25th anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation

Sydney's cinemas hosted the 25th anniversary of "Star Trek: The Next Generation" event last night. Several venues around Sydney (and other Australian capitals), in fact, and the Dendy, Newtown, managed to fill two cinemas in the one complex. So pleased I'd dieted enough to fit into this old favourite top again! It seemed a fitting sweater to wear.
The cinema showed "Where No One Has Gone Before", which introduces the Traveler (and is loosely based on Diane Duane's Trek novel, "The Wounded Sky") and "Datalore", which introduces Lore, Data's evil brother. Selected by Mike and Denise Okuda as good examples of the greatly enhanced special effects footage for high definition Blu-ray. Also showed some "making of the HD" footage and a preview of enhanced "The Measure of a Man" (Season Two) for which they've added previously cut scenes.
And, I just found out that this fan-printed Data "sloppy joe" from 1988 (artwork by Lana Pennington-Brown) is to prominently featured at the beginning of Chapter 12 in the forthcoming book, "The Complete Unauthorized History of Star Trek" by Robert Greenberger!

Ten's News at Five

Angela Bishop's showbiz report on last night's "Number 96" 40th anniversary celebration went to air today. Spotto Ian McLean, Vivienne Garrett (Rose Goldofus-Meyers) and Martin Harris (Mark Eastwood).

Loyalty and truth

My old school, Arncliffe Public School, is turning 150 on Saturday. I'm Class of 1970, and was school captain - and very excited to be going back to check it out. I've tempted two of my former teachers to go, and hoping to catch up with old classmates. Was also asked to contribute a double page of memoir for the souvenir book.

The pic is me in 1966, standing in front of "The Gully" that ran through the then-Infants playground.

Happy 75th Luna Park Sydney!

Feeling nostalgic in Milson's Point today (I went off to Luna Park to pick up some anniversary goodies!), I realised that the Youtube footage of the "Number 96" characters' 1976 visit to Luna Park Sydney is actually missing its fleeting glimpse of the familiar face! In this, Luna Park's 75th Anniversary week, I believe it's about time to dig out the ol' pics!


Luna Park in "Number 96" in '76




Dorrie, Herb, Flo and Junior on the Big Dipper


Topsy Turvy Flo


Refreshments? Now?


Junior feasts on hot chips and heads for the Tumble Bug


Dorrie staggers


Fairy floss - and a touch of Marilyn with an air vent, Coney Island


Sydney Harbour Bridge backdrop


Back on the Big Dipper!


One more pie before home!

(Airdate of "And They Said It Wouldn't Last": 24/06/76, Network Ten.)

As for today:


Yes, it's 75th Anniversary Luna Park Sydney Monopoly!
Limited to 2500 copies, available only from their souvenir shop or the website!



I got to thinking, though: this game needed some Aussie icons as tokens, not the traditional car, shoe, thimble, hat, etc. Racing past three George Street souvenir shops, on my way to the railway station, I quickly found a miniature Sydney Harbour Bridge and Opera House in painted resin, a Kombi van with surfboard on top (pencil topper), a silver and enamelled thong (flip flop) with road signs on the inner sole (mobile phone charm), fuzzy kangaroo and koala (keyrings) and two thimbles, illustrating a boomerang and Sydney Tower. Clever, eh?

"Star Trek" at a fit 44!

Celebrate the original "Star Trek's 44th anniversary tomorrow with "Star Trek 365: The Original Series", a massive house-brick sized book filled with big colour pics, sketches, memos - and lots of info.

Written by Paula M Block & Terry J Erdmann, the book is introduced by Dorothy "DC" Fontana and published by Abrams Publishing (no connection to JJ). I was lucky, even though living in Sydney, Australia, to find a copy of this Abrams Publishing "365" in a local bookshop - as it turned out, many weeks before the jealous US readers started to report seeing copies!

Paula Block & Terry Erdmann have done an incredible job of fossicking through all those years of material on Star Trek and presenting a blend of iconic, familiar and extremely rare photographs and facts about Gene Roddenberry's "Star Trek". The "365" format is certainly unusual and modern. I laughed out loud at early Amazon.com reviewer comments complaining about the unique design features; features which I immediately thought were wonderfully retro and modern at the same time. (In fact, my great experience with this particular edition convinced me to go back and pick up a shrink-wrapped "Star Wars 365 Days" version a few weeks ago - and I'm not even much of a "Star Wars" fan.)

I've had the "Star Trek" book for weeks now, using it exactly as intended: as a coffee table book, but safely on a coffee table upon which food and drink are never served! I feel like I've barely done more than flip through the wonderful rare and familiar pictures so far, or yelling out factoids to anyone who passes. Stunning photos! Glorious colours! I stop riffling every so often to absorb brand new (and sometimes well known) trivia in the text. There are even some great mini interviews and quotes from people we haven't seen in the limelight for decades! It's a wonderful publication!

