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William Shatner Addresses the Issue of His Troubled Relationship with His Fellow Star Trek Co-Stars
New Record For Costumed Star Trek Fans Set At Dragon*Con [PHOTOS + VIDEO]
Sci-Fi Movies Saturday: Captain America, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Ghostbusters III, Clash of the Titans 2, Dredd + more
Shatner: Never Knew Trek Would Last
William Shatner spoke recently about his lengthy acting career, including Star Trek, his relationship with his fellow actors, and his fear for the future.
When Shatner realized that his childhood performances affected his audience, he realized that acting was for him. “[I could] make people laugh and cry,” he said. “Sometimes they laughed when I played drama and cried when I played comedy.”
Shatner likes to make audiences laugh, but isn’t always successful. “I think of myself as somebody valiantly trying to get laughs all the time,” he said, “missing about half the time which is shameful so I run around humiliated and exonerated about fifty percent of the time, ’cause a laugh is as delicate as an orchid … it can be there and it can be gone, it’s a will-o-the-wisp.”
Star Trek was a dramatic show, not a comedy, and Shatner, like most at the time, had no idea that it would be so successful especially since it didn’t do well during its initial run. “Nobody knew that Star Trek would be successful, in fact it wasn’t,” he said. “It was only subsequently, as it was in syndication, that it became more popular. Then the movies began and the other iterations of Star Trek and conventions and all that took place; ten, fifteen, twenty years later. It’s a phenomenon, nobody in their right mind … now there may have been crazed soothsayer in some cave in the Yucatan, who said but Star Trek will be… but nobody listened to her, because nobody knew. I never thought it’d become a big deal, just thirteen episodes and out.”
Over the years, several actors have spoken up about how hard it was to get along with Shatner and he addressed that issue. “I didn’t think I was hard to get along with,” he said. “There were a few disaffected actors who came in once a week. I had nothing to do with them. Friendly! I was working seven days a week, learning ten pages of dialogue a day. They had one line! Then after the show was canceled and the Star Trek phenomenon began, those actors would go to the conventions. They’d get applause, praise, and begin to think, Hey, I was wonderful, and Shatner stole the spotlight.’”
Even though Shatner has had a lengthy career, like many actors, he is insecure. “After seventy years, the fear never leaves me,” he said, referring to the fear that his last acting job will be his final acting job.
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KirkWatch: William Shatner Talks Career & Trek Co-stars + Chris Pine On Unstoppable
Great Links: Summer Movies as TNG Episodes + Kirk Audio + Trek Toilet + Spock Dog + more
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VIDEO: Herman Zimmerman Talks Difficulties w/ Nemesis Director Baird, ST09’s Big Nacelles & More
Herman Zimmerman Critizes Nemesis Director Stuart Baird, Says It was Impossible to Work With Him, Nothing Satisfied Him, Plus Talks J.J. Abrams Trek Movie
Ask Cryptic: September 3rd, 2010
Just in time for the release of our next Featured Episode, Star Trek Online Executive Producer Dan Stahl delivers the answers in this month's edition of Ask Cryptic! Read on to see the answers to your questions about our featured episodes!
Was Movie Summer 2010 a TNG Rehash?
Supposedly, there are five basic plots, so sooner or later, fans will see a story that looks rather familiar to them.
According to UGO, some of the movies from this summer could be matched with Star Trek: The Next Generation episodes like Tapestry, Lower Decks, and Journey’s End.
Shrek Forever, according to UGO, can compare with Tapestry. In Tapestry, Picard sees how his life could have been different had he not got into a brawl with a Nausicaan which resulted in him receiving an artificial heart, while in Shrek Forever, Shrek imagines what his life would have been like if he had stayed true to his ogre roots.
Of course, the “what your life could have been like” story has been done before, in movies such as “It’s a Wonderful Life” and in television shows such as Dallas.
The Other Guys, which tells the story of the NYPD accountants and benchwarmers “in the shadow of the Big Collar Cops” can be compared with Lower Decks, in which non-senior staff who are usually seen in passing, if at all, are featured.
Salt can be compared to Face of the Enemy, as “A raven-haired beauty who may be fighting on the side of freedom or may be working from within on behalf of a totalitarian empire.” This description might describe Angelina Jolie as a Russian double agent Salt, or Marina Sirtis as Troi, who ends up working from within on behalf of the totalitarian Romulans.
To see more comparisons, head to the link located here.
Billingsley To Voice Poe Classic
John Billingsley and his wife Bonita Friedericy will join Kevin Sorbo and Jim O’Rear in voicing Edgar Allen Poe’s The Fall of the House of Usher.
The audio drama of the Fall of the House of Usher, an adaptation that “stays true to Poe’s original vision with only minor changes in dialogue,” has four speaking roles: Roderick Usher, voiced by O’Rear; Madeline Usher voiced by Friedericy; The Doctor, voiced by Billingsley; and the narrator, voiced by Sorbo.
