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Welcome to Gene-ology, a podcast by Roddenberry Entertainment that dives deep into the early TV writing works of Gene Roddenberry. To fans, they were the Great Bird of the Galaxy and the First Lady of Star Trek. To their friends and co-workers, Gene Roddenberry and Majel Barrett Roddenberry were, perhaps, slightly less mythic figures with their own very human quirks, but still beloved and admired. In this panel from the TrekTalks 5 telethon in support of the Hollywood Food Coalition, Gene and Majel are remembered by those who knew them. Podcast hosted by Earl Green & Ashley Thomas TrekTalks panel hosted by John Champion Panel guests: Fred Bronson, Denise Crosby, Ernie Over, Rod Roddenberry About Gene-ology Gene-ology explores Gene Roddenberry's early television scripts, including his lesser-known works before Star Trek using the Mission Log format popularized by Roddenberry Podcasts. We analyze the themes, writing style, and cultural impact of his scripts, and we even unearth stories from the Roddenberry archives that were never produced. Join us as we trace the roots of Gene's creative genius. In This Episode Memories of Gene Roddenberry and Majel Barrett Roddenberry from those who knew and worked with them Join the Conversation What did you think of this episode? Share your thoughts, theories, and favorite moments in the comments or reach out to us on social media or email us at missionlog@roddenberry.com Did you know Roddenberry Podcasts is on YouTube? Find the video versions of your favorite shows like Mission Log: Prodigy, Mission Log: The Orville, as well as exclusive content only available on YouTube. Subscribe now! https://www.youtube.com/@RoddenberryEntertainment?sub_confirmation=1 Follow us on Social Media: INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/roddenberrypodcasts BLUESKY https://bsky.app/profile/roddenberrypod.bsky.social THREADS https://www.threads.net/@roddenberrypodcasts FACEBOOK https://www.facebook.com/MissionLogPod Our shows are part of the Roddenberry Entertainment family. For more great shows and to learn how we live the legacy of Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek, follow us here: RODDENBERRY PODCASTS https://www.instagram.com/RoddenberryPodcasts RODDENBERRY ENTERTAINMENT https://www.instagram.com/RoddenberryOfficial RODDENBERRY FOUNDATION https://www.instagram.com/TheRoddenberryFoundation Support the Show For as little as $1 a month, you can gain access to our Mission Log Discord Community! There, we continue the discussion with dedicated channels and a weekly video chat with the hosts. Become a member of our Patreon today! https://www.Patreon.com/MissionLog Subscribe and Stay Tuned Be sure to subscribe to Gene-ology for more deep dives into Gene Roddenberry's early works. New episodes are released regularly as we uncover more of Gene's television legacy. – Gene-ology is produced by Roddenberry Entertainment. Executive producer Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry. Visit https://Podcasts.Roddenberry.com for more great content. Edited by Earl Green.
The 848th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 149th episode since the series’ revival). Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill star. Amita Suran, Shane Zaza (Will), and Hamza Jeetooa (Being Human) guest star.
Cable channel Disney XD airs the sixth episode of the series Star Wars: Resistance, set prior to the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Nazneen Contractor (24, Star Trek: Into Darkness, Heroes Reborn) guest stars.
Classically trained Canadian actor Douglas Rain, best known to science fiction fans as the voice of the HAL-9000 computer in 2001: a space odyssey and 2010: The Year We Make Contact, dies at the age of 90. A veteran of the Canadian stage, Mr. Rain was a founding member of the Stratford Festival, and played a variety of parts over 45 years in Stratford, Ontario, some of which led to him reprising those performances on film. It was his narration of a 1960 documentary that got the attention of 2001 director Stanley Kubrick, who hired him to provide narration, an element that was eventually jettisoned before the movie’s release. Kubrick had, in fact, initially hired American actor Martin Balsam to voice HAL, but felt that Balsam’s performance was perhaps too emotional for the ship’s computer. Mr. Rain was enlisted to replace all of HAL’s lines in ten hours of marathon recording sessions in late 1967, long after shooting had wrapped; he claimed never to have seen the final result.
