Star Trek: The Cage

Star TrekAt Hollywood’s Desilu Studios, filming begins on The Cage, the unaired first attempt at a pilot episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek. Starring Jeffrey Hunter as Captain Christopher Pike and Leonard Nimoy as the exotic-looking alien science officer Spock, filming proceeds at a brisk pace, despite numerous delays due to the show’s then-novel special effects, set and costuming requirements. Though the result is viewed enthusiastically by all involved, the completed pilot stirs little enthusiasm at the television networks. NBC thinks the series premise has promise, but that as it stands, The Cage is “too cerebral” for prime time. Ironically, exactly two years later, most of the footage from The Cage is broadcast anyway, as part of The Menagerie – a fast favorite among the viewers for whom it was deemed to be too brainy. Read more

Star Trek: The Man Trap

Star TrekWith over two years of development behind it, Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek finally premieres on NBC with The Man Trap, the completed episode that the network feels most strongly represents the series concept and will connect with a 1960s audience accustomed to police shows and westerns. (It also helps NBC – and its corporate parent, General Electric, who has a stake in the television manufacturing industry – showcase its new season in color.) Read more Hear about it on the Sci-Fi 5 podcast

Star Trek: Where No Man Has Gone Before

Star TrekThe third episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. Sally Kellerman (M*A*S*H) and Gary Lockwood (The Lieutenant, 2001) guest star. This is the second pilot, and shows numerous noticeable differences in casting and costumes, but NBC and Desilu Studios elect to air it anyway, giving the production team time to complete more new episodes. Read more

Star Trek: The Menagerie, Part 1

Star TrekThe 11th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. In an effort to save costs, Gene Roddenberry devises a framing story – referred to behind the scenes as “the envelope” – allowing footage from the rejected 1964 pilot episode The Cage to be used within the context of Star Trek’s current cast as a flashback to a previous crew of the Enterprise. Malachi Throne guest stars in the new footage; Jeffrey Hunter and Susan Oliver are seen in the original footage from The Cage for the first time. Read more

Star Trek: The Menagerie, Part 2

Star TrekThe 12th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. In an effort to save costs, Gene Roddenberry devises a framing story – referred to behind the scenes as “the envelope” – allowing footage from the rejected 1964 pilot episode The Cage to be used within the context of Star Trek’s current cast as a flashback to a previous crew of the Enterprise. Malachi Throne guest stars in the new footage; Jeffrey Hunter and Susan Oliver are seen in the original footage from The Cage. Read more

Star Trek: Tomorrow Is Yesterday

Star TrekThe 19th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. This is the first episode to introduce the concept of time travel via a slingshot maneuver around the sun to the Star Trek mythos (it will later be a vital plot point in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home). Read more

Star Trek: City On The Edge Of Forever

Star TrekThe 28th episode of Gene Roddenberry’s science fiction series Star Trek airs on NBC. Joan Collins guest stars in an episode written by legendary science fiction writer Harlan Ellison; rewrites performed on the script prior to filming later become a major point of contention between Ellison and Roddenberry (and, by extension, between Ellison and Desilu Studios/Paramount). Read more