Deep Space Nine Bible
From: hendrickca@phibred.com (Carol Hendrick, Ext. 4137)
Subject: Deep Space Nine Bible
Message-ID: <18m6mvINN6le@agate.berkeley.edu>
Date: 10 Sep 92 01:00:15 GMT
Organization: Vulcan Science Academy, Tau Ceti Sector
Lines: 487
Hello--I pulled this off AOL last week and wondered if it might be something
you could use. (Not sure if you have a length limitation or not.)
Carol Hendrick
Internet: hendrickca@phibred.com
AOL: CarolH
____________________________________________________________________________
[Editors Note: The following ran in issue #24 of CCSTSG Enterprises, the
monthly newsletter of the Central Connecticut Star Trek Support Group (7
Quarry St./Vernon, CT 06066, for more info), a few weeks ago. At Shore Leave
14, in Hunt Valley, MD, on the weekend of July 11-12, 1992, Majel Barrett
Roddenberry addressed the large audience on the subject of Deep Space Nine by
reading extensive excerpts out of the writers bible and answering questions.
She also made some interesting comments on other issues surrounding Trek in
the post-Gene era. I captured Majels presentation on tape and transcribed it
for my newsletter. Note: I have verified the spelling of proper names where
possible, but some discrepancies may exist.]
Majel Barrett Roddenberry speaking:
The first thing Id really like to do is to thank all of you who did send
cards and letters last year. Ive come to tell you that I appreciate it from
the bottom of my heart. Ive tried to send back thank-you notes to everyone. I
hope you all got them. The second thing I want to thank you for is having me
back here again. I think it was probably about four or five years ago that I
was here before. It could be twenty eight as far as I know -- I dont know, Ive
been hanging around Star Trek that long.
Now, I dont talk, I dont give speeches or anything like that. Gene did that.
And I dont sing -- Michelle does that. Jimmy tells jokes with an accent. All I
do is gossip, so... So basically, Im here for you to ask me questions and Ill
try to answer them. If I dont know the answer, Ill make one up.
What I am going to do, though, in whatever order youd like it, is to tell
you about Deep Space Nine. I have the Bible with me. You cant have it, Im not
allowed to sell it to you or give it to you, or let you look at it, but I
certainly can read it to you. If you would like me to start with that I will.
[Applause] Okay. It would take me a long time to read it word for word, so Im
going to do a little bit of skipping, but youre going to get the general idea:
[Reading from the series bible:] Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the series,
set in the next generation of Star Trek lore, follows a team of Starfleet
officers who take command of an alien space station situated near the Bejoran
Worm Hole, one of the most strategic locations in the galaxy. The Bejoran Worm
Hole. Worm holes, simply put, are shortcuts through space. You go in one end,
come out the other in seconds to find yourself billions of kilometers away.
All known worm holes previously encountered in the Star Trek universe have
been unstable. Their ends can whip randomly around the universe, and they last
for brief periods of time before collapsing. But in our pilot episode, the
first stable worm hole is discovered near the Denarias asteroid field close to
the planet Bejor. Like other worm holes it is only visible when an object
enters or exits through it. A brief journey through the Bejoran Worm Hole will
take a starship to the Gamma Quadrant, normally a sixty-year journey at
warp 9. The ride is a spectacular light show: very brilliant colors surround
the ship, while inside, strange visual distortions affect perceptions as
passengers tear through the space-time continuum. This worm hole is a new
passage way to hundreds of unexplored sectors of space and it will turn Bejor
into the leading center of commerce and scientific exploration in the sector,
attracting travelers from all over the galaxy. In the first episode, we learn
that the worm hole has been artificially created by a species of aliens that
do not live in the same space-time continuum as we do. Thus, we encounter them
unexpectedly within the worm hole itself. They have been sending out orb-like
probes from the worm hole, one orb every century for a thousand years, seeking
contact with other life forms.
The Backstory. The Cardassians and Bejora are known to Star Trek audiences. A
century ago the Cardassians conquered the planet Bejor, an ancient society
dedicated to spiritual pursuits. The mysterious orbs that have arrived each
century are among the fundamental sacraments of the Bejoran religion. Bejoran
terrorism during the last several decades has been a significant problem for
the Cardassians. Just before our series begins, the Cardassians have completed
mining operations on Bejor, stripping the planet of all its resources. They
have decided to unilaterally withdraw from Bejoran space and give up the
headaches that the Bejoran have caused them.
Well, they have not left quietly and in revenge for the years of terrorism,
the Cardassians ravaged the planet, poisoned the wells, scorched the ground
and, striking at the heart of the Bejoran people, have desecrated the ancient
monastery that is the center of spiritual life. The Bejoran desperately need
help. Theyve asked for membership in the Federation and have been granted
preliminary acceptance. But the political situation on the planet is terribly
unstable: factions that have been united in opposition to Cardassian rule have
resumed age-old conflicts. The Starfleet teams mission is to spearhead the
arduous diplomatic and scientific efforts that accompany the lengthy entry
procedure. All of this is about to be complicated by the discovery of the worm
hole.
Deep Space Nine. The station designated DS9 by Starfleet was assembled
haphazardly over several years by Cardassian and Bejoran work teams and
anybody else who happened to offer services at a premium. It was used by the
Cardassians primarily to monitor mining operations on Bejor and to service
incoming and outgoing crews. About two hundred people, mostly Bejorans, still
live there. By episode three, there will be about fifty Starfleet officers and
crewmen stationed there. When the Cardassians abandoned Bejor they stripped
the station of all advanced technology and defense capability and the
Starfleet team has a huge job of making it operational again. In fact, it will
never work up to our re-quirements and will always be causing the engineering
crew a lot of headaches.
The Ops controls are a hub of activity; there are shuttle bays for smaller
vessels. On a given day there might be anywhere from 10 to 300 visitors to
DS9, as ships come through with foreigners, scientists, merchants, and spies.
Most of the visitors stay on their ships but there are special quarters for
some guests. In the first episode, we learn that the ships power sources are
destructive to the ionic field that is home to the aliens who created the worm
hole and live within a different timeframe. During that experience, we are
told how to travel through without harming them.
One aspect of life on the space station hasnt changed since the departure of
the Cardassians. During their tenure they sold commercial concessions to the
highest bidder to provide services to the mining crews. The result is the
Promenade. Unlike any space interior ever seen on Star Trek, its somewhere
between a free port and a flea market, bustling with aliens of all sorts when
a ships in, intriguing and unusual characters at every bend. Theres gambling
and smuggling, alien grifters at work here, bars with sexual holo-suites
upstairs. Right next to the traditional ships stores are the Bejoran temple
and the kiosk serving live food. Part of the job of the Starfleet team will be
to try to tame this honky tonk atmosphere. They will have Runabouts [ed: a new
class of smaller ships], which allow our characters to travel to numerous star
systems with a maximum speed of 4.7, operated by a two-man crew, with a single
pilot in control if necessary. They can transport up to forty people, but
thats a crowd. There are cramped, uncomfortable sleeping quarters for six
people.
