I promised Paula and Terry I'd talk about their new STAR TREK 365 book, but as a reminder— after the first wave of PR hoopla has peaked and receded. So what better chance than now, in the panicky final days for holiday shoppers?Yes, it's the perfect gift for the redshirt who has everything—including, still, A Life. Sure, the Star Trek pizza cutter and the funeral urn grabbed all the gifter headlines this year. But if you let this one get away from you a couple months ago, then NOW is the time to take notice. It's a keeper.
I'll let everybody else do the formal reviewing, but just let me say this:
STAR TREK 365 is not only awesome, it actually finds a new way to take over your available coffeetable or other public space. It refuses to not be awesome and important in your daily mundane life because of its big, fat, bawdy relevance and gorgeous color pics.
I mean, let me repeat that: Trek books have often had color—but not like this, and not his much, this big.
Look, here's the bottom line: When you live and work in Trekland as long as I have, you live for the moments of true Trek gold—anything that can somehow squeeze out a pure fanboy moment amid all the jaded ones, and truly take you back. For me, that's anytime I get a truly new nuggest of behind-the-scenes info—or come across a some long-lost still or clip.
I get both in spades with STAR TREK 365—and it takes a lot to clear that bar. The best of the factoids: learning that the "Doomsday Machine" was actually an airport windsock, dipped in cement to harden. Or that Pilar Seurat, seen briefly playing Jaris's doomed Argelian seer/wife Sybo in "Wolf in the Fold," was the mother of blockbuster Hollywood writer-producer Dean Devlin! (Independence Day, Leverage, etc.)
Or, amid all that color, seeing beauties that are far from the same old oft-seen library pics. The one above—the Wah Chang-made Gorn costume pieces as donned by Bobby Clark on location for "Arena"—is a TREKLAND exclusive, courtesy Abrams' Amy Franklin.
It's about way more than photos, of course—there's context for the show, and post-series pics and pages about early fandom, early merchandise, and the great revival to movie status, where no series had truly gone before. I take that stuff for granted, but again—this is great context for the newbies or your list (if not yourself! ). There's even an introduction by Dorothy Fontana and—hallelujah!—an honest-to-god index to these 744 pages (and 365 layouts—get it?).
Now all you need to do is rush out and get this thick coffeetable tome from Abrams (no relation to J.J.)—or online if there's time. Or even if there's not—why limit yourself to Christmas?
Here's a couple more great shots dug out for STAR TREK 365 artwork that you might have seen elsewhere—or not:
2 comments:
I enjoyed the book quite a bit (here's my review http://thatneilguy.blogspot.com/2010/11/star-trek-365.html). One of my favorite moments (as I describe in my review) was a backstage photo from Amok Time featuring several actors getting Vulcan make up applied. And here's the thing. The make up artists are all men. And they're all wearing ties. You can even see fancy cuff links on the sleeves of chief make up artist Fred Phillips. What a shock! Can you imagine seeing anyone on a movie or tv set today actually wearing a tie? And, really, aren't almost all film/tv make up artists women these days? People in the sixties still dressed up to go to work at the movie studio. Being professionals meant dressing like a professional. And that meant a suit and tie. Sure, you can take off your jacket while actually gluing on ear tips, but by gum you're going to keep your tie on.
Yep, every guy from the studio exec down to the lowliest grip and mill craftsman likely had a tie on, at least, through the later '60s.
Same as what you can still see on GameShow Network's old black & White night—where those contestants on the original "Price is Right" with Bill Cullen not only had decked out in their Sunday best, but the name placards all said "MR. MILLER" and "MRS. JOHNSON"! Such civility!
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