Does William Shatner, the sober-looking individual on this week's cover, impress you as the kind of man who could command a cruiser- size space ship exploring the outer galaxies? Well, he'd better, because that's what he is doing each Thursday on NBC in the new series. Star Trek, and series producer-creator Gene Roddenberry wants you to believe it is all with- in the realm of possibility.
"Science-fiction," says Roddenberry, "must be an extrapolation of something possible. Hollywood has turned too much of science- fiction into gimmicks and one-eyed monsters and left audiences confused and corrupted." On the USS Enterprise with its staff and crew of 400, Roddenberry tries to avoid gimmickry, or at least subordinate it to his cast.
For example, instead of resorting to some highly imaginary costumes for his space adventurers, Roddenberry contacted the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and was given sketches of the type clothing to be worn by our own astronauts when they board 10 to 15-men spacecraft for trips to the moon.
Caltech and one of its art designers came up with the out-of-this-world conception of the USS Enterprise, which apparently isn't as far out as the casual viewer might believe.
"I've told our designers not to streamline a table that's not going anywhere or toss in things just for looks. There's a reason for each instrument you see on the USS Enterprise," Roddenberry maintains very seriously.
A big and generally quiet man, Roddenberry has been writing for TV for many years. This is the first time he's ventured into the science-fiction field, although he was an airline pilot before turning to writing, an occupation which one might think would have inspired him to write about space before this.
When Roddenberry came to California he joined the Los Angeles Police Department, first as a traffic cop and later as one of its public relations men. His first brush with TV came when he "moonlighted" as technical adviser to Jack Webb's Dragnet series.
At the same time he had been writing for magazines. While balancing the Roddenberry accounts one evening, Mrs. Roddenberry pointed out to her husband that his income as a cop was $450 per month, and for that particular month his writing had netted him $1,200. "Don't you think it's time you decided which is your profession and which is your hobby?" inquired his wife, and soon after that Roddenberry wound up his six years on the force.
His list of credits in TV mounted steadily after that, and one Roddenberry script for Have Gun, Will Travel won for him an Emmy award for "best western script" in 1959. Prior to Star Trek, his most recent TV project was The Lieutenant, which he produced for the 1963-64 season and which became most notable for exposing Robert (Man From UNCLE) Vaughn to weekly TV.
One of Roddenberry's chief worries about the TV medium is the big thirst sponsors and networks have for action. "They want something happening on that screen all the time, and they are not particular what it is, as long as it moves," he says sadly.
Star Trek co-star Leonard Nimoy is cast as Mr. Spock, science officer aboard the USS Enterprise which is on an interplanetary exploration mission years in the future. Below is Gene Roddenberry, creator-producer of series.
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