Roundup 9.8.11: Happy Birthday STAR TREK!
Hailing frequencies open.
Today is the 45th anniversary of the premier of the first Star Trek episode, The Man Trap. It only seems appropriate that we look on this day at the latest in the world of Trek.
[Main image: StarTrek.com]
Cast Bits
The Morton Report sat down with Levar Burton and talked about his experience on “Star Trek: The Next Generation” and the TNG movies, which also gave him his first chance to direct after so many years producing “Reading Rainbow”. The site also has this interview with Dominic Keating about his time aboard “Enterprise”.
MTV caught Zoe Saldana outside the Teen Choice Awards and asked her about the new TREK sequel. She opined that she’d like to explore more of the relationship between Spock and Uhura, and wouldn’t mind if Kirk lost his shirt… [full interview at MTV]
… although Zachary Quinto says Spock’s love life could “fall apart” in the sequel. [Digital Spy]
The official “Star Trek” site has a 3-part collection of interviews with various cast members about the 45-year history of TREK and their experiences with the franchise, as well as a 2-part interview with Bjo Trimble (you know who she is, unless you’ve been under a rock). Plus, a 2-part interview with Conner Trinneer, who says “Enterprise” did not kill the franchise.
While promoting Cowboys and Aliens (which we reviewed here, here, and here), Olivia Wilde said that she would “do anything” to be in the next TREK movie.
And Media Blvd. has this profile of Anthony Montgomery (“Enterprise”).
TrekWeb has links to the full panel featuring Patrick Stewart at Chicago Comic Con.
Technorati has this interview with Nana Visitor (“Deep Space Nine” and recently “Torchwood: Miracle Day”).
The Con of Trek
Speaking of Bjo Trimble, here’s a documentary about the beginnings of the TREK convention efforts in the early 1970s. This DVD is new to the online store at Roddenberry.com, and features interviews, costumes, and lots of trivia about those early days…
[youtube=http://youtu.be/F3F46V4Mzy8]
The King Of Trekkies?
The Middle East is becoming a tourist Utopia. Dubai has indoor skiing. Abu Dhabi has Ferrari World. And now, ultra-Trekkie King Abdullah II of Jordan (who had a walk-on role as a crew member on ST: Voyager) is embarking on a $1.5 billion green energy-powered project. That project? A Star Trek-themed theme park!
The Rubicon Group Holding-designed project, to be powered by all-renewable energy, could possibly be ready for visitors as early as 2014. CBS Consumer Products and Paramount Recreation will also be involved in the design.
Star Trek Online To Be Free
Cryptic, the company which runs Star Trek Online, recently announced that it was looking at possibility of having a model for making the MMO free of charge. Now its parent company intends to make it happen. The new version should be released by the end of the year.
Technorati has a review here.
RELATED: Wired has this review of Star Trek: Fleet Captains. And Total Fan Girl shares here thoughts here.
A Real-Life Sick Bay
Engineers in Great Britain have recently made a real-life Star Trek sick bay for the National Health Service. They believe that it really can diagnose over 40 diseases including various bacterial infections and some cancers. Could it be very long until the medical tricorder?
Also, this from BSN: nanoengineers (not tiny engineers, mind you…) have developed a small flexible patch that can be worn on the skin and transmit medical data back to a monitoring computer. Developed by groups at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign and Northwestern University, the patches move with the skin. Researchers see this as the beginning of a long process that may lead to better control of prosthetic limbs.
Sequel Pushed Back
For the small handful of people who are unaware that the release date of the next Star Trek film has been pushed back, the release date of the next Star Trek film has been pushed back. Originally scheduled for June 2012, it now looks as if it will be around late 2012 to 2013. Apparently it’s to give the writers more time. So those who like the J.J. Abrams version will have to wait a little bit longer for the next bit of gratification. Those who don’t like it probably don’t care anyway.
New Trek TV?
Slash Film has this story about producer David Foster trying to get a chance to make a pitch for a new “Star Trek” on television. Apparently, it would be set after “Voyager”. The site What Culture! has a write-up with more details.
Star Trek Walk Of Fame
The small Canadian town of Vulcan, Alberta, has come up with an “Enterprise”-ing way of attracting tourism. They will have the Star Trek Walk of Fame. Word has it that Trek stars are clamoring to be a part of it. In June, the small community between Calgary and Lethbridge saw 7,030 visitors — a new record.
A Monopoly on Trek
Get your orders in now. The limited edition Klingon version of Monopoly is available for pre-order only until September 30. And there are only 1,701 units being made. See video at the link.
That’s it for now. Live long and prosper.