Bejor. Bejor is the world we will visit most often because of its proximity to
the space station. Striking architecture with rounded domes and spherical
shapes mark the landscape. The ancient Bejora were great architects and
engineers before humans were standing erect. The people are deeply mystical.
On their planet we will find monks who meditate and chant in chords. They are
people who believe in spiritual phenomenon, are devoted to a nonsecular
philosophy that goes against the Federations logical, scientific way of life.
Their religious leader, known as the Kai, is curious and insightful and
develops a strong bond with our Commander.
The Characters. Benjamin Sisko, human Starfleet commander with a twelve year-
old son, whose gentle, strong, soft spoken demeanor belies the temper that he
is constantly trying to control. And when he loses it, he gets furious with
himself. Hes a man of action who gets impatient with too much talk, but as he
has become more mature, hes learned to stop and think twice about losing
control. He has a weakness for baseball, a sport that died out in the 22nd
century and he frequently goes to a holo-suite to have a chat and a catch with
one his legendary ballplayer heroes. Sisko was on a starship with his wife and
son at the famous encounter with the Borg led by the Borgified Picard, and his
wife was killed. That leads to bitterness toward Picard. Picard: Have we met
before? Sisko: Yes, we met in battle. Since that tragedy, he has been assigned
to shore duty on Mars where he was on the team reconstructing the fleet at
Utopia Benecia Yards. Sisko objected to being assigned to DS9. He told
Starfleet he had a son to raise and had been asking for an Earth assignment,
not this. His important work on DS9 gives him a new direction, but his is
still very much a life framed by tragedy.
Major Kira, a former major in the Bejoran underground. Kira is now an
outspoken critic of the provisional government. Having fought for freedom all
her life, it has angered her to see the older leaders throw it all away
through their petty dissensions. She has been trying without success to reach
the Kai herself to air her grievances. It is very possible she was sent by the
government to be the Bejoran administrator at the space station simply to get
her outspoken voice out of ear shot. [Addressing the audience:] This part was
to have been played by Ensign Ro, but Michelle decided she wanted to try to be
a movie star instead, so she turned it down. And its a shame because it was a
good character. But the characters just been renamed, the character will still
be there -- it just wont be Michelle whos playing it. [Reading again:] Kira
loathes the Cardassians. She committed atrocities against them in the name of
freedom, some of which bother her. But others in the Bejoran underground begin
a new wave of terrorism and she is forced into a moral quandary about tracking
them down and bringing them to justice. Former terrorists consider her a
turncoat.
Miles OBrien... will be played by Colm Meany. [Applause] OBrien has been the
transporter chief on NexGen for five years. This assignment represents a
promotion to Master Chief of Operations, and a tremendous career opportunity
for him. [ed: Not to mention Colm Meany.] He has a wife, Keiko, and a three
year-old baby girl, Molly. Molly just happens to be Rick Bermans three year-
old daughter. He will be in charge of the comings and goings of vessels, plus
the nuts and bolts maintenance of the station. Hes constantly frustrated by
the jerry-rigged way this place is put together. He saw the Cardassians commit
unspeakable atrocities and lost a close friend at the massacre at Setma III.
The war changed and hardened him. The first man he ever killed was a
Cardassian who jumped him on patrol. As he tells the story to another
Cardassian in the NexGen episode, The Wounded, I never killed anything before.
When I was a kid I would worry about having to swat a mosquito. Its not you I
hate, Cardassian: I hate what I became because of you.
Jadzia Dax is a science officer ranked lieutenant, an alien woman, very
attractive, late 20s. Dax is a Trill, the joint species first encountered in
the NexGen episode, The Host. A Trill is comprised of two separate but
interdependent entities -- a host and a symbiont. The host provided the
humanoid body, the symbiont is an invertebrate, androgynous life form that
lives within the host. It looks like a short, fat snake. Many centuries ago
[on the Trills home world], the symbionts lived underground while the
humanoids were on the surface. Due to an environmental disaster, they were
forced to join to survive. As time went on this mutual support evolved to
become a biological dependency, and thus two individuals became one. They
speak with one voice. The symbionts life span is far longer than the hosts
and, as a result, one symbiont will be combined with several hosts during its
life. When a host dies, doctors surgically remove the symbiont. The worm then
burrows itself into the new host. Daxs host was joined with her when she was
an adult. The symbiont part of her is 300 years old, a brilliant scientist
with an innate wisdom who can draw upon a library of knowledge built of six
lifetimes of experience. Kira forms a very close relationship with Dax and
often tells her to loosen up. Dax admires Kira for her youthful energy, her
purpose and her drive and becomes something of a mentor to her. Dax and Sisko
have worked together before; the only problem is that back then, Dax was still
in the host body of an elderly man and was something of a mentor to Sisko. Her
sexually appealing new form will create a certain tension between her and
Sisko, which they will both resist. After all, hes still having a hard time
getting used to the fact that shes a 300 year-old worm. But he does not hide
the respect and affection he has for her.
Odo, an alien male, middle-aged curmudgeon, and a shape-shifter. In his
natural state he is a gelatinous liquid. He was Bejoran law enforcement
officer on the space station under the Cardassians. Starfleet decides to have
him continue in that role, since hes extremely savvy about the Promenade and
all who frequent it. His back story is: 50 years ago, with no memory of his
past, he was found alone in a mysterious space craft that appeared in the
Denarias asteroid belt. He was found by the Bejoran and lived amongst them. At
first he was sort of an Elephant Man, a source of curiosity and humor as he
turned himself into a chair or pencil. Finally he realized he would have to
take the form of a humanoid to assimilate and function in their environment.
He does it, but resents it. As a result, Odo performs a uniquely important
role in the ensemble: he is a character who explores and comments on human
values. Because he is forced to pass as one of us, his point of view usually
comes with a cynical and critical edge. But he cant quite get it right, this
humanoid shape, though he continues to try. So he looks a little unfinished in
a way. Hes been working on it a long time. Someone might ask him: Why dont you
take the form of a younger man. His answer: I would if I could. He has the
adopted child syndrome, searching for his own personal identity. Although he
doesnt know anything about his species, he is certain that justice is an
integral part of their being, because the necessity for it runs through every
fiber of his body -- a racial memory. Thats why he became a law man. He has a
couple of Bejoran deputies; he doesnt allow weapons on the Promenade, and once
every day he must return to his gelatinous form.
