The Trek Files: A Roddenberry Star Trek Podcast

As the 25th anniversary of Star Trek was playing out on big and small screens and in the press, Gene Roddenberry wrote to Dan Madsen, President of the Star Trek Fan Club, to reflect on Trek's fandom and influence. Dan joins The Trek Files this week to tell his story of going from fan to professional. See the original document: Letter from Gene Roddenberry to Dan Madsen - 1991 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Dorothy Fontana's story for "Journey to Babel" introduced the world to Spock's parents Karek and Amanda (as named in her first draft). The family drama gained the interest of fans at the time, and even launched a few writing careers in its wake. Jean Lorrah, novelist, professor and Star Trek fan-fiction author, joins The Trek Files to tell her story. See the original document: Journey to Babel story outline - June 23, 1967 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Dan Madsen joins The Trek Files again to discuss a letter from Gene Roddenberry about Lincoln Enterprises. It's a look into fan psychology and the "mission" of Lincoln to keep Star Trek in the public eye while a new production was still potentially years away. See the original document: Letter from Gene Roddenberry re: Lincoln Enterprises - ca. 1975 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

A short memo from Michael Piller to Rick Berman points out the necessity of filling the Conn position on the Enterprise bridge with someone worthy after Wesley Crusher leaves. Returning guest Lolita Fatjo talks about Piller's contributions to TNG and his legacy. See the original document: Conn Position memo - July 23, 1990 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today! Support the Star Trek: Voyager documentary.

An earnest fan letter to Gene Roddenberry in 1971 kicks off today's discussion with Star Trek fan-turned-actor Noah Averbach-Katz. Get the story of Noah's immersion into the Trek world and how he sees the fandom reacting to today's stories. See the original document: Fan letter to Gene Roddenberry - 1971 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

The third season TOS episode "Plato's Stepchildren" may be remembered for its famous kiss between Kirk and Uhura, but there was a profound effect on a young viewer that led to a lifetime in fandom. Hear Dan Madsen's story and reflections on the impact Star Trek has on innumerable fans who are inspired by its stories. See the original document: Plato's Stepchildren production documents - 1968 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Three simple slips of paper reveal the quick ascendance of an important addition to the Star Trek: The Next Generation production team - Jeri Taylor. Joining The Trek Files this week to talk about her contributions to the franchise is Jeri's friend and former assistant Lolita Fatjo. Follow the Voyager Documentary on Twitter. Indiegogo campaign begins March 2021. See the original document: Star Trek: The Next Generation distribution list - 1990 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

While aspiring writers hoped to get a foot in the door with Star Trek: The Next Generation, it was just as tough finding a job in Hollywood a generation or two prior. Gene Roddenberry sent back some discouraging notes to two of his colleagues in 1959, and today we have script supervisor Lolita Fatjo helping us connect the dots with TNG's open submission program. See the original document: Gene Roddenberry letters to writers - 1959 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

In 1976, a fan sent a tongue-in-cheek "love letter" to Majel Barrett Roddenberry (with a nod to the Great Bird, of course). On this week's show, we're happy to welcome back Noah Averback-Katz from Star Trek: Discovery to discuss what it means to be in a Trek couple. See the original document: Love letter to Majel Roddenberry - 1976 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

This week, we're revisiting the document that spells out the new alien species devised for the Star Trek TOS episode "Journey to Babel." We'll direct our attention to the Andorians with the help of Noah Averbach-Katz, who played Ryn on "Star Trek: Discovery," to learn what it takes to become a blue-skinned warrior. See the original document: Journey to Babel makeup-costume note - 1967 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

We dig back into the Gene Roddenberry fan letter bag for another round of wholesome 1970s Star Trek adoration. These letters address everything from props to music to a serious take on the roles of women if Trek is to make the leap to a new life on film. See the original document: Fan letters to Gene Roddenberry - 1975 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Gene Roddenberry was impressed enough with Franz Joseph's proposed technical manual that he suggested contacting Lincoln Enterprises - Gene's own company for merchandising Star Trek. Joseph complied and sent along a few more details as well as concerns about the business relationship. See the original document: Letter from Franz Joseph to Lincoln Enterprises - 1973 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

