# Star Trek TOS is really quite watchable after it's rested a while. **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [December 18, 2006, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581 "2006-12-18T03:08:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/41 "2006-12-20T17:26:13Z")
Sometimes I think no one reads what I post… ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/42 "2006-12-20T17:34:06Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] …Might stick in a factoid some might not be aware of: “Arena” was also a reworked science fiction short story, which had on its own won awards. I forget who wrote it, though. ☹ [/QUOTE] Gene Coon wrote a teleplay that was based on a 1944 short story (which I’ve read) by Fredric Brown, who was also credited in the episode. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 5:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/43 "2006-12-20T17:36:46Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] Sometimes I think no one reads what I post… [/QUOTE] My world, and welcome to it. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/44 "2006-12-20T17:58:51Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] Sometimes I think no one reads what I post… [/QUOTE] Eh? What’s that you say? 😃 My apologies, I did post that without reading to the bottom. Poor form. However, I get partial credit for naming and linking the actress as well as the character name, no? 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/45 "2006-12-20T20:45:38Z")
[QUOTE=Cartooniverse] Eh? What’s that you say? 😃 My apologies, I did post that without reading to the bottom. Poor form. However, I get partial credit for naming and linking the actress as well as the character name, no? 🙂 [/QUOTE] Hehehe, you are one of the students who hates all or nothing points, no doubt. 😉 But, yes, you did provide linkies I was too lazy to look up. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Rieux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/aeb1de/32.png) [@Dr.Rieux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Rieux)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/46 "2006-12-20T20:48:04Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Ha! I’m not crazy! Sometimes she _is_ [blue](http://www.fondazionevulcaniana.it/museo/autografi/immagini/craig2.jpg)! [/QUOTE] “Violet, you’re turning violet!” :eek: ---
**Author:** ![DSYoungEsq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c6cbf5/32.png) [@DSYoungEsq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSYoungEsq)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 8:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/47 "2006-12-20T20:51:33Z")
[QUOTE=Elendil’s Heir] Gene Coon wrote a teleplay that was based on a 1944 short story (which I’ve read) by Fredric Brown, who was also credited in the episode. [/QUOTE] Ah, yes, it was in the collection _The Science Fiction Hall of Fame Volume One, 1929-1964: The Greatest Science Fiction Stories of All Time_, edited by Robert Silverberg. It was one of the top fifteen vote getters among all short stories that pre-dated the Nebula Awards, as voted on by the members of the Science Fiction Writers of America. I always enjoy the Star Trek episode because it was shot at Vasquez Rocks, which can be seen from the road, now freeway, we used to have to travel to get to LA from our desert outpost on the edge of the world. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 9:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/48 "2006-12-20T21:02:19Z")
Gee, I sure wish **Otto** and **DSYoungEsq** would drop by this thread. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![saoirse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5daacb/32.png) [@saoirse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saoirse)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 9:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/49 "2006-12-20T21:03:27Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] Sometimes I think no one reads what I post… [/QUOTE] Wasn’t there an episode that was based on an award-winning short story? ---
**Author:** ![Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Carnac\_the\_Magnificent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carnac_the_Magnificent)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/50 "2006-12-20T21:13:51Z")
[QUOTE=saoirse] Wasn’t there an episode that was based on an award-winning short story? [/QUOTE] Yes. It was shot at Red Rock Canyon. John Tesh did the episode’s orchestration. ---
**Author:** ![Cartooniverse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cartooniverse/32/3084_2.png) [@Cartooniverse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartooniverse)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 9:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/51 "2006-12-20T21:47:49Z")
I love you people. 🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/52 "2006-12-20T21:56:41Z")
[QUOTE=indecisive1] It’s been a really long time since I’ve seen any of these shows. So there are three episodes with the dancing green lady? My foggy memory is that Kirk was in this sort of cave like brothel sort of place and this green lady was swirling around dancing. [/QUOTE] I suspect you’re thinking of “A Private Little War,” with the non-green (and total package) Nancy Kovack. ---
**Author:** ![indecisive1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/41988e/32.png) [@indecisive1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/indecisive1)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 10:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/53 "2006-12-20T22:38:42Z")
[QUOTE=DSYoungEsq] The sexy Orion Slave Girl who danced did so in the original pilot, “The Cage.” This was reworked into a two-part episode called “The Menagerie.” There were no other episodes with green Orion Slave Girls, dancing or otherwise, much to the disappointment of legions of young males. You often saw a picture of the green Orion Slave Girl (who was really the female foil in the episode made to look like an Orion Slave Girl by the mental powers of the Talosians) in the credits at the end of the episodes. Might stick in a factoid some might not be aware of: “Arena” was also a reworked science fiction short story, which had on its own won awards. I forget who wrote it, though. ☹ [/QUOTE] I am so confused. Wasn’t the first show the one where the guys with the big heads found the girl in a crashed starship and fixed her up best they could? Shatner wasn’t in the one I’m thinking of. And I don’t remember any green girls of any kind. And this is confusing me too: You often saw a picture of the green Orion Slave Girl (who was really the female foil in the episode made to look like an Orion Slave Girl by the mental powers of the Talosians) in the credits at the end of the episodes. Huh? ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/54 "2006-12-20T22:46:06Z")
