Star Trek Turns 50

Today marks the 50th Anniversary of Star Trek. On this day 50 years ago the world got it's first glimpse into Gene Roddenberry's vision of the future. Gene teamed up with Deslu Production to create a first pilot for NBC.. they were not impressed but still liked the concept so they asked for a second pilot (which is extremely rare). But they recast the main leads and the show was born. It initially did really well in the ratings but towards the end of season 1 their rating started to decline. During season two the show was threaten with cancellation, but a letter writing campaign like no one had ever seen was started and saved Star Trek for a third season but with low ratings nothing could save this series. This crew and actors continued their adventures in the short-lived cartoon called Star Trek: The Animated Series and then moved on to do six feature films.

Years later Star Trek came back to TV with Star Trek: The Next Generation, which wound up being a HUGE hit and revitalized the franchise. This cast also did feature four films. As TNG started it's fifth of seven seasons they launched another series called Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and like with TNG when Deep Space Nine hit it's fifth season of seven they released another series titled Star Trek: Voyager which ran for seven seasons. We thought Trek was taking a break from TV but a few years later Enterprise was premiered. They removed Star Trek from the title but low ratings prompted them to add Star Trek back into to the title during it's third season but that didn't help this series and it only lasted four seasons. And with the fourth TNG cast Star Trek movie Nemesis not doing well at the box office it was time for Star Trek to take a break (for me personally it could have gone on for every as I loved every episode/movie of Trek).

In 2009, the film franchise underwent a "reboot" set in an alternate timeline, or "Kelvin Timeline," entitled simply Star Trek. This film featured a new cast portraying younger versions of the crew from the original show. They have made two additional movies Star Trek Into Darkness (2013). The thirteenth film feature and sequel, Star Trek Beyond (2016), was released to coincide with the franchise's 50th anniversary, future movies are in the works. A new Star Trek TV series, entitled Star Trek: Discovery, is set to premiere on the digital platform CBS All Access in the fall of 2017.

I remember watching Star Trek (now referred to as TOS - The Original Series) when I was a kid and enjoying it, but I didn't consider myself a true Trekkie until I started watching Star Trek The Next Generation, I joined season one about half way through the season and something just clicked with me... I feel in love with this series. When I heard they were making another series I was already on board and though DS9 took some time for me to love it did happen and I have to say that Star Trek Deep Space Nine is the best written Trek with some amazing season long over arching storylines. Then Voyager came along and they had a female captain so I was all in and it didn't disappoint. From the first episode I was hooked and Voyager would go on to be just under TNG as my favorite Trek. I was a bit skeptical when Enterprise came along as I wasn't a fan of going back to the past but I enjoyed this series. The first few seasons were okay but the third was pretty great with an overarching season long Xindi story and then Manny Coto came aboard for season four and we got some of the best episodes of now named Star Trek Enterprise. Unfortunately it was to late for the series and it ended after season four.

We then had a long period with no new Trek and then came word that they were rebooting the franchise. Lots of people were upset by this news but for me it was more Trek and when I saw Star Trek in 2009 I enjoyed it. I think they did a great job at keeping my original universe intact and this new one can make it's own path.

I will always be a Star Trek fan, I collect movie cards, action figures, collector plates, props and so much more. I even have a Star Trek themed tattoo on my body.. so yeah you can say I'm a uber fan. So with all that said.. I want to wish a happy 50th anniversary to one of my all time favorite franchise.. here's to 50 more amazing years.

NerdStrong Sportsball

Today was another NerdStrong Gym "Sportsball" outing. This is our third Sportsball in the past few years. It's always fun getting together with these folks outside the gym. We played some Vollyball and Ultimate Frisbee... we had a good turn out.

The NeverEnding Story On The Big Screen

Tonight I went to the theater to watch The NeverEnding Story on the big screen (for the first time, as far as I can remember). I do remember watching it when I was younger on TV and thinking that it was just okay. I'm a huge fantasy person but I don't think I appreciated the story or even understood it back then when I saw it and I remember watching bits and pieces here and there over the years. It wasn't until my twenties when I watched it from beginning to end and really enjoyed it, like really enjoy it so much so that it's become one of my all time favorite fantasy movies. So when I heard they were doing a two night showing on the big screen I knew I had to go. It was playing at a local AMC in Burbank and I immediately purchased tickets. My friend Shannon joined me and when we got there I ran into more friends Dina and Miles.

If you have never seen this movie find it online / buy it and watch it.. but here's a brief synopsis: The NeverEnding Story tells the story of Bastian who, on his way to school one day, ducks into a bookstore to avoid bullies. Sneaking away with a book called “The NeverEnding Story,” Bastian begins reading it in the school attic. The novel is about Fantasia, a fantasy land threatened by “The Nothing,” a darkness that destroys everything it touches. The kingdom needs the help of a human child to survive. When Bastian reads a description of himself in the book, he begins to wonder if Fantasia is real and needs him in order to survive.

This movie has not been seen on the big screen in over 30 years.. and as an extra bonus there was a featurette before the movie called “Reimagine The NeverEnding Story”, it was a pretty cool behind the scenes making of piece.

There is nothing like watching a much loved movie on the big screen surrounded by uber fans who feel the same way about the movie... it was magical.

And to make the night even better the actress who played the Childlike Empress, Tami Stronach, liked the tweet I posted about watching The NeverEnding Story on the big screen.. that was pretty fantastic.