TREKLAND

Help us hit the next level: a 'Con of Wrath' fundraiser SPECIAL

2012-02-23T13:23:00.004-08:00

STARLOG founder/ CON OF WRATH emcee Kerry O'Quinn

Well, 2012 is in full force now, and things are gearing up for the next shoots on The Con of Wrath, our "riches to rags to riches" documentary that keeps getting more human and more in-ter-est-ing as we go along. (If "what the hell's 'The Con of Wrath'?" comes to your mind, check out the post ... or the page [with sneak peek video].)

Last weekend was a great shoot in L.A. with the legendary Kerry O'Quinn (right), creator of Starlog, Fangoria, Cinemagic, et al magazines—and the actual stage emcee for the Ultimate Fantasy (aka "Con of Wrath"—plus fan/pro VIPs Kett Kettering and Eric Stillwell, who were merely simple attendees then ... with really good memories now.

Good time to shake things up, no? So to plan for more shoots in Houston and back East ... here's the deal:

Anyone who makes a donation between now and 11:59 p.m. PDT on Monday, Feb. 27, will get the thank-you swag from the NEXT LEVEL UP, as you can see on the donor page at conofwrath.com. That's for every level from $10 through $500 ($1000 and $2500 levels are not included for this "doubling"deal.)
And, if you have already made a donation, add on to your prior amount to hit the next level, and get the same deal.

Remember, ANY donor at any time gets screen credit, in addition to the "goodie bag" at each of the eight levels posted.

Those who know me know I am NOT a fan of raising money—but this is the nature of the biz, so I thank you in advance for being so interested in preserving this notably noble, wacky and still-iunanswered piece of Trek lore—and human nature. We promise to do you proud: What's "in the can" already is great stuff, and there's more to come. We're only about a quarter way through just the shoot.

FYI: I opted not to go the Kickstarter or Indiegogo route, for those familiar with such things, due to both my name and the brand of Star Trek; instead, we use the PayPal Donations system for security and confidence of donors. You can read all my thoughts on the why and how at either the original blog post or the movie page now.

BREAKING: Cawley's Phase II to film Spinrad's lost TOS script

2012-02-22T16:06:00.000-08:00

Norman Spinrad!

Welcome to news cycles ca. 2012... but however it unfolds, this is incredible.

No sooner on the heels of TOS "lost script" "He Walks Among Us" by author Norman Spinrad (writer of "The Doomsday Machine") JUST coming to light, thanks to a fan... but producer/star and Elvis reinactor James Cawley of New Voyages/Phase II "fan" film fame has jumped into the fray to film it, with Spinrad directing.

And it all blossomed right there on Facebook.

First, early today from James' Facebook wall:

And then a note this afternoon, from Norman's as well:

Followed by a later comment from James... amid many, many well-wishers on all fronts:

After involving Walter Koenig, George Takei, D.C. Fontana, David Gerrold, Barbara Luna, William Windom, John Winston, Eddie Paskey ... and Denise Crosby too (with interlopers like me as well) ... he speaks the truth!

@Gally was a great time—even for a Treklander

2012-02-22T10:00:00.009-08:00

Gallifrey Friday night: Now THAT'S an opening ceremony!

Just wanted to take a note to say, of all the non-Trek-specific cons out there, you have to try to make Gallifrey One in its 24th edition next year here in L.A. My buddy Shaun Lyon and the whole board and staff really outdid themselves this year.

Now, this might be my first-ever mention of Whofandom here on TREKLAND. But they are truly blessed to have this con, which just boomed so much that it's now the biggest Who con in the world (3,183 they say). Wonderfully, though—and what's great for all fandom—is that Gallifrey remains a shining and increasingly rare example of a con that still maintains its fannish touch, even amid the growth and plethora of Who/Torchwood guest faces (many of which are crossovers, anyway: John de Lancie, I'm lookin' at you. Good to say hi again after so long.) Gallifrey also proves that a "businesslike fan-run con" is not an oxymoron.

It also proves how a fandom can regenerate into the stratosphere if there's ACTIVE PRODUCTION on a WEEKLY SERIES. I'm just sayin'.

I just realized I don't have a photo of Shaun and I together, and will have to remedy that next year if not sooner! But we unwittingly go all the way back to the '90s when we both remotely had dealings with Pocket Books, and then I rediscover him years later after the westward move via not fandom but politics: Small world, but a fun one.

I also want to give kudos to Dan, and Terry, and everyone else who even helped us find a place to shoot a subject for THE CON OF WRATH Friday night on-site, and also were so helpful to my family who attended the day I couldn't make it. We had a good group for my Between the Cracks show, too, and at least one new fan donor so far!

They all made us feel welcome in our little corner of Trekland amidst the Whovians ... including my buddy Terry Rioux, who sold a couple dozen at least of her DeForest Kelley biography "FROM SAWDUST TO STARDUST" from Pocket Books, in her first L.A. con showing of any stripe.

LA ALERT: Who's trekkin' to Gallifrey One with me?

2012-02-16T14:01:00.000-08:00

For years I'd heard of this Who con in the Valley, and power to 'em.

But someone had to finally finally tell me a few years back, though, that amid the long Who hiatus Gallifrey One wasn't just about Gallifrey anymore. What's more, that the organizer was actually a colleague of mine, times two! (Trek AND politics—who knew, Shaun?... Oh, I guess you did.)

So, after a one-year lapse—I'll be back at the LAX Marriott Friday big time, lesser on Saturday and Sunday—holding up the Trekland banner, even despite the biggest Who guest line-up and panel content in years... and the biggest registration for GO in years. (Amazing what having a SERIES in ACTIVE PRODUCTION will do to ramp up the fanbase, eh, CBS/Paramount?)

Crossover fandom is still the rage—and after all, we do have THIS popping out of the replicator in a couple months ...

At Gallifrey, we'll also be letting you know what's up with things on The Con of Wrath—we are filming this week around L.A., too—as well as some new news out of Trekland, if I am able to talk about it by then (even before you read about it here.)

So, if it's a hop cross-country it might be a little late to make it ... but if you find yourself in SoCal and call yourself a fan, better hitch on over to Century and Airport for this shindig. Make sure and say hi—my DP and game designer/author Neal Hallford will be around if I am, and I'm be co-tabling with DeForest Kelley biographer Terry Rioux. Good times! Pun intended!

'Weird Shit' in The Ready Room: Podcast is up!