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 20th episode of the series Star Wars: Rebels, a CGI animated storyline falling between the original and prequel trilogies of the Star Wars saga.
The 75th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Caity Lotz (Mad Men, Legends Of Tomorrow), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns), and Neal McDonough (Boomtown) guest star.
The fifth episode of The Flash, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ superhero starring Grant Gustin, airs on the CW. Clancy Brown (Highlander, Earth 2) and Kelly Frye guest star.
Bridging the gap between Star Wars Episode II and Episode III, Cartoon Network premieres the third mini-episode of Genndy Tartakovsky’s The Clone Wars animated shorts.
The 183rd episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Robert Patrick. Nicholas Lea, Annabeth Gish, Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess), and Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride, Twister) guest star in the ninth season premiere.
The tenth episode of the science fiction series The Cape airs in syndication in North America, starring Corbin Bernsen and Adam Baldwin, and focusing on a fictionalized version of NASA’s shuttle program.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 31st episode of Xena: Warrior Princess. Ted Raimi (seaQuest: DSV), Hudson Leick and Kevin Smith guest stars.
The 57th episode of the supernatural crime series Forever Knight airs in syndication, starring Geraint Wyn-Davies, Catherine Disher, Nigel Bennett, and Lisa Ryder.
The 32nd episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Mitch Pileggi. William B. Davis and Don S. Davis (Twin Peaks, Stargate SG-1) guest star.
Paramount debuts Star Trek: Generations in theaters, the first movie to primarily feature the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation, though original Trek actors William Shatner, James Doohan and Walter Koenig reprise their roles. This movie has the most in common with the recently-ended series, with David Carson (director several well-regarded TV episodes, including the two-hour Deep Space Nine pilot) and composer Dennis McCarthy continuing in their respective roles here, though fan reactions are mixed over the death of a major character.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 107th episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Leonard Nimoy guest stars as Spock in the highest-rated episode in the series’ history. The events of this episode tie in with the movie Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country.
Atari’s arcade game Pole Position II, originated by Japanese manufacturer Namco, is released in the United States. A sequel to the hit racing game Pole Position, this game adds new tracks and improved graphics.
The first video game company to produce only software without a hardware platform of its own, Activision is heavily dependent on the Atari 2600 – and Atari’s falling fortunes bring Activision down with it. After third quarter losses of $4,000,000, a quarter of Activision’s workforce is laid off; Activision CEO Jim Levy cautiously predicts better results in 1984.
On the first fully-operational flight of NASA’s Space Transportation System, Space Shuttle Columbia delivers two commercial satellites to orbit, the Canadian Anik C-3 satellite and an American satellite, SitS-C. Aboard Columbia for this flight is the first four-astronaut crew in NASA’s history, consisting of Commander Vance Brand, Pilot Robert Overmyer, and mission specialists Joseph Allen and William Lenoir. The flight lasts five days before a landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
Konami introduces the arcade game Time Pilot in the United States, where it becomes one of the company’s more prominent sleeper hits. Time Pilot is also licensed to Atari in some regions.
After over six years of continuous operation and data gathering on the planet Mars, the Viking 1 lander – having outlived the power supply aboard its orbiter and now transmitting its observations directly to Earth – is inadvertently silenced during what is intended to be a remote upgrade of its on-board software. Ground controllers are never able to establish contact with Viking 1 again. Its record of continuous operation on another planet is not broken until 2010, when Viking 1 is outlasted by NASA’s Opportunity rover.
ABC airs the tenth episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
The 15th episode of the series Salvage 1 airs on ABC, starring Andy Griffith, Joel Higgins, and Trish Stewart. Bert Freed (Hang ‘Em High) and Heather McAdam (Sisters) guest star. Due to underwhelming ratings for the two-part season premiere, ABC cancels the show after this episode, leaving a further four episodes unaired; they will surface later as the show reappears in cable reruns in the 1990s.
