ALL SCI-FI

[orzel-w]

Back when the series was new I was going all ape-sh*t over the phasers, trying to find a decent image of them so I could make a technical drawing.

The book "The Making of Star Trek" by Stephen Whitfield included some photos of various props used in the series, including a phaser. However, I could tell that whoever had prepared the photos for publication had mistaken a dark shadow from the camera's flash as part of the grip. So the actual outline was unclear.

Anyway, I eventually came up with what I felt was a more accurate representation of the phaser. Only I also felt that the phasers had been built a wee bit too small. So in my drawing I showed the weapon slightly enlarged from the actual prop.
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

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Well my goodness, aren't I the silly goose?

Until today I never realized that the smaller phasers were actually a component part of the larger phaser we saw most often!

And for the record, I hate those dinky little things. There's a good reason why we can buy replicas of them that actually function as TV remote controls.

That's what they look like!





Some enterprising folks (no pun intended) should sell a kit that converts any remote into a phaser!



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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

[Krel]

The LASERs were pretty well designed, if a bit plain. It had a flip-up site for accurate distance shooting. The barrel telescopes for more power. It has three beam emitters for different beam configurations. There is a sliding ring on the barrel that can be set to overload the LASER, and possibly select the power level of the beam.

The Phaser design shows Matt Jefferies genius in design, and was a leap forward in sf weapon design that has not been surpassed. Unfortunately, the weapon designs in the S.T. series and movies has gone backwards and has not equaled Matt Jefferies' work.

The P1, or hand phaser was designed as a discreet close-up weapon, but still capable of accurate fire because it has a popup site. The site is raised by the wheel on the top. The original design had two buttons on the top, between the wheel and the charge meter. This was to change the power settings. The trigger is on the bottom of the P1, not the best, but then it is a close-up weapon.

The P2, or pistol phaser is an amplifier for the P1. The power level was set by a knob on the top rear of the P2. The mode (stun, kill etc.) is by a knob on the left side of the P2. Granted, not too good for a south paw. The power pack is the hand grip, and can be connected in series. The beam focus is by a ring around the emitter.

The P3 was designed, but the drawings have yet to surface. But there are clues from "The Making of Star Trek", and "The art of Star Trek". The P3 was intended to be the rifle version, influenced by the U.N.C.L.E. Special, so they could sell a toy version, as a set or individually. M.J.'s P2 drawing in "The Art of Star Trek" shows attachment points at the back of the P2, and we know that the power packs can be in series. M.J. would also know that the design would have to be easy to manufacture as a toy, so he would keep it simple. My thoughts on the P3, is that the add-on pieces were a shoulder stock, and maybe a telescopic site, also perhaps a second power pack.

David.

[Bud Brewster]

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Hey, look what I found!

They're just fan designs, but they certainly look like what David described. Click on the images to go to the sites I found them at.





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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[orzel-w]

The Man from S.T.A.R.F.L.E.E.T.
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...or not...

WayneO
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[Bud Brewster]

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Superior

Technological

Advancement

Resulting in

Freedom for

Lifeforms

Evolving

Exponentially

Towards perfection

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James T. Kirk is . . . The Man from S.T.A.R.F.L.E.E.T.!


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Is there no man on Earth who has the wisdom and innocence of a child?
~ The Space Children (1958)

[Krel]

Nice designs Bud, but I was thinking more along the lines of an H&K, VP70 with shoulder stock attached: http://www.guns.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/12/HK_VP70_55641.jpg A full stock that attaches to the rear of the P2 and the grip/power pack bottom, maybe with a new site, if it didn't add too much to the manufacturing price.

Look at it from a toy manufacturing position. It would have to be simple, easy to manufacture, withstand kids playing with it, and also be inexpensive to manufacture to keep the price reasonable. A full shoulder stock and site fit the requirements. Given how the emitter was designed, an extended barrel would have problems with attachment points, and durability. Remember, Matt Jefferies drawing in "The Art of Star Trek" only showed attachment points on the rear of the P2, and the grip/power pack. This argues for a full shoulder stock, but not an extended emitter, or fore stock.

Now if it was an all-in-one, single piece shoulder stock, fore-stock emitter and site that the P2 dropped into, then you could have all four. But that would be an expensive toy to manufacture, perhaps too expensive for a toy company to sell.

David.

[johnnybear]

Weird but by the time I first got to see Star Trek here in the UK it was already over by a year in the US! My first episode was Court Martial, an episode that did not endear me to watching the series every week, but somehow I eventually did and loved it!
JB

[Bogmeister]

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_________________ The Man Trap - Preview


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THE MAN TRAP (1st season; episode #6)
Directed by Marc Daniels / writer: George Clayton Johnson



This was the very first episode of the original Star Trek series to air, though it was the 6th one filmed.

Depending on who tells the tale, the execs wanted either to start things with a 'monster-of-the-week' mentality or to air an episode which best showcased several of the main characters.

In any case, though the creature in this one is responsible for a number of crew deaths, it's more to be pitied than reviled by the end of the episode. It possesses startling chameleon powers, coupled with hypnotism & telepathic abilities, enabling it to fool most of the characters during the story as it imitates several of them.

