ALL SCI-FI

Pow · Posted: Thu Jul 21, 2022 10:56 pm Post subject:

Marc Cushman's book. From NBC press release, issued on September 22, 1967:

A strange device that is programmed to destroy every planet in the galaxy also threatens the Enterprise, in "The Doomsday Machine" on NBC Television Network's Star Trek colorcast of Friday, Oct. 20.

Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and some of his crew find the wreckage of another star ship, the Constellation. The only survivor is its dazed commodore, Matt Decker (guest star William Windom), who reveals that the alien machine attacked his ship.

Decker and Dr. McCoy (DeForest Kelly) are beamed back to the Enterprise, where Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) has been left in command. Kirk and Scott (James Doohan) remain aboard the Constellation to attempt repairs. Decker, crazed with grief over the loss of his crew, takes over command of the Enterprise and orders an attack upon the destructive machine.

Sidebar: The TV Guide line that the Doomsday Machine "is programmed to destroy every planet in the galaxy," is certainly p. r. hyperbole.

As awesome this ancient weapon is, I sincerely doubt that it could ever achieve such a task, or anything close to it. We are talking about the entire galaxy...kind of vast in scale.

Pow · Posted: Sat Nov 05, 2022 9:25 pm Post subject:

In an interview with Starlog Magazine, Norman Spinrad said that his original concept was : "it is not a machine, but a living organism with a nuclear metabolism.

Had they gone with Spinrad's original idea, it would have preceded "The Immunity Syndrome" living outer space being premise which was used on that episode.

Pow · Posted: Wed Mar 29, 2023 10:18 pm Post subject:

Starlog interview with author Norman Spinrad.

"I was told to write a part for Robert Ryan, an actor to whom they wanted to give a good role. So, I developed the idea of Ryan playing a Captain Ahab-type character. Then they got William Windom for the part and the character had to be adjusted to some extent. I had to make Decker a little softer and I think it might have taken some of the edge off of the story. In the original story, Decker wasn't slumped over in the ruined ship. Instead, they find him staring out through the viewscreen, and in a very bad mood."

Spinrad recalled, "There was the feeling that a guest star with that kind of presence would overshadow Captain kirk, and therefore his character had to be toned down and his lines reduced. There is a point where they have to give their lead characters prominence."

Sidebar: I can appreciate that the lead characters must not be outshined by guest stars. However, there is the problem of balance. If the guest star has a compelling role on an episode and a terrific actor is cast in that role, then the episode must reach its fill potential. In other words, if they water down a guest stars character, then doesn't the episode suffer and the audience lose out? "The Ultimate Computer" is made better because of the masterful performance of the superb William Marshall as the crazed genius Dr. Richard Daystrom. Had he not been allowed to give the role his all, the story is diminished. Everyone loses out to some degree.
I'm guessing that Marshall's talent (and size at 6' 5") were seen as a threat by Shatner. I can sympathize to a degree with Bill on that. Yet, if Marshall was directed to tone down his sensational performance simply due to another actor's ego & insecurities, we would not have had as powerful an episode as we did get. And from what I can see, Billy Shatner managed just fine as Kirk and he wasn't pushed into the background.

Originally, Gene Roddenberry asked Spinrad to design the Doomsday Machine. According to the outline dated March 6. 1967, it's "a kind of cylindrical 'living atomic rocket' at least 10 times the size of the starship Constellation . . . with a posterior rocket and a great anterior funnel-mouth big enough to swallow a ship. In addition, there are a cluster of atomic blaster beams and tractor beams around the funnel. It is not a machine, but a living organism with a nuclear metabolism."

"Whatever they used to make the Doomsday Machine was absolutely ridiculous," sighs the author. "I don't know what it was supposed to be."

Sidebar: I've always liked how alien looking the Doomsday machine was for this episode. It looked nothing like Starfleet technology at all. I guess I'd have to see a drawing of the design Spinrad had in mind, but it sounds rather lame to me. Like a poor comic book concept. His "cylindrical rocket" shape harkens back to the 1950's science fiction films and television shows. Isn't that the type of ideas that Trek was attempting to reinvent with the 1966 TV series? They wanted to go in a fresh, new approach as to the looks of spaceships and not simply repeat what had gone before them.

The Doomsday Machine remains one of the finest episodes produced and is personal favorite of mine. And to think it was created by Norman Spinrad in order to help the series save money on their budget. Amazing!