Just when you think no more could possibly be left to see/read about the original "Star Trek" series, Paula & Terry have scrounged out those last(?) remaining bits. And now... I want more! Bring on the movies book, TNG and beyond, and the Abrams' book of JJ Abrams (no relation)!

Aftermath of Murder: the next "Number 96" DVD set!

The news has broken! The aftermath of the "Number 96" Pantyhose Strangler storyline is about to hit stores in time for the TV soap opera's 38th anniversary!

Andrew Mercado presents more details - and a sneak preview - on his website, MercadoTV, or click here for a brief episode guide to the contents of this wonderful new collection of classic 70s episodes.

Time to stir?

Assorted cutlery from Joyce's house at Parramatta! The child's knife, fork and spoon set has a koala motif. The central souvenir spoon is marked "DJ's 125th year: 1838-1963" for the David Jones department store chain's anniversary.

I feel pretty, oh so pretty!

'Tis the day for compliments. A little Kinder kid told me I looked pretty today (I was wearing my infamous "Spider-man" shirt), and two more kids from school just saw me heading home and announced they wished it was Monday already.

"Why...?" I asked (a little bewildered, because this was barely the start of a well-earned weekend).

"Because that's our library day and you're our library teacher!"



And, in acknowledgement of today's date:

'Allo Vera - and her three new offspring. My photo of the day. A little something for peace and renewal on the anniversary of a day that changed the world and will never be forgotten.

This plant is the fourth aloe vera to inhabit this pot since the "shoestring renovations" of my school library, but certainly the most successful (the previous occupants have since recovered after a return to less neglectful circumstances). This week Vera showed off her triplets, much to the excitement of my observant, pint-size borrowers at the charging desk.

Happy anniversary, Apollo 11!

Wow!

I've spent the last few weeks demonstrating some of the joys of my school's new interactive whiteboard (IWB), and browsing on Google Earth has been addictive for most of the school's population.

But, in similar vein, NASA has just released some very cool pictures from their Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (or LRO), which has returned its first imagery of the Apollo moon landing sites, just in time for the 40th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. "The pictures show the Apollo missions' lunar module descent stages sitting on the moon's surface, as long shadows from a low sun angle make the modules' locations evident."



The online comments added by moon hoax conspiracy theorists are hilarious.

I really liked the appended comment from a NASA Moderator: "This is just the first glimpse of many more images to come. When we're in the operational orbit of only 31 miles, resolution should be two to three times better, and we should be able to get the right lighting conditions to identify the rovers."

All images credit: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center/Arizona State University.

Boy, sitting in the school hall watching a fuzzy black and white television in 1969 (Year 5) at Arncliffe Primary School seems sooooooo long ago, but it also seems like it was only yesterday. Happy Moon Day (on a Monday, even!).



Also worth checking out: The Moon in Google Earth

Star Trek Barbies: couldn't help myself!

Okay, my excuse? Mattel's Barbie and I are currently the same age. She looks very well preserved for 50, though.

I wasn't planning to buy this trio: Ken as JJ Abrams' Young Kirk (Chris Pine), Ken as Young Spock (Zachary Quinto), Barbie as Young Uhura (Zoe Saladana), all from the upcoming "Star Trek" movie in May. But I saw them in a collector shop last night - the very last set left at High Court Cards, Penrith - and couldn't leave them there. Beautiful figures! (Kirk's real hair is wonderfully tousled.)


Click: My Flickr slideshow (Seven images)

I decided to open the figures, as you can see, but Uhura's hair, the third one I released, was a bit of a nightmare to set free from the backing material. I accidentally discovered a certificate and a "Star Trek" doll stand and post hiding inside the cardboard backing form of the red Uhura movie poster. Kirk and Spock have these goodies, too! Don't chuck out your packages!

Comparing these dolls with pics of the Playmates 12" action figures, I'm actually liking these Mattel characters better as young versions of the recast crew, and the costumes are well done too. (I'm only intending on buying a 12" Nero - Eric Bana - from the large Playmates line, but I'll be getting all smaller series offered.)

Barbie and Ken first joined the world of Star Trek in 1996, in a hotly coveted "30th Anniversary Star Trek Gift Set". A more generic-looking blonde Barbie posed as a Starfleet yeoman, and Ken posed as a Commanding Officer, standing beside cardboard cutouts of Shatner's Kirk and Nimoy's Spock. This time, they're boldly going even further!

Now we are two

Well, today I chalk up my second year of blogging.

As I said this time last year, it is so satisfying to put my various inner thoughts (and Internet responses) somewhere more permanent that just letting them drop off the menu at some online bulletin board.

