These Are The Voyages, TOS, Season One

by Cushman, Marc

  History was about to be made. On Friday, March 26, 1965, NBC officially ordered a second pilot. There was one condition: the budget was set at $216,000, a staggering $400,000 less than the first time around. NBC justified this by citing that the sets were now built, the spaceship constructed, the costumes woven and the gadgets hatched; the next go-round should be a cheaper ride. Bottom line: The network wanted to see if Roddenberry and Desilu could deliver Star Trek close to the normal budget of a 60-minute drama.

  There was also a “request” from the network to shake up the cast. Roddenberry himself had decided not to bring back John Hoyt as the doctor. When the smoke cleared, only Mr. Spock made the cut, despite NBC’s reservations. Roddenberry shared the story often. “The network told me to get rid of Number One, the woman first lieutenant, and also to get rid of ‘the Martian fellow.’... I knew I couldn’t keep both, so I gave the stoicism of the female officer to Spock, and married the actress who played Number One. Thank God it wasn’t the other way around.”

  Majel Barrett recalled, “[Gene] sat down with me and said that he knew this was going to break my heart. The network had given him orders to get rid of the characters Number One and Spock. Then he explained to me that he could probably fight to save one character, but not both. He told me about how badly he wanted to keep Spock and how important that character could become to the series. He tried to be very nice about it, and he also said, ‘We’ll work you into it. Somehow or other, you’ll be in the show.’ And I just sunk. I had wanted the role so badly, and it was everything I’d wished for.... I mean, Gene wrote it for me, for God’s sake. So being let go was devastating.” (10-3)

  There was one other concern from the network. Solow remembered being told by a friend at NBC, “And one more thing, for God’s sake, no more scantily-clad green dancing girls with the bumps and grinds, okay?” (161-3)

  Surprisingly, Desilu agreed to co-finance a second pilot. Despite the massive monetary loss with “The Cage,” the old guard was not ready to do battle with Lucy. And Lucy was still determined that her studio needed to own prime-time real estate. Everything was at stake. According to Joseph Sorokin, a Desilu sound editor who worked on “The Cage,” Roddenberry was well aware of the risks. Sorokin said, “I’ll never forget, after I found out that we were going to do the second pilot, I was talking with Roddenberry one night and he said to me, ‘Joe, I’m either going to make Desilu or break Desilu.’” (162)

  NBC took steps to be certain the second pilot would have the write stuff, authorizing money for three scripts this time, of which only one would be produced.

  Samuel Peeples, who helped Roddenberry so much during the development of “The Cage,” was assigned one of the three, given the catalog number of “ST-2” -- Story Treatment #2 (“The Cage” had been ST-1). ST-2 would become “Where No Man Has Gone Before,” which dealt with the intellectual concept of what to do when a pair of crew members become altered into godlike creatures. In light of the problems NBC had with the overly (and overtly) intellectual theme of “The Cage,” this new story seemed risky.

  The second script -- Roddenberry’s -- appeared to be a safer bet. “The Omega Glory” (aka ST-3) was an action/adventure story about a parallel world ravished by a nuclear conflict, with an upside-down look at the clashes between a mutated Western culture and the remnants of a Communist Asian society. It even had a fistfight toward the end, as well as a flag-waving grand finale.

  Roddenberry’s choice for a writer to develop the third script was Stephen Kandel, who had solid credentials in television. He was not a science fiction writer per se, but Roddenberry had read a script he’d written for an unsold pilot about UFOs. As Kandel recalled, “‘Stranger in Our Midst’ dealt with a UFO carrying refugees from another world. They were undocumented aliens -- immigrants. And the problem -- the thing that made it interesting to Gene, I think -- was they had different strengths and weaknesses than human beings, but they were able to blend in to our culture.” (95)

  Roddenberry was familiar with Kandel’s reputation for coming up with material the networks liked. The two met and discussed story ideas, leading to the April 22, 1965 treatment of “Warrior World.” Kandel said, “It was about a planet where combat created a sort of a regency existence. The crew of the Enterprise found itself caught up in this highly hierarchal villagerized [sic] world where everybody was excessively polite because a breach in manners would lead to deadly combat. The problem was not to offend and thereby create an interstellar incident. But, of course, they did offend and this led to a great deal of individual combat.” (95)

  Roddenberry wrote to Kandel on April 26, saying:

  An interesting outline, certainly full of action, but perhaps weighed too heavy in the direction of a feudal-Roman world and a bit too lightly in story and motivated character.