The Fall of the House of Usher is the first in a series of planned original recordings by Macabre Mansion, who hopes to “produce and preserve significant works of classic literature in an audio theater format.”
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of the audio CD will go to A World Fit For Kids, which “give kids the training, tools and support they need to achieve their goals and lead fit and fulfilling lives,” in hopes of mitigating the current childhood obesity epidemic.
The Fall of the House of Usher will be available on CD in October.
Review: Star Trek 365 Photo Book
Forbes Is So Over Trek
Michelle Forbes, best-known to Star Trek: Next Generation fans as the Bajoran Ensign Ro, feels that the time for talking about her days on Star Trek is over.
It has been years since Forbes appeared in Trek, yet she is still asked about it. “When people ask me those questions, I just think, ‘Really guys?’ It’s 2010, two decades later. I’ve answered those upwards, downwards, forwards, sideways. The show went on, it was great. Everybody’s still breathing, everyone’s doing fine. Are we still asking those questions? For me, I only did nine episodes! I hardly remember anything.”
Her Star Trek character, Ensign Ro, was an appealing character, which may explain the continuing fascination with her Trek days, even after so long. “I think I just got really lucky with writers who create very fascinating characters,” she said. “I’m also usually playing roles that come in and out of shows. I’m a gypsy, I like to pop in and pop out. I’ve been very fortunate to hit these great shows.”
Now appearing in the Canadian Durham County, where she plays demented psychologist Dr. Penelope Verrity, Forbes would like fans to give that show a chance. “Durham County was a real game-changer in terms of Canadian television,” she said. “It swept the Geminis [Canadian TV/Movie awards] for its first season… And yet, no one in Canada (or the U.S. for that matter) really knows about the show. I was really quite shocked that people weren’t seeing it as a show with a profound Canadian voice.
“I mean, this is a show that wasn’t copied from an American show – so many Canadian shows are – which usually results in a watered-down version. That’s what I think is smart about Durham County. It’s not derivative of anything American. It’s more in the vein of the BBC miniseries I grew up with.”
Star Trek Merchandise Oddities
For Star Trek fans who have seen it all, take a peek at some of the offbeat Star Trek merchandise offered for sale recently.
Fans are used to seeing merchandise for their favorite shows, from toys to clothing to posters, but occasionally some of the items offered for sale are guaranteed to elicit a muttered, “What were they thinking?”
UGO has collected eleven Star Trek merchandise oddities, including a wallet, dog tags, cupcake toppers and even a Kirk and a Spock nutcracker.
The Kirk and Spock nutcrackers, which sell for $19.99 at the official Star Trek site, “come with both Captain Kirk and Dr. Spock [sic], so you don’t have to decide on just one!” This entry gets bonus points for the “Dr. Spock” error.
Or how about a Spock holiday center piece? “Get in the spirit of Spock!” says the description for this item. Spock is standing amongst a pile of presents and Tribbles, and he has opened a present only to find the box full of Tribbles! One can only suppose that the box originally contained a pile of quadrotriticale or perhaps Tribbles like holiday fruitcakes. How does one say “Merry Christmas” in Vulcan?
Some of the truly weird offerings are courtesy of Etsy. Fans can purchase a Captain Spot antique plate, where a photo of a dog in a TNG uniform is pictured in the center of the plate.
Or how about a painted phaser on one’s black trousers? It’s an Abramsverse phaser and certainly every hot-blooded male will want to appear in public with these trousers! Be sure to put the “Spock’s Breast Meld Wallet” in the pocket of these trousers and you can’t go wrong on a date!
Video of the Day: Evolution of the Star Trek Warp Effect
Retro Review: Attached
When aliens link them telepathically, Picard and Crusher are forced to confront feelings for one another they have buried for years.