2012-02-14T11:22:00.000-08:00

Podcast month for me continues, apparently —I know, in this crazed month elsewhere, I have a backlog of blog topics besides me to get to!—but right now I have to tell you what Trekfm's Christopher Jones and Greg Harbin are up to in their The Ready Room show:

TNG's "Schisms" and "Weird Shit" tales, circa the later TNG era, that's what. Hey, the term was right from exec producer Jeri Taylor—especially for the X-Files-like stories being turned out by newly minted staff writer Brannon Braga back in the day... like this one. At least, that was my contribution to the hour's discussion, along with "Group Clicking" and "Fish Monks."

Anyway, the fun and madness is now up here at their site. The first 57:15 is news'n'views, and then the "Schisms" start...

Trekland Podtime: Thanks to "The G&T Show" & UK's "Trek Mate"

2012-02-02T01:00:00.000-08:00

Hey! While we catch a breath here, here's a chance to send you over to two more online examples of good ol'Trektalk podcasts that were nice enough to have me on this week: one up now, and the other up Sunday! Both are great and deserve your support.

In fact, Terry Schull and Nick Minecci are so good that I was happy to get up at 7 a.m. Sunday morning to be LIVE for the chat room for their weekly G & T Show. It was an honor to be a chunk of Episode 29, and we told tales, kept each other awake, and somehow, talked about Chakotay and Voyager and TNG and Ron Moore's one month on Voyager and ... well, maybe we weren't THAT sleepy.

Still, next time I'll take them up on the offer to do the pre-record, and we'll take over the whole show! But I do love the instant feedback and comment. It is up NOW—you can get the whole-she-bang, led off by news and Dayton Ward's regular "Ask Dayton" bit, to play or download at their site, gandtshow.com . Complete with Twitter handles you can follow at home!

And then Wednesday I was happy to cross the virtual pond and talk to the UK's #1 home-grown Trek-only podcast, Wayne and Paul at Trek Mate. Their show is also in the forefront of trying to help bring back a real, traditional convention format event to the UK in an all-Trek vibe—and they are a hoot to hang with as well. I think I spilled a few too many beans from my own closet—but hey, it's been way too long since I got to talk to any UK fans. Hungry little bastards, they am! Sounds like we are going to have to go back finish their "list"—oh well, it's Wayne's world and we just live in it ...with his questions!

The link will be live on Sunday, they tell me—and while they've only been at it since November 2011, Trek Mate already holds 10 of the top 12 downloaded episodes on UK iTunes. It also airs at 10 am EST next Wednesday on TrekRadio.net, as well as anytime of course at their own play/download link, trekmate.org.uk.

45 years ago today: Klingons on film!

2012-01-27T00:49:00.000-08:00

Where were you 45 years ago?

By the targs of Kahless, if you were down hanging around the "Arab City" of the Forty Acres backlot at Desilu-Culver, now known as the Culver Studios and about 6 miles southwest of "Desilu-Gower" (ie, Paramount Pictures), you would have been present for some true cinematic and galactic history. Namely....

The birth of the Klingons! (Otherwise known as Scene 33 from "Errand of Mercy"...)

Sure the script had been written for weeks, and it didn't air til March 23, 1967. But it was two months prior, on Friday, Jan. 27, that the Klingons really first came to life—on film, as intended, with John "One Step Beyond" Newland directing his one and only Star Trek, from Gene Coon's amazing dialog.

I wish I had a clip to put up here, but "documentary" might be being defined a little narrowly these days by the powers-that-be.

Just know that the outdoor pan that opens Act II was the very first time a Klingon appeared on camera; the next were the same-day follow-up citadel Scenes 38-41. They all fell on Day 2 of the six-day schedule; the late great John Colicos delivered his first lines as Kor, in his debut scene 34-35, the next working day, Monday—and throughout the remaining days of the shoot. It was Colicos who had the idea for the Klingons' "Genghis Khan" look, and makeup chief Fred Phillips took it and ran.

Jan. 27, 1967: Truly a day destined for galactic greatness ... and a headache of forehead canon from 1979-2005.

Happy birthday, De!

2012-01-19T23:38:00.000-08:00

Yep, it's that time again: One of our traditions here at TREKLAND is remembering Jackson DeForest Kelley every year on his day ... Happy 92, De!

And not just his Star Trek days. As in, here he is as another of his patented Western baddies, playing head henchman Wexler in John Sturges' The Law and Jake Wade, starring Richard Widmark and Robert Taylor in 1958.

Colbert knows his Trek protection! ... Or DOES he?

2012-01-19T01:21:00.000-08:00

Kudos to Stephen Colbert for my birthday present last night: his hedge against the Wikipedia all-day blackout protest of the SOPA/PIPA bills (and check that out if you don't know. Scary stuff; get involved).

Yes, it seems Stephen keeps the entire Wikipedia printed out on hard copy, twice a month in toto, fo' jus' such occaysions. Why, the chunk you see him holding below is just Volume 5470—the section of Wikipedia re: (only) "Star Trek, from 'Yeomen, Rand' through 'Yeomen, Smith. B.' "... (video below the fold):

Nice gag: he scales WikiP's size (all that for three TOS yeomen) AND tweaks Trekfans in the same breath. Weeell...that's why he gets the big cable bucks (and that's all, now that his SuperPAC is remotely controlled).

But just think—THIS wasn't even Memory-Alpha!

(And yes, only a Trek analist would point out that in actual aired canon, there WAS never a "Yeoman B. Smith." So I won't. The second pilot's yeoman's name was only listed as "Smith," without an initial or first name.)

(But .... maybe that "B" was actually just denoting PART "B"... OF the Rand-Smith (inclusive) Volume 5470, and Stephen hasn't given us yet another canon screw-up to fix ...!? Oh, surely that's the reason. He'd hate to lose the South Carolina Trek canonista vote.)

Full embed here: The Trek bit starts at 0:55, but the whole segment catches you up on the SOPA/PIPA blackout:

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STV: The Enterprise is coming up Roses!

2012-01-04T20:43:00.000-08:00

Happy new year! Did you see the latest incarnation of your favorite starship on Monday, flying down the Rose Parade?

Thanks to Paramount's centennial float in the parade with 50+ million TV viewers, much of planet Sol III got to see once again the Big E in all its JJ-verse incarnation glory, atop a bevy of other studio icons.

It's a tradition that all Rose Parade floats are parked nearby for another full day after the parade so that locals and tourists alike can give them another once-over in a carnival-like atmosphere. In 17 years I'd never gone over to see, so what better time than now?