Quark is the Ferengi bartender. The Ferengi race has been a part of NexGen
since the very beginning. They are ugly, sexist, greedy little aliens who are
interested only in profit and getting their hands on anything of yours they
happen to fancy. Quark runs many of the entertainment concessions on DS9,
including the bar, restaurant, gambling house, and the holo-suites upstairs
where your every fantasy can be played out. He spends most of his time behind
the bar. If there is some scam being run in the sector it often involves him.
But beyond the mal-evolence he is a charming host, in a Ferengi sort of way,
and forges an interesting relationship with Sisko. They actually enjoy
sparring together now and then. The Ferengi lends a hand to dissolve a problem
for the commander -- as long as theres something in it for him. His completely
sexist attitude makes Kira an obvious adversary, and he is consumed with
passion for Dax.
Then we have Dr. Julian Amoros -- human male, mid 20s, rank of lieutenant
commander, fresh out of Starfleet, graduated second in class, brilliant
specialist in multi-species medicine. He arrives at DS9 with gung-ho
expectations about adventures in Starfleet. Hes naive and charming and cocky
all at the same time. Hes chosen this remote outpost instead of the cushy job
he was offered at Starfleet medical because this is where the action is, where
heroes are made, in the wilderness. Dr. Amoros is still wet behind the ears
and has a lot to learn. He is the antithesis of Kira who is street wise savvy
but wiser and cynical. OBrien becomes Amoros confidant As a man who has seen
combat and a decorated veteran of Starfleet duty, OBrien represents an ideal
to the young doctor. Julian greatly respects Sisko, but is terrified of him.
He is anxious to live up the commanders expectations. Sisko is amused by
Julian and is very patient with him.
Recurring Characters. Jake Sisko, the commanders son. An Army brat who
doesnt remember life on Earth, has been aboard four different starships, and
stationed on two planets. This transient life style has taught him how to
scope out a new terrain and assimilate quickly. At the same time he has an
inner fear of forming new friendships because he loses them so easily. He
dreams of going to live on Earth. He collects holodeck programs of various
places on Earth that he uses to try to fulfill his fantasy. Deep inside he
knows that his mom would still be alive if they did not live in space, and he
has a suppressed bitterness about it. His father promised there would be other
kids on the station; as it turns out there are only a handful of various alien
species. Only one is his age, Nog, a Ferengi teenage boy who is a bad
influence. Jake is close with his dad; they are buddies. The boy has no
technical expertise at all [great applause]. He struggles with his homework
but is dedicated to doing his best.
Keiko is OBriens wife. She wondered what a botanist would do on a space
station -- she was happy on the Enterprise -- but she agreed that the
promotion was an incredible opportunity for her husband. Shes not entirely
happy on DS9, and in the early episodes she sees serious shortcomings in the
educational facilities and volunteers to be the station's tutor.
Then theres Lwaxana Troi. [Loud applause: Im with you!] Lwaxana is Deannas
mother, established on NexGen as the Auntie Mame of the galaxy. When
circumstances bring her to the space station she forms a romantic attachment
to Odo and finds reasons to come back to see him. He tries to discourage her:
Maam, I turn into a liquid form at night. Lwaxana: I can swim. [Audience glee:
Boy, were off and running.]
One of the other Ferengi who works for Quark is his teenage son, Nog, who
becomes friends of the commanders son. Nog is a bad boy, the kind of kid your
parents didnt want you to associate with.
And Gil Ducket is a 40s male, deceptively amiable Cardassian commander who
represents the continuing threat to our people. The military empire and its
borders are only a short distance away from Bejor and DS9. He used to be the
Prefect of the Bejoran province when it was under Cardassian denomination.
Thus he is the former landlord of the space station.
Kai Apaka is the spiritual leader of Bejor, who provides sharp counterpoint
to the secular nature of Starfleet. She challenges conventional human logic.
The Kai seems to have an awareness on a higher plane of consciousness and
knows things she cannot possibly know. Although our people do not accepts her
powers at face value, we cannot always explain them, either. She speaks in
vague, mystical indirect language, forcing her listeners to seek her meaning.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine brings into the Star Trek universe an original
set of characters as diverse and memorable as the crews of the first two
series. It also provides far more interpersonal conflict than weve seen before
in the 24th century. If, as Gene Roddenberry always said, Star Trek is wagon
train to space, then think of Deep Space Nine as Fort Laramie on the edge of
the frontier.
[Closing the Bible...] This one is going to have a lot more humor, a lot
more probably what youd call action, and a little sex and violence. Were going
to mix it up a little bit. I hesitate to use the word violence -- youre all
going to get the wrong idea. But I think you know what I mean. Its not going
to be even as cerebral as Star Trek. So... Im going to take questions now.
Q: Did Gene have anything to do with this?!
Majel: [Laughing] Uh, he knew about it, but he was not about to become
involved. He had done what he wanted to do and that was it. He just wished
them Godspeed and go ahead. And as long as the name Star Trek is on it, yes,
the estate will have a part of the action.
Q: Will there be NexGen movies?
Majel: NexGen actors have all signed on for a seventh year -- at least most
of them have. There will be a seventh season, for sure. They were trying to
get everybody to go for eight, but theyve so far resisted it. I have a feeling
that if were still in the ratings the way we are now -- which is just
incredible -- I cant see Paramount letting it die. What really could happen
is, when this group graduates to movies, they might keep some of them on and
fill in the other parts with new people. You know, captains change, and other
officers change -- or they could go for a whole new cast and just keep on
filling it in. I think Paramount is now at the stage where they feel that its
the vehicle that is the important thing -- and theyre just going to keep it
going as long as you guys want it... Under these circumstances, the 7th movie
wouldnt happen for at least another three years. I can't see Paramount letting
it go that long. There was some talk -- again, its only a rumor -- about
perhaps trying to do another one with the old cast. Excuse the expression!
They [the NexGen actors] work 8-9 months a year now, and only get two and a
half months off, which isnt enough time to do a movie. And when you sell to
syndication, those people buy 26 episodes, youve got to make em 26 episodes.
Thats your contract and thats what has to be delivered. You cant say, Well,
fellas, well only give you 20 this year.
With Deep Space coming, what theyll be doing is running them in tandem. The
NexGen will introduce Deep Space Nine, so in your home town, whatever station
is carrying the NexGen does not have it backed up with Deep Space, yell at em.
Theyll listen to you. Really! It is being offered to the stations that are
already carrying Next Generation. Other stations were coming in and saying,
Well give you more money than you were asking for, and for a while I think
Paramount toyed with it, then decided this was not real good public relations.
