Welcome! As part of its ongoing mission to document the Art and Production History of Star Trek, this site will present technical articles on Star Trek prop and costume authentication - focusing on The Original Series - with detailed photos and episode screenshots to complement the information presented; as well as feature pictorials to showcase Star Trek memorabilia in private & public collections, present rare Behind The Scenes TOS imagery & discuss other topics.
Gerald Gurian is a 40+ year collector of screen used Star Trek memorabilia and a passionate fan of TOS
     
- Star Trek TOS At Auction Part I - Gurian Collection Highlights - Greg Jein TOS Hero Type II Phaser
-Authenticating a TOS Communicator -6 Myths About Star Trek Prop Design -Star Trek 3rd Season Command Tunic
- Design Features of TOS Tricorders -Star Trek Props At National Air & Space - TOS Leatherette Tricorder
- TOS Federation Sciences Dress -Desilu Studio TOS Prop Fabrication - Unreleased Allen/Gurian Prop Photos
- The Beautiful Women of TOS Part I -TOS U.S.S. Enterprise 11' Filming Model - Captain Kirk's Chair from TOS
- Spock Ears -TOS Control Panels & Displays - Mr. Spock's Science Station
- TOS Soundstage at Desilu -TOS Shatner Romulan Pants - The Beautiful Women of TOS Pt. II
- TOS Galileo Shuttlecraft -Greg Jein TOS Cage Laser Pistol - TOS 3rd Season Midgrade Type II Phaser
- Dr. McCoy's Sickbay on TOS -TOS Balok Puppet Head - Captain Kirk "Mirror, Mirror" Tunic
- Greg Jein TOS Hero Tricorder -1992 Smithsonian TOS Cast Video - TOS 1st Season Command Tunic
- TOS "Where No Man" Silver Contact Lenses -TOS Special Effects: The Transporter - The Art of Matt Jefferies
- TOS "Space Seed" Gold Mesh Jumpsuit -Gorn Costume from "Arena" - Rare TOS Behind-the-Scenes Videos
- TOS Stunt Type II Phaser -1993 Bill Theiss Estate Auction - TOS Shatner Command Dress Tunic
- TOS Elasian Royal Guard Tunic -TOS Finnegan Silver "Shore Leave" Tunic - TOS Science Officer Tunic "The Cage"
- TOS Shatner Early 1st Season Command Tunic -William Shatner TOS Tunics At Auction - TOS Shatner Late 1st Season Command Tunic

Saturday, October 30, 2010

"Inside Star Trek": 1969 TOS Gaffer George Merhoff article on Set Lighting for The Original Series

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This seventeenth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 12 (June, 1969), presents a fascinating essay by Original Series Gaffer George Merhoff discussing the lighting of the TOS sets for filming ...

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"Inside Star Trek": 1968 Description of the Desilu Soundstages During The Filming of The Original Series

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This sixteenth article describes the set layout and the atmosphere inside the Desilu soundstages, including several anecdotes related to the filming of particular TOS episodes, as witnessed on different visits to the set by author Kay Anderson. It was originally published in two parts across two separate monthly editions of the fanzine: INSIDE STAR TREK No. 10 (April, 1969) and INSIDE STAR TREK No. 11 (May, 1969), but is shown in its entirety below. The cover art is the work of Andrew Probert ...

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"Inside Star Trek": 1969 TOS Music Editor Richard Lapham article

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This fifteenth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 10 (April, 1969), presents a description by Original Series Music Editor Richard Lapham of his role on the TOS production team. The cover art is the work of Andrew Probert ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)


Monday, October 25, 2010

"Inside Star Trek": 1969 TOS Assistant Director Charles Washburn Interview

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This fourteenth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 9 (March, 1969), presents an interview with Original Series Assistant Director Charles Washburn entitled "Behind the Camera: Charles Washburn" by D.C. Fontana. The cover art is the work of Andrew Probert ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)





"Inside Star Trek": 1969 George Takei Interview

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This thirteenth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 8 (February, 1969), presents an on set interview with George Takei entitled "Beaming Up: George Takei" by Ruth Berman. The cover art is the work of Andrew Probert ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)






"Inside Star Trek": 1969 TOS Casting Director Joe D'Agosta memo "A Note On Casting"

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968 and 1969.

