theLogBook.com is a chronicle of how we used to imagine the future – an ever-expanding logbook of what our entertainment, our culture, and even our brightest minds thought would happen. It’s nostalgia – and some real history – that gives factual context to the fiction, cultural context to the factual, and always looks to the future.
The ongoing remodel of the site, the ongoing video series, and more are powered by your support! Join our Patreon, get access to our Discord, and help the site grow!
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 808th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 109th episode since the series’ revival), starring Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman. Nigel Betts guest stars.
NASA launches the unmanned Dawn spacecraft, a vehicle designed to explore the two largest bodies in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Dawn will also test a new charged ion propulsion system designed to improve on the performance of traditional chemical propellants (though its fine-tuning reaction control system will still use small engines powered by “rocket fuel”). Dawn is intended to visit and orbit the asteroid Vesta in 2011, which it will then depart after mapping to explore Ceres in 2015.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 91st episode of Xena: Warrior Princess, starring Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor. Hudson Leick and Ted Raimi guest star in the fifth season premiere.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 69th episode of Xena: Warrior Princess, starring Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor. This is the fourth season premiere.
Its ability to recharge its power supply depleted, the Mars Pathfinder lander – now dubbed Sagan Memorial Station – ceases its transmissions to Earth, also cutting off communication with the Sojourner Mars rover. Originally intended for a month-long mission, Pathfinder and Sojourner last three times that long, and give scientists and engineers a wealth of data for planning the twin Mars Exploration Rovers. NASA declares the Pathfinder mission a complete success in early 1998.
Fox airs the 24th episode of Tracy Torme’s alternate-universe science fiction series Sliders, starring Jerry O’Connell, John Rhys Davies, Sabrina Lloyd, and Cleavant Derricks.
Warner Bros. Records releases R.E.M.‘s ninth album, Monster, featuring the singles “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”, “Bang and Blame”, and “Crush With Eyeliner”.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 20th episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. This episode opens the second season and is the first installment of an unprecedented (for Star Trek) three-part story. Frank Langella guest stars.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 23rd episode of the fantasy series Highlander, starring Adrian Paul (War Of The Worlds), Alexandra Vandernoort, and Stan Kirsch, and based on the mythology created in the 1986 movie of the same name. Jim Byrnes joins the cast as Duncan’s mortal “Watcher” in the second season premiere.
The 687th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Jean Marsh guest stars, and Nicholas Courtney makes his final original series appearance as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. This story opens the 26th and final season of the original Doctor Who series.
The 645th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Lynda Bellingham (All Creatures Great & Small) guest stars as the Inquisitor, with Michael Jayston as the Valeyard and David Selby (Dark Shadows) as Sabalon Glitz. The first four parts of the 14-part story are the final complete storyline written by former script editor Robert Holmes, who dies during production.
CBS airs the 25th episode of a revival of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone. Jeff Yagher and Shelley Duvall star in an episode comprised of two short stories, George R.R. Martin’s The Once And Future King and A Saucer Of Loneliness, adapted by David Gerrold from Theodore Sturgeon’s short story. This episode opens the series’ second season.
Months after his resignation as CEO of Atari, Ray Kassar is hit with charges of insider trading by the Securities & Exchange Commission. At issue, according to the SEC, is the sudden sale of 5,000 shares in Atari’s parent company, Warner Communications, 23 minutes before a statement was issued indicating that Atari would not meet shareholders’ expectations in the fourth quarters of 1982. Other Atari executives are also charged with similar last-minute sell-offs.
In what is perhaps the most tangible event of the entire video game industry crash in 1983, Atari dumps 14 truckloads of unsold game cartridges and other parts in the Alamagordo, New Mexico city dump, with security guards standing by to keep curious onlookers from grabbing any “souvenirs” before concrete is poured over them. The unsold merchandise is stock left over from the closure of Atari’s cartridge assembly plant in El Paso, Texas. Second-quarter earnings report reveal that Atari has lost over $300,000,000 since the beginning of 1983.