Kudos to Paramount's team for the design choices: between Bumblebee from Transformers, the Greased Lightning car from Grease, the iconic old Bronson Gate, and even the Hollywood sign, much less the Enterprise), this parked float a day later was even hotter than most for posed pics and camera hounds of all ages. Even though Paramount didn't win a formal prize trophy, I heard more than one passer-by mutter, "Oh—this was my favorite!" And then patinetly waitd for a spot to get their picture snapped.

So here's a little more sights, sounds and info for you guys living a tad too far from Pasadena to make the drive:

Thanks also to the kind mom who snapped my pic for posterity and sent me the best chat of the day my way, courtesy her son. Her 3-three-year old was already thrilled to see the 20-foot Bumblebee:
HIM: "I have all the Bumblebee toys."
ME: "Cool. See the Enterprise? I have all the *Enterprise* toys."
HIM: (Eyeballs me a second) I want to come to YOUR house."

Note that this was not the first Enterprise to grace the Rose Parade: in 1992, Paramount had a giant solo 1701 all by itself (via crane) and honor Star Trek's 25th anniversary season—and only a couple months after Gene's death, too.

Happy holidays with ... Nixon and Star Trek??!!

2011-12-26T11:15:00.000-08:00

Just in case you missed this stocking stuffer on Christmas Eve ... here ya go. No worries—it's the gift that keeps on giving!

Yes, it's a little wacky gift to Treklanders everywhere from some of the folks who bring you New Voyages/Phase II—that's sound masestro and jokester Ralph Miller, doing his infamous Nixon sendup full-bore, and Pony R. Horton as the agent, and behind camera as writer/director, plus the CGI and editing involved. Lots more cameos too of your P2 favorite faces ... including Kurt Carley, P2's onetime Chris Pike. And, once again, a "fan film" that's really full of professional work:

<p>&amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;br&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;Pony&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;amp;gt;&amp;amp;amp;lt;/p&amp;amp;amp;gt;</p>

Pony tells me: "I am thrilled to have had a great deal of help from my friends Ralph Miller, James Cawley, Rob Mauro, Charles Root, Gwen Wilkins, Kurt Carley, Michael Stern, and John Carrigan in the making of this film, which is a short inspired by James Cawley's STAR TREK: PHASE II and Ralph Miller's hilarious Richard Nixon characterization. I'm releasing it as a kind-of PHASE II stocking-stuffer, since we're in-between regular PHASE II releases right now."

Ralph has been pulling the wry video stuff and bloopers ever since New Voyagers began; Pony has handled CGI for recent full P2 episodes, and helped John Carrigan with those same CG skills to bring to life the "lost" 2005 vignette "No-Win Scenario."

And don't forget to watch the end credits' stills, too!

Nick Meyer's dark Frank Lloyd Wright bio-script moves forward

2011-12-07T22:45:00.000-08:00

Picked this up in the trades chatter recently:

Nick Meyer, author of The View From the Bridge—and, oh yes: writer and/or director of the even-numbered TOS Trek films, which are included in the book—has penned a great script about a darkly bizarre 1910s chapter in the otherwise iconic American architecture giant, Frank Lloyd Wright. Here's the story start—and a comment from Nick below the fold:

Bruce Beresford to Direct Frank Lloyd Wright Biopic 'Taliesin'

by Megan Lehmann/Hollywood Reporter 12/5/11

Producers J. Todd Harris and Ed Bachrach are behind the film, about the fabled American architect, which was written by Nicholas Meyer. Veteran filmmaker Bruce Beresford has signed on to develop and direct Taliesin....
The title refers to the architect’s former home and studio in rural Spring Green, Wis., where the key events in the film take place. The rambling hillside compound, considered a masterpiece of Prairie-style architecture, was the focus of scandal as Wright built it for himself and his married mistress Martha "Mamah" Cheney. In 1914, while Wright was away, a domestic worker murdered Cheney, her two children and four others by locking them inside and setting fire to the building.

“It’s a very good script,” Beresford told The Hollywood Reporter. “It doesn’t cover his whole life, just a small section of it, and it doesn’t whitewash him into some sort of saint." ...

Meanwhile, Nick told me briefly about his script:

"Someone once said that Great Men are seldom Good Men. The movie explores that proposition and also questions whether the "ordinary rules" apply to such people—and what is the difference between chance and comeuppance.

I think that's what it's about."

And I think this will be a whale of a flesh-and-blood revelation into what has been for decades just a dusty-pedestalled cultural icon. Fun, fun.

(Photo: Meyer at the Star Trek Day picket during the WGA strike, December 2007)

TREK NATION: First Thoughts

2011-12-01T01:11:00.000-08:00

Wow. Didn't see that comin'.

I mean, I had not asked for a press screener for Rod Roddenberry's TrekNation, premiering Wednesday night on SCIENCE Channel. I wanted to wait and see it "live." I'd read critical positive acclaim by mainstream reviewers, though, and knew it would be pretty good.

That I knew.

I'd also known how Rod has struggled to get this project just done... to find the right voice, even as director Scott Colthrop and crew went through many iterations—originally with an eye to being a theatrical documentary. They kicked off filming back in 2002, and as the Aughts unfolded I'd hear once a year or so from Rod about the new angle or tone, until he just wanted to stop talking about it with the time lag.... which was all about finding what he wanted. Of course, in hindsight we can see how that delay allowed the doc the scope to take in the post-2005 earthquake in Trekland—from the downer of cancellation, to the vaccum of the Trek future's void, to the questions and then triumph of "JJ Trek" in 2009.

(Spoilers below. Really.)

So making the deal with Science Channel and getting a deadline and a format, albeit for TV with commercial breaks, at last provided some structure and a solid floor to get TrekNation over the finish line. As you could see in any of his recent comments, including our chat for TREKLAND, Rod was visibly relieved to be able to give birth to this baby at last.

What I didn't know ... was that a couple thoughts of my own 2002 interview, done in the first wave of filming at Creation's first Vegas convention, was actually in this. No one tipped me off... so I had an all-too-rare attack of jaw drop, right there Wednesday night on the couch: Gobsmacked, as Marina would say. I just know that I was not only in good company, but—thinking of where I thought I was—I was happy being in equally good company with all those you didn't see, in that great unused pile of footage. I know for a fact that widely different versions, and lists of speakers, have been in play over the years. I can see the time compromises made, too—including the "seated Rod" narration

But, even apart from those 45 mighty seconds, it was a grabber work. In fact, I felt TrekNation actually grew deeper as it went along. In this format there was a lot of TV exposition to get through, a lot of it handled by the "seated Rod" direct-to-camera bits which thankfully subside as it progresses. There's so much of past Trekland tales that fans know—the common history of the show, the fandom and of Gene—but this was on a mainstream channel, even among science geeksters, so a rehash with attitude is a needed, okay thing. The doc got a lot of mainstream media play as well, and I know gave a lot of varied context to the newer JJ-era fans, as well as lay viewers.

