The Trek Files: A Roddenberry Star Trek Podcast

As Star Trek: The Next Generation was in its earliest days of development, one writer pitched the idea to return to a formula - and a character descendant - that had worked well for TOS. How would audiences in the '80s react to "Albania Jones"? What if he was played by Robin Williams? David Gerrold suggested one of their stronger comedy writers take a crack at it... himself! See the original docum...

In 1972, an aspiring artist sent his design ideas for a new Star Trek to Gene Roddenberry. Little did he know at the time that in a few years he would be working for the franchise he loved, contributing to Star Trek The Motion Picture. In this letter from 1972, Andrew Probert proposes the updates he would make if Trek comes back. Who better to discuss this find than the man himself - our special g...

In the fall of 1977, a Star Trek feature motion picture was on the horizon. Paramount executive Gary Nardino sent a memo to Gene Roddenberry after a meeting with an agent that a major star wanted a cameo: Barry Manilow! Larry Nemecek and guest co-host John Champion discuss Star Trek's relationship with celebrity guests as well as the ones that got away. See the original document: Gary Nardino memo...

In the early days of story development for Star Trek The Next Generation, the pitches that centered around "Leslie Crusher" were many. Dorothy Fontana expressed her concern that such a unique character had the potential to steal focus from the main cast. See the original document: Leslie Crusher memo by Dorothy Fontana - December 18, 1986 The Trek Files  Season 1 on Memory Alpha All episodes and d...

In our final look at this extraordinary draft memo from Gene Roddenberry to Paramount executive Jerry Eisenberg, Gene gives us his take on the fan attitude toward Paramount. How did Trek fans develop such a feeling of ownership over the franchise? Special guest Doug Drexler joins the conversation this week on The Trek Files. See the original document: Gene Roddenberry memo to Jerry Eisenberg - 197...

In part two of our look at Gene Roddenberry's draft memo to Paramount executive Jerry Eisenberg, Gene explains why the stereotypes of Star Trek fans are wrong. We welcome back special guest Dorothy Fontana for insight into the fan phenomenon of the 1970s. See the original document: Gene Roddenberry memo to Jerry Eisenberg - 1976 - Pt 2 The Trek Files Season 1 on Memory Alpha All episodes and docum...

In the middle of 1976, Paramount assigned producer Jerry Eisenberg to help relaunch Star Trek as a feature film. It didn't take long for Gene Roddenberry to draft a memo to help Eisenberg get into the right frame of mind for the task. Presented here is part one of three special episodes that get to the heart of Gene's take on what makes Trek tick. See the original document: Gene Roddenberry memo t...

Sometime in the early 1970s, Gene Roddenberry was asked to identify his favorite episodes of Star Trek. Simply indicated by dots of red ink, the list may be quite revealing about his own interests and his personal connection to the show he created. This week, Larry is joined by guest co-host Doug Drexler to shed some light on Gene's picks! See the original document: Gene Roddenberry's Favorite Sta...

At the height of Star Trek: The Next Generation's popularity, a fan sent Gene Roddenberry a letter with some helpful recommendations. Eighteen pages later, we learn who should be promoted, who should be killed off and what types of stories Gene should be focusing on for the continued longevity of the show. Welcome back to special guest co-host Dave Rossi this week on The Trek Files! See the origin...

In the fall of 1972, Dorothy Fontana sent out a letter for Star Trek fans who were hungry for any shred of information that would indicate a return of their favorite show to TV. A full year before The Animated Series debut, this letter catches everyone up on the latest news, which is to say, there is no news. See the original document: Letter from DC Fontana to Star Trek Fans - August 22, 1972 The...

In 1972, Star Trek was out of production, the animated series was still a year away, and any movie or revival TV series was only a fan dream. Then the first Star Trek convention occurred in New York bringing in an unexpected crowd. Suddenly Star Trek was getting attention again, and Gene's office penned this letter to answer the constant inquiry from fans - would Star Trek come back? See the origi...