The Odyssey² video game console gets its first major hardware upgrade in the form of the add-on voice synthesizer module, marketed as the Voice of Odyssey². With the Type & Tell cartridge packed in, the Voice promises to add speech to numerous specially marked Odyssey² games. The initial line of Voice games, also released on or around this date, includes K.C.’s Krazy Chase (a sequel to the sued-off-the-market K.C. Munchkin), and educational games Nimble Numbers NED and SID The Spellbinder.
The third episode of the Hammer Studios-produced horror anthology series Hammer House Of Horror airs on ITV. Denholm Elliott (Raiders Of The Lost Ark) guest stars.
The 530th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Jacqueline Hill (who starred in early seasons of Doctor Who as Barbara, one of the Doctor’s first companions) guest stars.
The 19th episode of Star Blazers, an English rewrite and dub of the 1974 anime series Space Battleship Yamato, premieres in syndication across the U.S.
ABC airs the fourth episode of Sid & Marty Krofft’s The Lost Saucer, starring Jim Nabors (The Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle USMC) and Ruth Buzzi (Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In). Billy Barty guest stars.
The 19th episode of Filmation’s live-action Shazam! series airs on CBS, starring Michael Gray and Les Tremayne. John Davey takes over the role of Captain Marvel from this episode forward.
ABC airs the third episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker, based on Jeff Rice’s novel and the 1972 TV movie The Night Stalker, starring Darren McGavin. Dick Van Patten guest stars.
After two years of reorganization and rethinking, the Soviet manned space program resumes with the launch of Soyuz 12, carrying cosmonauts Vasili Lazarev and Oleg Makarov. Previously a three-seater, Soyuz has been redesigned following the Soyuz 11 tragedy: the vehicle now seats a crew of two, both wearing fully pressurized spacesuits. Originally intended to visit the Salyut 2 station, Soyuz 12 is only a two-day shakedown flight for the redesigned spacecraft (Salyut 2’s own technical problems have rendered it uninhabitable by a human crew).
The 21st episode of the children’s sci-fi series Phoenix Five airs on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, starring Mike Dorsey, Damien Parker, and Patsy Trench (Science Report: Alternative 3), with Owen Weingott as recurring villain Platonus.
The 63rd episode of Irwin Allen’s science fiction series Lost In Space premieres on CBS, starring Guy Williams, June Lockhart, and Jonathan Harris. Vincent Beck (Santa Claus Conquers The Martians) guest stars.
The original pilot episode of Doctor Who – version 1.0 of An Unearthly Child – is filmed at the BBC’s Lime Grove Studios. Though it’s substantially the same script as the televised version – barring a line claiming that the Doctor and Susan are from Earth in the 49th century (!) – problems with the sets and props necessitate a complete reshoot on October 18th.
The 121st episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone airs on CBS. Jack Klugman, Bobby Diamond, and Bill Mumy star in the fifth season finale, written by Serling. The show resumes its half-hour length for the duration of this season.
The 808th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 109th episode since the series’ revival), starring Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman. Nigel Betts guest stars.
NASA launches the unmanned Dawn spacecraft, a vehicle designed to explore the two largest bodies in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Dawn will also test a new charged ion propulsion system designed to improve on the performance of traditional chemical propellants (though its fine-tuning reaction control system will still use small engines powered by “rocket fuel”). Dawn is intended to visit and orbit the asteroid Vesta in 2011, which it will then depart after mapping to explore Ceres in 2015.
Varese Sarabande releases David Newman‘s soundtrack from the movie Serenity, a sequel to the TV series Firefly. 
Fox airs the second episode of Joss Whedon’s science fiction series Firefly, starring Nathan Fillion. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 91st episode of Xena: Warrior Princess, starring Lucy Lawless and Renee O’Connor. Hudson Leick and Ted Raimi guest star in the fifth season premiere. 