  Kandel responded with revised outlines on April 28 and May 7 before the decision was made to have him switch stories to one of Roddenberry’s ideas -- “The Women” -- about that rascally space trader who, in reality, is a pimp traveling through the cosmos with a cargo of prostitutes. Roddenberry had already tried to interest NBC in this story as a contender for the first pilot. Perhaps the network would like it better this time with a different writer, a different title, and different names for the characters. The only name that did not get changed was Mr. Spock. The new title, now catalogued as ST-4, was “Mudd’s Women.” In light of NBC’s misgivings about the sexual content of “The Cage,” this was another odd choice.

  In late May, as the three script assignments were being farmed-out, it was decided the new Captain of the Enterprise would be named Kirk. Jack Lord was approached first. He had been gaining attention in television with high profile guest appearances and had received rave notices for his turn as CIA agent Felix Leiter in the first James Bond movie, 1962’s Dr. No. Next, ABC snatched him up to play a modern day rodeo rider in the 1962-63 series Stoney Burke. The series didn’t hit, but the buzz around Hollywood was that Lord’s star was on the rise (a 12-year stint as Steve McGarrett on Hawaii Five-0 would soon prove this to be true).

  Roddenberry wanted Lord to play Kirk. But, according to numerous Star Trek insiders, the actor demanded a hefty ownership of the series and co-producer status, something Roddenberry was not going to let happen. Dorothy Fontana said Roddenberry quipped, “Jack takes his [last] name too seriously.” (64)

  Lord was out. And then, by a quirk of fate known as a sudden TV cancellation, the man destined to play Kirk became available.

  William Shatner, 1959

  Born in Montreal on March 22, 1931, William Shatner was trained in the Shakespearean classics. His first work in television, however, was light years away from the Bard -- a guest role in 1953 on Space Command, a sci-fi series produced in Canada, followed by a semi-recurring role in 1954 on the Canadian Broadcasting Company’s version of Howdy Doody as Ranger Bob. One year later, he made two appearances on the CBC anthology series Encounter. In one he played the title character in a production of Herman Melville’s “Billy Budd,” supported by Basil Rathbone and Patrick Macnee.

  Television and radio helped pay the bills, but Shatner’s heart was on the stage -- and in the hands of fellow “legit” performer Gloria Rand. The two were married on August 12, 1956. Two days later, Shatner got an unexpected break. Christopher Plummer took ill while playing the title role in the Stratford (Ontario) Shakespeare Festival production of Henry V. With Plummer in the hospital suffering from kidney trouble, Shatner, who played a lesser role and was also Plummer’s understudy, was advanced to the lead. Plummer soon returned, but his understudy was already on the road to bigger things.

  Several weeks later, Shatner was in New York and appearing in “Mr. Finchley Versus the Bomb,” a live television presentation of Kaiser Aluminum Hour, written by Rod Serling. A second Kaiser show, “Gwyneth,” paired Shatner with future Star Trek guest star Joanne Linville.

  Shatner and wife Gloria ping-ponged between New York City and Canada for the next six months. In
his homeland, he appeared in a stage production of Oedipus Rex, which CBC broadcast in January 1957. America picked up the live feed and presented it as an episode of Omnibus. New York casting agents caught the program and, one month later, Shatner was back in the Big Apple for the first of three live plays on Kraft Theatre, followed by the first of five appearances on the prestigious Studio One. The second and third of these Studio One shows made up TV’s first two-part episode: “The Defender,” starring Ralph Bellamy as a defense attorney and Shatner as his son and aide. Steve McQueen costarred as their troubled client.

  Positive reviews and a big TV audience for “The Defender” brought Shatner to the attention of Hollywood. He was flown to California one month later to star in his first filmed program, Alfred Hitchcock Presents. A few days after that he was auditioning for a plum role in the upcoming big-budget film The Brothers Karamazov. MGM was offering Shatner not only a standout part but an actor-friendly contract. He would be allowed to pick his own projects from scripts offered by the studio and, until finding one he liked, he could appear in non-Hollywood television productions and stage plays.

