) indicates Sturgeon delivered a "The Joy Machine" script on 11/13/67, and the status for that is "rewrite needed."

The last extant memo we've found on the subject is two days after Sturgeon turned in his script. To wit (emphasis ours):

That bolded sentence means, in so many words, Sturgeon's assignment was cut off, and they planned to give the story to someone else to rewrite the following season.

The known paper trail ends with a Meyer Dolinsky rewrite dated October 21, 1968 (I have it open right here, and it's awful), but it's just a writer's draft. Nothing in the extant record suggests it went any further than that. In short, there appear to be no scripts ready or even close to ready for additional episodes beyond the 24 NBC already ordered, Joan Winston's account of her set visit to "Turnabout" notwithstanding.

You'll believe what you want to believe regardless of evidence. I'm not interested in a prolonged debate about the facts I posted. It's easy enough to put people on ignore.

 

[Ssosmcin]

Before you dismiss @Maurice out of hand, you should visit Fact Trek, which is an offshoot of the earlier Star Trek Fact Check.

Maurice and Michael Kmet do the good work of combing the actual files and conducting first person interviews (when possible) to deflate some of the myths, misconceptions and plain falsehoods which have been spread for the past 60 years. You'll see that Maurice's credibility is more than earned.

Just food for thought.

 

[1001001]

You'll believe what you want to believe regardless of evidence. I'm not interested in a prolonged debate about the facts I posted. It's easy enough to put people on ignore.

Since you're fairly new here, I'll give you a break this time.

Going forward, know that announcing you're putting someone on ignore is not allowed (considered trolling).

Finally, like Ssosmcin says, you probably won't find anyone more well-versed in the facts about TOS than Maurice.

That's kind of his thing.

 

[korblborp]

fan wikis are as subject to fandom misconceptions and inertia as anything, and should not be put before the people who are doing original research in hopes that the facts make their way into the wider.. thingy.

 

[Maurice]

Thanks, guys. We're such sticklers for detail that our recent piece about colloquial titles has 51 citations.

re evidence: not all of it is created equal. Generally, oral tradition < oral history < production documents in the reliability chain.

To wrap up the topic of "The Joy Machine," I read Dolinsky's draft last night, and it's utter garbage. The characterization is all wrong, and there's almost no plot progression and no surprises. The problem is all set up in the first scene in act one, and it just thuddingly lands the same beats over and over. There's a couple of good ideas in there, but this needed a page one rewrite.

EDIT: And I just read Sturgeon's June 23, 1967 story outline, and it's actually better than the Dolinsky script in a lot of ways. It's still not good; the ideas are, but the execution isn't.