So they went back and offered it on the same basis that the Next Generation is
picked up on. And most of them have picked it up. If your channel has not,
honest, yell at em! They listen to things like that.
Q: Since Genes death have you had different relations with the studio than
before? i.e., Are you filling in where Gene was?
Majel: No, not really. Thats not my job, thats not my input. I stay away
from all the creative heads of it and just go ahead and let them do their job.
Gene had a marvelous machine going, and its well-oiled and beautifully trained
and its working like magic and all they need is someone to stick their nose
in. I have no contractual arrangements in any capacity -- at all.
Q: Last November or December the Star Trek office was closed. What is the
status of that? Is there any hope of getting it opened?
Majel: Oh, the Star Trek office? Its not closed. Its just not Genes office
anymore. Its up in Rick and Mikes office. I mean, you ask for Star Trek and
thats what youll get. So his office was not really closed. Its just that his
physical office was closed. You know, there was really no need to keep it
open. You know, why have somebody sitting there doing nothing. All the mail
comes to the house anyway, so... No, there arent any real big changes.
Q: Will Deep Space Nine be carrying a handicapped character?
Majel: Not the way it is right now. They had, at one point, a very, very
interesting character they said they worked and worked and worked on, and they
just couldnt get the character to work. It was a doctor, and it was a female,
and she was wheelchair bound because, theres no gravity on her original
planet, and everybody floats. When everybody came to see her in her lab, they
would have to be in a wheelchair, because there would be no gravity. It was a
very interesting character, but they said they just couldnt make it work in
connection with the other characters.
--- GoldED 2.40.P0720
* Origin: USS Galifrey, Regina SK Canada, (306)949-6032 (FidoNet 1:140/1701)
Q: My question is a little personal. I dont want to make it too difficult
for you, but you probably know better than anyone else how to answer this
question: Do you think Gene was happy being remembered mainly for Star Trek?
Or did he ever sometimes wish that people would remember the other things that
he did in his life?
Majel: Oh, Ill tell you that for awhile it was kind of touch and go. He
said, I dont want to go away with my epitaph saying, this is a tribute to the
man who created Star Trek. And then it got to the point where Star Trek became
a world and he could work on other projects and other things. And then it
became a challenge. And then he worked so hard to get you people interested
and get his ideas and everything across. And it finally became his life. By
the end he really loved it. He was very, very appreciative of everything that
had happened and I think its rather remarkable that he was allowed to live
long enough to see and reap some of the benefits of this, too, and to know how
much people loved him and his show and his ideas and how part of his vision
was coming true. I think that was the most important part. If there would be
one thing that would be put on his epitaph, this is what he said: I would like
to see it say that He loved humanity. I would say that by the looks of
everyone here, humanity loved him too.
Q: Im a really big virtual reality fan and Im really glad that you guys put
the holo-deck on the Next Generation. Ive heard a lot of rumors about the
Elementary, My Dear Data episode. Why wasnt there ever a sequel to it? Are
they planning one?
Majel: No. Cant. Its the Arthur Conan Doyle thing. I thought it was
absolutely delightful and charming. And they wanted to do more with the
character, but the estate came in and said uh-unh, not on your life. I think
its a big, big mistake. It gave new life and dimension to the characters. Its
the same thing as when Gene wrote Tarzan. He did a combination of Tarzan and
John Carter from Mars -- seeing as how the same author wrote them both. So he
put them together and it got very, very sexy. Course I tell you, he went
overboard on the Tarzan thing. There were green monsters and all sorts of
..... well I cant even talk about it in todays market. The Burroughs estate
took one look at it and said, Are you crazy? They said they werent going to
let this squeaky clean character that they had built for so many years be
tarnished by making love to strange green women in the middle of the jungle.
Which is what Gene had them doing.
But some of them get very protective. And I think, basically thats what you
writers here might keep in mind, also. I think to a certain degree, I know
that you didnt like the idea that Gene did as much supervising on your scripts
or as much tearing apart on your scripts or your stories as he did. But, he
had a vision, too. And I have a theory on that. I almost have to go along with
the Doyle Estate and the Tarzan Estate. If you dont like the world that Gene
created, if you cant live within his universe, go write your own. Leave his
alone. Dont write in brothers and sisters and things like this. It had gotten
to the point where everybody kinda thought that these were real people. And
they say what happened to so and so? Its like whos that? Its Spocks sister.
Spock doesnt have a sister! We never wrote that in. But you guys did, and
thats what Gene took objection to. Work within the framework of it. I think
thats what the estates are trying to say, too: We created the character; dont
screw it up.
Q: Youve invented so many marvelous characters. Where did these characters
come from? And what are their pasts? And how did they get to where they were
and everything?
Majel: I think that this particular show, after five years, has done a
rather remarkable job of exploring some of those things, whereas the original
show did not. Theyre two entirely different shows. They have very little
similarity. I think the way to describe them is that the first one is more of
a fantasy type of thing. If this kind of space travel were possible in the
future this is the way we would like it to be. In the Next Generation I think
were a little more realistic to say if this kind of space travel were possible
this is the way it will be. And I think thats one of your basic, main
differences. You see, cause Star Trek the television series was just that. It
was seventy-nine episodes of a television series made for the purposes of
entertainment and to sell soap and toothpaste. But Star Trek the legend --now
that was an ideal. Thats a vision. That was Genes vision and it encompassed
humanity, unity, peace and love. And to quote Genes own words, Civilization
will reach wisdom and mat-urity on the day it learns to value diversity of
character and ideas. To be different is not necessarily to be ugly. To have a
different idea is not necessarily to be wrong. The worst thing that could
possibly happen is for all of us to look and think and act alike. For if we
can not learn to appreciate the small variations of our own kind here on
earth, then God help us if we get out into space and meet the variations that
are almost certainly out there.
I think I rambled on that. Did I get anywhere near the question? I think we
have done a lot of exploration of the characters.
Q: When will Deep Space Nine be on the air?
Majel: It will be on January of 93. We start filming in August. The sets
are already being built. And were taking up three stages, which means that the
Star Trek productions will have six permanent stages on the Paramount lot --
something unheard of.
Q: Do you think the two series running together will take anything away
from either one?
Majel: I dont think so. Supposing you liked one and didnt like the other?
You know how to use the on and off button. No, I dont think so.
Q: Will ILM be doing the special effects?
Majel: Everything is crossing over. So, what we use on one well be using on
the other. Its going to be one big happy family. Itll be two shows, but one
group. Michael is going to oversee the makeup on both of them. Bob Blackman is
going to oversee the costumes on all of them. Itll have the same beautiful,
marvelous technicians. We hired the best, now we just sit back and let them do
their work.