Plot Summary: When Picard and Crusher beam down to Kesprytt to evaluate the unusual request of the Kes to join the Federation without the consent of the xenophobic Prytt, their transporter beam is diverted to a Prytt prison cell, where a Prytt leader named Lorin tells them that they are charged with conspiring with the enemy – the Kes. The Prytt have put implants into Picard and Crusher’s necks that are designed to align with their thought patterns and reveal their motives. To the captain and doctor’s surprise, the implants also begin to allow them to sense one another’s thoughts. Riker sets up a meeting with the Kes leader, Mauric, who comes on board the Enterprise with a full security team, fearful of Prytt spying. Mauric wants to invade the Prytt capitol to rescue Picard and Crusher, but Riker insists on trying diplomacy before force. Lorin rebuffs his attempts to contact her people, threatening to attack the Enterprise if further attempts are made. Meanwhile, Picard and Crusher find a tricorder hidden in a platter that’s supposed to hold prison food and use it to escape, though the map newly added to the directory is vague and leads them along a dangerous path. The link between them is growing stronger, and when they try to separate, they become incapacitated. While camping under the stars, Picard and Crusher discuss their pasts and admit not only that they both knew an attraction had existed between them, but that Picard had been in love with Crusher while she was married to his best friend. Mauric tells Riker that he has an operative in Prytt territory looking for them, but when Picard and Crusher see the man in a Prytt uniform, they hide. Their disappearance leads Mauric to suspect that the pair are conspiring with the Prytt. Stymied and frustrated, Riker has Lorin beamed aboard without permission and forces Mauric to negotiate with her, though neither has useful information about Picard or Crusher’s location and both believe the other is in secret negotiations to get weapons from the Federation. Riker informs them that he is certain the Kes will be denied Federation membership and warns Lorin that if she isn’t more helpful, dozens of Starfleet ships will arrive to look for the missing officers, making contact with many of the Prytt. Though she is reluctant to help, the Enterprise receives a signal that Picard and Crusher have been found by the Prytt at the Kes border, and Lorin has their coordinates sent to the ship so they can be beamed back. Later, Picard and Crusher agree that they’re relieved not to be reading each other’s minds but they also miss the intimacy of the experience. Picard believes they should pursue this relationship, but Crusher says that perhaps they should not, and tells Picard good night.
Analysis: It should surprise no one who reads these reviews regularly when I say that I’m an even bigger ‘shipper than I am a sci-fi fan. The X-Files was primarily about Mulder/Scully for me, not whether the truth was out there, and it took me till the Ninth Doctor to really become a Doctor Who fan because that was the first time I loved the companion as much as the Doctor (please note: I missed Sarah Jane Smith the first time around, or it might have happened much earlier). While I’d never claim that I love Star Trek only for the relationships, the things I’ve loved most passionately about each show has been primarily relationship-centered (Kirk/Spock, Janeway/Chakotay, the myriad wonderful interactions of Deep Space Nine from Garak/Bashir to Kira/Odo), and I’ve often wondered if part of my lack of adoration for Next Gen the first time around was frustration with the lack of relationship development, or at least the glacial pace of it. “Attached” represents everything that irritates me about intimacy in the first of the Star Trek sequels, so even though I enjoy the performances of Patrick Stewart and Gates McFadden, and there’s nothing terribly wrong with the direction or pacing of the episode, most of what I’m about to say concerns this long-simmering gripe.
We’ve known that Picard and Crusher had a complicated past since “Encounter at Farpoint.” We’ve known since the episode just after the pilot, “The Naked Now,” that with her inhibitions repressed, Crusher can’t keep her hands off Picard. We’ve known since the early Wesley Crusher series takeover that Picard has messy feelings about the entire Crusher family, that he carries around a load of guilt for Jack’s death, that he can’t decide whether to treat Wesley as a son or push him away the way he keeps all children at arm’s length, and we’ve known through Q’s meddling, plus the presence of Jenice, Kamala, Nella Daren, et al, that Picard has major issues integrating how he sees himself as a Starfleet officer with his ability to carry on an intimate relationship. We’ve known that on multiple occasions – “The Arsenal of Freedom,” “Remember Me” – when Crusher thought she was going to die, she’s started to tell Picard that there’s something she needs to say, only to be cut off. These aren’t two people who haven’t spent any time playing what-if or working out what they might say if the right moment ever arose, and they’re neither naive nor unfamiliar with one another; we’ve seen that they’re close enough as friends to have serious arguments about work and about the philosophy behind that work, yet continue to have social breakfasts together. As we learn in “Attached,” in fact, they both value those breakfasts so much that they’re willing to eat things they don’t like just to make the other one happy. There’s no way both these characters haven’t played out scenarios in their minds where someone didn’t leave after dinner or someone arrived earlier than breakfast, in a wouldn’t-it-be-fun sense or a happily-ever-after sense, even if there are practical reasons why it might be a bad idea to take it out of the realm of fantasy.