Reflecting on it now, I also think that the years-long "delay" even helped the focus—perhaps contrasted best in the highlight "icon" chats—first with George Lucas and then JJ Abrams more recently. From George to JJ you can literally see Rod grow as an interviewer, as a seeker ... especially in the comfort zone of talking about his own father/son dynamic and vibe—one which JJ picks up on, as the camera catches Rod's reaction. That fits a pattern of TrekNation's coverage of the more recent Trek years--by definition, not yet as "examined" as the older golden times past—being some of the most interesting here. Quite unintentionally, the film's personality grows even as the years go by.

Of course, there's double poignancy here for a lot of us: Too bad the mainstream TV audience isn't really informed, I believe, how many of those faces besides Gene are also gone. I wish even a tad more context could have somehow mentioned that those like Bob Justman, Michael Piller and even his own mom Majel were no longer with us—which makes their moments all the more special. Adult Rod's onscreen chat with his mom also hits home with anyone who's tried to talk to a parent as a third party about family mega-history, but can't quite get out of the "just us" family vibe. It was also an odd bird that Michael's beloved University of North Carolina "UNC" logo was CG'd off his ever-present baseball cap. (Did you notice that slightly grayer area over the bill? Legal—go figure.) Another quirk, purely in transmission: our onscreen cable TV guide had TrekNation logged as only an hour long. Don't know how widespread that was, but I hope a zillion fans didn't DVR the show and only come away with the first half!

Even with the evolving twists and turns, everyone involved with this long trek has done themselves proud, and the franchise to boot. I know there will be lots of unused bonus footage coming in the already-promised DVD, and a lot of it is already online at Colthrop's online sites. The many reels of Roddenberry home movies with young parents and little Rod was amazing, too. In fact, snapshot of the night: The original Enterprise two-footer model (now lost), snugly embracing the swaddled newborn Rod right between the nacelles like big protective arms.

I know, too, that tonight's viewing been another inspiration for my own documentary in process, The Con of Wrath, to bring along a solid layer of humanity as well as the narrative story at hand—even in a documentary. Thanks to director Scott and all of the crew for that.

Most of all, I know Rod is proud and relieved to have it out there—and I salute him for even taking on his dad's infidelities and other "warts." As long as it's taken to get here, Rod, TrekNation has been a journey of discovery worth taking. And how much more Star Trek can you get?

Thanks for sharing.

Video: After "Trek Nation," catch The Shat on USA's "Psych"

2011-11-29T15:25:00.000-08:00

Well, with all the well-deserved hoopla for Rod's Trek Nation special tomorrow on SCIENCE Channel, here's one way to keep your very own "Star Trek night" going, in a way...

None other that James T. (et al) himself, William Shatner, becomes the latest celebrity guest on Season 6 of USA's delightful Psych. For "In for a Penny" at 10 PM ET/PT, later that same Wednesday night, he plays the estranged father of Juliet, the show's younger detective and sexual-tension target of faux-psychic Shawn (the television son of Corbin "Q2" Bernsen) ... with emphasis on "estranged."

Hmmmm. The Shat playing a charming con man, disowned by his cop daughter? Gee whiz, never saw THAT coming... !

Here's a sneak peek at some uniquely Bill Billness:

And a full scene:

Check out more at Psych at the show's official site.

STV: Rod previews Nov. 30's 'Trek Nation' on SCIENCE—and chats about even more

2011-11-28T23:33:00.000-08:00

I'm so glad that, after a decade in development, Rod Roddenberry's Trek Nation has finally found its final voice and a home—broadcast to a huge audience via the SCIENCE Channel on cable. As you surely know by now with all the great buzz and promotion, it debuts THIS Wednesday, Nov. 30, at 8 & 11 ET/5 & 8 PT.

I'm also glad I had the chance this summer to sit down with Rod for a chat at the Vegas Khhaaann... where we talked about this, and even more changes at Roddenberry Inc, including the new namesake foundation that has already made its first potentially life-changing award. Oh, and the fun and exploratory stuff is all still there, too.

I remember going in with Dan Madsen at the first Creation Vegas mega-convention in 2002 and meeting Rod, director Scott Colthorp and their crew when they first began, becoming one of the first of what became hundreds of hours of interviewees ... part of the mass of footage behind Rod's apologies to fans for the delay in getting to a final product the past few years. But it is, premiering at last and well worth the wait.

Take a listen to his story of the process... and then tell him "hi" at the next big convention where he and partner Trevor Roth are on hand. Meanwhile, the good reviews are already pouring in for Trek Nation, but we'll wait til after Wednesday to weigh in. For now, take a listen to our chat ...and Rod's thoughts on his other projects:

The official Trek Nation promo is up everywhere now, too...

But don't miss this, either: a lot more Trek Nation from Scott Colthorp's short-form "Director's Log" series of unused footage and personal thoughts on Trek and the whole project, on YouTube and via the Facebook page... plus Twitter, too!

STV: 45 years ago today, Bobby Clark gave us the Gorn!

2011-11-09T20:47:00.000-08:00

Here's the danger of only linking your Star Trek anniversary parties to the debuts of series... you miss moments like this:

45 years ago today, the living breathing icon we call the Gorn was born. No, not the aired date of "Arena"—that would be Jan. 19, 1967—and no, not the Oct. 10, 1966 first draft date of the story—with all due respect to Fredric Brown's story, included in Gene Coon's first Star Trek script.

No, I'm pinning this to the date when that script and Wah Chang's budget-classic costume came together at the equally iconic Vasquez Rocks County Park under the direction of Joe Pevney, in his first assignment for Star Trek—on a Wednesday, the second of six long days for the shoot.

And lucky we have Bobby Clark, the stuntman/actor who donned the suit for two days that would forever endear him to pop culture (much more than the other three episodes he appeared in, out of his long, long TV and movie career). I talked to him last year at Vegas, finally, and saved our chat for this day—look him up when you can at the larger cons and shows such as Creation and the 2012 WonderCon, for starters:

Florida-bound at last! Come see us at Vulcan: Orlando

2011-10-28T09:31:00.000-07:00

Finally, I'm gonna see the Sunshine State... for any reason. I even have some extra hours to see it from outside a convention hall!

