news@fxgrp.fx.com (News) (08/10/90)
I haven't seen anyone do this one yet (we've had feed problems, so maybe
somebody has!), so here is a summary of stuff from Timecon '90. It
will be in the same format as my Baycon postings.
The perspective is slightly different as Rick Sternbach and Mike Okuda
work in the Art Department, while Richard Arnold is in the Front Office.
Oh, since so many people asked me about reposting my Baycon '90 post,
here is the general rule on this one: Implicit permission to relay or
repost this message to other networks is granted, provided that credit
is given to the original poster (that's me :-)).
Enjoy!!
-- Alan
[Note - some of this is a rehash of my convention report, some of it isn't.
I missed one or two of Richard's five or six panels, and Alan
apparently caught them. It looks like Richard contradicted himself
in a couple of places - ed.]
PANEL: Star Trek: The Next Generation (actually multiple panels)
Richard Arnold
* In response to a question about nationwide coverage, Richard said that
there are indeed some areas in the U.S. which do not get STTNG. That
decision is made by the local service providers. Letters *have* come
in, though, that said that some people have actually MOVED primarily
so that they could get STTNG...
[talk about dedication! -AT]
* As of the time of the convention (July 27-29), there are seven (7)
scripts completed and ready for the 4th season. Two episodes have
completed filming at this time.
* Barring any unexpected events (like strikes), there will be 26
episodes in Season 4.
* One of the often repeated questions: "When will we see the Captain's
Yacht?". The often repeated answer: "If we get a good story that
involves the Yacht, *that's* when we'll see it".
We will not see the Captain's Yacht as a sidebar in any story, because
it simply costs too much. As a comparison, the Shuttle Pod model cost
$35,000. The lowest bid to date on the Captain's Yacht was $50,000
(yes, STTNG has asked). This cost does NOT include the other items
like the alterations to the Saucer Section (to show the Yacht launching),
and interiors of the Yacht (which involve another set).
* Followup question: "Why do things like this cost so much?"
Followup answer : "Unions."
* On the Usenet, I have often seen references to the novel "Metamorphasis".
In one of the panels, someone asked if "Metamorphasis" could be made
into an episode, since it had been approved by Paramount for
publication.
The answer is a very emphatic NO!!! Apparently, approval was a mistake,
and if ever made into an episode, Gene Roddenberry would walk off the
set in protest. There are a set of rules for 'approved' novels, and
"Metamorphasis" broke nearly every one of them. A partial list of
rules broken:
1) No "Mary Sue" characters. The impression I got here was that there
were to be no characters whose sole purpose was to fall in love
with a main character.
2) No stories which make Data into a human.
3) No fantasy storylines.
4) No "What-if" stories.
[I have never read this novel, so I don't know *how* these, and other
rules were broken. Others can provide some enlightenment. :-) -AT]
[I have, and Richard's reaction is rather justified. Bad novel IMHO - ed.]
* Novelizations of the Star Trek movies are not canonical. If you didn't
see it on the screen, it's not valid. Not even if the novel was
written by Gene Roddenberry.
This policy has some interesting side effects, like the fact that we
don't KNOW that Lt. Saavik is a Vulcan-Romulan half-breed...it was
never stated on-screen...
* Followup question: "Why is Star Trek so picky about its sources?"
Followup answer : "To avoid Replicative Fading..."
In more detail: Star Trek has enough problems with keeping track of
its own continuity. If it had to deal with the various details
introduced within the various novels, the task would become EXTREMELY
difficult. You'd also have to deal with some of the digressions...
K/S fiction was mentioned here.
* Continuing on with the same topic, Richard introduced us to his
"Sandbox Theory". This theory describes how others can deal with
the world of Star Trek. In brief, the theory goes like this:
"Gene builds a house. In the back of the house, he has a sandbox.
You (the fans) are welcome to play in the sandbox, as long as you
are careful about it. This means that you don't dirty the sandbox
(read: distort the world of Star Trek), and that you let Gene's
children play in the sandbox too (read: don't leave the regular
Star Trek characters out)."
* These rules do NOT mean that fan-generated facts are never used. At
Timecon '89, John DeLancie told us about a story to be published
in DC comics (the story came out recently in the first STTNG Annual).