Its ability to recharge its power supply depleted, the Mars Pathfinder lander – now dubbed Sagan Memorial Station – ceases its transmissions to Earth, also cutting off communication with the Sojourner Mars rover. Originally intended for a month-long mission, Pathfinder and Sojourner last three times that long, and give scientists and engineers a wealth of data for planning the twin Mars Exploration Rovers. NASA declares the Pathfinder mission a complete success in early 1998.
Fox airs the 24th episode of Tracy Torme’s alternate-universe science fiction series Sliders, starring Jerry O’Connell, John Rhys Davies, Sabrina Lloyd, and Cleavant Derricks.
Warner Bros. Records releases R.E.M.‘s ninth album, Monster, featuring the singles “What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?”, “Bang and Blame”, and “Crush With Eyeliner”. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 20th episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. This episode opens the second season and is the first installment of an unprecedented (for Star Trek) three-part story. Frank Langella guest stars. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 23rd episode of the fantasy series Highlander, starring Adrian Paul (War Of The Worlds), Alexandra Vandernoort, and Stan Kirsch, and based on the mythology created in the 1986 movie of the same name. Jim Byrnes joins the cast as Duncan’s mortal “Watcher” in the second season premiere.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 153rd episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Eric Pierpoint (Alien Nation) guest stars. 
The 687th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Jean Marsh guest stars, and Nicholas Courtney makes his final original series appearance as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. This story opens the 26th and final season of the original Doctor Who series.
NBC airs the tenth episode of Donald Bellisario’s science fiction series Quantum Leap, starring Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell.
The tenth episode of the science fiction comedy Red Dwarf airs on BBC 2. Mark Williams guest stars. 
UK regional broadcaster TVS airs the fourth episode of Richard Cooper’s alternate-history series Knights Of God, portraying a struggle between oppressive government and rugged resistance fighters in a post-civil-war UK. Nigel Stock and Michael Sheard (The Empire Strikes Back) guest star. 
The 645th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Lynda Bellingham (All Creatures Great & Small) guest stars as the Inquisitor, with Michael Jayston as the Valeyard and David Selby (Dark Shadows) as Sabalon Glitz. The first four parts of the 14-part story are the final complete storyline written by former script editor Robert Holmes, who dies during production.
CBS airs the 25th episode of a revival of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone. Jeff Yagher and Shelley Duvall star in an episode comprised of two short stories, George R.R. Martin’s The Once And Future King and A Saucer Of Loneliness, adapted by David Gerrold from Theodore Sturgeon’s short story. This episode opens the series’ second season.
CBS airs the first episode of a modern revival of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone. Bruce Willis stars in an adaptation of a Harlan Ellison story, while Melinda Dillon stars in a second segment. Wes Craven (A Nightmare On Elm Street) directs both stories. 
Electronic Arts releases the Little Computer People “discovery kit” for Commodore 64 home computers, enabling players to manage the “life” of a “Little Computer Person” residing within their home computer. 
Months after his resignation as CEO of Atari, Ray Kassar is hit with charges of insider trading by the Securities & Exchange Commission. At issue, according to the SEC, is the sudden sale of 5,000 shares in Atari’s parent company, Warner Communications, 23 minutes before a statement was issued indicating that Atari would not meet shareholders’ expectations in the fourth quarters of 1982. Other Atari executives are also charged with similar last-minute sell-offs.
In what is perhaps the most tangible event of the entire video game industry crash in 1983, Atari dumps 14 truckloads of unsold game cartridges and other parts in the Alamagordo, New Mexico city dump, with security guards standing by to keep curious onlookers from grabbing any “souvenirs” before concrete is poured over them. The unsold merchandise is stock left over from the closure of Atari’s cartridge assembly plant in El Paso, Texas. Second-quarter earnings report reveal that Atari has lost over $300,000,000 since the beginning of 1983.
The Odyssey² video game console gets its first major hardware upgrade in the form of the add-on voice synthesizer module, marketed as the Voice of Odyssey². With the Type & Tell cartridge packed in, the Voice promises to add speech to numerous specially marked Odyssey² games. The initial line of Voice games, also released on or around this date, includes K.C.’s Krazy Chase (a sequel to the sued-off-the-market K.C. Munchkin), and educational games Nimble Numbers NED and SID The Spellbinder.