I was thrilled to have Fernando and Javier have me to their Vulcan Events show in Orlando this weekend, with Sir Patrick, Armin and Max, David Warner, Jewel Staite of Firefly et al, and many more... plus RIck Sternbach and I get to co-con together again, my more common "partner in crime" Lolita Fatjo and I as well, and many more authors and designers.

We're at the Hilton Disney in Lake Buena Vista Saturday and Sunday (with sneak peeks tonight) ... it's not too late if you're in the region. Here's the full schedule: when not at my table from 10 am to 5 pm, my topics are:

FRI: 6-7 pm: The State of Trek --more a forum than panel, I poll and hear back from audience and we all catch up.
FRI: 7-8 pm: "Trek, Wars, Gate: Tech in Sc-Fi" with RICK STERNBACH (mainly Rick!)

SAT: 12:30-1:30 : "Larry's Trekland : The Con of Wrath" --Main Stage
SAT: 5-6 p.m. "Trek Tales" with LOLITA FATJO

SUN: 2-3: "Larry's Trekland: Between the Cracks"-- the usual parade of pics for info and insanity

So come on down/over. The cap is intentionally at @ 1200 folks, so you will not drown in a sea o' fandom.

Now that I'm out of my "veteran" comfort zone (and time zone), lookin' forward to a lot of new faces! Follow my tweets!

BREAKING: Roddenberry Foundation gives $5M to stem cell research

2011-10-19T14:40:00.000-07:00

This is amazing news—just being released today: $5 million for stem cell research from, basically, Star Trek and its fans via the Roddenberry family. We can go to the cliche that "the apple doesn't fall very far from the tree," except that Roddenberry Sr. didn't have the cash for most of his life to take this kind of direct, positive-future-now kind of action.

But he was able to hand a lot of it off to Junior (at right)—who is finding his own frontiers to explore that are true to the spirit behind Star Trek, that core value beyond mere entertainment that has influenced and inspired millions of fans with what we all know and call the "Roddenberry Vision."

Way to go, Rod—as he says, here's one way to bring Gene's distant Star Trek future one step closer to NOW.

And to get this out now, here's the press release in toto (boldfacing mine): a story in today's SF Chronicle cites studies and new researchers already in motion thanks to this gift.

Roddenberry Foundation Gives $5M to Gladstone for Stem Cell Research

SAN FRANCISCO, CA—October 19, 2011—The Gladstone Institutes and the Roddenberry Foundation today inaugurated the Roddenberry Center for Stem Cell Biology and Medicine at Gladstone, a new unit founded on an unprecedented $5 million gift from the foundation that was established to honor the legacy of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry.

“This gift is our largest to date, and with it, we hope to help accelerate advances in biomedical research,” said Gene Roddenberry's son Rod Roddenberry, who is co-founder and chair of the board of directors of the Roddenberry Foundation. “In addition, if our support can inspire one child to become a scientist, one organization to become more charitable, one person to simply invest himself or herself in improving the future of our world, then our foundation can be a catalyst in making the future envisioned through Star Trek a reality.”

The center will build on Gladstone's existing expertise in stem cell science, helping to speed the process by which discoveries are turned into therapies for a host of devastating illnesses.

“Today's biggest challenge for solving disease is getting the investments required to transform our basic-science discoveries into health solutions that can alleviate human suffering,” said Deepak Srivastava, MD, (left) who directs both stem cell and cardiovascular research at Gladstone. “We are a basic science institute—but with the purpose of solving three major disease groups.”

Indeed, Gladstone focuses on disease areas that afflict millions of people and their families: cardiovascular disease, viruses such as HIV/AIDS and neurological conditions such Alzheimer's disease. Alzheimer's alone afflicts 5.4 million people in the United States at an annual cost $183 billion, estimated the Alzheimer's Association. Without a therapeutic breakthrough, the number of Americans with Alzheimer's disease is expected to double by 2050.

On top of this, no single disease-modifying therapy exists for Alzheimer's or other devastating neurodegenerative diseases, said Steven Finkbeiner, MD, PhD, a senior investigator at Gladstone, adding that it takes an average of 12 years and as much as $1 billion to develop a drug for a neurodegenerative disease. “The tsunami is coming and we have nothing in the drug pipeline to treat Alzheimer's,” he added.

Research at the new center can help to change that, in part by building on pioneering work done by Gladstone senior investigator Shinya Yamanaka, MD, PhD. In 2006, Dr. Yamanaka and his Kyoto University team discovered how to reprogram skin cells into cells that, like embryonic stem cells, can develop into other cells in the body. This discovery of induced pluripotent stem cells, or iPS cells, has since altered the fields of cell biology and stem cell research, opening promising new prospects for both personalized and regenerative medicine. Dr. Yamanaka currently divides his time between Kyoto and San Francisco, as the director of Kyoto University's Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA)—which focuses on drug discovery and regenerative medicine—and as a senior investigator at Gladstone.

To further develop Dr. Yamanaka's iPS technology in order to create patient solutions, the Roddenberry Center for Stem Cell Biology and Medicine at Gladstone today is also announcing a collaboration agreement with CiRA. This accord will clear a path for these two leading stem cell centers to freely exchange materials and knowledge—all in order to accelerate the advancement of their stem cell research results into therapeutics to improve human health.

Ideally suited to do that, iPS cell technology and subsequent cell-reprogramming discoveries opened the door for scientists to create human stem cells from the skin cells of patients with a specific disease for research and drug discovery, rather than using conventional models made in yeast, flies or mice. As a result, the cells contain a complete set of the genes that resulted in that disease—representing the potential of a far-superior human model for studying disease development, new drugs and treatments—while also avoiding the controversial use of embryonic stem cells.

“The Roddenberry gift will help us create the human, iPS-based disease models that we need to accelerate the development of drug therapies for a host of devastating diseases, honoring Gene Roddenberry's call to ‘live long and prosper,’” said Dr. Srivastava.

About the Gladstone Institutes
Gladstone is an independent and nonprofit biomedical-research organization dedicated to accelerating the pace of scientific discovery and innovation to prevent illness and cure patients suffering from cardiovascular disease, neurological disease or viral infections. Gladstone is affiliated with the University of California, San Francisco.

About the Roddenberry Foundation
The Roddenberry Foundation supports and inspires efforts that create and expand new frontiers for the benefit of humanity. It funds innovative solutions to critical global issues in the areas of science and technology, the environment, education and humanitarian advances.