The eighth episode of the British comedy series Robert’s Robots airs on ITV licensee Thames Television, starring John Clive (A Clockwork Orange, Yellow Submarine) as eccentric inventor Robert Sommerby and Nigel Pegram as one of his robot creations. This is the beginning of the show’s second season.
The ninth episode of the horror anthology series The Evil Touch airs on Australia’s Nine Network, hosted by Anthony Quayle (Strange Report). (The series will later appear in the U.S. and elsewhere in first-run syndication.) Vic Morrow (Combat!, Twilight Zone: The Movie) guest stars.
The 20th episode of The Sixth Sense airs on ABC, starring Gary Collins. Pamela Franklin (The Legend Of Hell House) and Pernell Roberts (Bonanza, Trapper John M.D.) guest star.
The 180th episode of Doctor Who airs on the BBC. Continuing the icy theme of the fifth season, this is the first story to feature the lumbering Ice Warriors from the planet Mars.
ABC broadcasts the tenth episode of the Filmation animated series Journey To The Center Of The Earth, very loosely based on the 1959 movie of the same name. Ted Knight, Pat Harrington Jr., and Jane Webb lead the voice cast.
The final mission of NASA’s Gemini program, Gemini 12 lifts off with Jim Lovell and “Buzz” Aldrin aboard. Over their three-day flight, the last two-man American astronaut crew until the early Space Shuttle flights finally demonstrates improved spacewalk techniques, with handholds having been added to the Gemini capsule’s exterior, and pre-launch training conducted underwater in weighted spacesuits. Aldrin performs a two-hour spacewalk without overexerting himself, a first for the American space program. Gemini 12 splashes down, having accomplished all of the Gemini program goals mere weeks ahead of the first launch window for Apollo 1.
The ninth episode of Irwin Allen’s science fiction series The Time Tunnel airs on ABC, starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. Marcel Hillaire, Whit Bissell, and Lee Meriwether geust star.
UK broadcaster ATV Midlands airs the seventh episode of Gerry Anderson’s Supermarionation science fiction series Thunderbirds, featuring the voices of Shane Rimmer, David Graham, Sylvia Anderson, Ray Barrett, and Peter Dyneley.
Streaming service Paramount Plus releases the fourth episode of the animated series Star Trek: Prodigy, created by Dan & Kevin Hageman. 
The 848th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 149th episode since the series’ revival). Jodie Whittaker, Bradley Walsh, Tosin Cole and Mandip Gill star. Amita Suran, Shane Zaza (Will), and Hamza Jeetooa (Being Human) guest star. 
Cable channel Disney XD airs the sixth episode of the series Star Wars: Resistance, set prior to the events of Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Nazneen Contractor (24, Star Trek: Into Darkness, Heroes Reborn) guest stars. 
Classically trained Canadian actor Douglas Rain, best known to science fiction fans as the voice of the HAL-9000 computer in 2001: a space odyssey and 2010: The Year We Make Contact, dies at the age of 90. A veteran of the Canadian stage, Mr. Rain was a founding member of the Stratford Festival, and played a variety of parts over 45 years in Stratford, Ontario, some of which led to him reprising those performances on film. It was his narration of a 1960 documentary that got the attention of 2001 director Stanley Kubrick, who hired him to provide narration, an element that was eventually jettisoned before the movie’s release. Kubrick had, in fact, initially hired American actor Martin Balsam to voice HAL, but felt that Balsam’s performance was perhaps too emotional for the ship’s computer. Mr. Rain was enlisted to replace all of HAL’s lines in ten hours of marathon recording sessions in late 1967, long after shooting had wrapped; he claimed never to have seen the final result.
La-La Land Records releases the complete soundtrack from the Warner Bros. direct-to-video animated feature Batman: Return of the Caped Crusaders, composed by Lolita Ritmanis, Michael McCuistion and Kristopher Carter (Batman: The Animated Series). 