Now we get a scenario where Picard and Crusher are joined at the brain. If you discovered that someone could read your mind, what’s the first thing you’d think about – after “Oh my god, isn’t there some way I can get this person to stop reading my mind or at least to control what they see?”? Snape in Harry Potter is so worried about what Harry might see that he takes certain thoughts out of his mind during Occlumency lessons and stores them in a Pensieve, which seems much more like normal human behavior to me than the absolute lack of concern shown by Picard and Crusher, even if they’d had no personal secrets. Everyone has embarrassing anecdotes from the distant past they wouldn’t want their best friend or their spouse reading in their thoughts, and everyone has occasional irritated thoughts about their nearest and dearest that it’s just as well the nearest and dearest can’t hear. Joined at the brain with someone, no matter who, and even if Prytt agents were chasing me, I’d be wavering between “Oh no, I better not think about how I’ve pictured you naked!” and “Oh no, I’d better not think about how much I hate it when you pick your teeth!” or something very similar. Picard may have wonderful discipline over his words and actions, but I simply don’t believe he has similar discipline over his innermost thoughts – not if he’s human. Yet even though I’d expect the first thing to enter Picard’s mind upon learning of the connection with Beverly would be, “Oh no, I’d better think about anything except the fact that I was in love with Beverly while she was my best friend’s wife,” Picard is entirely focused on escape, then on figuring out what they can eat, then on Crusher’s sense of humor, then on the fact that they both like to watch fire. It isn’t until Crusher actually mentions Jack that Picard remembers he doesn’t want to think about how he was in love with her.
That would have been fine if the episode were coming out of a context and heading toward a resolution where that was firmly in the past. If we’d never had an inkling before of unresolved attraction/passion/sexual tension, if Picard could shake his head at himself and say he knows now if was youthful folly, if Crusher’s inclination was to blush and say oh dear and try to change the subject, then it might be plausible that this secret from the past could surface and lead to a moment of awkwardness and then, a few hours later, easy smiles and jokes. But this is something that’s been lurking, not even dormant, for a lot of years; we’ve seen Crusher jealous when Picard had Jenice on board, we’ve seen Picard open up to Crusher in a way he never opens up to anyone else on the ship, we’ve been made aware of the possibilities (dramatic as well as personal) of a deeper relationship between them. Crusher is inconsistent; first she wants to talk about it, she doesn’t understand why he never told her that he was in love with her, then she wants to sleep, and apparently doesn’t want to think about it any more. She seems more flustered than Picard, who’s usually the one knocked off his game by a big emotional scene he can’t avoid. They’re back to being professional the next morning – they have to be, since Prytt agents are chasing them – and when they’re trapped on either side of the Kes border, with the situation looking as if they might be separated, there’s no “Jean-Luc, I have something to tell you” moment, even though it’s precisely the sort of scenario where we’d have seen one in an earlier episode.
Has something changed? Picard seems to think so; his quarters are lit by candlelight when Crusher comes by after they’re rescued, they’re drinking wine, he’s not embarrassed by her flirting, not even when she implies that she saw some suggestive things in his mind while he was dreaming. But when he takes up the obvious line of questioning after she tells him so, asking whether they should stop being afraid to explore these feelings, she says that perhaps they should be afraid, and flees the room without any further explanation. As frustrating as this must be for Picard, it’s equally frustrating for viewers. When did Beverly Crusher turn into a coward? I don’t mean because she thinks they shouldn’t hop into bed together – there are a lot of good reasons for that, the foremost being that if he couldn’t face the possibility of having to order Nella Daren to risk death while she was his lover, how much worse would it be with Crusher, whom he has known for much longer and for whose husband’s death he holds himself responsible. There are chain-of-command issues, there are interpersonal issues involving the people they work with, there’s the fact that Crusher’s son may hold Picard responsible for his failure to graduate from the Academy…lots of things they could talk about. But Crusher doesn’t want to talk. It’s like she wants verbal confirmation that Picard desires her, and once she’s got that, she’s not interested in any kind of reciprocal sharing or even in saying it’s nice to know but she needs time to think. We’ve seen that Crusher is very careful with her feelings and a bit conservative – she wouldn’t give Odan a chance in a woman’s body – and if I don’t read her exit as timid, then it looks insensitive to Picard’s feelings, so I’d rather assume she’s scared.
Which, maybe, is a good moment to look at the episode as a whole. The Kes think they’re ready to join the Federation, yet they’re incapable of dealing with outsiders without paranoia that almost seems like teenage “who do you love” competitiveness – they suspect Starfleet has asked the Prytt to the prom as well. The Prytt, meanwhile, have no interest in being courted or even spoken to, and react to a simple “hello” by threatening to pull out their weapons. Riker tries to be friendly to both, then realizes that neither respects him for it and both take it to mean he’s waiting to see who’d make the best companion, so he resorts to condescension and warnings instead; it works well enough to get Picard and Crusher back, but so far as we know, the Enterprise leaves without knowing whether their visit might have sparked a civil war or a new alliance. (Do the Kes and Prytt get nauseous when they move apart?) I understand that we’re not supposed to take this planet and its problems overly seriously, they aren’t the focus of the story, but the Kes/Prytt situation is left as unresolved as the Picard/Crusher situation. Don’t we deserve a little closure? Two decades on, we still haven’t got it; oh, Picard and Crusher married and divorced in the series finale, and married in some of the Pocket Books novels and in countless fan fiction stories. But unlike their colleagues Riker and Troi, they seem destined for eternal might-have-been status – for themselves and for us.
