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Has anybody else gotten this book yet? I got it last week and even though I’m only on page 204 out of 580, I just had to say, this book is great!
I highly recommend it to anybody who’s interested in the day to day creation and production of TOS episodes.
For example, here’s the kind off info it has, that I find incredibly interesting. (Although I admit, certainly not uncommon for any movie or TV show, then or now). So on Monday July 11th, they did the last day of shooting on the Naked Time in the morning, including the scene between Kirk and Spock at the end when Kirk gives his big speech about the Enterprise, break for Lunch, come back and shoot the beginning of Charlie X, the scene where Kirk explains to Charlie he can’t swat Yeoman Rand on the butt.
I just find that kind minutiae really fun to read about. I just get a kick out knowing they shot those two scenes just a few hours apart. The book has tons of much more relevant information about the writing, editing and scoring of each episode.
It’s especially cool to see who did the re-writing on each episode, or why a certain scene or episode turned out the way it did.
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There are some nifty revelations here, the most shocking being the actual ratings of the premiere and first season, which were kept confidential until now. The opening episode was a frigging smash! The entire season was a top 30 moderate hit. Not the "never got above 60" crap we've been fed for 45 years. While we have yet to get to the point of the series' cancellation, the writer hits it had less to do with ratings and more to do with the Network getting tired of Gene Roddenberry's BS; his network bashing, womanizing and lack of cooperation. I mean, the ratings definitely sank, but I'm betting NBC maneuvered for this to happen to get Roddenberry out of their hair.
The book is an good reminder of the fact that William Shatner was considered an outstanding actor; a star on the rise and getting him for the lead was a real coup. I've always maintained he was a very gifted performer, albeit with a lack of restraint and had to be reined in at times. His work on the series was honestly his finest. He was capable of great subtlety, which most people ignore or choose not to see in favor of joking about his more over the top choices.
The book isn't perfect; there are typos galore and some mistakes that could have easily been fixed at the editing stage. Some characters are misnamed within a paragraph of an earlier mention, and a music gaffe regarding City on the Edge of Forever and Operation--Annihilate! However, all in all, this is the behind the scenes book I've been waiting for. Looking forward to parts 2 & 3.
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The book isn't perfect; there are typos galore and some mistakes that could have easily been fixed at the editing stage. Some characters are misnamed within a paragraph of an earlier mention, and a music gaffe regarding City on the Edge of Forever and Operation--Annihilate! However, all in all, this is the behind the scenes book I've been waiting for. Looking forward to parts 2 & 3.
I'd love to get this (and the next two volumes, presumably), but this has me a little concerned. Some of the Amazon reviews also mention that dates are wrong, etc. I'm surprised to read that, for a project of this magnitude, errors like this still made it through the editing stage. With that said, I know you say this is the book you've been waiting for, but would you still recommend it to other Trekkies? I'd hate to pick this up only to see a second pressing issued that corrects these mistakes....
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I can only speak for myself as a massive lifelong Trekkie; the information I'm getting far outweighs the errors. I also really like the fact that it's in hardcover because I will reference it often. Future printings may be in softcover, which means I'll get it all dog eared before long.
Keep your own counsel, but unless these issues really bother you (and there's no wrong answer here), I'd go on ahead and buy it.
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I like reading all of the memos from the NBC production manager Stan Robertson.
It really drives home what a collaborative effort it was to put the series together, and the thoughts and opinion's of NBC's production manager was a big part of it. I had no idea they were so involved in the scripts.
I always had this idea that NBC’s part was all about censoring stuff, but it was much more than that. Lot of postitive story contributions too.
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I can only speak for myself as a massive lifelong Trekkie; the information I'm getting far outweighs the errors. I also really like the fact that it's in hardcover because I will reference it often. Future printings may be in softcover, which means I'll get it all dog eared before long.
Keep your own counsel, but unless these issues really bother you (and there's no wrong answer here), I'd go on ahead and buy it.
Thanks for the feedback; I've loved TREK for most of my life as well so I'll be picking this up sooner rather than later, I think. Issues like that don't bug me too much and even less so when weighed against the quality or quantity of the rest of the material. I just wanted to hear if those issues were as terrible as some reviews claimed or more minor when viewed within the larger context of what the book has to offer....
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Looks like a must-have. Thanks for the heads-up!
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I really like the glimpses of deleted scenes in small photographs. Peter Kirk in Starfleet uniform sitting in the captain's chair talking to his Uncle Jim. Jame Finney embracing her father Ben Finney at the end of Court Martial. Neat stuff.
A lot of those rare images came from this website:
http://www.startrekhistory.com/
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Did they fix the errors?
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Did they fix the errors?
I hope so! The book is excellent, overall, and I'm looking forward to the next two volumes. However, it is in desperate need of a copy editor. The published book reads like an uncorrected proof!
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Yes, they fixed the errors.
I met the author at the Comikazi convention in the beginning of November and he said D.C. Fontana also took a pass at the book and corrected some info for him.
The revised edition is only $14.99 on Kindle
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It makes me want to re-buy it. 