Cable channel Disney XD premieres the 20th episode of the series Star Wars: Rebels, a CGI animated storyline falling between the original and prequel trilogies of the Star Wars saga. 
The 75th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Caity Lotz (Mad Men, Legends Of Tomorrow), Brandon Routh (Superman Returns), and Neal McDonough (Boomtown) guest star.
The fifth episode of The Flash, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ superhero starring Grant Gustin, airs on the CW. Clancy Brown (Highlander, Earth 2) and Kelly Frye guest star.
Bridging the gap between Star Wars Episode II and Episode III, Cartoon Network premieres the third mini-episode of Genndy Tartakovsky’s The Clone Wars animated shorts. 
The 183rd episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Robert Patrick. Nicholas Lea, Annabeth Gish, Lucy Lawless (Xena: Warrior Princess), and Cary Elwes (The Princess Bride, Twister) guest star in the ninth season premiere.
UPN airs the 98th episode of Star Trek: Voyager. 
Cable channel TNT premieres the 108th episode of J. Michael Straczynski’s science fiction series Babylon 5. 
Unrelated to the movie of the same name, Marc Cerasini’s original novel Godzilla 2000 is published by Random House. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 103rd episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Vanessa Williams guest stars. 
The tenth episode of the science fiction series The Cape airs in syndication in North America, starring Corbin Bernsen and Adam Baldwin, and focusing on a fictionalized version of NASA’s shuttle program. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 31st episode of Xena: Warrior Princess. Ted Raimi (seaQuest: DSV), Hudson Leick and Kevin Smith guest stars. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for Whatever Happened To Mr. Garibaldi?, the 68th episode of J. Michael Straczynski’s science fiction series Babylon 5. 
The 57th episode of the supernatural crime series Forever Knight airs in syndication, starring Geraint Wyn-Davies, Catherine Disher, Nigel Bennett, and Lisa Ryder.
Paramount debuts Star Trek: Generations in theaters, the first movie to primarily feature the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation, though original Trek actors William Shatner, James Doohan and Walter Koenig reprise their roles. This movie has the most in common with the recently-ended series, with David Carson (director several well-regarded TV episodes, including the two-hour Deep Space Nine pilot) and composer Dennis McCarthy continuing in their respective roles here, though fan reactions are mixed over the death of a major character. 
The 36th episode of the science fiction comedy Red Dwarf airs on BBC 2. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 107th episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Leonard Nimoy guest stars as Spock in the highest-rated episode in the series’ history. The events of this episode tie in with the movie Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. 
The 32nd episode of the syndicated series Superboy, starring Gerard Christopher and Stacy Haiduk, airs.
Atari’s arcade game Pole Position II, originated by Japanese manufacturer Namco, is released in the United States. A sequel to the hit racing game Pole Position, this game adds new tracks and improved graphics. 
The first video game company to produce only software without a hardware platform of its own, Activision is heavily dependent on the Atari 2600 – and Atari’s falling fortunes bring Activision down with it. After third quarter losses of $4,000,000, a quarter of Activision’s workforce is laid off; Activision CEO Jim Levy cautiously predicts better results in 1984.
On the first fully-operational flight of NASA’s Space Transportation System, Space Shuttle Columbia delivers two commercial satellites to orbit, the Canadian Anik C-3 satellite and an American satellite, SitS-C. Aboard Columbia for this flight is the first four-astronaut crew in NASA’s history, consisting of Commander Vance Brand, Pilot Robert Overmyer, and mission specialists Joseph Allen and William Lenoir. The flight lasts five days before a landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
Konami introduces the arcade game Time Pilot in the United States, where it becomes one of the company’s more prominent sleeper hits. Time Pilot is also licensed to Atari in some regions. 
After over six years of continuous operation and data gathering on the planet Mars, the Viking 1 lander – having outlived the power supply aboard its orbiter and now transmitting its observations directly to Earth – is inadvertently silenced during what is intended to be a remote upgrade of its on-board software. Ground controllers are never able to establish contact with Viking 1 again. Its record of continuous operation on another planet is not broken until 2010, when Viking 1 is outlasted by NASA’s Opportunity rover.