In 1973, Franz Joseph was a retired industrial designer with a daughter who was a huge Star Trek fan. As he learned more about the fandom, he found a good place to use his talents by converting what he saw on screen into technical drawings. That sparked an idea he shared with Gene Roddenberry in 1973. The Trek Files welcomes Karen Schnaubelt, Joseph's daughter, to share the rest of the story. See the original document: Letter from Franz Joseph - May 14, 1973 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

In the second part of our conversation with Bill Kraft, we'll get more details about the Post Office decision to break years of tradition and run an entertainment franchise on a stamp, plus the ability to "stuff the ballots." See the original document: Citizen Stamp Advisory Committee - 1998 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

When Star Trek fandom meant connecting through mailed newsletters, some fans were lobbying for an official Star Trek stamp from the U.S. Postal Service. Bill Kraft from the original Enterprise Stamp Committee joins The Trek Files to give us a look at the long journey to make the stamp a reality. See the original document: Star Trek stamp campaign - October 1995 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Season 6 of The Trek Files premieres with a look back at one of the foundational Star Trek documents, the Writer-Director Information book from August 30, 1966. In it, Yeoman Janice Rand is clearly included as one of the most important regular crew-members. We're proud to welcome Jonathan Whitney Dweck as our special guest this week - son of the late Grace Lee Whitney who portrayed Rand. He provides the personal angle on his mother's journey as Rand and the years following her Trek. See the original document: Star Trek Writer-Director Info, August 1966 The Trek Files Season 6 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Star Trek's 25th anniversary occurred the same year as another milestone: the death of Gene Roddenberry on October 24, 1991. After the memorial service, Majel Barrett sat down to write a series of thank you notes to the friends and celebrities who had attended and spoken about Gene's life and impact. In the season finale of The Trek Files, we are pleased to welcome back Rod Roddenberry to talk about his father's and mother's legacies and how his interest in Star Trek's vision was ignited. See the original document: Thank you notes from Majel Barret Roddenberry - 1991 The Trek Files Season 5 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

This is the story of the United Space Ship Enterprise. Assigned a five year patrol of our galaxy, the giant starship visits Earth colonies, regulates commerce, and explores strange new worlds and civilizations... or words to that effect. On a Tuesday in August, 1966, the Star Trek braintrust of Gene Roddenberry, Bob Justman and John D. F. Black hurriedly crafted what would become one of the most famous opening narrations in television history. Celebrating Star Trek Day, The Trek Files takes you behind the scenes in this week's episode. See the original document: Star Trek opening narration - August 2, 1966 The Trek Files Season 5 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

A few weeks after jotting down his initial thoughts on a new Star Trek series, Gene Roddenberry starts putting together his dream team of producers and writers to bring his new show to life - all under the pressure of a deadline. Some ideas will be fleshed out while others are dropped completely. In this confidential letter to Eddie Milkis, Gene spells out all the next steps to consider while making Star Trek new but familiar. See the original document: Gene Roddenberry confidential letter to Eddie Milkis - 1986 The Trek Files Season 5 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!  

Star Trek was soon to make the jump from prime-time drama to Saturday morning "kiddie show" by the estimation of LA Times TV critic Don Page. Quick to set him straight was Dorothy Fontana with a letter that spelled out Star Trek's storytelling imperative, regardless of the filmed form it may take. See the original document: Dorothy Fontana letter to Don Page - April 1973 The Trek Files Season 5 on Memory Alpha All episodes and documents: The Trek Files on Memory Alpha Visit the Trekland site for behind-the-scenes access and exclusive merchandise. The conversation continues on Discord with live chats and the Roddenberry Podcasts community! Join today!