Scott Atwell Star Trek Discussion thread (Series and Films) (3 Viewers)

[FanCollector]

Nor was he playing Morgan Earp...

 

[Nelson Au]

You've jeopardized the Federation! Yes, Day of the Dove is on my list! I'd be really curious to see Kelley's early work. His days of playing "heavys". I do have the Kirk Douglas/Burt Lancaster film on DVD. But Kelley's work seems to small.

 

[Ockeghem]

Lee and Nelson,

It took some doing, but I was finally able to track down some clippings as well as authentic photos of some of the actual (as in historically accurate) gang members from that fateful day in Tombstone:

 

[FanCollector]

Boy, the sky used to change color a lot in the 1880s.Nelson, it isn't diplomacy in the political relations sense, but then neither was Metamorphosis... what about The Empath? All other methods have failed and McCoy is going to die, but Kirk uses his oratorical skills to convince the Vians, in spite of Kirk having absolutely no leverage over them, to relent.

 

[Ockeghem]

Lee,I thought for sure I'd be hearing the line, "Is the rest of your history that faulty, Ensign?" from you after that.

 

[Nelson Au]

"Draw!" Not me Mr. Earp.That would have been a good line you quoted above Scott about faulty history. . It's funny how many times the events of the OK Corral re-entered Kelley's work.Lee, funny you mention Metamorphosis, I read that chapter last night. But first, I didn't have The Empath in mind. Not sure that one counts. While Kirk's power of persuasion was effective with The Companion and with the Vians, he managed to save his crew in both cases and helped others to see a new way. It's interesting that Mr. Coon, like the earlier episodes he wrote, he wrote Metamorphosis all by himself, no one actually did the rewrites except himself. And he listened to Robertson's input to add more action. And he put Scotty back on the Enterprise depriving DeSalle more command time. There wasn't much details on the writing process given he was doing all the writing and the conversations with NBC where so short. I liked Ms. Fontana's input about not zapping Scotty again! And zapped Spock instead, though he gets zapped again by Vaal. The surprising bits were Ms. Donahue's recollections. Her feeling that William Shatner looked down at her at first because of her comedy background would not have given her the background to act in this kind of drama. But it was nice to see Shatner give her some advice on crying and later how she stayed on set to do the Companion lines as Kirk used the universal translator. It seems at the end, he respected her from her effort later on in the episode. So that was a great contribution by Elinor Donahue to Cushman.On the Hoffman forum, a member there, my friend tells me, does a trivia thread on Star Trek and was sure in one scene Ms. Hedford was wearing black shoes and later green. Given how the production would film the scenes outside Cochrane's house first, then redress the set to only be the open field where Cochrane talks to the Conpanion, etc, there were so many scenes filmed out order, it's amazing the costumes didn't get messed up, but I reviewed the episode many months ago and she's wearing green shows the whole time.Yet, on Senensky's blog I think or elsewhere, as Cuhman doesn't appear to recount the story, Donahue came back weeks later to refilm a scene and I recall discussions of how she looked so much thinner from a tooth problem, so it's obvious she looks different. Yet I never noticed and I tend to notice those things. I'm going to have to watch Metamorphosis today! Oh, the business with the technical advisor was interesting and that he was adamant that the universal translator was simply an impossible device, yet Coon ignored that as he'd have no story.

 

[FanCollector]

Senensky refers to Elinor Donahue's return, but he suggests it was just for a quick pick-up shot since he was not informed and if it were anything more than that, he should have been. Yes, the singularity of voice was unique to the Gene Coon scripts. The comments are still there, but the real editing was all going on inside his head, making those chapters very different to read. It's also of interest that Roddenberry, who was obviously not shy about rewriting scripts by other staff members, never touched those Coon efforts. They went back and forth a bit on Bread and Circuses, but that was not a Coon-initiated story or teleplay. We will see if that changed in the third season when Coon was no longer working there, but for these first four scripts, Roddenberry seems to have respected Coon's writing in a way that no other writer, including staff members, could claim.Never checked on the shoes, but unlike most movies and TV episodes, this one almost respects the Aristotelian dramatic unities. So her shoes never should have changed!

 

[Nelson Au]

I had checked on her shoes back when I heard about that, they were green the whole time! Just watched Metamorphosis with emphasis this time on watching Donahue's performance and the editing of all those separate sequences. They made it look seamless! They must have saved all the long shots with Cochrane out in the field summoning the Companion for last. The house is in most shots, and it's amazing they must have built the interior of the house set on the same stage as the planet so the view from the door matches the large rock formation. While Donahue's performance was restrained as was discussed, her break down scene was pretty hysterical, but given her condition and the fantastic circumstances, I didn't think it was too over the top. And speaking of shrews, she sure wasn't nice to anyone at the start, but as soon as Commissioner Headford/Companion emerges from the house, she's very warm and seemingly happy. I noticed that shot where Finnerman told her not to bob her head around. There's that characteristic fabric used behind the head and the magic lighting that Finnerman uses so well. And I noticed the shot that Senensky thinks is the pick-up shot. I noticed the sky behind the house wasn't quite as purple. And I did go back to his website and reread the entry on this episode. I always felt this one has the best Kirk speeches and one of the best Shatner performances.