Unfortunately, it craves salt, which it needs to survive, and human bodies fill the need very well.



This is an example of sheer incompatibility between two races, which an angry Captain Kirk instinctively realizes in the 3rd act — he knows it's either his crew or the creature — there can be no half measures.

During the first season, more than in the other two, Kirk demonstrated a more ruthless, even cruel side to his personality at times — theoretically a requirement of being an effective leader.

Witness his statement to Professor Crater, after he finds out Crater has been helping this "last of its kind" creature. "You bleed too much, Crater. You're too pure and noble. Are you saving the last of its kind or has this become Crater's private heaven?"

Kirk's tone is best described as filled with contempt. We learn how intensely Kirk feels when he loses a crewman — check out the first killing here — and he has to go through it a few more times in this episode.



The Enterprise is on a routine check-up of 2 archaeologists on a planet with the ruins of an extinct civilization — but not all the inhabitants are extinct, as it turns out; there's one left.

The storyline contains mystery and a chilling revelation. But much of this episode emphasizes the routine. We never find out anything more about the dead civilization — it's probably one of many the Federation finds and explores. Ship's and crew's routines are viewed during the creature's stalking, notably Yeoman Rand and Sulu. There's a casual banter between Kirk & McCoy which we all came to appreciate and look forward to in the next 3 years.



Overall, this episode shows that future life, while with obvious differences in technology, will be largely the same for us humans. If there's a theme in this episode, it has to do with the inevitable extinction of a species, such as the American Buffalo, as if it's a rule of the universe. We can express sorrow for such a loss as part of the human equation, but in the end there's nothing we can do about it.





However, the reason this episode probably gained some loyal followers of the Trek franchise right off the bat was probably not the monster.

No, it must have been that easy interplay among the crew, especially the central trio — yes, including Spock, who right away starts insisting in this episode how he's immune to emotion but obviously enjoys a friendship with Kirk (Uhura even spells this out).

Uhura gets a couple of very good scenes in this episode (including her near-rebuke of Spock), an occurrence which became more rare as the season wore on, prompting her to consider leaving the show.

Alfred Ryder plays Prof. Crater, while Jeanne Bal is 'Nancy.'



And more of the human equation in outer space is delineated in McCoy's personal story in this one. He's reunited with his old girlfriend, so he's charmingly nervous as all hell, but in quick order, he finds out she's been dead and her imitator must be killed, even though she's the last of her kind.

Not only is this a personal tragedy for him, but he's also responsible for sealing the coffin on an entire species. The anguished look on his face towards the end is what makes this a memorable entry in the Trek series, and actor Kelley shows once again that he had serious talent. Other than that, we get to see Kirk scream!

BoG's Score: 7 out of 10





Extra Trek Trivia: originally titled "The Unreal McCoy," which was how it was titled for the short story adaptation by James Blish.

~ The planet in this episode was known only as M-113 and the creature came to be known as 'The Salt Vampire' among fans, though a more accurate name would be 'Salt-Sucking Vampire.'

~ An unofficial remake of this episode materialized in Turkey, in 1973, known in USA circles as Turkish Star Trek, a comedic take on the adventure.

____________________ The Man Trap trailer


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BoG
Galaxy Overlord Galactus

[Pow]

I remember reading in one of the books about the making of ST a funny story regarding Leonard Nimoy.

The producers of ST, writers, cast, and crew are proud of their work on the series. They are proud that it isn't a juvenile show but is smart and sophisticated and setting the bar high.

A group of the press are on tour while this episode is being shot.

They are all standing watching the scene where Mr. Spock is in sickbay on the bed. His line is: "The monster attacked me."

[johnnybear]

Grace Lee Whitney was a gorgeous lady indeed! It's sad that they axed her so soon in the series and that she couldn't have at least stayed on until the end of the first season! Her red panties are very viewable and appreciated too in that shot!
JB

[Pow]

Seemed a shame that the terrific design they came up with for the Phaser Rifle used by Kirk in the second ST pilot "Where No Man Has Gone Before"never again showed up on the weekly series.

The impressive looking Laser Cannon & the cool gray field coats worn by the crew in the very first pilot "The Cage''were also never utilized again on the weekly show.

I still laugh at the scene where Rand goes to the botanical lab to visit Sulu. There's an alien plant there moving around.
It looks exactly what it was: a person wearing the plant prop over their hand & moving their arm & fingers.

[Krel]

[Pow]

Thank you, Krel, for the history behind the Phaser Rifle. Never knew any of the info.

Oddity } I realize that budget considerations come into play with doing a weekly sci~fi TV series. However, it struck me as strange that we never saw a vehicle on the planet that the Crater's would have used to get around.

The ruins stretch for miles to the horizon. So the professor and his wife had a lot of ground to cover for their examination of the long dead (mostly) civilization.

It was a hot desert area & traveling on foot hardly seemed practical.

A vehicle of some kind would have allowed them to carry scientific equipment, food & water, and afforded shelter should they not want to return to their base of operations.

While the budget could not have afforded a 24th century vehicle such as Lost In Space's chariot, dialogue could have provided a mention of such a method of transportation.