[QUOTE=indecisive1] I am so confused. Wasn’t the first show the one where the guys with the big heads found the girl in a crashed starship and fixed her up best they could? Shatner wasn’t in the one I’m thinking of. And I don’t remember any green girls of any kind. And this is confusing me too: You often saw a picture of the green Orion Slave Girl (who was really the female foil in the episode made to look like an Orion Slave Girl by the mental powers of the Talosians) in the credits at the end of the episodes. Huh? [/QUOTE] The original pilot for Star Trek was called “The Cage.” In it, Captian Christopher Pike was captured by some aliens called the Talosians (the guys with the big heads). They had the power to create illusions. One of the illusions, based on a fantasy of Pike’s involved a green Orion slave girl. The slave girl was a woman named Vina, who also featured in a number of other illusions cast by the Talosians. She was not really green. She was indeed smashed up in a space ship crash and rebuilt as best as the Talosians could without an intact human model. Footage from “The Cage” was later incorporated into a two-part episode of the regular series called “The Menagerie.” Some of the recycled footage was of Vina in her illusory Orion slave girl pigmentation. Episodes of the original series included stills from various episodes over which the closong credits appeared. Vina-as-Orion-slave-girl was the last (or next to last) still for many of the episodes. Not sure what’s confusing you. ---
**Author:** ![BMax](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bmax/32/4267_2.png) [@BMax](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BMax)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/55 "2006-12-20T22:50:33Z")
[QUOTE=indecisive1] I am so confused. Wasn’t the first show the one where the guys with the big heads found the girl in a crashed starship and fixed her up best they could? Shatner wasn’t in the one I’m thinking of. And I don’t remember any green girls of any kind. And this is confusing me too: You often saw a picture of the green Orion Slave Girl (who was really the female foil in the episode made to look like an Orion Slave Girl by the mental powers of the Talosians) in the credits at the end of the episodes. Huh? [/QUOTE] Yep. That was the first episode, “Menagerie”. The Talosians were the big head guys. The used their mental powers to make Cpt Pike (the not-Shatner captain)see what they wanted him to see. They made him see the girl as a hotty instead of a busted up burn victim with a paralyzed face. All the crazy adventures he had (like the busted up burn victim girl being a sexy green Orion Slave Girl doing the wild sexy dance) were halucinations the big headed guys gave him. Later this episode (pilot?) was recycled into a series of flashbacks that were shown on a big screen for Kirk, Spock & Bones while Cpt Pike sat in an iron-plated electric wheelchair & drooled. Seems he became a busted up burn victim himself somewhere along the way. I believe (I was just a kid and haven’t picked up this one on video yet) that Cpt Pike was on trial for something. ---
**Author:** ![indecisive1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/41988e/32.png) [@indecisive1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/indecisive1)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/56 "2006-12-20T22:51:52Z")
Well! Guess I need to get myself a Star Trek DVD box set sort of thing so I can get this all sorted out in my foggy memory. ---
**Author:** ![indecisive1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/41988e/32.png) [@indecisive1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/indecisive1)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2006, 11:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/57 "2006-12-20T23:13:34Z")
[QUOTE=Earl Snake-Hips Tucker] I suspect you’re thinking of “A Private Little War,” with the non-green (and total package) Nancy Kovack. [/QUOTE] I went to a Star Trek site to check this one out. That’s not the one I was thinking about. I remember that show as the girl with the hunk of ginger root that’s alive. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 4:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/58 "2006-12-21T04:13:14Z")
[QUOTE=BMax] … I believe (I was just a kid and haven’t picked up this one on video yet) that [Capt.] Pike was on trial for something. [/QUOTE] Actually, Spock was being court-martialed - at his own insistence - for kidnapping Pike, diverting the _Enterprise_ with faked orders, and going to Talos IV, which was an, er, forbidden planet. Pike was one of the three senior officers on the court-martial board, along with Kirk and Commodore Mendez, the top dude at Starbase 11. ---
**Author:** ![Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbe5ce/32.png) [@Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Otto)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/59 "2006-12-21T05:20:58Z")
[QUOTE=Elendil’s Heir] Pike was one of the three senior officers on the court-martial board, along with Kirk and Commodore Mendez, the top dude at Starbase 11. [/QUOTE] Except of course Commodore Mendez was a Talosian illusion and the whole court-martial was a ruse to give Spock time to get to Talos IV. ---
**Author:** ![indecisive1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/41988e/32.png) [@indecisive1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/indecisive1)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2006, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581/60 "2006-12-21T14:34:39Z")
[QUOTE=Otto] Except of course Commodore Mendez was a Talosian illusion and the whole court-martial was a ruse to give Spock time to get to Talos IV. [/QUOTE] Cripes! Those Talosians really get around. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/star-trek-tos-is-really-quite-watchable-after-its-rested-a-while/384581.md?page=4)