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Monday, November 5, 2018
Page #15
Texas History Minute Texas has been home to many imaginative scientists, artists, and writers. Because of their dreams and determination, Dr. Ken they changed Bridges how people saw the world. One Texas writer in particular, Gene Roddenberry, created one of the most successful science fiction stories today, Star Trek.
a drama about the lives of Marines starring Gary Lockwood and Robert Vaughan that ran for only one season.
Roddenberry began developing a new science fiction series in 1964 that ultimately became Star Trek. Networks were hesitant, but Roddenberry pitched it as a futuristic western based on a starship. CBS rejected the series outright, but NBC was interested. The pilot episode that emerged, The Menagerie, starring Jeff Hunter as Captain Pike, Born Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Leonard Nimoy as Mr. Spock, in El Paso in 1921, he was the and Roddenberry’s future wife, eldest child in a Southern Baptist Majel Barrett, did not impress the family. In 1923, his father accepted network. Executives feared the a position at the Los Angeles Police theme of aliens, ESP, and an Department, and the family left interracial crew would not sit Texas for California. well with audiences. However, they enjoyed the concept of the As a child, Roddenberry was very program and ordered it revamped. imaginative. He loved reading science fiction and had fair grades Roddenberry complied, keeping in school. He considered following Nimoy and bringing in William in his father’s footsteps and began Shatner to play Captain James T. taking criminal justice courses Kirk. The second pilot aired in when he later enrolled at Los 1966, and the program Angeles City College. However, immediately developed a steady the approach of World War II following of fans. Roddenberry shifted his focus. kept the show focused on morality plays and allegories of Increasingly interesting in aviation, current events in the 1960s. he began taking flight lessons Overall, he based the series on his through the military’s Civilian Pilot idea of a utopian future for Training Program. He earned his humanity, one where war, pilots license and enlisted in the poverty, crime, and disease had Army Air Corps less than two ended and all races worked weeks after Pearl Harbor. He together as equals. This hopeful became a B-17 bomber pilot with view of the future attracted many the Thirteenth Air Force, based out fans looking for an escape from of Hawaii. He earned a the chaotic and violent events of Distinguished Flying Cross and rose the decade. However, ratings to the rank of captain. were low; and Roddenberry often clashed with network executives. After the war, Roddenberry worked The series was nearly cancelled for Pan Am Airways as an in 1968, but a letter-writing international pilot. In 1947, his campaign allowed Star Trek to Lockheed L-049 crashed in Syria. proceed to a third season. He suffered two broken ribs in the crash. As the plane caught fire, he After the series was cancelled in worked to pull as many injured 1969, Roddenberry’s personal life passengers from the wreckage as he was a mess. His marriage had could. Fifteen passengers died, but fallen apart, and he had several he saved many others, and led the affairs. He ultimately divorced survivors through the desert to find and remarried. He tried to help. He flew for Pan Am for develop several other science another year before resigning to fiction series and movies but pursue his dreams of being a writer. none was ever particularly successful. Success did not come easily. Having difficulty earning a living to Star Trek’s popularity continued support his wife and young to grow after its cancellation. In children, he joined the LAPD in 1976, NASA invited the cast to 1949. Using his police experience, the unveiling of the space shuttle he soon became a technical advisor prototype, called Enterprise as the for the early drama Mr. District result of a writing campaign. By Attorney, for which he also wrote the late 1970s, he entered the occasional episode. He later discussions to revive Star Trek as worked as a writer for Highway a television series, but the Patrol. He was also selling scripts unexpected success of Star Wars for popular westerns as well. He in 1977 led studio executives to was doing so well that he resigned push for a movie version instead. from the police force in 1956. The Star Trek movie premiered in In 1958, he started writing for the 1979. Three more movies popular western Bat Masterson and followed in the 1980s, leading to Have Gun – Will Travel. He won an updated version of the series an award from the Writer’s Guild of with a new cast, Star Trek: The America for an episode of the latter Next Generation, in 1987. Four that year. Roddenberry tried to more series would emerge as well develop several different television as two more currently in series, but he had difficulty selling development as well a half dozen any to the networks. In 1963, NBC more movies. picked up his series The Lieutenant,
He died of a heart attack at his doctor’s office in Los Angeles in 1991. As a final salute to the science fiction pioneer, a portion of his ashes were flown aboard a flight of the Space Shuttle Columbia in 1992. Though many of his other works have been largely forgotten,
Star Trek has become a billiondollar franchise from TV shows, merchandising, and movies. Dr. Bridges is a Texas native, writer, and history professor. He can be reached at drkenbridges@gmail.com.