--
Subject: Deep Space Nine Bible
Message-ID: <18m6mvINN6le@agate.berkeley.edu>
Date: 10 Sep 92 01:00:15 GMT
Organization: Vulcan Science Academy, Tau Ceti Sector
Lines: 487
Hello--I pulled this off AOL last week and wondered if it might be something
you could use. (Not sure if you have a length limitation or not.)
Carol Hendrick
Internet: hendrickca@phibred.com
AOL: CarolH
____________________________________________________________________________
[Editors Note: The following ran in issue #24 of CCSTSG Enterprises, the
monthly newsletter of the Central Connecticut Star Trek Support Group (7
Quarry St./Vernon, CT 06066, for more info), a few weeks ago. At Shore Leave
14, in Hunt Valley, MD, on the weekend of July 11-12, 1992, Majel Barrett
Roddenberry addressed the large audience on the subject of Deep Space Nine by
reading extensive excerpts out of the writers bible and answering questions.
She also made some interesting comments on other issues surrounding Trek in
the post-Gene era. I captured Majels presentation on tape and transcribed it
for my newsletter. Note: I have verified the spelling of proper names where
possible, but some discrepancies may exist.]
Majel Barrett Roddenberry speaking:
The first thing Id really like to do is to thank all of you who did send
cards and letters last year. Ive come to tell you that I appreciate it from
the bottom of my heart. Ive tried to send back thank-you notes to everyone. I
hope you all got them. The second thing I want to thank you for is having me
back here again. I think it was probably about four or five years ago that I
was here before. It could be twenty eight as far as I know -- I dont know, Ive
been hanging around Star Trek that long.
Now, I dont talk, I dont give speeches or anything like that. Gene did that.
And I dont sing -- Michelle does that. Jimmy tells jokes with an accent. All I
do is gossip, so... So basically, Im here for you to ask me questions and Ill
try to answer them. If I dont know the answer, Ill make one up.
What I am going to do, though, in whatever order youd like it, is to tell
you about Deep Space Nine. I have the Bible with me. You cant have it, Im not
allowed to sell it to you or give it to you, or let you look at it, but I
certainly can read it to you. If you would like me to start with that I will.
[Applause] Okay. It would take me a long time to read it word for word, so Im
going to do a little bit of skipping, but youre going to get the general idea:
[Reading from the series bible:] Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, the series,
set in the next generation of Star Trek lore, follows a team of Starfleet
officers who take command of an alien space station situated near the Bejoran
Worm Hole, one of the most strategic locations in the galaxy. The Bejoran Worm
Hole. Worm holes, simply put, are shortcuts through space. You go in one end,
come out the other in seconds to find yourself billions of kilometers away.
All known worm holes previously encountered in the Star Trek universe have
been unstable. Their ends can whip randomly around the universe, and they last
for brief periods of time before collapsing. But in our pilot episode, the
first stable worm hole is discovered near the Denarias asteroid field close to
the planet Bejor. Like other worm holes it is only visible when an object
enters or exits through it. A brief journey through the Bejoran Worm Hole will
take a starship to the Gamma Quadrant, normally a sixty-year journey at
warp 9. The ride is a spectacular light show: very brilliant colors surround
the ship, while inside, strange visual distortions affect perceptions as
passengers tear through the space-time continuum. This worm hole is a new
passage way to hundreds of unexplored sectors of space and it will turn Bejor
into the leading center of commerce and scientific exploration in the sector,
attracting travelers from all over the galaxy. In the first episode, we learn
that the worm hole has been artificially created by a species of aliens that
do not live in the same space-time continuum as we do. Thus, we encounter them
unexpectedly within the worm hole itself. They have been sending out orb-like
probes from the worm hole, one orb every century for a thousand years, seeking
contact with other life forms.
The Backstory. The Cardassians and Bejora are known to Star Trek audiences. A
century ago the Cardassians conquered the planet Bejor, an ancient society
dedicated to spiritual pursuits. The mysterious orbs that have arrived each
century are among the fundamental sacraments of the Bejoran religion. Bejoran
terrorism during the last several decades has been a significant problem for
the Cardassians. Just before our series begins, the Cardassians have completed
mining operations on Bejor, stripping the planet of all its resources. They
have decided to unilaterally withdraw from Bejoran space and give up the
headaches that the Bejoran have caused them.
Well, they have not left quietly and in revenge for the years of terrorism,
the Cardassians ravaged the planet, poisoned the wells, scorched the ground
and, striking at the heart of the Bejoran people, have desecrated the ancient
monastery that is the center of spiritual life. The Bejoran desperately need
help. Theyve asked for membership in the Federation and have been granted
preliminary acceptance. But the political situation on the planet is terribly
unstable: factions that have been united in opposition to Cardassian rule have
resumed age-old conflicts. The Starfleet teams mission is to spearhead the
arduous diplomatic and scientific efforts that accompany the lengthy entry
procedure. All of this is about to be complicated by the discovery of the worm
hole.
Deep Space Nine. The station designated DS9 by Starfleet was assembled
haphazardly over several years by Cardassian and Bejoran work teams and
anybody else who happened to offer services at a premium. It was used by the
Cardassians primarily to monitor mining operations on Bejor and to service
incoming and outgoing crews. About two hundred people, mostly Bejorans, still
live there. By episode three, there will be about fifty Starfleet officers and
crewmen stationed there. When the Cardassians abandoned Bejor they stripped
the station of all advanced technology and defense capability and the
Starfleet team has a huge job of making it operational again. In fact, it will
never work up to our re-quirements and will always be causing the engineering
crew a lot of headaches.
The Ops controls are a hub of activity; there are shuttle bays for smaller
vessels. On a given day there might be anywhere from 10 to 300 visitors to
DS9, as ships come through with foreigners, scientists, merchants, and spies.
Most of the visitors stay on their ships but there are special quarters for
some guests. In the first episode, we learn that the ships power sources are
destructive to the ionic field that is home to the aliens who created the worm
hole and live within a different timeframe. During that experience, we are
told how to travel through without harming them.
One aspect of life on the space station hasnt changed since the departure of
the Cardassians. During their tenure they sold commercial concessions to the
highest bidder to provide services to the mining crews. The result is the
Promenade. Unlike any space interior ever seen on Star Trek, its somewhere
between a free port and a flea market, bustling with aliens of all sorts when
a ships in, intriguing and unusual characters at every bend. Theres gambling
and smuggling, alien grifters at work here, bars with sexual holo-suites
upstairs. Right next to the traditional ships stores are the Bejoran temple
and the kiosk serving live food. Part of the job of the Starfleet team will be
to try to tame this honky tonk atmosphere. They will have Runabouts [ed: a new
class of smaller ships], which allow our characters to travel to numerous star
systems with a maximum speed of 4.7, operated by a two-man crew, with a single
pilot in control if necessary. They can transport up to forty people, but
thats a crowd. There are cramped, uncomfortable sleeping quarters for six
people.
