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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. It features Lee Marvin in front of a high-tech viewscreen, but this is no starship – Gene-ology opens its investigation into a very unusual foray into "true crime" with Gene Roddenberry adapting the particulars of a notorious Seattle murder case into dramatic form. It's also a career milestone for Gene: the last script he would write for a show that he didn't also create. Hosted by Earl Green & Ashley Thomas 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 A breakdown of key moments and themes in "Queen Anne Killer Unidentified: The Michael Olds Story". Exploring Gene Roddenberry's evolving style and storytelling. How this episode ties into the broader TV landscape of the time and reflects the early seeds of Roddenberry's visionary work. Guest stars and unique production elements that bring this episode to life. 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.
Television network The CW, which has enjoyed nearly a decade of success with a slate of popular Greg Berlanti-produced series based on DC Comics properties, announces the unexpected cancellation of two of those shows, Legends Of Tomorrow and Batwoman. With the network up for sale by the two studios holding ownership stakes, Warner Bros. and Paramount/CBS, the cancellations may be the result of a desire to streamline the schedule and make room for less effects-and-stunt-heavy programming that will appeal to potential buyers (the most likely of which at the time of these cancellations is budget-conscious television station group Nexstar). Legends Of Tomorrow had recently completed its seventh season on the air, while Batwoman had only recently completed its third season. This leaves only three DC Comics-derived series on the CW’s schedule, The Flash (entering its ninth and final season) and Superman & Lois; the already-filmed third season of Stargirl will air at a date yet to be determined (but has traditionally aired in a summer timeslot).
Commercial spaceflight operator Blue Origin, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, launches its eighth New Shepard flight. The uncrewed (but human-rated) capsule includes several commercial and research payloads, as well as a telemetry test dummy nicknamed “Mannequin Skywalker”, designed to record potential spaceflight stresses on future human passengers. An apogee of 351,000 feet is reached for the first time. As with past missions, both the capsule and its single-stage suborbital booster come in for soft landings near Blue Origin’s Texas launch facility. This is the second flight for the third New Shepard reusable capsule, as well as the second flight for the third New Shepard reusable booster.
The 832nd episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 133rd episode since the series’ revival). Peter Capaldi, Pearl Mackie, and Matt Lucas star. (This story is unrelated to an audio story of the same name based on a script for the unproduced 1990 television season of Doctor Who.)
The 67th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. Katrina Law (Spartacus) guest stars.
Commercial spaceflight operator Blue Origin, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, launches its first New Shepard flight, a booster and capsule which the company hopes will eventually carry paying passengers on short suborbital flights into space. The uncrewed (but human-rated) capsule comes in for a soft landing near Blue Origin’s Texas launch facility, though the booster – also intended to land and be refurbished for future reuse – does not land intact. This is the first in a series of uncrewed tests of the New Shepard launch system and suborbital vehicle; further tests will be flown over the next few years.
Space passenger line Virgin Galactic tests the Burt Rutan-designed suborbital SpaceShipTwo spacecraft VSS Enterprise at an altitude of over ten miles, reaching a speed of over Mach 1. Virgin’s official report is that the test flight was a complete success; no date is set for a suborbital test flight yet. Virgin is expected to build four more vehicles of the SpaceShipTwo class before moving on to a more advanced design, SpaceShipThree.
Actor William Campbell, who guest starred as Koloth the Klingon in the classic Star Trek fan favorite The Trouble With Tribbles (and reprised the role in the much later Deep Space Nine epsiode Blood Oath), and played the Q-like Trelaine in The Squire Of Gothos, dies at the age of 84.
The fan-produced Star Trek production Star Trek: Intrepid releases its second episode. The UK-based production is shot almost entirely in front of green screen with computer-generated backgrounds added in post production.
The 715th episode of Doctor Who (the 17th since the series’ revival) airs on BBC1. Elisabeth Sladen reprises her classic series role of Sarah Jane Smith, the first non-enemy character from the original series to appear in the current series. John Leeson guest stars as the voice of K-9; Anthony Stewart Head (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer) also appears.