About CiRA
Following the generation of human iPS cells by Dr. Shinya Yamanaka and his team in November 2007, Kyoto University established the Center for iPS Cell Research and Application within the Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (ICeMS) in January 2008 to further promote scientific advances in the fields of induced pluripotency and reprogramming. CiRA is the world's first institute to focus specifically on these areas, and its researchers strive to realize the potential medical benefits of these cells as rapidly as can safely and responsibly be done. CiRA became an independent institute in April 2010, under the leadership of Dr. Yamanaka.

Photos: Roddenberry Dive Team (top); SFGate.com (bottom)

My "Pendulum Theory" gone wild, takes over Trek.fm! Kinda.

2011-10-17T12:21:00.000-07:00

I've been talking about it for years—just an observation—but my eighth "Supplemental" TREKLAND post for rebooted startrek.com about the pendulum swings of Star Trek fan tastes-n-trends seems to caught a lot of notice.

That includes the guys behind trek.fm's The Ready Room weekly podcast, Christopher Jones and Greg Harbin, who had me on for TRR #19, "It Doesn't Have to be Seven Years Apart," which is posted now and also available on iTunes.

Thanks to the title given the original piece by startrek.com—"Is It Time For a TNG Comeback?"—there seems to be a lot of misconception about what I meant (era/vibe/look, not specifically a Stewart/Spiner/Frakes et al reunion movie again). The TRR guys let me come on to talk about the piece and clarify some of those sidetracked misconceptions, but we also opined on The Big Trek Picture in general, especially as to any future TV return. And they were even gracious enough to let me talk about The Con of Wrath and even about the long-lost Grolst coming to light.

I hope everyone gives it a listen and becomes regular TRR listeners. It's a slick addition to their trek.fm lineup of shows and features, and one of many great Trek podcasts that Treklanders are privileged to enjoy.

The Tellarite lives!: Two tales from a long-lost New Voyages vignette

2011-10-12T20:26:00.000-07:00

Have you seen "No Win Scenario" yet?

I know the New Voyages-turned-Phase II Trek fan films have a great following all their own, as well as recurring and regular characters and actors. I know many of you follow them, and may even go back as far as 2005, when the big news was to be a series of five "vignettes"—short films to fill the agonizingly long gaps between the release times of the all-volunteer projects—usually a year or more. That's because, as a lot of you are aware, the fan films get their slick look from many professionals who do them as "weekend work" to add to their demo reel—or simply out of love for Star Trek.

But in case you haven't heard the amazing news by now, the Klingon-centric and "long lost" No Win Scenario is out after six years, only the second of the three actually filmed to ever be released (you can see it below)—and all because NV/P2's John "Kargh" Carrigan (above, on set lakeside, with "Grolst") was determined to make it so. He's pulled off a miracle here, with the help of many hands, to rescue the pieces and finally make them whole. (See more from John, below the fold).

What you may not know is that it's been my secret, too—unless you got me to talk about it at a con in recent years. Not on John or anyone else's level, of course, but on the scale of a true fanboy moment—and after years of the pro life, they are so hard to come by. See, I've always loved the Tellarites since "Journey to Babel," always thought they got short shrift next to the Andorians—even did a nose-puttied Tellarite for my make-up class "fantasy character" project in college. Finally, they even turn up on Enterprise for realz (thanks to closet Tellarite fans Mike Sussman and Manny Coto), but I missed getting in line to be an extra in "Demons"/"Terra Prime"—and then date conflicts ruined my other chance, among other UFP alien envoys for Walter Koenig's groundbreaking NV/P2 "fan" film by Dorothy Fontana, To Serve All My Days.

But thanks to head honcho James Cawley and the gang at NV/P2, they still let me come out on my dates, play a cameo in that ep, and THEN converted the Klingon spy role to a Tellarite in Erik Korngold's "No Win Scenario" script just so I could still be a "porcinoid." The professional prosthetics sized and built by Kevin Haney, who counts Mike Westmore's modern TV Star Trek team among his credits, were just a hoot—and my four late-night hours in the chair with talented makeup artist Jimmy Soltis (above, combing my clove-hair) were unforgettable (and thoroughly documented with video and stills, you better believe it.) To top it all off, we discovered that the nose piece was glued down in such a way that trapped air from a normal "huff" breath resulted in a beautiful nose flare that Gav himself would be proud of—all completely unplanned. And all happily utilized on camera by vignette director Erik "Gooch" Goodrich; the 1 a.m. shoot was topped only by my 5 a.m. release from makeup removal!

So see the video below...but I have to share the overall "phoenix" survival story that John Carrigan was good enough to tell TREKLAND—and yes, knowing how much it meant to me for Grolst the Tellarite to see the light of day, I'd been among those he kept in the loop re: the saga's survival:

The main original shoot did not yet have a Klingon bridge set for the "trainer" scenes, John tells me, and was shot before green screen—a first run which later proved too dimly lit to key the background accurately. The actor playing the Klingon trainer also had to be recast. A few months later, the project stalled, John and wife Annie dined with FX donor/producer Doug "Max Rem" Drexler and NV director Jack Marshall among others during a visit to LA, and even saw a rough cut of NWS that showed up those problems.

"In their opinion even the outdoor campfire footage was not good enough," John continues. "Annie and I were really upset hearing this, because I had seen some rushes on set when we shot the campfire scenes and I at least thought we had all done some good work. On the same trip we also hooked up with Jim Van Over (aka Erik Korngold) who wrote NWS, and ...we sat with Jim and watched the [rough cut] video. When it was finished, I still believed what I saw was some very good acting and well worth saving, but I had to agree that because of many technical problems we had filming outdoors and at night, if anything could be saved, it would take a whole load of work."

Back in the States to shoot "Of Gods and Men" in summer 2006, John told NWS director Erik "Gooch" Goodrich he still hoped to find a way to finish the vignette. When both John and Annie reprised their Klingon roles for NV's "Blood and Fire" a year later, they were thrilled that a real Klingon bridge set would be built at last—and perhaps provide a second chance for NWS, if the "green screen" scenes could be reshot with a new co-star. Even having the set delayed for use did not deter him: "I went about the set, quietly telling some people of my intentions and putting together my own little production crew (inside the Phase II production crew) and they pulled out all stops and built the Klingon bridge in 24 hours, as Gooch was only going to be on set that first weekend," he says. With him behind camera and Paul Sieber cast as the Trainer, the "secret" shoots went on at night—including a new insert of a fireside Klingon map John mocked up, complete with an orange-gelled light to simulate the original camnpfire. "It worked so well that you would never know it was shot years apart," he says.

