"The Omega Glory" Viewmaster Reel

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It might be strange to some to hear that I became a Star Trek fan before I have ever actually seen a whole episode! I became hooked only by seeing items in print about the show... a photo of Spock was the first thing I ever collected when I cut it out of a Famous Monsters magazine. That led to the Gold Key comics, and then there was the Animated Series. As a Trek Kid in the early 70's, there was very little in the way of things to buy that could help one to view the actual episodes of the live-action show. A couple of years later I would discover the James Blish books, but at the time all I had was the comics, which were original, though often silly stories.

But one day sometime in 1971 I saw the Star Trek Viewmaster featuring the episode "The Omega Glory" and flipped out. Seeing pictures from the show in 3D was a heretofore unheard-of experience. I dreamed about getting it, saving my meager allowance, and at last the day came when I went shopping with my mother and I finally picked it up.

Joy!!! Rapture!!! I'm sure I had red squares around my eyes that night at suppertime from pressing the viewer against my face as I looked at all the reels again and again. Twenty-one photos from an episode I had never seen became embedded into my retinas and memory as I gazed at them for hours. Reading the episode story in the book that came with it (often inaccurate though it was) was a treat also. Looking back, it's amusing how the writer loved to give phrases acronyms, like "F.S.N.P." which was short for "Famous Spock Neck Pinch."

As you can see above, I managed to scan in some actual frames using the slide attachment on my scanner; but the results are a bit blurry, so there's no need to do them all. However, the scans I made of the enclosed booklet I am posting in their entirety. If you had one and lost it, this will bring back good memories. If you never had it, you will get a glimpse at one of the best Trek-oriented items available for many years. And if you have one but haven't taken it out for years, perhaps this post will make you want to do that very soon!

Shortly after buying the pack above, I discovered the Animated Series set of reels, and I will scan and post that booklet soon as well.

Below is an awesome photo, better than my scan, of the special shot that the Viewmaster crew created for the reels. Using the three foot model from the show, with an AMT model in the background for the Exeter, they photographed the setup using their special 3D cameras.

Below is an ad scanned in from "The Monster Times."

"Give me your thoughts..."

One thing about this blog that you may notice is that sometimes the post is more about my memories surrounding it than the item itself. That's because the memories that one has about a time or place that is brought up by an item is really more important.

However, I'm not posting these entries and writing just for myself. I'm doing it for you to enjoy, and hopefully bring some memories out of your personal treasure chest. If something here does that, please share it! I, and the other readers I'm sure, would love to hear how Trek impacted your life and helped make some great memories.

I look forward to reading about them!

Update: reader Jim commented below about a source for some frame scans that you can find here.