11-18 New Writers memo - 1987

With Gene Roddenberry relegated to a consultant role on the Star Trek feature films, the "Great Bird" still had strong opinions about the shape of each sequel. In the first part of our look at a memo from 1983, Gene lays out his concerns around keeping Trek's format intact and his problems with destroying the Enterprise.

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The faster Star Trek: The Next Generation ramped up production for its first season, a very real crisis loomed: they didn't have enough scripts. Bob Justman wrote to Gene Roddenberry in no uncertain terms about the production's needs, and we've got Mike DeMeritt to help us pick apart the details.

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One year before the American bicentennial celebration, Gene Roddenberry and Wilton Dillon from the Smithsonian Institution shred a friendly correspondence. We welcome back Margaret Weitekamp - almost 50 years to the day since the "Big E" was shipped from LA to DC - to further discuss the importance of pop-culture in the country's preeminent collection of historical artifacts.

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We are thrilled to welcome Margaret Weitekamp, Curator and Department Chair of the Smithsonian National Air & Space Museum, to discuss science fiction's role in the story of space flight. A 1972 letter from Gene Roddenberry to Fred Durant, Assistant Director of NASM, underlines the cultural impact of shows like Star Trek and the importance of heroic stories in garnering public support.

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As The Trek Files continues to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Star Trek: The Animated series, we look back at a rather pointed letter from Dorothy Fontana about the draft for "Eye of the Beholder." Aaron Harvey joins us again as we reveal a newly discovered detail about the episode's development!

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It might seem like a given that a TV series must be written to fit a budget. In the early days of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," a serious concern between Gene Roddenberry and Bob Justman was to keep the scripts under control. Returning guest Mike DeMeritt joins The Trek Files to help parse the intersection of creativity and commerce.

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What exactly is the internal physiology of a Klingon, or a Horta, or a Tholian? In 1975, an enterprising undergrad wrote to Gene Roddenberry to get some answers. Today, we've got educator and Star Trek science consultant Mohamed Noor with us to talk about the intersection of fact and fiction.

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We're joined again by Luanne Fortier to share her stories about fandom in the 1970s. This time, the Star Trek stars come to town when William Shatner goes LIVE with an album of his college tour, and Luanne reminisces about Gene Roddenberry himself on stage.

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As Star Trek was getting ready for a return to television, Dorothy Fontana was teaching a class to aspiring writers. One of those students, Robert Coyle, pitched his own animated Trek adventure and got multiple lessons along the way in writing for television and the hash business of production. Paul joins The Trek Files to tell his story!

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It's time for another look into Gene Roddenberry's mail bag! This episode, we've got a range from 1971 - 1975, everything from an up-and-coming student writer to a pilot who claims to have unlocked the secrets to Star Trek tech!

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