Day: November 17, 1966

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Original Series Season 01 Star Trek

The Menagerie – Part I

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3012.4: The Enterprise is summoned to Starbase 6, apparently by Captain Pike, who commanded the ship before Kirk. Commodore Mendez shows Kirk, Spock and McCoy, however, that Pike was recently paralyzed in an accident and could not have signalled the Enterprise. Spock creates false messages from Kirk and sends them to the ship, instructing the crew that Spock and Pike will beam up immediately, the Enterprise will be piloted by computer to its next destination, and that Kirk will be staying behind. Kirk and Mendez follow the Enterprise in a shuttle, which runs out of fuel when Spock refuses to slow the Enterprise down so the shuttle can come aboard. Spock finally allows Kirk to catch up and then places himself under arrest. Kirk is unable to disconnect the computer from the helm, and Spock’s court-martial begins. Spock offers, as evidence, visual records of a voyage on the Enterprise on which Spock and Pike served 13 years earlier. The bridge then informs Kirk and Mendez that the recording is being sent to the Enterprise from Talos IV – a planet that, according to Starfleet regulations, is absolutely off-limits to all vessels, punishable by death.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by Gene Roddenberry
directed by Marc Daniels
footage from The Cage directed by Robert Butler
music by Alexander Courage

Cast: 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), Sean Kenney (Captain Pike), Malachi Throne (Commodore Mendez), Hagan Beggs (Ensign Hansen), Julie Parrish (Miss Piper)

Appearing in footage from The Cage: Jeffrey Hunter (Capt. Christopher Pike), Susan Oliver (Vina), Majel Leigh Hudec (Number One), Peter Duryea (Lt. Tyler), John Hoyt (Dr. Boyce), Meg Wylie (The Keeper), Adam Roarke (CPO Garrison)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Original Series Season 02 Star Trek

Journey To Babel

Star Trek ClassicStardate 3842.3: Delegates from several worlds are welcomed aboard for a trip to Babel where a Federation summit will take place, among them Vulcan Ambassador Sarek – Spock’s father, from whom he has been alienated since childhood. Spock’s human mother, Amanda, can’t stop trying to bridge the gap between her husband and son, while Spock and Sarek can’t seem to do anything but continue their rivalry. When a hidden assassin begins to kill some of the delegates, Spock – out of logic, of course – points Sarek out as a potential suspect. But Sarek suffers a heart attack just as an alien ship begins to attack the Enterprise. Kirk is stabbed by the assassin, and Spock must choose between offering some of his blood to save Sarek’s life and assuming command of the Enterprise in the emergency.

Order this episode on DVDDownload this episode via Amazon's Unboxwritten by D.C. Fontana
directed by Joseph Pevney
music by Gerald Fried

Star TrekCast: 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), Jane Wyatt (Amanda), Mark Lenard (Sarek), William O’Connell (Thelev), Majel Barrett (Nurse Chapel), John Wheeler (Gav), James K. Mitchell (Josephs), Reggie Nadler (Shras)

Notes: Though Sarek doesn’t appear in any more episodes of Classic Trek (unless one wishes to count Mark Lenard voicing the character in the animated episode Yesteryear), he appears in nearly every Kirk-era Star Trek movie after Star Trek II and makes two guest appearances in Star Trek: The Next Generation (Sarek and Unification Part I). Jane Wyatt reprises the role of Amanda in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home; though Amanda appears in Yesteryear as well, she was voiced by Majel Barrett for that appearance.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Original Series (Animated) Season 01 Star Trek

The Terratin Incident

Star Trek ClassicStardate 5577.3: The Enterprise receives a distress signal from the solitary planet in the Cepheus system, where no life has previously been known to exist. As the crew tries to respond to the distress signal, they are suddenly paralyzed by a powerful energy discharge, which also critically damages the Enterprise’s engines, stranding them in orbit. To make matters worse, the crew is now shrinking in size, presumably a side effect of the blast of energy. Kirk suspects that whoever is sending the distress signal is responsible for the gradual miniaturization of his crew.