Bejor. Bejor is the world we will visit most often because of its proximity to
the space station. Striking architecture with rounded domes and spherical
shapes mark the landscape. The ancient Bejora were great architects and
engineers before humans were standing erect. The people are deeply mystical.
On their planet we will find monks who meditate and chant in chords. They are
people who believe in spiritual phenomenon, are devoted to a nonsecular
philosophy that goes against the Federations logical, scientific way of life.
Their religious leader, known as the Kai, is curious and insightful and
develops a strong bond with our Commander.
The Characters. Benjamin Sisko, human Starfleet commander with a twelve year-
old son, whose gentle, strong, soft spoken demeanor belies the temper that he
is constantly trying to control. And when he loses it, he gets furious with
himself. Hes a man of action who gets impatient with too much talk, but as he
has become more mature, hes learned to stop and think twice about losing
control. He has a weakness for baseball, a sport that died out in the 22nd
century and he frequently goes to a holo-suite to have a chat and a catch with
one his legendary ballplayer heroes. Sisko was on a starship with his wife and
son at the famous encounter with the Borg led by the Borgified Picard, and his
wife was killed. That leads to bitterness toward Picard. Picard: Have we met
before? Sisko: Yes, we met in battle. Since that tragedy, he has been assigned
to shore duty on Mars where he was on the team reconstructing the fleet at
Utopia Benecia Yards. Sisko objected to being assigned to DS9. He told
Starfleet he had a son to raise and had been asking for an Earth assignment,
not this. His important work on DS9 gives him a new direction, but his is
still very much a life framed by tragedy.
Major Kira, a former major in the Bejoran underground. Kira is now an
outspoken critic of the provisional government. Having fought for freedom all
her life, it has angered her to see the older leaders throw it all away
through their petty dissensions. She has been trying without success to reach
the Kai herself to air her grievances. It is very possible she was sent by the
government to be the Bejoran administrator at the space station simply to get
her outspoken voice out of ear shot. [Addressing the audience:] This part was
to have been played by Ensign Ro, but Michelle decided she wanted to try to be
a movie star instead, so she turned it down. And its a shame because it was a
good character. But the characters just been renamed, the character will still
be there -- it just wont be Michelle whos playing it. [Reading again:] Kira
loathes the Cardassians. She committed atrocities against them in the name of
freedom, some of which bother her. But others in the Bejoran underground begin
a new wave of terrorism and she is forced into a moral quandary about tracking
them down and bringing them to justice. Former terrorists consider her a
turncoat.
Miles OBrien... will be played by Colm Meany. [Applause] OBrien has been the
transporter chief on NexGen for five years. This assignment represents a
promotion to Master Chief of Operations, and a tremendous career opportunity
for him. [ed: Not to mention Colm Meany.] He has a wife, Keiko, and a three
year-old baby girl, Molly. Molly just happens to be Rick Bermans three year-
old daughter. He will be in charge of the comings and goings of vessels, plus
the nuts and bolts maintenance of the station. Hes constantly frustrated by
the jerry-rigged way this place is put together. He saw the Cardassians commit
unspeakable atrocities and lost a close friend at the massacre at Setma III.
The war changed and hardened him. The first man he ever killed was a
Cardassian who jumped him on patrol. As he tells the story to another
Cardassian in the NexGen episode, The Wounded, I never killed anything before.
When I was a kid I would worry about having to swat a mosquito. Its not you I
hate, Cardassian: I hate what I became because of you.
Jadzia Dax is a science officer ranked lieutenant, an alien woman, very
attractive, late 20s. Dax is a Trill, the joint species first encountered in
the NexGen episode, The Host. A Trill is comprised of two separate but
interdependent entities -- a host and a symbiont. The host provided the
humanoid body, the symbiont is an invertebrate, androgynous life form that
lives within the host. It looks like a short, fat snake. Many centuries ago
[on the Trills home world], the symbionts lived underground while the
humanoids were on the surface. Due to an environmental disaster, they were
forced to join to survive. As time went on this mutual support evolved to
become a biological dependency, and thus two individuals became one. They
speak with one voice. The symbionts life span is far longer than the hosts
and, as a result, one symbiont will be combined with several hosts during its
life. When a host dies, doctors surgically remove the symbiont. The worm then
burrows itself into the new host. Daxs host was joined with her when she was
an adult. The symbiont part of her is 300 years old, a brilliant scientist
with an innate wisdom who can draw upon a library of knowledge built of six
lifetimes of experience. Kira forms a very close relationship with Dax and
often tells her to loosen up. Dax admires Kira for her youthful energy, her
purpose and her drive and becomes something of a mentor to her. Dax and Sisko
have worked together before; the only problem is that back then, Dax was still
in the host body of an elderly man and was something of a mentor to Sisko. Her
sexually appealing new form will create a certain tension between her and
Sisko, which they will both resist. After all, hes still having a hard time
getting used to the fact that shes a 300 year-old worm. But he does not hide
the respect and affection he has for her.
Odo, an alien male, middle-aged curmudgeon, and a shape-shifter. In his
natural state he is a gelatinous liquid. He was Bejoran law enforcement
officer on the space station under the Cardassians. Starfleet decides to have
him continue in that role, since hes extremely savvy about the Promenade and
all who frequent it. His back story is: 50 years ago, with no memory of his
past, he was found alone in a mysterious space craft that appeared in the
Denarias asteroid belt. He was found by the Bejoran and lived amongst them. At
first he was sort of an Elephant Man, a source of curiosity and humor as he
turned himself into a chair or pencil. Finally he realized he would have to
take the form of a humanoid to assimilate and function in their environment.
He does it, but resents it. As a result, Odo performs a uniquely important
role in the ensemble: he is a character who explores and comments on human
values. Because he is forced to pass as one of us, his point of view usually
comes with a cynical and critical edge. But he cant quite get it right, this
humanoid shape, though he continues to try. So he looks a little unfinished in
a way. Hes been working on it a long time. Someone might ask him: Why dont you
take the form of a younger man. His answer: I would if I could. He has the
adopted child syndrome, searching for his own personal identity. Although he
doesnt know anything about his species, he is certain that justice is an
integral part of their being, because the necessity for it runs through every
fiber of his body -- a racial memory. Thats why he became a law man. He has a
couple of Bejoran deputies; he doesnt allow weapons on the Promenade, and once
every day he must return to his gelatinous form.
