Remembering Bob Justman: one year later

While I have been distracted and in slo-mo blog form dealing with family concerns ... Denise Okuda reminded many of us of the passing one year ago this week of the great yet undercredited Bob Justman.

One of my very first posts in "start-up" mode was an ode to Bob that week. Since many of you did not see it during that primeval era for Trekland, here 'tis again ... ready for fresh comments. And with another Bob pic (at left): from the Pasadena Grand Slam 2005, the appearance I'm so glad I arranged for him and for fans ... and hugging our First Lady of Trek, no less—herself recently passed.

These images remind me again: Life is so fleeting ... we should enjoy ourselves, our friends and our treasured assets as often as we can!

Headed home for a Purple Heart veteran

For those of you who've somehow found TREKLAND without the big PR machine (so far):

My drive to catch up on posting my existing videos, movie fallout blogs and pending interviews, is going to have to wait for a few days.

My dad's frail health is slipping and I will be heading home, attending to family and such the next few days. I'll be back with you sooner than you think.

LA ALERT: See ST writers Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman May 26

In the same vein as Ron Moore's evening earlier this month ... a laid-back but smashing event that we expect again:

The Writers Guild Foundation presents
An Evening with
ALEX KURTZMAN &
ROBERTO ORCI
Star Trek, Transformers

Tuesday, May 26 -- 7:30-9:30pm -- At the WG Theater

Join us for this rare interview with one of the most successful sci-fi/action writing-producing teams in the business, moderated by Academy-nominated writer Paul Attanasio.

Tickets: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/63483
Or call 800-838-3006

The event is at the Writers Guild Theater, 135 S Doheny Dr, 90211, and includes a Q&A and a light reception afterward. More info: www.WGFoundation.org

TECH-ing the (TECH): 1998 Hutzel VFX ship scales

By request from Boris at Memory Alpha:

I'm opening up the vaults a little early—before we formally launch the larrynemecek.com site and its archives section—to share the actual shorthand note from onetime TNG & DS9 visual effects supervisor Gary Hutzel, now famously the VFX producer on revamped Battlestar Galactica and soon Caprica.

It was May 5, 1998: We had just done our annual end-of-season wrap-up interview for his shows from DS9-6, and Gary provided his note sheet for my Fact Files research (and the legacy of all future techheads). The bottom four entries are my writing, added from Gary's verbal addenda that day— fresh from the "Operation: Return" episodes and the season finale's First Battle of Chintoka. Here you see the intended ship length, the models' actual length (or foam-core CGI stand-in), and the resulting scale and ratios needed. The list itself goes back to the end of Season 4, obviously—note the little tug and the Curry (stay tuned!).

Part of the duty of latter-day ship ner-- er, archivists -- is to contrast and compare the varied VFX chiefs' scale with the final onscreen effort to try to make sense of it all. Ha!

In the future, I'll just blog about these photos and notes here as "TECH-ing the (TECH)" —all you script and technobabble fans should get that one!—or TTT, and link you to the archive page.

But for now ... Enjoy! And comment away!

LN Photo (above): Gary Hutzel, Judy Elkins: Cooper Building, Trek post-production offices, 5/5/98.

No. 2 and proud of it

Mid-weekend, the box office is coming in and ballyhooed Angels and Demons is "only" beating Star Trek by a estimated domestic BO if $48 million to $43 million!

Look out, world—I think these kids can steer!

BEST Trek mainstream journalism of the week

Lots of slick PR out there, lots of manufactured hype this week—but this has to be the coolest piece of the week, especially by a mainstream outlet. It stems from the other end of the continent and it's from the '70s, so I never got to be there. But—as we did in our First-Person Fandom series in Communicator—it gets back to our roots. And Why We Are Still Here, logistically as well as emotionally.

Behold, via NEWSWEEK online: lost pics and insights from the first Trek cons, the fabulous frolics of New York run by "The Committee" and detailed in the late Joan Winston's book, The Making of the Trek Conventions. This slideshow is even narrated by with audio by costumer designer and early NYC concon member Angelique Trouviere.

And the coolest of the cool: I'd heard of the event, but never seen artifacts, til now— the first known Star Trek "conference" organized by a New Jersey librarian, March 1969. That's 'way before cancellation in June (and Apollo 11's moon landing in July). Thanks mucho, Angelique and NEWSWEEK:

Finally--BK has a winner... with Trek?

The last few years, Burger King's corporate identity has been a bit murky and fuzzy, with those horribly spooky Burger King plasto-mask characters not offering much. They conjur up the shakes, all right—but not of the dairy variety. And that's apparently what corporate BK wants. (And I say this as a fan of the menu...)

But maybe there's a positive ending here—and on two fronts.

JJ had to delete his Klingon scene—but could the movie's loss be BK's gain? This is a LOT of marketing moxie put out for just a single movie ... and did you catch the KING-ons at the Grauman's Hollywood premiere May 30?

Oh—that redshirt (who survives!) ought to do conventions... if BK hasn't thought of that already...

Meanwhile, on the LAST huge Trek movie opening...

This is pretty funny ... I recall the quiz but forgot about a prize...!! Maybe I never got up from Ada to OKC to claim it ... (h/t to Mark VIA Johnny Hunter...)

Two words

They had me at "my ex-wife."







Still, as Data would say, I'm "Processing... processing..."

More later.

L.A. ALERT! Hear Ron D. Moore THIS Tuesday, May 5 at the Writers Guild

As if this week of "Film Eve" couldn't get any more fun-crazy-interesting for you L.A.-area readers ... I'm told, unbelievably, that there are still lots of seats for this old Treklander-cum-Galacticator:

The Writers Guild Foundation presents
An Evening with
RONALD D. MOORE

BATTLESTAR GALACTICA

Tuesday, May 5 -- 7:30-9:30pm -- At the WG Theater

Join us for this unique opportunity to learn from the writer, developer, and executive producer of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA ... a cult classic and one of the most successful sci-fi series in a frakkin' long time. Moderated by Desperate Housewives writer and self-confessed BSG nerd Jeff Greenstein.

Tickets: https://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/63131
Or call 800-838-3006