Order the DVDswritten by Stephen Kandel
directed by Hal Sutherland
music by Yvette Blais & Jeff Michael

Cast: William Shatner (Captain Kirk), Leonard Nimoy (Mr. Spock), DeForest Kelley (Dr. McCoy), James Doohan (Mr. Scott / Lt. Arrex / Mendant), George Takei (Lt. Sulu), Nichelle Nichols (Lt. Uhura), Majel Barrett (Nurse Chapel / Lt. M’ress)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Pilot Movies Six Million Dollar Man

The Solid Gold Kidnapping

The Six Million Dollar ManSteve Austin is dispatched to Mexico to rescue an American ambassador kidnapped and held for ransom; now accustomed to his bionic powers, Steve hardly breaks a sweat in freeing the ambassador. But this kidnapping is followed up by another, this time a high-ranking American diplomat who is deep into peace negotiations with China – and this time the ransom is higher as well: one billion dollars. The only lead in the crime is the corpse of a man believed to have been one of the kidnappers, but this may still be useful to Dr. Erica Bergner, who believes that cells from his brain can be extracted and injected into another human being, allowing the recipient to access the dead man’s memories. She volunteers herself as the guinea pig for this unprecedented procedure, and is Steve’s only source for further information on the ambassador’s whereabouts.

teleplay by Larry Alexander
story by Alan Caillou and Larry Alexander
directed by Russ Mayberry
music by Oliver Nelson
“Six Million Dollar Man” words & music by Glen A. Larson / performed by Dusty Springfield

The Six Million Dollar ManCast: Lee Majors (Steve Austin), Richard Anderson (Oliver Goldman), Alan Oppenheimer (Dr. Rudy Wells), Elizabeth Ashley (Dr. Erica Bergner), Terry Carter (Mel Bristo), John Vernon (Julian Peck), Maurince Evans (Chairman of the Board), Luciana Paluzzi (Contessa DeRojas), Leif Erickson (William Henry Cameron), Craig Huebing (Roger Ventriss), David White (Ambassador Scott), Marcel Hilliare (Customs Inspector), Leigh Christian (Lady Skier), James Sikking (Second OSO Agent), Maurice Marsac (Derk Clerk), Vito Scotti (2nd Taxi Driver), Rudy Challenger (Executive), Karen Klein (Stewardess), Jan Arvan (Doctor), Danielle Aubry (Nurse), Jack Ragotzy (1st Taxi Driver)

The Six Million Dollar ManNotes: In syndicated rerun packages, this movie was split into two one-hour episodes of the same name. Terry Carter, later of Battlestar Galactica, appears as OSI agent Mel Bristo, while Maurice Evans appears without the ape makeup he wore as Dr. Zaius in the first two Planet Of The Apes movies. This movie seemed to represent an attempt to steer The Six Million Dollar Man firmly into James Bond territory, a direction which would be rethought in favor of more of a “superhero” feel going into the weekly series in January of the following year.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Orson Welles' Great Mysteries

The Ingenious Reporter

Orson Welles' Great MysteriesHarry Langley, an ambitious American reporter working in Paris, learns of an unsolved murder and hatches a scheme to pose as the murderer to get himself arrested, and to then send his employer “exclusive interviews” with the prime suspect in the case…at least until he is released for a lack of any actual evidence. By hanging out near the scene of the crime, making suspicious comments, Langley attracts police attention soon enough, especially when he throws a suitcase of “incriminating evidence” into the nearby river. His resolve to get the big story cracks when he is told that his Parisian girlfriend was the victim; suddenly, despite his innocence, Langley looks like the guiltiest man in the world.

Orson Welles' Great Mysteriesteleplay by Carey Harrison
based on a story by Pontsevrez
directed by Peter Sasdy
theme music by John Barry

Cast: David Birney (Harry Langley), Geoffrey Bayldon (Magistrate), James Maxwell (Duperrey), Ronald Radd (Leduc), Anthony Ainley (Lafarge), John Cater (Martell), Orson Welles' Great MysteriesJames Mellor (Bucheron), Neil Wilson (Concierge), Peter Madden (Judge), Pam St. Clement (First Woman), Eamonn Boyce (First Man), Mia Nardi (Henriette)

Notes: Fresh from a recent stint as the star of the spy series Spyder’s Web, actor Anthony Ainley appears here in the courtroom scenes. Throughout the 1980s, Ainley would take on the role of the Master in Doctor Who.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Starlost, The

Mr. Smith Of Manchester

The StarlostDevon, Garth and Rachel are captured as they explore another biosphere, which turns out to be an industrial wasteland with toxic polluted air, and brought before Mr. Smith, the dome’s self-proclaimed leader. Believing them to be agent of an enemy force trying to infiltrate his biosphere, Smith has the travelers brutally interrogated, only to find out that his interrogation equipment can’t detect any lies in their statements. Believing them to be spies whose memories and personalities have been reprogrammed, he orders his second-in-command, a woman named Trent, to keep a close eye on them…but when she expresses her doubts about Smith’s leadership to Devon in an unguarded moment, her comment is overhead by one of Smith’s omnipresent surveillance systems and she’s rounded up for questioning herself. Since he thinks Trent is a traitor, Smith has her tortured as well, and this changes Devon’s mind about what course of action to take. Instead of just securing an escape route for himself and his friends, Devon is now determined to do what he can to topple Smith’s regime before he moves on elsewhere in the Ark.