ABC airs the tenth episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
The 15th episode of the series Salvage 1 airs on ABC, starring Andy Griffith, Joel Higgins, and Trish Stewart. Bert Freed (Hang ‘Em High) and Heather McAdam (Sisters) guest star. Due to underwhelming ratings for the two-part season premiere, ABC cancels the show after this episode, leaving a further four episodes unaired; they will surface later as the show reappears in cable reruns in the 1990s.
The 490th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1, continuing the Key To Time storyline. Susan Engel and Beatrix Lehmann guest star.
CBS airs the tenth episode of the Space Academy spinoff series Jason Of Star Command, starring Craig Littler, Sid Haig, and James Doohan (Star Trek). 
The 21st episode of Wonder Woman airs on CBS, starring Lynda Carter and Lyle Waggoner. Celeste Holm guest stars.
The 35th episode of Gerry Anderson’s space adventure series Space: 1999 airs on British broadcaster ITV, starring Martin Landau, Barbara Bain, and Catherine Schell. 
The eighth episode of the British comedy series Robert’s Robots airs on ITV licensee Thames Television, starring John Clive (A Clockwork Orange, Yellow Submarine) as eccentric inventor Robert Sommerby and Nigel Pegram as one of his robot creations. This is the beginning of the show’s second season.
The ninth episode of the horror anthology series The Evil Touch airs on Australia’s Nine Network, hosted by Anthony Quayle (Strange Report). (The series will later appear in the U.S. and elsewhere in first-run syndication.) Vic Morrow (Combat!, Twilight Zone: The Movie) guest stars.
The 20th episode of The Sixth Sense airs on ABC, starring Gary Collins. Pamela Franklin (The Legend Of Hell House) and Pernell Roberts (Bonanza, Trapper John M.D.) guest star.
The eighth episode of Gerry Anderson’s live-action UFO series airs on ITV, starring Edward Bishop and Michael Billington. George Sewell guest stars.
The 180th episode of Doctor Who airs on the BBC. Continuing the icy theme of the fifth season, this is the first story to feature the lumbering Ice Warriors from the planet Mars. 
British broadcaster ABC airs the 127th episode of the spy-fi series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg. 
ABC broadcasts the tenth episode of the Filmation animated series Journey To The Center Of The Earth, very loosely based on the 1959 movie of the same name. Ted Knight, Pat Harrington Jr., and Jane Webb lead the voice cast.
The final mission of NASA’s Gemini program, Gemini 12 lifts off with Jim Lovell and “Buzz” Aldrin aboard. Over their three-day flight, the last two-man American astronaut crew until the early Space Shuttle flights finally demonstrates improved spacewalk techniques, with handholds having been added to the Gemini capsule’s exterior, and pre-launch training conducted underwater in weighted spacesuits. Aldrin performs a two-hour spacewalk without overexerting himself, a first for the American space program. Gemini 12 splashes down, having accomplished all of the Gemini program goals mere weeks ahead of the first launch window for Apollo 1.
The ninth episode of Irwin Allen’s science fiction series The Time Tunnel airs on ABC, starring James Darren and Robert Colbert. Marcel Hillaire, Whit Bissell, and Lee Meriwether geust star.
UK broadcaster ATV Midlands airs the seventh episode of Gerry Anderson’s Supermarionation science fiction series Thunderbirds, featuring the voices of Shane Rimmer, David Graham, Sylvia Anderson, Ray Barrett, and Peter Dyneley.
ABC airs the eighth episode of Leslie Stevens’ anthology series The Outer Limits. Gary Merrill, Sally Kellerman and Sally Kellerman star in a script by David Duncan.
The 42nd episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone airs on CBS. Maxine Stuart stars in an episode written by Serling.
The sixth episode of the science fiction drama series Men Into Space airs on CBS, starring William Lundigan. Denver Pyle guest stars.