Thanks everyone for the continued support, even if so few of you leave messages. I check Sitemeter almost every day, and my stats tell me I continue to get about 50 visitors a day, who read more than one post per visit, and these numbers have been consistent for many months, whether I'm posting every day or being slack. A great many newcomers stumble across this blog via Google Images. I continue to be a more visual medium than the quality of my written entries, so I won't be giving up on putting lots of images on Flickr. There are still plenty Star Trek, pet and naked Abigail fans out there, even if you don't always tell me in person that you've dropped by.

41 and counting

41 years ago, "Star Trek" premiered on USA television screens, with Filmation's "Star Trek Animated" premiering on the same day in 1973.

I was looking around for other significant dates this week, but only to note that tomorrow is Jeffrey Combs' birthday. He played the recurring role of Shran the Andorian in numerous popular episodes. Onya blueskin!

Meanwhile, I found this amazing old TV segment (from "PM Magazine") about the imminent arrival of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" in 1979. It starts off in a KB Toys store, and features the funky Mego Star Trek action figures of the 70s (which are being re-released in 2007 as affectionately duplicated replicas). There are brief interviews with William Shatner, Persis Khambatta and director Robert Wise, plus footage from the extended presentation reel, complete with its temporary soundtrack. Nostalgic!

On the mark

Mark asks, "Re: your (Star Trek) costume purchases mentioned in the previous post - It sounds like there are notations on the costumes themselves, but do you get any other documentation about their history?"

Good question, Mark! Thank you!

The It's a Wrap! Star Trek costumes come with up to four pieces of identification.

Firstly, on the Star Trek clothing items themselves, many Paramount costumes have sewn-in, rectangular, cloth tags, usually identified with the official logo of the Star Trek television series or feature film for which they were made, or perhaps a generic "Western Costumes" tag (as in Gulf & Western/Paramount). These labels have lines for several wearers, and the name(s) of these actors, extra or stunt people, plus often an episode number, are hand-lettered with a laundry marker. It's unlikely there is any more extensive and official surviving documentation than this. (The Christie's 40th anniversary auction, last year, did sell off some albums of wardrobe continuity Polaroids, if I recall correctly.)

However, many of the costumes also have a thin cardboard "luggage" tag (below), which lists any individual items that go together to make one costume. This costume tag would have been originally attached to the hanger, and when the item gets sold off, it gets placed into the envelope with the Certificate of Authenticity. (In fact, I didn't think to look for the Andorian tag until my Tellarite costume arrived with one. I checked the bottom of the Andorian's envelope - and there was the tag!)


Costume tags accompanying my eBay wins

There's also the online eBay description, a paragraph (usually) listing the most important appearances of the costume. While it's obvious that the Paramount and It's a Wrap! staff have put considerable effort into researching the costumes, many of which have hung on racks since the mid 70s, they do make mistakes and hasty assumptions, and that's where fans like Jörg (who posts all manner of errors and corrections to the Star Trek Auctions, Props & Costumes bbs), come in handy!

I actually lucked out on my Andorian costume, as the eBay description seems to focus on the costumes first onscreen usage, as per the costume ("luggage") tag. Had they used the sewn-in tags, they'd have listed the actor who first wore the outfit in scenes later reshot with a different actor, and the major re-use of the costume - with an additional cape - by a named character in a later episode! Had there been more information online, the price would have gone much higher!

Similarly, as I noted in my Tellarite post, the fat-suit's sewn-in tag (below) reveals that it has a more extensive life than the outer costume, and a quick Google search on actors' names, and/or episode numbers, brings up some exciting research results! It even revealed an extra name I could add to Memory Alpha.


The sewn-in tag reveals its history!

Finally, there's a Certificate of Authenticity from It's a Wrap! This features the title of the item, exactly as it was listed on eBay, and a small photograph of the item.

I recall Richard Arnold, then-Star Trek Archivist at Paramount, once mentioning the fun he had during the lead-up to 20th anniversary of Star Trek in 1986. A huge display was being organised and, for the first time, a serious rummage was made through the surviving costumes and props of the original series, the failed "Phase II" and the early movies. Much of TOS was unlabeled, but even more had been lost to the winds of time (or rejigged for renting out to shows like "Mork and Mindy"). At one point, someone found a box of random scarves. Richard suddenly recognized the colours and patterns, and realised it was actually a skimpy outfit once worn by one of "Mudd's Women"!

Happy blogversary to me!

Hey, I just noticed. I've been blogging for a whole year now.

It's certainly the longest I've ever kept a diary, and it's been very satisfying to put my various Internet responses somewhere more permanent that just letting them drop off the menu at some online bulletin board.

Thanks everyone for the support, even if so few of you leave messages. I can tell by Sitemeter that there are plenty of Star Trek, pet and naked Abigail fans out there, even if you don't always tell me in person that you've dropped by again.