Quark is the Ferengi bartender. The Ferengi race has been a part of NexGen
since the very beginning. They are ugly, sexist, greedy little aliens who are
interested only in profit and getting their hands on anything of yours they
happen to fancy. Quark runs many of the entertainment concessions on DS9,
including the bar, restaurant, gambling house, and the holo-suites upstairs
where your every fantasy can be played out. He spends most of his time behind
the bar. If there is some scam being run in the sector it often involves him.
But beyond the mal-evolence he is a charming host, in a Ferengi sort of way,
and forges an interesting relationship with Sisko. They actually enjoy
sparring together now and then. The Ferengi lends a hand to dissolve a problem
for the commander -- as long as theres something in it for him. His completely
sexist attitude makes Kira an obvious adversary, and he is consumed with
passion for Dax.
Then we have Dr. Julian Amoros -- human male, mid 20s, rank of lieutenant
commander, fresh out of Starfleet, graduated second in class, brilliant
specialist in multi-species medicine. He arrives at DS9 with gung-ho
expectations about adventures in Starfleet. Hes naive and charming and cocky
all at the same time. Hes chosen this remote outpost instead of the cushy job
he was offered at Starfleet medical because this is where the action is, where
heroes are made, in the wilderness. Dr. Amoros is still wet behind the ears
and has a lot to learn. He is the antithesis of Kira who is street wise savvy
but wiser and cynical. OBrien becomes Amoros confidant As a man who has seen
combat and a decorated veteran of Starfleet duty, OBrien represents an ideal
to the young doctor. Julian greatly respects Sisko, but is terrified of him.
He is anxious to live up the commanders expectations. Sisko is amused by
Julian and is very patient with him.
Recurring Characters. Jake Sisko, the commanders son. An Army brat who
doesnt remember life on Earth, has been aboard four different starships, and
stationed on two planets. This transient life style has taught him how to
scope out a new terrain and assimilate quickly. At the same time he has an
inner fear of forming new friendships because he loses them so easily. He
dreams of going to live on Earth. He collects holodeck programs of various
places on Earth that he uses to try to fulfill his fantasy. Deep inside he
knows that his mom would still be alive if they did not live in space, and he
has a suppressed bitterness about it. His father promised there would be other
kids on the station; as it turns out there are only a handful of various alien
species. Only one is his age, Nog, a Ferengi teenage boy who is a bad
influence. Jake is close with his dad; they are buddies. The boy has no
technical expertise at all [great applause]. He struggles with his homework
but is dedicated to doing his best.
Keiko is OBriens wife. She wondered what a botanist would do on a space
station -- she was happy on the Enterprise -- but she agreed that the
promotion was an incredible opportunity for her husband. Shes not entirely
happy on DS9, and in the early episodes she sees serious shortcomings in the
educational facilities and volunteers to be the station's tutor.
Then theres Lwaxana Troi. [Loud applause: Im with you!] Lwaxana is Deannas
mother, established on NexGen as the Auntie Mame of the galaxy. When
circumstances bring her to the space station she forms a romantic attachment
to Odo and finds reasons to come back to see him. He tries to discourage her:
Maam, I turn into a liquid form at night. Lwaxana: I can swim. [Audience glee:
Boy, were off and running.]
One of the other Ferengi who works for Quark is his teenage son, Nog, who
becomes friends of the commanders son. Nog is a bad boy, the kind of kid your
parents didnt want you to associate with.
And Gil Ducket is a 40s male, deceptively amiable Cardassian commander who
represents the continuing threat to our people. The military empire and its
borders are only a short distance away from Bejor and DS9. He used to be the
Prefect of the Bejoran province when it was under Cardassian denomination.
Thus he is the former landlord of the space station.
Kai Apaka is the spiritual leader of Bejor, who provides sharp counterpoint
to the secular nature of Starfleet. She challenges conventional human logic.
The Kai seems to have an awareness on a higher plane of consciousness and
knows things she cannot possibly know. Although our people do not accepts her
powers at face value, we cannot always explain them, either. She speaks in
vague, mystical indirect language, forcing her listeners to seek her meaning.
Star Trek: Deep Space Nine brings into the Star Trek universe an original
set of characters as diverse and memorable as the crews of the first two
series. It also provides far more interpersonal conflict than weve seen before
in the 24th century. If, as Gene Roddenberry always said, Star Trek is wagon
train to space, then think of Deep Space Nine as Fort Laramie on the edge of
the frontier.
[Closing the Bible...] This one is going to have a lot more humor, a lot
more probably what youd call action, and a little sex and violence. Were going
to mix it up a little bit. I hesitate to use the word violence -- youre all
going to get the wrong idea. But I think you know what I mean. Its not going
to be even as cerebral as Star Trek. So... Im going to take questions now.
Q: Did Gene have anything to do with this?!
Majel: [Laughing] Uh, he knew about it, but he was not about to become
involved. He had done what he wanted to do and that was it. He just wished
them Godspeed and go ahead. And as long as the name Star Trek is on it, yes,
the estate will have a part of the action.
Q: Will there be NexGen movies?
Majel: NexGen actors have all signed on for a seventh year -- at least most
of them have. There will be a seventh season, for sure. They were trying to
get everybody to go for eight, but theyve so far resisted it. I have a feeling
that if were still in the ratings the way we are now -- which is just
incredible -- I cant see Paramount letting it die. What really could happen
is, when this group graduates to movies, they might keep some of them on and
fill in the other parts with new people. You know, captains change, and other
officers change -- or they could go for a whole new cast and just keep on
filling it in. I think Paramount is now at the stage where they feel that its
the vehicle that is the important thing -- and theyre just going to keep it
going as long as you guys want it... Under these circumstances, the 7th movie
wouldnt happen for at least another three years. I can't see Paramount letting
it go that long. There was some talk -- again, its only a rumor -- about
perhaps trying to do another one with the old cast. Excuse the expression!
They [the NexGen actors] work 8-9 months a year now, and only get two and a
half months off, which isnt enough time to do a movie. And when you sell to
syndication, those people buy 26 episodes, youve got to make em 26 episodes.
Thats your contract and thats what has to be delivered. You cant say, Well,
fellas, well only give you 20 this year.
With Deep Space coming, what theyll be doing is running them in tandem. The
NexGen will introduce Deep Space Nine, so in your home town, whatever station
is carrying the NexGen does not have it backed up with Deep Space, yell at em.
Theyll listen to you. Really! It is being offered to the stations that are
already carrying Next Generation. Other stations were coming in and saying,
Well give you more money than you were asking for, and for a while I think
Paramount toyed with it, then decided this was not real good public relations.