The big screen adaptation of Douglas Adams’ science fiction comedy The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy premieres in theaters worldwide. Starring Martin Freeman, Mos Def, Zooey Deschanel and Sam Rockwell, and featuring a cameo appearance from original BBC radio/TV actor Simon Jones, the movie is often criticized for being “Americanized” (despite being produced by a British production company with a largely British cast). Despite an open ending pointing toward a sequel, the movie’s box office take doesn’t merit a second film.
The 141st episode of Joss Whedon’s supernatural series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, airs on UPN. James Marsters and Alyson Hannigan also star. Nathan Fillion (Firefly) and Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse) guest star.
The 108th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s Earth: Final Conflict, airs in syndication, starring Jayne Heitmeyer, Von Flores, Melinda Deines, Guylaine St. Onge, and Alan Van Sprang.
The 179th episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Robert Patrick. Casey Biggs (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and M.C. Gainey (Lost) guest star.
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 91st episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Meg Foster, Michael Ansara and Majel Barrett Roddenberry guest star; this is the only episode of the entire Star Trek franchise to give Majel Barrett a story credit.
The 41st episode of the supernatural crime series Forever Knight airs in syndication, starring Geraint Wyn-Davies, Catherine Disher, Nigel Bennett, and John Kapelos.
The 22nd episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny. Brian Markinson (Dark Angel, Caprica, Continuum) guest stars.
The 18th episode of the horror anthology series Freddy’s Nightmares is broadcast in syndication in North America, hosted by Robert Englund in character as Freddy Krueger.
The 22nd episode of the syndicated Alexander and Ilya Salkind-produced Superboy series, starring John Haymes Newton and Stacy Haiduk, airs. Stuart Whitman, Salome Jens, and Joseph Campanella guest star.
Space Shuttle Challenger lifts off on a week-long mission to perform experiments in the cargo-bay-mounted Spacelab laboratory module. Aboard Challenger for the Spacelab 3 flight are Commander Robert Overmyer, Pilot Frederick Gregory, mission specialists Don Lind, Norm Thagard, and William Thornton, and payload specialists Lodewijk van den Berg and Taylor Wang. Following the landing gear damage experienced by Discovery on its last flight, Challenger makes its landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
ABC airs the sixth episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
The 21st episode of Glen A. Larson’s science fiction series Battlestar Galactica airs on ABC. This is the end of the first season, and the last episode to feature the original characters; when Battlestar Galactica returns nearly a year later, it reflects dramatic budgetary and creative restrictions imposed upon Larson by ABC.
The 13th episode of Sydney Newman’s spy series The Avengers, starring Ian Hendry and Patrick Macnee, airs on UK broadcaster ABC. This episode is now missing from the archives, but will be recreated in audio form in the 21st century by Big Finish Productions.
The 29th episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone airs on CBS. Janice Rule and Terry Burnham star in an episode written by Serling and scored by a young Jerry Goldsmith.
The 43rd episode of the syndicated science fiction Science Fiction Theatre airs on stations across the U.S. Hosted by Truman Bradley, the episode stars Whit Bissell and Kenneth Tobey, and plays on the rising nuclear fear of the fifties.
Television network The CW, which has enjoyed nearly a decade of success with a slate of popular Greg Berlanti-produced series based on DC Comics properties, announces the unexpected cancellation of two of those shows, Legends Of Tomorrow and Batwoman. With the network up for sale by the two studios holding ownership stakes, Warner Bros. and Paramount/CBS, the cancellations may be the result of a desire to streamline the schedule and make room for less effects-and-stunt-heavy programming that will appeal to potential buyers (the most likely of which at the time of these cancellations is budget-conscious television station group Nexstar). Legends Of Tomorrow had recently completed its seventh season on the air, while Batwoman had only recently completed its third season. This leaves only three DC Comics-derived series on the CW’s schedule, The Flash (entering its ninth and final season) and Superman & Lois; the already-filmed third season of Stargirl will air at a date yet to be determined (but has traditionally aired in a summer timeslot).
Lakeshore Records digitally releases an album of selections from Jeff Russo‘s soundtrack to the second season of the streaming series Star Trek: Picard. 
The CW airs the 64th episode of Legends Of Tomorrow, starring Caity Lotz, Matt Ryan, Brandon Routh, and Tala Ashe. 
The 158th episode of Arrow, a modern-day reboot of DC Comics’ Green Arrow superhero starring Stephen Amell, airs on the CW. 