Mute Records releases the second album by Depeche Mode, A Broken Frame, featuring the singles “See You” and “The Meaning Of Love”. 
The third episode of the Hammer Studios-produced horror anthology series Hammer House Of Horror airs on ITV. Denholm Elliott (Raiders Of The Lost Ark) guest stars.
The 530th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Jacqueline Hill (who starred in early seasons of Doctor Who as Barbara, one of the Doctor’s first companions) guest stars. 
NBC airs the second episode of Buck Rogers In The 25th Century. Buster Crabbe, Jack Palance and Roddy McDowall guest star. 
The 19th episode of Star Blazers, an English rewrite and dub of the 1974 anime series Space Battleship Yamato, premieres in syndication across the U.S. 
The 406th episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Prentis Hancock (Space: 1999) guest stars. 
ABC airs the fourth episode of Sid & Marty Krofft’s The Lost Saucer, starring Jim Nabors (The Andy Griffith Show, Gomer Pyle USMC) and Ruth Buzzi (Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In). Billy Barty guest stars.
The fourth episode of the children’s superhero series Isis premieres on CBS (sometimes referred to as Secrets of Isis), starring Joanna Cameron. The series is part of a live-action superhero programming block produced by Filmation. 
The 19th episode of Filmation’s live-action Shazam! series airs on CBS, starring Michael Gray and Les Tremayne. John Davey takes over the role of Captain Marvel from this episode forward.
The fourth episode of Sid & Marty Krofft’s Far-Out Space Nuts airs on CBS, starring Bob Denver (Gillgan’s Island) and Chuck McCann (Herbie Rides Again). 
ABC airs the third episode of Kolchak: The Night Stalker, based on Jeff Rice’s novel and the 1972 TV movie The Night Stalker, starring Darren McGavin. Dick Van Patten guest stars. 
The third episode of the TV spinoff of Planet Of The Apes premieres on CBS. 
The 16th episode of The Six Million Dollar Man is broadcast on ABC, starring Lee Majors and Richard Anderson. Pat Hingle (Batman) guest stars.
After two years of reorganization and rethinking, the Soviet manned space program resumes with the launch of Soyuz 12, carrying cosmonauts Vasili Lazarev and Oleg Makarov. Previously a three-seater, Soyuz has been redesigned following the Soyuz 11 tragedy: the vehicle now seats a crew of two, both wearing fully pressurized spacesuits. Originally intended to visit the Salyut 2 station, Soyuz 12 is only a two-day shakedown flight for the redesigned spacecraft (Salyut 2’s own technical problems have rendered it uninhabitable by a human crew).
The third episode of Leslie Steven’s “spy-fi” series Search airs on NBC, starring Doug McClure and Burgess Meredith. Jeff Corey guest stars. 
The 21st episode of the children’s sci-fi series Phoenix Five airs on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, starring Mike Dorsey, Damien Parker, and Patsy Trench (Science Report: Alternative 3), with Owen Weingott as recurring villain Platonus. 
The 57th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. Joanna Linville guest stars as the Romulan Commander. 
The 63rd episode of Irwin Allen’s science fiction series Lost In Space premieres on CBS, starring Guy Williams, June Lockhart, and Jonathan Harris. Vincent Beck (Santa Claus Conquers The Martians) guest stars.
The original pilot episode of Doctor Who – version 1.0 of An Unearthly Child – is filmed at the BBC’s Lime Grove Studios. Though it’s substantially the same script as the televised version – barring a line claiming that the Doctor and Susan are from Earth in the 49th century (!) – problems with the sets and props necessitate a complete reshoot on October 18th.
The 121st episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone airs on CBS. Jack Klugman, Bobby Diamond, and Bill Mumy star in the fifth season finale, written by Serling. The show resumes its half-hour length for the duration of this season.
ABC airs the 63rd episode of the supernatural anthology series One Step Beyond, hosted and directed by John Newland. Harry Townes guest stars.