The 18th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. This episode, featuring the memorable reptilian Gorn and location shooting at Vasquez Rocks, is one of the best-remembered episodes of the series. 
Stardate 3045.6: Arriving at a Federation planet at the request of a starbase director, the Enterprise finds a devastated world with only one survivor, who reveals that any summons Kirk received to visit the planet must have been a trap. The Enterprise locates and pursues an alien vessel right past the borders of the apparently omnipotent Metrons, who halt the ensuing battle and force Kirk and the captain of the other vessel – a huge, reptilian Gorn – to settle their differences in hand-to-hand combat…a prospect which immediately leaves Kirk at a disadvantage. Should he lose, the crew of the Enterprise will be destroyed.
teleplay by Gene L. Coon
from a story by Frederic Brown
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Alexander CourageCast: William Shatner (Captain James T. Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. Leonard McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Jerry Ayres (O’Herlihy), Grant Woods (Kelowitz), Tom Troupe (Lt. Harold), James Farley (Lang), Carole Shelyne (Metron), Sean Kenney (DePaul)
Notes: This episode was already in pre-production by the time the producers realized that it closely paralleled Frederic Brown’s novel “Enemy Mine”; they offered him screen credit and payment to ensure that their use of the story was above-board, and he happily accepted. “Enemy Mine” itself was later adapted into a movie. The Gorn were encountered by the Mirror Universe version of Captain Archer’s crew (Enterprise: In A Mirror Darkly Parts I & II) as well as Pike’s crew throughout Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.
LogBook entry by Earl Green