Commercial spaceflight operator Blue Origin, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, launches its eighth New Shepard flight. The uncrewed (but human-rated) capsule includes several commercial and research payloads, as well as a telemetry test dummy nicknamed “Mannequin Skywalker”, designed to record potential spaceflight stresses on future human passengers. An apogee of 351,000 feet is reached for the first time. As with past missions, both the capsule and its single-stage suborbital booster come in for soft landings near Blue Origin’s Texas launch facility. This is the second flight for the third New Shepard reusable capsule, as well as the second flight for the third New Shepard reusable booster.
The 832nd episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1 (the 133rd episode since the series’ revival). Peter Capaldi, Pearl Mackie, and Matt Lucas star. (This story is unrelated to an audio story of the same name based on a script for the unproduced 1990 television season of Doctor Who.) 
Commercial spaceflight operator Blue Origin, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, launches its first New Shepard flight, a booster and capsule which the company hopes will eventually carry paying passengers on short suborbital flights into space. The uncrewed (but human-rated) capsule comes in for a soft landing near Blue Origin’s Texas launch facility, though the booster – also intended to land and be refurbished for future reuse – does not land intact. This is the first in a series of uncrewed tests of the New Shepard launch system and suborbital vehicle; further tests will be flown over the next few years.
Space passenger line Virgin Galactic tests the Burt Rutan-designed suborbital SpaceShipTwo spacecraft VSS Enterprise at an altitude of over ten miles, reaching a speed of over Mach 1. Virgin’s official report is that the test flight was a complete success; no date is set for a suborbital test flight yet. Virgin is expected to build four more vehicles of the SpaceShipTwo class before moving on to a more advanced design, SpaceShipThree.
Actor William Campbell, who guest starred as Koloth the Klingon in the classic Star Trek fan favorite The Trouble With Tribbles (and reprised the role in the much later Deep Space Nine epsiode Blood Oath), and played the Q-like Trelaine in The Squire Of Gothos, dies at the age of 84.
The fan-produced Star Trek production Star Trek: Intrepid releases its second episode. The UK-based production is shot almost entirely in front of green screen with computer-generated backgrounds added in post production. 
Big Finish Productions releases the 18th episode of the new Eighth Doctor Who audio dramas, starring Paul McGann and Sheridan Smith. 
The 715th episode of Doctor Who (the 17th since the series’ revival) airs on BBC1. Elisabeth Sladen reprises her classic series role of Sarah Jane Smith, the first non-enemy character from the original series to appear in the current series. John Leeson guest stars as the voice of K-9; Anthony Stewart Head (Buffy: The Vampire Slayer) also appears. 
The 93rd episode of the prequel spinoff Star Trek: Enterprise airs on UPN. 
The big screen adaptation of Douglas Adams’ science fiction comedy The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy premieres in theaters worldwide. Starring Martin Freeman, Mos Def, Zooey Deschanel and Sam Rockwell, and featuring a cameo appearance from original BBC radio/TV actor Simon Jones, the movie is often criticized for being “Americanized” (despite being produced by a British production company with a largely British cast). Despite an open ending pointing toward a sequel, the movie’s box office take doesn’t merit a second film. 
The 141st episode of Joss Whedon’s supernatural series Buffy The Vampire Slayer, starring Sarah Michelle Gellar, airs on UPN. James Marsters and Alyson Hannigan also star. Nathan Fillion (Firefly) and Eliza Dushku (Dollhouse) guest star.
The 108th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s Earth: Final Conflict, airs in syndication, starring Jayne Heitmeyer, Von Flores, Melinda Deines, Guylaine St. Onge, and Alan Van Sprang.
Not Lame Records releases the 2-CD set Lynne Me Your Ears, an all-star tribute to ELO frontman Jeff Lynne’s songs from ELO, The Traveling Wilburys, The Idle Race, and the Move, with contributions from Todd Rundgren, Jason Falkner, Ben Lee, and Sixpence None The Richer. 
The 179th episode of Chris Carter’s modern-day science fiction series The X-Files airs on Fox, starring Gillian Anderson, David Duchovny, and Robert Patrick. Casey Biggs (Star Trek: Deep Space Nine) and M.C. Gainey (Lost) guest star.