This twelfth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 7 (January, 1969), presents a memo by Original Series Casting Director Joseph D'Agosta entitled "A Note On Casting"...

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Friday, October 22, 2010

"Inside Star Trek": 1968 TOS Costume Designer William Ware Theiss Interview

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968.

This eleventh article presents a lengthy interview with Original Series Costume Designer William Ware Theiss entitled "Behind the Camera: William Ware Theiss" by D. C. Fontana. It was originally published in two parts across two separate monthly editions of the fanzine: INSIDE STAR TREK No. 6 (December, 1968) and INSIDE STAR TREK No. 7 (January, 1969), but is shown in its entirety below ...

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"Inside Star Trek": 1968 Leonard Nimoy Interview

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968.

This tenth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 6 (December, 1968), presents an interview with Leonard Nimoy entitled "Beaming Up: Leonard Nimoy" by Ruth Berman. The cover art is the work of Rae Ladore ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)



"Inside Star Trek": 1968 James Doohan Interview

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968.

This ninth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 5 (November, 1968), presents an interview with James Doohan entitled "Beaming Up: James Doohan" by Ruth Berman. The cover art is the work of Rae Ladore ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)




"Inside Star Trek": 1968 TOS Film Librarian Ed Cotter Article "The Film Library"

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968.

This eighth article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 5 (November, 1968), presents a short essay written by Original Series Film Librarian Ed Cotter entitled "The Film Library". The cover art is the work of Rae Ladore ...

(Please click on the images to enlarge)


"Inside Star Trek": 1968 TOS Prop Master Irving Feinberg Article "Trials and Tribble-ations of a Master of Properties"

From July, 1968 through mid-1969; while Star Trek: The Original Series was still in production for its third and final season and those last 24 episodes were being filmed and aired - a series of monthly fan magazines were published by editor Ruth Berman for the growing Star Trek fan base. These publications were created with full and unprecedented access to the Desilu Star Trek soundstages and their preparation was often assisted by members of the Star Trek production crew and the actors themselves - who either granted special interviews or prepared written contributions to the fan magazine - entitled "Inside Star Trek". The efforts of Dorothy Catherine "D. C." Fontana; who was originally Gene Roddenberry's secretary and later Story Editor for the show - and who authored such memorable TOS episodes as "Tomorrow is Yesterday", "Friday's Child", "Journey to Babel", "This Side of Paradise", and "The Enterprise Incident" - are particularly noteworthy. Fontana was a regular contributor to "Inside Star Trek" and her interviews of Set Decorator John Dwyer, Art Director Matt Jefferies, Costume Designer Bill Theiss, and Assistant Director Charles Washburn; as well as Ruth Berman's interviews with Makeup Artist Fred Phillips and actors William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, DeForest Kelley, James Doohan, and George Takei are fascinating to read and contain outstanding, behind-the-scenes details.

While reviewing some early Trek convention papers, I recently re-discovered my complete set of 12 editions of "Inside Star Trek"; and am pleased to include a new series of posts on this site that will present some of the best content from this first official fan club and fanzine for the show. Articles will be reproduced as full page scans of the original pages of the publication; so readers will share - somewhat - the same viewing experience as the original subscribers to the magazine in 1968.

This seventh article, from INSIDE STAR TREK No. 4 (October, 1968), presents a very entertaining and informative essay written by Original Series Property Master Irving Feinberg entitled "Trials and Tribble-ations of a Master of Properties". To many Trek fans that might have thought the phrase "Trials and Tribble-ations" was coined in 1996 for use as the title of the memorable Deep Space Nine 30th Anniversary of TOS tribute episode; this article should now dispel that misconception. The cover art for this edition of the fanzine is the work of Rae Ladore ...

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