 

[FanCollector]

Don't you get the impression in watching it that everyone knew it was really good and rose to the material in a way? The cinematography, the set design, the direction, and the lead performances were all exceptionally good in a series where I generally find them to be quite good anyway. Post-production stuff, like music, special effects, and editing also seem above the series' usual high standard. It just feels to me like everyone liked the script and their energy and concentration were especially strong because of it. If that was the case (and a lot of that is just my own supposition), it must have been disappointing that the network wasn't thrilled with it.

 

[Nelson Au]

I didn't get a chance to replying till now. It's a delightful thought Lee that everyone might have felt that way about Metamorphosis. I really hope that was the case! I can see that being possible, it was certainly the case with Ms. Fontana from her comments. I agree that in every department, that episode really shined, and yet it was so under appreciated. I'll try to read about Friday's Child tonight.

 

[FanCollector]

Senensky has singled it out as his favorite, and both Finnerman and Shatner have said they had a special affinity for it. And as Nelson has said before, it seems to resonate more and more the older I get.

 

[FanCollector]

I finally watched the KGW interview, Nelson. Thanks for posting it. I remember seeing it somewhere a couple of years ago, but it was educational to watch it again in light of the discussions we have had about the behind-the-scenes events at the show. What struck me most about it was that it was a fairly serious interview about the character and the show. The correspondent knew a little about the show, but not much, and her questions did not assume the show was "cute," or for children, or any of the things Nimoy had worried about a year earlier. It shows that the media impression of Star Trek after a year was that it was a serious show that just happened to take place in space and feature an alien character.The other thing that seemed significant was Nimoy's answer about why the Spock character was so popular with the audience. For those who haven't watched the whole interview, he essentially says that the character seems "wise" and "dignified," and that the audience can admire his intelligence and the way he controls his emotions. Those things are true and surely part of the reason the character speaks to so many viewers, but the other half of the answer (and this seems pretty evident) is that Spock is always struggling with himself and, professional expertise notwithstanding, he doesn't have all the answers and his path does not always take him where he wants to go. The appeal of the character must also incorporate the identification we can all feel with his struggle sometimes. Nimoy himself has acknowledged that identification over the years. Did he not think about that at the time? Was a 6- minute interview not the place to go into such a shaded response? Did he enjoy, as he admits later in the interview, the pleasures of playing a heroic character and prefer to emphasize those aspects of Spock? Don't know the answer, but it's intriguing to hear what must have been one of his earliest responses to that question.

 

[Nelson Au]

Lee, I didn't know William Shatner had expressed that about Metamorphosis. Unless I missed it in the Cushman book. That's great. It's neat too that Senensky is still so fond of it.About the Nimoy interview, I'm glad you saw it, not surprised you may have seen it before! I think that during that time, interviews would be more formal and serious which is what is so fascinating about the interview. And what I found so interesting is to hear, as you pointed out, what was in Nimoy's head at the time of how he was approaching the character. The world of Star Trek fandom had not exploded yet but was brewing so there isn't time yet for him or the cast to think of it as anything more then a job, and a good one. So they haven't had time to reflect on the character more. He had the most challenging character too. Agreed, it's added fun to view the video now after our recent discussions. I also found a print interview with William Shatner at the same time and his comments are quite different. He had ambitions for film and being a film actor at the level of Cary Grant and John Wayne and others who essentially play themselves or a persona of themselves and how he was experimenting with that with Kirk. Very serious too. If you haven't read it and are interested, I searched William Shatner 1967. I didn't bookmark it.

 

[FanCollector]

That Shatner interview was definitely new to me. It serves as contemporary confirmation of Shatner's oft-stated belief that working in a series is so exhausting that one is better off playing oneself, but it suggests an alternate motivation for doing it. Also interesting to contrast his performances in the episodes from the beginning of the first season with those from the rest of the series, keeping in mind the distinction he makes in the interview.It also makes John D.F. Black a very perceptive man, as he said that Nimoy wanted to be an actor and Shatner wanted to be a star.

 

[Nelson Au]

It's really interesting that so many of these period interviews are showing up! Great insights.

 

[FanCollector]

So one more diplomatic example? Did we already say Spectre of the Gun?

 

[Nelson Au]

Hell bent for leather!Lee, I checked my notes and I'm afraid you already named that episode! I only had enough energy last night to read the first two pages of the Friday's Child chapter. I was very surprised to read DC Fontana's idea for that episode! Her thinking for the idea of the Eleen character. It changes my perception of the episode dramatically! While I had a sense of it, it wasn't as clearly presented on screen. To me anyway. . I'll try to read more.

 

[FanCollector]

I figured that one was too easy to have missed. How about The Savage Curtain? It's a kind of fake diplomacy that is masking investigation, but he goes through the motions anyway.The Friday's Child revelations from Ms. Fontana were pretty earth-shaking, I thought. Roddenberry's differences with her on the subject provide a lot of insight into his thinking about the show.

 

[Nelson Au]

I guess in the case of The Savage Curtain, as all Starfleet officers are trained, they have to be the diplomat as circumstances call for it. President Lincoln indeed! I didn't have this one in mind, but I'll add it to the list.

 

[Nelson Au]

Well, the last answer wasn't an obvious one like many of the episodes that Lee has named. Need a hint?