UPN airs the 90th episode of Star Trek: Voyager. This episode is directed by Tim Russ, the actor who plays Voyager security chief Tuvok. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 117th episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. David Graf (Police Academy) guest stars. 
The 22nd episode of Lawrence Hertzog’s paranoid spy-fi thriller Nowhere Man, starring Bruce Greenwood (Star Trek), airs on UPN. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 20th episode of Xena: Warrior Princess. Kevin Smith guest stars as Ares. 
UPN airs the 38th episode of Star Trek: Voyager. Michael McKean guest stars. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 91st episode of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine. Meg Foster, Michael Ansara and Majel Barrett Roddenberry guest star; this is the only episode of the entire Star Trek franchise to give Majel Barrett a story credit. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 58th episode of J. Michael Straczynski’s science fiction series Babylon 5. Walter Koenig (Star Trek) guest stars. 
The 41st episode of the supernatural crime series Forever Knight airs in syndication, starring Geraint Wyn-Davies, Catherine Disher, Nigel Bennett, and John Kapelos. 
Fox airs the 25th episode of the sci-fi western, The Adventures of Brisco County, Jr., starring Bruce Campbell, Julius Carry, and Christian Clemenson. 
The week-long national syndication window opens for the 94th episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation. Jean Simmons guest stars. 
The 18th episode of the horror anthology series Freddy’s Nightmares is broadcast in syndication in North America, hosted by Robert Englund in character as Freddy Krueger.
The 22nd episode of the syndicated Alexander and Ilya Salkind-produced Superboy series, starring John Haymes Newton and Stacy Haiduk, airs. Stuart Whitman, Salome Jens, and Joseph Campanella guest star.
ITV airs the 111th episode of the anthology series Tales Of The Unexpected. Michael Brandon (Dinotopia, Dempsey & Makepeace) guest stars.
Space Shuttle Challenger lifts off on a week-long mission to perform experiments in the cargo-bay-mounted Spacelab laboratory module. Aboard Challenger for the Spacelab 3 flight are Commander Robert Overmyer, Pilot Frederick Gregory, mission specialists Don Lind, Norm Thagard, and William Thornton, and payload specialists Lodewijk van den Berg and Taylor Wang. Following the landing gear damage experienced by Discovery on its last flight, Challenger makes its landing at Edwards Air Force Base.
Mute Records releases the non-album single Shake the Disease by Depeche Mode. 
Cinematronics releases the laserdisc-powered arcade video game Space Ace, with animation overseen by ex-Disney animator Don Bluth. 
ABC airs the sixth episode of Stephen J. Cannell’s superhero comedy series The Greatest American Hero, starring William Katt, Connie Sellecca, and Robert Culp.
The 21st episode of Glen A. Larson’s science fiction series Battlestar Galactica airs on ABC. This is the end of the first season, and the last episode to feature the original characters; when Battlestar Galactica returns nearly a year later, it reflects dramatic budgetary and creative restrictions imposed upon Larson by ABC. 
The 25th episode of The Tomorrow People is broadcast on ITV. 
The 321st episode of Doctor Who airs on BBC1. Garrick Hagon (Star Wars) and John Hollis (The Empire Strikes Back) guest star.
The 160th episode of Doctor Who airs on the BBC. This episode is now missing from the BBC’s archives.
British broadcaster ABC airs the 119th episode of the spy-fi series The Avengers, starring Patrick Macnee and Diana Rigg.
Toho releases the fourth Godzilla movie, Mothra Vs. Godzilla, directed by Inoshiro Honda. 
The 13th episode of Sydney Newman’s spy series The Avengers, starring Ian Hendry and Patrick Macnee, airs on UK broadcaster ABC. This episode is now missing from the archives, but will be recreated in audio form in the 21st century by Big Finish Productions. 
The 29th episode of Rod Serling’s The Twilight Zone airs on CBS. Janice Rule and Terry Burnham star in an episode written by Serling and scored by a young Jerry Goldsmith.
The 43rd episode of the syndicated science fiction Science Fiction Theatre airs on stations across the U.S. Hosted by Truman Bradley, the episode stars Whit Bissell and Kenneth Tobey, and plays on the rising nuclear fear of the fifties.