Get this season on DVDwritten by Arthur Heinemann and Norman Klenman
from a story by Arthur Heinemann
directed by Ed Richardson
music by Score Productions Ltd.

Guest Cast: Ed Ames (Mr. Smith), Pat Galloway (Trent), Doris Petrie (Nurse), Pattie Elsasser (Secretary), Nina Weintraub (Girl), Les Ruby (City Man), William Osler (Computer Voice)

Notes: Mr. Smith mentions the “first dome war” which, while he doesn’t elaborate much further, hints at the possibility of past conflicts between biospheres.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Season 1 Star Blazers

Fateful Battle To Destroy The Enemy Stronghold

Star BlazersD minus 359 days: Approaching Pluto, the Argo is spotted by Colonel Ganz from the well-fortified base the Gamilons have established there. Ganz is eager to lure the Argo into range of the reflex gun, a new Gamilon weapon with a shorter range than the wave motion gun, but comprarable in destructive power. The reflex gun scores a direct hit on the Argo, causing critical damage, and forcing the ship into a death dive for the surface – a fate which is avoided by firing the rocket anchor into the surface of Pluto’s moon Charon at the last minute. But then Ganz reveals his trump card – a serious of orbital satellites which can reflect the energy of the reflex gun in any direction around the planet. The second hit forces Argo into Pluto’s icy oceans…and a third sinks the great ship with all hands aboard.

Order the DVDswritten by Keisuke Fujikawa & Eiichi Yamamoto
directed by Leiji Matsumoto
music by Hiroshi Miyagawa

Season 1 Voice Cast: Kenneth Meseroll (Derek Wildstar), Tom Tweedy (Mark Venture), Amy Howard (Nova), Eddie Allen (Leader Desslok), Lydia Leeds (Starsha), other actors unknown

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Star Maidens

The Hideout

Star MaidensAdam and Shem continue their flight from both Earth and Medusan authorities, breaking into an apartment to hide. When police surround the building, Adam makes a run for it and is captured; a young man who tipped off police to the alien men’s whereabouts after seeing their pictures on TV is also captured, with the police assuming that he is Shem. Shem accidentally discovers that alcohol on an empty stomach is not an Earth delicacy, and passes out in the apartment hallway. He is taken in by a woman named Rose, who takes care of him (much to his horror, as a Medusan man would normally be taking care of his mistress’ needs). As they spend time together, Rose and Shem begin to fall for each other, and Shem discovers why love can be a weakness.

written by Otto Strang
directed by Freddie Francis
music by Berry Lipmann

Star MaidensCast: Judy Geeson (Fulvia), Gareth Thomas (Shem), Pierre Brice (Adam), Graham Crowden (Minister), Corny Collins (Rose), Don McKillop (Sergeant), Adrian Shergold (Youth), George Hilsdon (Desk Sergeant), David Ellison (Policeman), John Pennington (Announcer)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Star Wars TV Specials

The Star Wars Holiday Special

Star WarsOn the Wookiee homeworld of Kashyyyk, Chewbacca’s family awaits his return for the yearly celebration of Life Day. But when he doesn’t arrive on time, they assume the worst and begin secretly contacting members of the Rebel Alliance, including Luke and Leia. Chewie’s wife Malla, his father Itchy, and his son Lumpy begin to fear the worst when the Empire blockades Kashyyyk and stormtroopers begin to search residences. Han and Chewie must battle their way through the blockade, not only to reach Chewie’s family in time for Life Day, but to save them from Imperial troops that could uncover their secret connection to the Rebels.

