1984 Interview with Angelique Pettyjohn

Recently I have been posting articles from issue #17 of the magazine  Enterprise Incidents, published in May of 1984 (see the cover here). I am still mining this issue, this time with an interview with actress/model Angelique Pettyjohn that portrayed the exotic drill thrall Shahna from the episode "The Gamesters of Triskelion." (Read her Wiki entry here.)

With a script that just as easily could have been written for "Lost In Space," (with some more dumbing-down) it is nevertheless fun to watch, as Kirk once again uses his sex appeal on an innocent alien woman to achieve escape. Another notable example of this was when he blew the mind of Kelinda in "By Any Other Name," and I'm sure you could think of a few more without really trying. "Cheesy" is the word of the day on this episode. But even bad Trek is good, and this is not as bad as some others.

The character of Shahna is best remembered by the casual viewer of the show as the "green-haired girl in the tinfoil bikini" that critics hold up as a typical example of the exploitation of women in the original series. It's true that the actress was a Vegas showgirl, and her impressive physique was put on full view in the now-famous silver halter that would have looked right at home on a Vegas stage. The voluminous green-tinted wig completed the outfit, and you just know the producers -particularly Roddenberry- were all giggity over her, so for once the detractors who call TOS sexist were somewhat justified. (One has to wonder why a warrior such as Shahna would take such time to tease her hair and apply all that make-up just to go out and fight the other thralls.)

Angelique did some other TV shows and B-movies, and  later went on to act in some adult films, and sadly passed away in 1992 of cancer.

This article reveals the poor layout that was sometimes a problem in the magazine once it went national, with most of the pages mostly empty space with one small photo. But it is a nice interview, and it's just for you Shahna fans out there that were so struck with her as a kid! Me, I was too enthralled (ouch!) with the fact that Uhura got to go on an adventure to be very smitten with Shahna. But I can certainly understand the attraction she must have had on a lot of adolescents, and I won't claim there weren't a few hormones stirred up by her "Jiffy-Pop" outfit!

(Click on images to enlarge; once open, you may have to click on it again to view full-size.)

 

 

 

 

Below, a couple of publicity photos taken during the filming.

"One quick flip over the hip, and it's roll in the hay time!"

 
Shahna appears to be directing traffic in this photo, and in that getup she would be a traffic-stopper; but more likely causing some accidents!.

Bonus: Below, from a coloring book put out as a tie-in with ST:TMP (featured only on the covers)  are a couple of pages with activities that will amuse you for hours on end. Or, the kids in your life. Print them out and color away!

 

1978 Article: The Girls Of Star Trek

The trashy publication "Star Warp" magazine was noted for its generic spaceship paintings on the cover, the cheap paper and sloppy layout, among other detractions (traits shared by all the titles put out by by exploitation publisher Myron Fass)... but I bought it from time to time nevertheless, if it had an interesting article (like this earlier post on Nichelle Nichols). This was when the internet was hardly a dream in some tech nerd's eye, and one got a fix wherever one could. This issue was printed in June of 1978, and I bought it since it had a Star Trek article in it, and I was never one to pass up a Trek article. The article itself, on the luscious ladies of Trek, is just fine... written as it was by author Allen Asherman, a name familiar to me from other, better magazines like "Starlog" and the Star Trek Poster magazine. He must have been slumming here and needed a few extra bucks, but he sure knows his Trek. The paper is so yellow because the pulp used in it was only one grade above raw pine bark used for flower bed mulch, and has not aged well.

(Click on images to enlarge; once open you may have to click it again to view full size.)

Bonus: since a couple of the photos in the article straddled the two pages, I am presenting them to you below in their complete form.

Spock's date for the evening realized she was not going to have the same fun as her other friends.

Bonus #2: Some nice photos of several of the ladies featured in the article. Below is Angelique Pettyjohn, decked out as Shaunna in a photo that was taken after the series, as she appeared at conventions in character. Beneath that, Yvonne Craig (TV's Batgirl) as Marta.

Bonus link: Here is an artist's page that has a number of drawings of Trek women:  http://www.artofwei.com/tag/women-of-star-trek/

1986 Close-Up on William "Dr. Daystrom" Marshall

One of the most commanding figures to guest star on the original series, coming in only behind Khan in intensity and force of personality, is Dr. Richard Daystrom, memorably portrayed in the episode "The Ultimate Computer" by classically-trained actor William Marshall. With his towering and powerful frame (which dwarfed the lead Shatner), rich deep voice that rang out authoritatively, and intimidating presence, Marshall dominated each scene he was in.

Had he been cast in a different role as an out-and-out villain, rather than a misguided and unbalanced genius, there is no doubt that he could have been one of the crew's most dangerous and fondly-remembered adversaries, if written intelligently. The constraints of the Daystrom role meant he played him as a man driven to madness by a lack of recognition for his inventions, distracted and tormented by his desire to see M-5 become his greatest contribution to mankind. But imagine him in a role that let him be in charge of his capacities, pitted against Kirk as one of the few enemies that could match him in sheer force of will. What a Klingon captain he would have made! Even Kang would have respected him as a force to be reckoned with.

We see some of that quality in his thoroughly charming, yet chilling performance as Mumwalde, the so-called "Blacula" of the two films he played the character in. His alternately threatening-yet-sensitive approach to the role, portraying him as a victim as well as a predator, lifted it above the low-budget exploitation film genre it was a part of at the time.

This time we look at an article from the April/May 1990 edition of the Official Fan Club Magazine (see the cover). These two pages featuring Marshall were part of a series of articles that focused on guest stars from the show. The cover feature on Nichelle Nichols is scanned and ready to post in a future entry.

(Click on images to enlarge.)

Below, some screen captures from the episode (source: Trekcore.com) that illustrate Marshalls' height over the series stars.

"So, what do you think of my profile, Doctor?"

Kirk punctuates his criticism of Daystrom with a swift jab to the ribs.

The captain takes out his frustration on Daystrom's jumpsuit and chest hairs.

Shatner was undoubtably standing on a box for this scene.

Below, a publicity still and poster from Marshall's other role he is best known for: "Blacula." I have both films in my DVD collection, and enjoy watching them when I'm in a 70's kind of mood.

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"It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking in the dark..."

Bonus: Another of the humorous photo-captions that I like to throw in for a chuckle now and then.

The future is bright... perhaps too bright.
The crew finally got to see the new movie based on their exploits.