More Janice Rand Images

Back when the series was about to begin regular production, it was planned that Janice Rand would be one of the more prominent characters and certainly the main female to bring the sex appeal. However, Nichelle Nichols was always on the bridge in almost every shot that looked back toward Kirk's chair, and she more than amply supplied the sweet, sweet eye candy. And, it was realized that Rand cramped the Captain's style when it came to romancing the alien ladies. So, before long during the first season she was used less and less and finally -sadly- released. However, not before she got the attention of a lot of male viewers, and it is they who will appreciate these unusual promotions images, some taken before production of the series and some during.

(As usual click on the images to enlarge. You might have to click again once it opens to view full-size.)

"Mr. Spock, remind me to keep the temperature down on the bridge in the future."

Bonus: a page from one of the movie magazines back during the series third season, from February of 1969..

Bonus: the packaging of the Pocket Flix film viewer that supplied fans with their own (one-minute) clip for watching whenever they wanted! I bought one about 1978 and it was the first time I could actually "watch" a real part of an episode apart from TV. This was before videotape players were available to most, and certainly to me. It was taken from the episode "By Any Other Name," and was edited together from the scene where the two security guards were reduced to polyhedrons, and the scene of the barrier-crossing, which was very exciting to own! Such was my mania that I even dubbed those scenes from one of my cassette tapes of the episode to match the editing of the film, then would synch them up as I watched to supply sound!

Bonus link: Star Trek In Cinerama! See how scenes from various episodes of TOS look in widescreen, done without cropping the image. It's "fascinating" to coin a phrase! Except where characters are in the scene twice, then it gets a bit weird.

"Submerged in Star Trek:" 1986 ST 4 Article

This time we look at an article from issue #111 of Starlog, published October 1986, that spotlights the production of "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home."

(Click on images to enlarge. You may have to click on the
image again once it has opened to view full size.)

Below, from the same issue, a short writeup about the rumors surrounding a TV revival of Star Trek, which we now know was the beginning of "The Next Generation."

And lastly, from the back cover of the same issue, this ad for classic Mego Trek action figures...

As an aside, I probably would have collected these action figures had I been living in normal circumstances; but regular readers know of my repressive step-dad, for whom my Star Trek love was a continual irritant. He held it up as an example of my supposed immaturity (although he knew nothing about it), supposing anything not realistic like his westerns to be childish. So I hid the books and such that I bought, and avoided buying anything aimed at younger fans, for fear of giving him more ammunition to use in his war against me.

1972 ST Convention Report

In 1972, the first Trek convention was held in New York at the Statler-Hilton hotel from January 21st through the 23rd. (Here is a pre-con writeup in TMT #2, for other Trek-related items from this issue, go to previous posts on article #1 and article #2.) In the Sci-Fi Super TV Special from The Monster Times, printed in 1973, we have a two-page spread about the convention, posted below:

(Click on images to enlarge.)

Forget about ancient history; if I suddenly had access to a time-traveling DeLorean, I would put the pedal to the metal and head for this convention!

Bonus item #1: With the release of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture," the was a flood of merchandising the likes of which had never been seen by fans before, and as far as items for one movie, I don't think has been equalled yet (except perhaps for the new '09 movie). It was a good time for fans who liked to collect memorabilia; even if some of it was a bit silly, like the Star Trek Adhesive Bandages, pictured below. I wish I could have removed all of the price label on the front, but I couldn't without further damaging the small box, about the size of a pack of gum. Below is a scan of the front and back of the container, with one of the bandages in the middle.

Yes, Star Trek: The Motion Picture could even make your boo-boos better. I paid only 50 cents for the box when I bought it new... today, the collectible value of this rare item is probably... 2 for a $1. A great investment.

Bonus #2: Below are scans (not photos) of the small metal Klingon Battlecruiser made by "Dinky." I bought it in 1979 and tried super-gluing it to a small necklace chain in order to hang it from my rearview mirror in my 1968 Cougar, but it kept falling off; you can see the glue residue on the top view. The ship is only 4 inches long from the bow to the ends of the engines.

Star Trek II Being Filmed

(Click on images to enlarge.)

The article above was clipped from a Beckley, WV newspaper sometime in November, 1981. It was the first news I had heard that there was even going to be a sequel, and I was thrilled. The news that Khan was returning was even more exciting, and was a great idea that energized me, as well as the fan base... everyone seemed to sense that this was going to be a better movie than the last, and began looking forward to it.

Below, as a counterpoint to the announcement the Montalban had begun filming, is a clipping from early fall of 1982 that talks about his returning to his role on Fantasy Island.

Bonus: Below, a photo of a rare Trek toy made during the show's run. Note the detailed accuracy of the toy, precisely recreating Spock's favorite weapon, the futuristic grenade-launching rocket pistol.

Just make sure you don't lose that single grenade, kid, cause you ain't getting another one.

Bonus: a publicity photo of Spock with his tri-D chess set, which Kirk got him for Christmas from the Hamilton Collection, for which he is still making monthly payments of $99.

"Just holding this makes me looks smarter, don't you agree?"

Bonus: another of the 1967 Leaf cards. If one goes according to the caption, Spock and McCoy are severely undressed.

Besides making a weird sound effect, Spock's heat lamp did little to help McCoy defrost his medical freezer.

Fantasy Film Journal article on ST:TMP

Nice little article on the plans for the first movie, from the summer of 1978 issue of Fantasy Film Journal magazine.

Bonus: Can you identify the toy item this remnant of the backing card (below) came from?

When I was a kid in the late 60's, I bought the toy (well, my mother paid for it) and I ripped off the backing, but managed to save just this little section of the card with the jaundiced-looking Spock on it. The toy is gone, but the scrap of cardboard remains in my (where else?) scrapbook. If you know or want to guess, leave a comment.

I was inspired to post this by the blog entry about the toy over on Daren Dochterman's blog, here: http://blog.darendoc.com/?p=11 Enjoy!

Occasionally, I will add to a short post a little extra by featuring another Star Trek trading card. First, I'll post cards from the 1976 Topps set that so many fans remember fondly. Eventually you will be able to see them all, them I'll move on to other cards sets that feature the original series crew.

"The Omega Glory" Viewmaster Reel

(Click on images to view full size.)

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.

1977 Star Trek Candy Boxes

Click to view full-size scans of any image.

In 1977, I lived in a little burg called Gray in Georgia. One old highway passed through it, and the several sideroads were all red clay. The town, which you could span by throwing a rock half-heartedly, was distinguished by an old abandoned canning factory that was falling in. It had one gas station/convenience store. While living there (which was quite a shock moving there from Ft. Lauderdale, Fl), I was starved for anything that even resembled Trek. The store carried the Gold Key comics in their stand, and I found this candy... exactly three remaining boxes. I bought their entire stock.

Below is the standard back and side that all the boxes shared.

Inside were TWO prizes and a piece of hard taffy that was generously called "candy." The so-called prizes were of the generic "Cracker Jack" type, and went in the ditch beside the road as I walked home. The boxes went into my hidden collection suitcase. Now, you have the joy of seeing the three boxes that I found; try not to explode with excitement.

Kirk and crew tried the candy in the boxes and nearly died.

Now to get the bad taste out of my mouth that the memory of the candy invokes, here is something nice and tasty... a prize that makes up for what was inside the boxes.

Mmmmmmmmm.... sweet!