Cartoon: Han and Chewie return from a mission to recover a magical talisman, but they make no contact with base – and overshoot the rendezvous point at high speed, crash-landing the Falcon on a watery world. Luke and the droids give chase in a Y-wing, also crashing on the planet. Their ship falls victim to a hungry sea creature, but they are rescued by an humanoid, covered from head to toe in armor, who identifies himself as Boba Fett. He leads them to the Falcon, where Han has fallen victim to a “sleeping virus” – and Luke soon succumbs as well. Boba Fett offers to steal the antidote from a nearby Imperial base, but Chewie is suspicious and insists on accompanying the Rebels’ new benefactor. While Boba Fett and Chewie are breaking into the Empire’s stronghold, Threepio and Artoo eavesdrop on a message from Darth Vader – a message intended for Vader’s hired gun, the bounty hunter known as Boba Fett.

written by Rod Warren, Bruce Vilanch, Pat Proft, Leonard Ripps and Mitzie Welch
directed by Steve Binder
music by Ian Fraser
songs by Mitzie Welch and Ken Welch

Cast: Mark Hamill (Luke Skywalker), Harrison Ford (Han Solo), Carrie Fisher (Princess Leia), Anthony Daniels (C-3PO), Peter Mayhew (Chewbacca), James Earl Jones (voice of Darth Vader), Beatrice Arthur (Aknina), Art Carney (Sundan), Harvey Korman (Video chef/Morphian host/Krelman), Diahann Carroll (Hologram singer), Jefferson Starship (Hologram band), Mickey Morton (Malla), Paul Gale (Itchy), Patty Maloney (Lumpy), Jack Rader (Imperial officer), Stephaine Stromer (Imperial officer), Michael Potter (Imperial officer), The Wazzan Troupe (Hologram performers), Yuichi Sugiyama (?), The Mum Brothers (?), Claude Woolman (?), Lev Mailer (?), John McLaughlin (?)

Appearing in footage from Star Wars: David Prowse (Darth Vader), Alec Guiness (Obi-Wan Kenobi)

LogBook entry & review by Earl Green

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Deep Space Nine Season 06 Star Trek

Resurrection

Star Trek: Deep Space NineStardate not given: A man unexpectedly beams into Ops. It is Bareil, the mirror universe’s version of the late Vedek Bareil. The mirror Bareil, a thief who used a multidimensional transporter to escape his universe, takes Kira hostage but she soon subdues him. As she gets to know him, she finds herself attracted to him. But Bareil – and Kira’s alternate self, the Intendent – have another agenda.

Order the DVDsDownload this episode via Amazonwritten by Michael Taylor
directed by LeVar Burton
music by Jay Chattaway

Guest Cast: Philip Anglim (Bareil), John Towey (Vedek Ossan), Scott Strozier (Security Guard)

LogBook entry by Tracy Hemenover

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Earth: Final Conflict Season 1

Resurrection

Earth: Final ConflictDuring the worldwide broadcast of a high-profile sports event, resistance leader Jonathan Doors briefly interrupts the transmission, revealing himself to be alive, well, and in command of an organized resistance movement. However, Boone and Lili are surprised that Doors would put himself and the resistance at such great risk. Da’an, who believed Doors to be dead after the assassination attempt, is removed from power by the Taelon Synod, replaced by the much less patient Zo’or. Boone works behind the scenes to return Da’an to power, even as Doors continues to press his attack through the media. Both the Companions and the resistance, as it turns out, have been hiding something.

written by Paul Gertz
directed by Milan Cheylov
music by Micky Erbe & Maribeth Solomon

Guest Cast: Anita La Selva (Zo’or), Robert Dodds (Pieter Bakker), Matt Gordon (Bettor), Jeffrey Knight (Bud Lanier), Kristin Lehman (Cynthia Clarkson), Laura Press (Anne Portnoy), J. Craig Sandy (Agent Price)

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Season 3 Xena: Warrior Princess

The King of Assassins

Xena: Warrior PrincessAs Gabrielle and Joxer wait in a village for Xena to return from a mission, they run into Autolycus. The thief tells him that the night before, he had helped a man who looked like Joxer steal a sword. Joxer explains that it was his brother Jett, an assassin. He also tells them that his brother will probably try to use the sword to kill someone important. Gabrielle insists that they must figure out who Jett is planning to kill and find a way to stop him. The bard is fairly sure of what Xena would do in this situation and the trio soon set her plan into motion.