When Cawley decided that all New Voyages' efforts had to go into the main annual episodes, seemingly ending the chance for the vignettes of 2005, John asked "Gooch" to help secure all the footage so that it might be tackled at home in the UK. "He was as good as his word, and I contacted my amazing editor friend Graham O'Hare, and after agreeing that I could only pay him a fraction of what he was worth, we began," John says. The joint choices and all the matching problems were eventually worked out—including the infamous original campfire. "The fire was blazing one moment and gone the next, and was dramatically dead at some points," John laughs. "Graham cured these problems in one amazing go: He created false fire and a glow in the shots which had an amazing effect." Once happy with a rough cut, O'Hare tweaked the audio, and then pulled stock FX shots since even CGI industry friends seemed unable to do the big amounts of original work needed to illustrate Kargh's tale. And then the next Phase II episode "Kitumba" brought John and CGI artist Pony Horton together.

"It wasn't until Annie and I discussed at some length back home about so wanting to get NWS finished that she said, why don't you ask Pony?" he recalls. "What had I to lose? I contacted Pony ... and he said he would be honoured. So after swearing Pony to secrecy we continued: Graham sent him our cut with the temporary SFX in, and Pony went to work. He did an incredible job, but one amazing CGI shot really set the scene for everything to come."

Their rough cut had used the campfire pull-back from Star Trek V but in reverse, going from space to ground: "We had shot the original campfire scene in James Lowe's back garden right next to a river (which nearly claimed our amazing sound man Ralph Miller). What Pony sent to us just blew us away: he had inserted our campfire into an amazing landscape."

"Graham was an amazing co-producer as well as an editor, and he and Pony just went above and beyond for me," John says. "And with a little financial assistance from my amazing wife Annie to pay for some of the long years of work this project took, 'No Win Scenaro' was finally finished. As Kirk said in Trek III, "The answer is no—I am therefore going to do it anyway." And all of this is why 'No Win Scenario' means such a lot to us."

And now that you know The Rest of the Story... please enjoy! And relish in the notion that little miracles still do come true—with enough patience and sweat. And Tellarites.

LA ALERT: Party with "Alien" Bill Blair Sunday for his Guinness record!

2011-10-04T22:20:00.000-07:00

Well, here's something you don't see everyday--but it is well deserved. On the other hand, after the ever-higher world records of Trek costumees the past few years, maybe it's the wave of the future!

I'm talking about an official Guiness World Record for “most special effect characters portrayed in a career," and a couple of charity events this Sunday, Oct. 9 in Hollywood for both fans and celebs to honor ... Bill Blair!

Who, you say? Well, Bill's been in all your sci-fi faves—and that's the point: He's famous for a career of wearing every other face (and species) but his own—and now been recognized for it.

There's two events Sunday, and tickets are still available but going fast. Both the 3 p.m. public "red carpet" and the 6 p.m. celeb red carpet and party at Trastevere Restaurant, attended by friends and stars of his various series and films, are hosted by the Hollywood Rotary Club, with all proceeds to benefit Rotary's "Global Alternative Energy Alliance" project. Tickets are at brownpapertickets.com.

What's more, this red carpet ain't like any you've ever seen: Bill, who calls himself "The Alien Actor," will arrive as a special-effects character, accept the presentation (and learn the number), and then undergo his "de-transformation" back to human guise with his makeup artist, all while meeting with fans and media. That happens, appropriately enough, outside the Guinness World Records Museum on the sidewalk at 6764 Hollywood Blvd.

I guested with Bill once, at a Galileo-7 convention in Germany in 2001, and danged if I can't find a pic of us together. But that's not the point. Bill's work goes far beyond the work on DS9, Voyager and Enterprise... to include aliens, vampires, and monsters in TV series and movies from Trek to Babylon 5 and Alien Nation and beyond. Rotary's association is a nod to his involvement in social and civic causes as well.

Bill "requests that his fans stand beside him, as he has always stood by them," says publicist Lisa Mueller. "It is Bill's wish to share a few guiding words and to speak of hope, faith, trust, and the never-ending search for a better tomorrow."

You can check out more on Bill's career at his website .... or about Sunday's Guinness events online or on Facebook.... and all about Rotary Hollywood's Global Alternative Energy Alliance. There's also a new interview with Bill at startrek.com.

Congrats, Bill! Now I really need to find that picture of us. It's a rare one: I can see that it's him!

A Quark/Worf dinner? Castle, Buffy? Big Bang visit? Bid NOW in Antaeus Theatre auction through Oct. 7

2011-10-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

UPDATE 10/7/11: Prizes changed, date corrected: BIDDING ENDS TODAY!

Okay, kids, you have ONE WEEK left for some truly unique goodies:

Whether you live in SoCal or not, there's 86 items large and small now up for bid for an online fund-raiser auction through Oct. 7 for the Antaeus Company, L.A.'s classical theatre troupe that includes the likes of oh, say, Armin Shimerman and Kitty Swink, and a host of others you'll know.

You can bid on a dinner with DS9'ers Armin, Kitty, and Michael Dorn ... or similar dinners those from Buffy or 24 (below) ... a lunch with Castle's Seamus Deaver and show goodies ... original art from Rene "Odo" Auberjonois ... much less a cast-hosted set visit to The Big Bang Theory (left) or Body of Proof (Jeffrey "Tahnna Los" Nordling). Or further afield: a cooking lesson with Top Chef fan-fave Fabio Viviani or an in-home fondue party with Emily Bergl of Desperate Housewives ... And many more: There's cool photos, scripts and signed items, rare cast gifts (like a DS9 Season 6 jacket), and even more live services, in-home dinners and gift certificates.

Kitty points out The Antaeus includes a slew of other actors with Trek and sci-fi connections, with but a few being Joe "Galt" Ruskin, Kurtwood "Annorax/President" Smith, Chelsea Field (Scott Bakula's partner), Richard "Admiral Paris" Herd, Gregory Itzin, JD "Toral" Cullum, Adrian LaTourelle (Rene's son-in-law), Bob Pine (Chris "Kirk '09" Pine's dad), Lawrence "Tekeny Ghemor" Pressman, Rhonda "Dixon Hill's Madeline" Aldrich, and Josh "Lt. Carey" Clark. Not to mention Tony Amendola (Stargate), Harry Groener (Buffy—and Tam Elbrun/ Nathan Samuels), Paul Eiding (voices for dozens of sci-fi games), Arye Gross (Minority Report), and Joel Swetow (Charmed).

The trustable website biddingforgood.com is handling the online auction, so you know it's in reliable hands. Check it all out today and find all kinds of genre and actor goodies up for bids to help The Antaeus—some of them on the real "up close and personal" side.