  Brothers Karamazov was released in February 1958 to positive reviews and strong box office. Yul Brynner and Richard Basehart played two of the brothers, Shatner the third. The reviewer for Variety wrote:

  William Shatner has the difficult task of portraying youthful male goodness and he does it with such gentle candor it is effective.

  While waiting for MGM to find a suitable follow-up project, Shatner returned to live TV, appearing on series such as Suspicion and Climax, as well as three episodes of U.S. Steel Hour. In June, he gained attention with a standout role on the prestigious Playhouse 90 in the episode “A Town Has Turned to Dust” -- the second time he performed a script written by a pre-Twilight Zone Rod Serling. Daily Variety said:

  William Shatner exhibits a good deal of self-control in a role that might have been butchered by a lesser actor, giving a very fine performance.

  And yet still no script from MGM that made an impression on the serious young actor.

  With director Joshua Logan and France Nuyen for The World of Suzie Wong (AP photo)

  At the end of August, the Shatners welcomed the first of three daughters, Leslie. The pressure on dad to make more money was heating up. He later told a tabloid writer, “We were always broke in New York. I did more live television than many actors, but you didn’t get paid very much for those live shows… so that the amount of money I received was just enough to pay the rent on a small apartment and to pay for our groceries. We were never ahead.” (166-19)

  France Nuyen with Shatner on stage in 1959

  A bump in pay came when Shatner was offered the male lead (opposite future Star Trek guest star France Nuyen) in a big Broadway event: The World of Suzie Wong. The play dramatized a love affair between an American artist (Shatner) and a Chinese prostitute (Nuyen), set in a Hong Kong brothel. But to take the role, Shatner had to sign a one-year contract, and that meant buying off his agreement with MGM. He later said, “Purchasing my contract cost me more money than I made in my first ten years of acting. I left MGM because the play I read was a beautiful poetic play. By the time Suzie Wong reached Broadway, it was nothing but a story of a Chinese prostitute and I was nothing but a male dancer supporting a ballerina.” (166-17)

  Shatner may have had his regrets, but the play nonetheless gave him a chance to shine. During a trial run in Boston, Daily Variety summed Suzie Wong up as “a world of shock to the Hub [that] is so highly censorable it’s inflammable, but it looks like a surefire hit.” The critic added:

  It needs a sign, ‘For Adults Only,’ for this is truly strong fare spelling sex from opening curtain to finale of the two-act, 12-scene drama.… William Shatner is great as Robert Lomax, the artist torn by his love for the Chinese girl whose “work” disturbs him, but not her.

  Six weeks later, with Suzie Wong on Broadway, the critic for Weekly Variety, also impressed by the play, said, “Shatner is engaging as the confused but steadfast artist.”

  France Nuyen said, “Bill was obviously an experienced actor and he was the one in charge, as far as I was concerned.” (129-1)

  Suzie Wong was a hit, and kept Shatner off television for nearly all of 1959. Once free, he bounced back onto the airwaves in December with an episode of Hallmark Hall of Fame and “The Indestructible Mr. Gore,” a presentation of The Sunday Showcase. Regarding the latter, Daily Variety said the television play “had great strength in its theme, and a fine performance from William Shatner as the blind lawyer setting out to make a place in the world for himself.” The play was written by Gore Vidal about his own grandfather, Thomas P. Gore, who served as a U.S. Senator. The review continued:

  Shatner turned in a brilliantly distinctive and believable performance as Gore, not only from the physical standpoint of making the blindness believable, but from the construction of a characterization of a strong and determined personality that rang true at every turn.

  Publicity photo with Shatner and Patricia Breslin in The Twilight Zone “Nick of Time” (Courtesy of Gerald Gurian)

  At this time, Shatner was offered a pair of TV pilots, both placing him in the primary supporting role. The first was based on the successful two-part Studio One presentation of “The Defender” in which he had appeared. He turned it down in favor of the second: “Nero Wolfe.” The Defenders, as the series version was called, with E.G. Marshall taking over for Ralph Bellamy and Robert Reed for Shatner, made it onto the fall 1960 CBS schedule for the start of a four-year run. “Nero Wolfe” didn’t go beyond pilot film and never aired.