Order the DVDswritten by Adam Armus and Nora Kay Foster
directed by Bruce Campbell
music by Joseph LoDuca

Guest Cast: Bruce Campbell (Autolycus), Ted Raimi (Joxer/Jett), Gina Torres (Cleopatra), Jonathon Hendry (Pontius), Jeremy Birchall (The Other Joxer/ Jett), Benjamin Banse (Prison Guard), Christian Hodge (Prisoner), Larry Keating (Warlord), Nerida Nichols (Chambermaid), Russell Raethel (Guard #3)

LogBook entry by Mary Terrell

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Season 06 Star Trek Voyager

One Small Step

Star Trek: VoyagerOctober 19, 2032: Ares IV, the first manned mission to Mars, is going smoothly until an unknown spatial anomaly consumes the orbiter. The mission is lost to a total enigma, all hands are presumed dead, and NASA’s Mars program is almost brought to a halt for good.

Stardate 53292.7: An unknown spatial anomaly nearly consumes Voyager. Seven of Nine recognizes the anomaly thanks to previous encounters with the Borg, but later study of the phenomenon reveals that it is still hauling the wreckage of Ares IV through the Delta Quadrant. Chakotay and Paris quickly devise a plan to retrieve Ares IV, but Seven of Nine insists on warning the crew of the dangers of attempting to explore a gravimetric ellipse. Trying to inspire her, Janeway assigns Seven to join the mission into the ellipse. But once the Delta Flyer is inside, B’elanna discovers that the anomaly is on course for a violent collision with a dark matter asteroid. Janeway orders Chakotay to abandon the salvage operation immediately, but he disobeys, ordering Tom to tow the Ares IV in a tractor beam. This decision slows down the Delta Flyer’s escape enough to trap it inside the ellipse – lost to a total enigma…all hands presumed dead.

Order the DVDsteleplay by Mike Wollaeger & Jessica Scott
and Bryan Fuller & Michael Taylor
story by Mike Wollaeger & Jessica Scott
directed by Robert Picardo
music by Paul Baillargeon

Guest Cast: Phil Morris (Lt. John Kelly), Majel Barrett (Computer voice)

Notes: The Doctor mentions a visit to the planet Arrakis Prime, an in-joke reference to the spice planet in Dune. One of Phil Morris’s first film roles was the ensign who asked Admiral Kirk if the Enterprise crew would return to a hero’s welcome at the beginning of Star Trek III.

LogBook entry by Earl Green

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Clone Wars Star Wars Tartakovsky Series, Vol. 1

Chapter 7

  • By Dave
  • November 17, 2003

Star Wars: Clone WarsDooku tests Asajj’s skill. While not yet a true Sith, she is powerful enough that Darth Sidious enlists her for a special assignment.

Order the DVDsstory by Bryan Andrew, Darrick Bachman, Paul Rudish and Genndy Tartakovsky
directed by Genndy Tartakovsky
original music by John Williams
new music by James L. Venable and Paul Dinletir

LogBook entry by Dave Thomer

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Battlestar Galactica (New Series) Season 3

Hero

Battlestar GalacticaThree Cylon fighters appear near Galactica, but rather than attacking the Colonial fleet, two of the Cylons are trying to destroy the third. Starbuck and Kat take out the two pursuers, but Adama orders them to stand down when a human voice is heard over the speakers, identifying himself as “Bulldog.” The Cylon ship is brought in for a landing on Galactica, and a human male tumbles out of it – Adama recognizes him as Bulldog, a pilot Adama selected for a top secret mission (and wound up abandoning when his fighter was shot down) over a year before the Cylon attacks on the Colonies. When Bulldog pays a social call to his old friend Tigh, who’s still off-duty, Tigh reveals the real nature of Bulldog’s mission. Adama confesses the same to his son, admitting that Bulldog’s real mission was to determine whether or not the Cylons were still out there and preparing for a strike on the Colonies – and that his capture by the Cylons could have been the event that sparked the attack that came later. Adama confesses that he feels the weight of responsibility for causing the attacks that nearly wiped out humanity. And analyzing the desperate flight that brought Bulldog back to Galactica, Starbuck begins to warn her superiors that she thinks it’s no accident that the lost hero has returned home.

written by David Eick
directed by Michael Rymer
music by Bear McCreary

Guest Cast: Michael Hogan (Tigh), Aaron Douglas (CPO Tyrol), Tahmoh Penikett (Helo), Alessandro Juliani (Lt. Gaeta), Kandyse McClure (Dualla), Lucy Lawless (D’anna Biers), Carl Lumbly (Bulldog), Donnelly Rhodes (Doc Cottle), Matthew Bennett (Aaron Doral), Rekha Sharma (Tory Foster), Lucianna Carro (Kat), Barry Kennedy (Admiral Corman), Tiffany Lyndall-Knight (Hybrid)

LogBook entry by Earl Green