Set to open at The Antaeus Oct. 20 is the rare 1947 Noel Coward xomedy-drama "Peace in Our Time," the American debut of Coward's what-if look at his beloved England under Nazis occupation —with 22 roles, all double-cast. It is slated to run through Dec. 11.

STV— Fotos and Fan Faces: More Video Vegas Khhaaann 2011

2011-09-17T07:00:00.000-07:00

Hey, it's Chicago Trek con weekend from Creation— and in honor of the occasion, and of Leonard Nimoy's final planned convention appearance, here's some sights and sounds from Vegas Khhaaan! that I've been holding back these past few weeks. (Video below the fold) I sounded off already on what we learned there ...

But here's a little more of the fun flavor: To start, some pics from what turned out to be Leonard's next-last con appearance, for one thing—the long-term highlight of that Vegas weekend, for me ... and what I know will be just as moving for the Chi-town fans now:

And a hoot of a panel that Anthony Pascale asked me to join, apart from my own ... and one just as vociferously attended: the "Captain Smackdown" panel. Alec Peters and I played not so much a dominant role, but a set-up for audience debate and voting—which is how I liked it. Here's the results—with 1 point for 1st place, 5 for last place in each category, and all representing actual audience vote results. And, yep, the woman outdrew the Brit and lost the tiebreaker to the Original: Who knew the Kathryn Janeway Protection-Promotion League would show up en masse?

The most personal moment of all was the fan who caught me to sign a photo—nothing special there, but what a photo: a stunning 8x10 print of my "Civilian #2" among the guest cameos in the audience of the Enterprise finale. You can bet I especially did a double-take when I saw the ENTERPRISE branding like a licensed photo (of me?) ... but it was all a custom home job. Thanks Willie—that was a moment for the ages. And thanks Dawn, Charity & Chris for the camera work, and helping make it a "corridor moment" for even more passers-by curious at our little mini-party there for a couple minutes. It just really got to me.

I think that was even more of a hoot than having The Shat's Fan Addicts film crew (led by Bill "in cognito" in his stand-out white hat) crash not one but two of our events: The annual rapid-fire trivia (thanks once again for prizes, CBS Consumer Products!) and our game for the evening freebirds at McFadden's on the Casino "strip" (with DVDGeeks' John and Mary and Treknews.net's Brian)...

And finally, as promised in that first post-Vegas '11 TREKLAND post, I went in wearing some new hats this year—producer, for one—and did it (like everyone else) in a new "home." So, that translates as a bit thrown out of routine, and not a lot of video shot. But here's some fun stuff, nonetheless—and, as always, the kind of thing that stops me in my tracks and forces me to whip out the camera... even after all these years, and over such a crazy-busy weekend ....

A big shout-out of thanks to Gary and Adam, and Stephanie and Val and Michelle and Richard and all the Creation gang, once again ... And a reminder not to forget my video visit from our own @Televixen Mary during her MakeMeDehner.com "tour," already up as a Trekland post, too ...

Congrats, Mexico City—on your first Trek convention!

2011-09-16T10:00:00.000-07:00

Hey world—we can't let this go by unnoticed!

Mexico City recently marked another historic first for that nation, and for the international office of Trekland: Mexico's first-ever Star Trek convention!

A Star Trek "expo" it was called, actually—"for fans, from fans"—and I'm proud to say I know the guy who helped lead it: Alfredo Ruanova is president of the city's Star Trek club, "Aztlan Earthstation - Star Trek Fan Club Mexico", Aztlan being the mythical birth city of the Aztecs central to Mexican history. Alfredo visited with me twice at recent Vegas Khhaaans and told me of their hopes and plans... someday. Well, "someday" is here.

"Just us fans here... no special guests... but still a collection expo, and some presentations by us, movie showings, and such" he says of the event, which ran two weeks from Aug. 29- Sept. 11 in the capital's Futurama Youth Art and Culture Center. "It hasn’t been a commercial enterprise (pardon the pun): we got the expo hall for free, no charge for admission, and no one is selling stuff. We invited people from the local Paramount office, but they were a no-show."

"The attendance numbers will probably be pitiful by US Trek convention standards, but it has been better than we expected," he adds. Turnout ran about 20-25 a day until the final weekend ended with a bang: 200 on Saturday and 250 on Sunday, with major talks about Star Trek the franchise, and its history from "TOS through JJ."

Posters sported the literal translation of Star Trek used to market throughout Spanish-speaking countries, Viaje a las Estrellas—literally, "Voyage to the Stars." And, like other events all year long, was held with the theme of marking the 45th anniversary of the franchise.

"Every day had two showings of one of the movies, starting with ST-TMP and ending with the JJ Abrams film—we also included Galaxy Quest as a "non-Trek Trek film," he says. "We had a makeup exhibition, and a friend got made up as a klingon. We had some conferences, talking about propulsion, from steam engines to warp drives, and about Trek influence in technology. And we also had activities, like a drawing contest for kids, a trivia contest, and 'most unusual collectible' contest."

Yep, sounds like a fan convention to me—in all the purest, most glorious sense. I would have loved to have been there for this first, just as I would have loved to have experienced that first Serbian Trekfan convention in Novi Sad, headed by my longtime Trek penpal Veljko Vidic that was chronicled in Trekkies II.

"Hope it will be the start of a yearly show… and maybe something better down the road," Alfredo says—and somehow I think it will be.

The report is in Spanish, but local media did pick up the story here...

...as the multicultural reach of Gene's dream moves on to even more corners of the globe. Meanwhile, good luck in 2012, Alfredo!

STV: Ira Steven Behr, Part 3 of 4—On "Alpha"s AND "DS9"...

2011-09-15T00:04:00.000-07:00

Have you been watching Alphas on SyFy at 10 p.m. Mondays? Exec producer Ira Steven Behr is an old friend from his Trekland days heading up the writers on DS9 (and the creator of Jennifer Hetrick's rogue archeologist Vash on TNG, to boot).

If you haven't caught the earlier installments of this interview, here's Part I and Part 2 all ready for you—where, among other things, Ira runs through the David Straithaim-led cast and characters of his new hit (it's doing very well). In Part 3 here, Ira makes the point—in case you haven't been keeping up!—that the Alphas' "superhuman" abilities are natural, right from the brain: neither the comic-book super-Heroes style, nor of The 4400 alien-additive variety (and he should know, having headed up the latter show).

In fact, we finally turn the convo in this segment to waxing reflective on DS9 ... and yes, it all concludes in Part 4, coming up soon.

BTW: As Ira describes, here's real-life "Alpha" Stephen Wiltshire in action with his Manhattan memory mural.