Star Trek

[BBOvenGuy]

Brannon Braga gave an interview a couple of weeks ago, in which he said he was officially done with Trek - and he admitted that there were probably a great many people who would be glad to hear him say that.

[Sheridan]

Well it was a mistake to hand Braga the reins in the first place. I like time travel stories as much as the next guy but he just got carried away with it.

[billy]

http://www.scifi.com/scifiwire/index.php?category=1&id=34227

Shatner Sells Kidney Stone

Star Trek star William Shatner sold a kidney stone to an online casino for $25,000 to benefit charity, the Reuters news service reported.

Shatner, who played Capt. James T. Kirk, sold the stone to GoldenPalace.com, and proceeds of the sale will go to Habitat for Humanity.

Shatner told Reuters that it wasn't easy parting with a kidney stone, even if it had already left his body. He also said he would never sell unless he had visitation rights. "When I was contacted about selling my kidney stone to GoldenPalace.com for an original price of $15,000, I turned it down, knowing that my tunics from Star Trek have commanded more than $100,000," Shatner said, adding that he countered by offering to sell the ring-sized stone for $25,000.

By privately selling his kidney stone, Shatner gave up an offer to sell it at auction on television. Comedian Jimmy Kimmel interviewed Shatner about his painful stone on November 14 and immediately called it "the ultimate Star Trek collectible" and offered to sell it on his show.

GoldenPalace.com plans to send the stone on tour with a collection of other unusual items.

[FineyMcFine]

People probably heard about it when George Takei who played Mr. Sulu on the original Star Trek came out to the press and announced that he was gay and had been with his partner Brad for over 18 years.

Recently he recorded a video for the Human Rights Campaign urging people to become members of the organization and to donate money, and if you're interested you can view it here.

Equality is truly the final frontier. Beam me up!

[sam7777]

http://www.icv2.com/articles/news/8552.html

J.J. Abrams on Star Trek Feature
Producing, Directing, Writing
April 24, 2006

J.J. Abrams, creator of Lost, Alias, and Felicity and director of the soon-to-be-released Mission Impossible III, has been signed to produce and direct the next Star Trek feature film, according to Variety. He's bringing along producers Damon Lindelof (who's also a comic writer, see "Lost Co-Creator Pens 'Ultimate' Series") and Brian Burk from Lost.

Abrams is also writing the script with the M:I:3 writing team. According to the report, the story will focus on Spock and Kirk's early years at Starfleet Academy and their first mission.

Star Trek hasn't been on TV since Enterprise was cancelled (see "UPN Pulls the Plug on Enterprise"), and there hasn't been a movie for four years. But there's still a steady, if diminished, stream of licensed products and a large fan based that's been built up over the 40 years since the property first appeared on TV.

Niether Berman nor Braga will be involved in this project. I'm no fan of prerequels (since we know how it ends) nor am I certain Abrams is the right person for the job. Still Trek has been direly needing new blood in the creator slot so I'm willing to give Abrams some benefit of the doubt.

editted cuz I can't spell.

[Sheridan]

This is what? The second or thrid time the academy project has come up? Frankly having other actors playing Kirk and Spock seems a huge gamble and I'm not sure how sympathetic to the Star Trek universe the chosen production team is going to be.

[billy]

If JJ Abrams working on Star Trek had been announced a couple of years ago I would have been very pleased but after the pretty poor Seasons 3 and 4 of Alias I'm not so sure. I'd prefer Manny Coto considering how much he had improved Enterprise.

[justin]

What's the betting the film will involve lots of flashbacks?

personally I think they should have gone with this idea from User Friendly

[sam7777]

Justin, LOL on the userfriendly strip. too ture.

Abrams is definitley not a great fit for Trek. I'd much much rather see J. Michael Stracizinski do it. But Abrams has the pull to get the project going and at least he's not Berman/Braga. Still this prerequel thing has been threatened before (mostly as a star fleet academy thing) and hasn't made it to screen so who knows. I'm not really looking forward to this but hopefully this bodes well for the future with other folks taking on the Trek helm say for a TV series.

[FineyMcFine]

Hahaha!

From the Fake Gay News - Lesbian Trekkies Band Together to Reunite Star-Trek-Crossed Lovers

Lesbian Trekkies Band Together to Reunite Star Trek-Crossed Lovers
by Kellie C. Mallers 06/29/2006

After a recent announcement by the producers of Star Trek divulging the impending auction of all Star-Trek memorabilia, waves of lesbian Trekkies have banded together to raise money for the purchase of Seven of Nine’s biosuit and Captain Janeway’s Commander’s uniform.

“Though the series has disappeared into the inky blackness of late-night reruns and the DVD collections of obsessive fans, we will not allow the love between Borg and Starship commander to be torn asunder,” gushed longtime fan BorgsQueen6of9 to an online Trekkie message board.