"When it's going good and you're having fun, FORGET IT! It's all wrong!" This week, we discuss a humorous promotional article featuring Gene Coon released by the Star Trek publicity office for publication in local newspapers. See the original document: Writing for Star Trek is an Exercise in Agony The Trek Files  Season 1 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents:  The Trek Files on Memory Alpha...

The morning after the first airing of "This Side of Paradise," Star Trek fan Beverly Corcroan wrote a letter to Gene Roddenberry. We welcome special guest Dorothy "D.C." Fontana to talk about fandom during Star Trek's first run and the curation of the Spock character in episodes that followed. See the original document: Fan Letter to Gene Roddenberry from Beverly Corcoran - March 3, 1967 The Trek...

In the early stages of production on "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan," Gene Roddenberry, now a consultant on the franchise he created, was shown a draft script. His response to the death of Spock is captured here in a letter sent to Paramount executive Gary Nardino. See the original document: Letter to Gary Nardino - April 17, 1981 The Trek Files  Season 1 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documen...

Star Trek generated huge amounts of fan mail during and after its original run. In 1975, Gene Roddenberry's assistant started compiling a book of that fan mail, "Letters to Star Trek," and asked Gene to write an introduction. In this draft, we learn about one of Trek's famous fans, and we can see Gene's hand-written notes. See the original document: Letters to Star Trek - Gene Roddenberry draft in...

As the premise for the Star Trek: The Next Generation pilot episode was hashed out, Supervising Producer Bob Justman sent Gene Roddenberry a memo asking that he consider the social and psychological effects of sending a crew of families on a lifelong journey. We are joined in this episode by someone who was there from the very start, Dorothy "D.C." Fontana, to share her insights into what made TNG...

Early in their working relationship, Gene Roddenberry presented Rick Berman with a book of Monet's art. The next day, Rick sent a thank-you letter with one important request. Get a glimpse into Gene and Rick in the early development days of Star Trek: The Next Generation with our special guest, Paramount Executive Dave Rossi. See the original document: Letter from Rick Berman to Gene Roddenberry (...

The document that started it all - The Star Trek Format is what Gene Roddenberry created in early 1964 to define what his TV series would be. We welcome a special guest who was there from the beginning, Dorothy "D.C." Fontana, to talk about developing Star Trek and how "Wagon Train to the stars" wasn't just a clever pitch slogan. See the original document: The  Star Trek  Format- March 11, 1964 Th...

What would Star Trek: The Next Generation look like without Gene Roddenberry? In 1986, Paramount lured Roddenberry into development by sharing a development document that looked nothing like what would eventually make it to TV a year later. Would you believe the USS Odyssey? With a Vulcan Captain? Who is actually inside the computer? Trek expert and Paramount executive Dave Rossi joins Larry this...

When the rest of the world started to take Star Trek fandom seriously, Gene Roddenberry was asked to provide an introduction for the book "Star Trek Lives" in 1975. Here we present an early draft with many of Gene's thoughts on Trek fans and forward-looking comments about the state of mass media. See the original document: Star Trek Lives  Draft Introduction (January 1975) The Trek Files  Season 1...

A year before Star Trek: The Next Generation debuted, David Gerrold sent a memo to Gene Roddenberry, Ed Milkis and Bob Justman about the Enterprise crew tackling philosophical ideas. How does this have repercussions on Star Trek more than 30 years later? Find out in today's episode of The Trek Files! See the original document: Enlightenment on the  Enterprise  (October 1986) The Trek Files  Season...

In the debut episode of The Trek Files, we deep-dive into one of Star Trek's cornerstone documents: The Star Trek Guide, from April 1967. Your host, Dr. Trek himself, Larry Nemecek, explores the "believability factor" and how it influenced the development of The Original Series together with guest co-host: John Champion. See the original document: The  Star Trek  Guide (April 1967) The Trek Files ...