So they went back and offered it on the same basis that the Next Generation is
picked up on. And most of them have picked it up. If your channel has not,
honest, yell at em! They listen to things like that.
Q: Since Genes death have you had different relations with the studio than
before? i.e., Are you filling in where Gene was?
Majel: No, not really. Thats not my job, thats not my input. I stay away
from all the creative heads of it and just go ahead and let them do their job.
Gene had a marvelous machine going, and its well-oiled and beautifully trained
and its working like magic and all they need is someone to stick their nose
in. I have no contractual arrangements in any capacity -- at all.
Q: Last November or December the Star Trek office was closed. What is the
status of that? Is there any hope of getting it opened?
Majel: Oh, the Star Trek office? Its not closed. Its just not Genes office
anymore. Its up in Rick and Mikes office. I mean, you ask for Star Trek and
thats what youll get. So his office was not really closed. Its just that his
physical office was closed. You know, there was really no need to keep it
open. You know, why have somebody sitting there doing nothing. All the mail
comes to the house anyway, so... No, there arent any real big changes.
Q: Will Deep Space Nine be carrying a handicapped character?
Majel: Not the way it is right now. They had, at one point, a very, very
interesting character they said they worked and worked and worked on, and they
just couldnt get the character to work. It was a doctor, and it was a female,
and she was wheelchair bound because, theres no gravity on her original
planet, and everybody floats. When everybody came to see her in her lab, they
would have to be in a wheelchair, because there would be no gravity. It was a
very interesting character, but they said they just couldnt make it work in
connection with the other characters.
--- GoldED 2.40.P0720
* Origin: USS Galifrey, Regina SK Canada, (306)949-6032 (FidoNet 1:140/1701)
Q: My question is a little personal. I dont want to make it too difficult
for you, but you probably know better than anyone else how to answer this
question: Do you think Gene was happy being remembered mainly for Star Trek?
Or did he ever sometimes wish that people would remember the other things that
he did in his life?
Majel: Oh, Ill tell you that for awhile it was kind of touch and go. He
said, I dont want to go away with my epitaph saying, this is a tribute to the
man who created Star Trek. And then it got to the point where Star Trek became
a world and he could work on other projects and other things. And then it
became a challenge. And then he worked so hard to get you people interested
and get his ideas and everything across. And it finally became his life. By
the end he really loved it. He was very, very appreciative of everything that
had happened and I think its rather remarkable that he was allowed to live
long enough to see and reap some of the benefits of this, too, and to know how
much people loved him and his show and his ideas and how part of his vision
was coming true. I think that was the most important part. If there would be
one thing that would be put on his epitaph, this is what he said: I would like
to see it say that He loved humanity. I would say that by the looks of
everyone here, humanity loved him too.
Q: Im a really big virtual reality fan and Im really glad that you guys put
the holo-deck on the Next Generation. Ive heard a lot of rumors about the
Elementary, My Dear Data episode. Why wasnt there ever a sequel to it? Are
they planning one?
Majel: No. Cant. Its the Arthur Conan Doyle thing. I thought it was
absolutely delightful and charming. And they wanted to do more with the
character, but the estate came in and said uh-unh, not on your life. I think
its a big, big mistake. It gave new life and dimension to the characters. Its
the same thing as when Gene wrote Tarzan. He did a combination of Tarzan and
John Carter from Mars -- seeing as how the same author wrote them both. So he
put them together and it got very, very sexy. Course I tell you, he went
overboard on the Tarzan thing. There were green monsters and all sorts of
..... well I cant even talk about it in todays market. The Burroughs estate
took one look at it and said, Are you crazy? They said they werent going to
let this squeaky clean character that they had built for so many years be
tarnished by making love to strange green women in the middle of the jungle.
Which is what Gene had them doing.
But some of them get very protective. And I think, basically thats what you
writers here might keep in mind, also. I think to a certain degree, I know
that you didnt like the idea that Gene did as much supervising on your scripts
or as much tearing apart on your scripts or your stories as he did. But, he
had a vision, too. And I have a theory on that. I almost have to go along with
the Doyle Estate and the Tarzan Estate. If you dont like the world that Gene
created, if you cant live within his universe, go write your own. Leave his
alone. Dont write in brothers and sisters and things like this. It had gotten
to the point where everybody kinda thought that these were real people. And
they say what happened to so and so? Its like whos that? Its Spocks sister.
Spock doesnt have a sister! We never wrote that in. But you guys did, and
thats what Gene took objection to. Work within the framework of it. I think
thats what the estates are trying to say, too: We created the character; dont
screw it up.
Q: Youve invented so many marvelous characters. Where did these characters
come from? And what are their pasts? And how did they get to where they were
and everything?
Majel: I think that this particular show, after five years, has done a
rather remarkable job of exploring some of those things, whereas the original
show did not. Theyre two entirely different shows. They have very little
similarity. I think the way to describe them is that the first one is more of
a fantasy type of thing. If this kind of space travel were possible in the
future this is the way we would like it to be. In the Next Generation I think
were a little more realistic to say if this kind of space travel were possible
this is the way it will be. And I think thats one of your basic, main
differences. You see, cause Star Trek the television series was just that. It
was seventy-nine episodes of a television series made for the purposes of
entertainment and to sell soap and toothpaste. But Star Trek the legend --now
that was an ideal. Thats a vision. That was Genes vision and it encompassed
humanity, unity, peace and love. And to quote Genes own words, Civilization
will reach wisdom and mat-urity on the day it learns to value diversity of
character and ideas. To be different is not necessarily to be ugly. To have a
different idea is not necessarily to be wrong. The worst thing that could
possibly happen is for all of us to look and think and act alike. For if we
can not learn to appreciate the small variations of our own kind here on
earth, then God help us if we get out into space and meet the variations that
are almost certainly out there.
I think I rambled on that. Did I get anywhere near the question? I think we
have done a lot of exploration of the characters.
Q: When will Deep Space Nine be on the air?
Majel: It will be on January of 93. We start filming in August. The sets
are already being built. And were taking up three stages, which means that the
Star Trek productions will have six permanent stages on the Paramount lot --
something unheard of.
Q: Do you think the two series running together will take anything away
from either one?
Majel: I dont think so. Supposing you liked one and didnt like the other?
You know how to use the on and off button. No, I dont think so.
Q: Will ILM be doing the special effects?
Majel: Everything is crossing over. So, what we use on one well be using on
the other. Its going to be one big happy family. Itll be two shows, but one
group. Michael is going to oversee the makeup on both of them. Bob Blackman is
going to oversee the costumes on all of them. Itll have the same beautiful,
marvelous technicians. We hired the best, now we just sit back and let them do
their work.
--
Comments
Post a Comment