While never explicitly acknowledged on the show, many fans of the Star Trek spin-off Star Trek: Voyager believe a romantic relationship between Astrometrics officer Seven of Nine (Jeri Ryan) and Voyager Captain Kathryn Janeway (Kate Mulgrew) to be an undeniable reality.

Despite the lack of official sanction, speculation has run rampant on the internet regarding the true nature of the relationship between the fictional characters.

“Only anybody with eyes could see it,” claimed an exasperated Deidre Upton, also known as Shalimar W’Toga among her friends in the local Star Trek fanclub. Upton serves as Lieutenant Commander and social secretary of the Starship X’na L’vr, one of hundreds of registered Star Trek fanclubs in existence around the nation. “They may have thrown that pathetic boytoy into the mix at the end of the series to perpetuate the flawed heterosexist ideal in a desperate ploy driven by gay panic, but if we have to resort to hiring strippers to wash cars in bikinis to finally bring the two women some peace, then we will make that sacrifice.”

While most fanclubs have opted to host potluck dinners with optional donations, W’Toga has persuaded the members of her organization to take a different tact.

“We’re going to make a naked girl calendar like those old ladies in England did. Only, instead of food, we’re going to use phasers and Klingon battle axes to cover up our naughty bits.”

The actresses who played the characters in the series were unavailable for comment regarding the movement.

Rumors of a counter movement determined to purchase the prostethic forehead worn by the actress portraying Klingon B’lanna Torres for later ritual joining with the famed biosuit have yet to be substantiated, though some fanclub members have commented on the depth of the animosity between the two camps.

“At this most critical juncture, we will not allow those fans with delusional ideas about a non-existent relationship between the honorable Seven of Nine and the far too frigid Kathryn Janeway to undermine the true love which existed between the Borg and her Klingon lover,” stated Sandy Kirby, also known as T’ka L’ok and assigned the rank of Pilot in Training by the fanclub into which she has recently been inducted, Starship SpaceGirls Gone Wild.

When asked what they were planning to do with the items after their purchase, members of the factions expressed wildly different views.

“Uh, I don’t know. Maybe have them put in a nice shadowbox at Michael’s? Half off all frames there, you know,” said W’Toga. “Then maybe we could keep them at Bridgette’s house, right by her 1/5 size mock-up of the Starship Voyager and her collection of cardboard stand-ups of the crew. She has everyone but the boytoy.”

“Going on my wall,” T’ka L’ok stated firmly. “Right above the bed. Want to talk about a chick magnet? I’ll have every Trekkie grrrl in here, and when I put on the Barry White and turn on the disco ball, you can bet they’ll be staying all night long.”

[the hero factor]

Hee, Sally, love it! Especially this:

“At this most critical juncture, we will not allow those fans with delusional ideas about a non-existent relationship between the honorable Seven of Nine and the far too frigid Kathryn Janeway to undermine the true love which existed between the Borg and her Klingon lover,”

Ah, shipper wars. Fun! 'Though, honestly, there's a very easy solution to the whole thing:

[billy]

New Poster Sends Clues to Direction of Next Movie


A picture, even a mere image that hints at a broader picture, can instantly give you a snapshot of things to come.
The production team that now holds the creative reins for the next Star Trek movie project has released a piece of artwork this weekend (to coincide with Comic-Con) that provides a Polaroid of an era past, as well as a vision yet to be revealed. With this familiar imagery, the direction of the next movie is now officially open to speculation.

J.J. Abrams and Damon Lindelof are the film's producers; Bryan Burk, Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci are executive producers. The film is slated for release in 2008.

http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/news/article/19575.html

[Hemiola]

Well, as far as I can see, the poster doesn't reveal much....

However, it's good for us old-time original Trekkies to know that the franchise isn't completely dead yet, and that we do not have to renounce a positive vision of the future, even in these troubled times.

[billy]

It sounds as if it's still going to be set in the 23rd Century. I just hope it won't be the early years of TOS characters. Different actors playing Kirk, Spock and McCoy would just be wrong.

Although the plans for the Star Trek movie and Babylon 5 are not exactly what I was wanting I'm still looking forward to them and hope they're successful enough to lead to new Star Trek and B5 on TV. At the moment I'm not watching any ship based sci-fi shows with the exception of Doctor Who. I'm really missing new Trek.

[BBOvenGuy]

Peter David has posted a really funny clip of George Takei from a recent episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!. It's his response to former NBA star Tim Hardaway's recent anti-gay remarks:

http://peterdavid.malibulist.com/archives/005186.html

Definitely worth watching.

[dlline]

Oh my god! That is so funny! I just spit tea all over my monitor.

I love George! What a good sport!

[urnofosiris]

At least one of them is a good sport and it is not the athlete. It is really a rather clever response, that basketball guy probably does believe that if a man is gay he would want to jump his sexy bones as he is god´s gift to gay men everywhere. So he just has to act like a bigot to repell them, they just can´t help themselves otherwise.

[erith]

Good for George. Will someone please give that man a Captain Sulu series.