  In 1960, taking what at the time seemed to be bad advice, Shatner turned down lead roles in two more TV pilots: Dr. Kildare and Checkmate. The former made a star of Richard Chamberlain when it began a five-year run on NBC; the latter did very nearly the same for Doug McClure, staying on CBS for two seasons. Regardless, Shatner was all over the dial.

  Typical of his high visibility, in a single month, Shatner had six prominent roles in five different series, including The Twilight Zone (“Nick of Time,” written by future Trek scripter Richard Matheson) and Alcoa Presents (also known as One Step Beyond and directed by John Newland, who would also travel to Star Trek). In October, he was on the big screen for the lead in The Explosive Generation, as a high school teacher dealing with his student’s curiosity concerning sex.

  Shatner in “The Grim Reaper” on NBC’s Thriller (1961)

  Nineteen sixty-one opened well with “The Hungry Glass” and “The Grim Reaper,” a pair of memorable episodes for the Thriller series, hosted by Boris Karloff. Following his unforgettable death scene by the Reaper’s sickle, Shatner reported to work for the filming of one of the year’s top-grossing films, Judgment at Nuremberg.

  Making a film is not as all-consuming as work on the stage or in television, and Shatner kept himself busy writing a script for one of the TV series he had turned down. In March 1961, Daily Variety reported:

  William Shatner, actor presently in Judgment, doesn’t believe in breaks between scenes. He makes his own breaks. Between scenes Shatner scripted teleplay, “The Button Down Break” and has sold it to the Checkmate series as a seg. What now? Shatner also has got himself cast in a lead role in his teleplay.

  Work on Judgment, however, stretched into the end of May, causing him to miss the filming of the Checkmate episode, with Tony Randall taking his place. Once Nuremberg wrapped, Shatner immediately accepted a guest star role in an episode of one of the series he had turned down -- The Defenders. Also cast, future Trek guest star Joanne Linville, her second time opposite him. Shatner would do four more Defenders over the next couple years, always as top guest.

  In June, the Shatners welcomed their second daughter, Lisabeth. Starting in September, proud dad was back on the stage as the lead for A Shot in the Dark (playing the precursor to the role that, in the Blake Edwards film of the same name, would go to Peter Sellers after much campy rewriting). For its out-of-town warm-up i
n New Haven, Weekly Variety said:

  A Shot in the Dark is a sure-fire hit, a must-see that has bubbling good humor, sparkling dialog, bright staging and outstanding performances.

  The trade wrote that Shatner “impresses favorably.” Hitting Broadway in October, Daily Variety added:

  William Shatner is credible and engaging as the dedicated magistrate who risks his legal career in pushing through with the investigation of a murder case.

  That same week, Judgment at Nuremberg opened in movie houses to sensational reviews and brisk business. Critics praised Shatner but, with all the famous faces around him, including Spencer Tracy, Burt Lancaster, Richard Widmark, Marlene Dietrich, Maximilian Schell, Judy Garland and Montgomery Clift, he was not to find movie stardom ... yet.

  Shatner left A Shot in the Dark in September 1962, at the end of his one-year contract. He then dropped in on Dr. Kildare and did the first of two top spots on The Naked City, plus the first of two on The Doctors and Nurses. In January 1963, he was on the big screen as the star of The Intruder. Weekly Variety wrote:

  Roger and Gene Corman’s The Intruder comes to grips with a controversial contemporary issue -- integration, and those who would defy the law of the land -- in an adult, intelligent and arresting manner.... Shatner, a fine young actor who deserves to be seen on the [big] screen more frequently, masterfully plays the bigot.

  For his work, Shatner won the Best Actor award in the second annual Peace Film Festival, held in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

  Two months after the release of The Intruder, in March 1963, Dick Powell Theatre aired a pilot called “Colossus” starring Shatner and future Star Trek guest star Robert Brown. Brown said, “That was supposed to be a series. Dick Powell was going to take it to New York; it was all set to go. And he died before he got onto the plane. But the Dick Powell Theatre put the pilot on and it got some phenomenal reviews. If that had sold, Shatner might not have been able to do Star Trek.” (24-1)