The story was called "The Gift". In it, DeLancie shows Picard's
parents, but there was a problem. The STTNG Staff had never given
Picard's parents a name. Well, never mind, since this was a comic,
he could make up names...
The names that he used were "Claude and Christine Picard". Again,
this was not canonical, never having been broadcast. However,
sometime during the 4th Season (Richard was very vague here), there
will arise an occasion where Picard will have to mention his parents'
names. What will Picard say? He will identify his parents as "Claude
and Christine..."
* Just what can be considered canonical. The last word on the subject:
1) Star Trek (the original 79 episodes).
2) Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
3) "Most of" Star Trek 2 through Star Trek 4.
4) Star Trek: The Next Generation (televised).
5) Star Trek 5? Weeeeeelllllllll....
* Wil Wheaton turned 18 during Timecon '90 (his birthday being on
July 29th). Other than the normal Happy Birthday wishes, this
particular birthday has another special meaning.
Legally, Wil Wheaton is now an adult. This means he has a right
to do various things, like negotiate his own contract...
* No, Chief O'Brien does not have a first name...yet. However, Colm
Meaney *has* chosen one. If a first name is used, it will probably
be his chosen one. And that first name is: .....................
No, Richard didn't tell us...
* If nobody had guessed by now: Riker/Troi was modeled on the
Decker/Ilia pair. And, Data was based on Quester...
* STTNG is shot on film in the studio. Final editing is done via
video. The film shooting is done for quality purposes...you get
better pictures and sound by using film. The video editing is
done for practical purposes...it's fast and (relatively) cheap...
* "Best of Both Worlds" part 2 has been completed. No, that isn't
the real title. No, I don't know what the real title is.
[Note - hmmm, I thought Richard said that it *is* the real title. Anyone
know for a fact? - ed.]
* From "Ensigns of Command", the original script called for Data to
have sex with the leading lady in order to get her cooperation
later. This idea never made it through the first draft. Gene's
reason for dropping it: "Only a human male would use a woman like
that"...
* From "Who Watches the Watchers", the story got STTNG in trouble.
Seems that the plot was talking about religion...
* From "The Bonding", Richard had one comment on the actor who
portrayed Jeremy Astor: "...little brat..."
* STTNG has a baseball team that plays teams from other shows. At
one of their games, Patrick Stewart was overheard to say that not
only was he a great coach, but he was also the most fit. Michael
Dorn was the one who overheard him, however, so on the next day,
he stood behind Patrick (in full Klingon makeup), and said OK,
put 'em up....
* For the first time, the costumer for the 4th Season is the same
one as for the 3rd. This means no unexpected and unexplained
changes in the uniforms...
* From "The Defector", Patrick Stewart was SURE that we (meaning the
fans) wouldn't recognize him in the Shakespeare scene at the
beginning of the story. This was why he didn't want a credit for
that role. He was proven wrong in a hurry...
* From "Yesterday's Enterprise", one of the reasons that Denise
Crosby came back was that she, like Tasha Yar, wanted her death
to have some meaning...
* Jonathan Frakes directs the 5th story in Season 4.
* Whoopi Goldberg was very happy to meet Denise Crosby during the
filming of "Yesterday's Enterprise". It seems that a slot opened
up for Whoopi when Denise left...
Whoopi also has another series role in "Baghdad Cafe". She will
continue to appear in STTNG as time permits. The current plan is
to keep the mystery surrounding her character: Guinan...
* Nichelle Nichols has some physical resemblence to Whoopi Goldberg.
Nichelle has indicated that she wants to play Guinan's mother.
Whoopi, on the other hand, thinks that she should play Guinan's
daughter...
* From "Sins of the Father", when Worf accepts the politically viable
solution of discommodation, this was witnessed by the Klingon High
Council. As this is not common knowledge outside of the participants,
it's OK for other Klingons to treat Worf as a Klingon...
Of course, this explanation is valid, until they decide to change
it... :-)
* From "Sarek", when Picard speaks of attending Sarek's son's wedding,
that son was NOT Spock. Besides, who had ever heard of Sybok? :-)
Richard's comment: "Why does everyone assume that it was Spock?"
* From "Best of Both Worlds", the plot is SO convoluted that things
will NOT be wrapped up by the end of Part 2. A Part 3 will air
later in the season. The estimated date for Part 2, by the way,
is September 29th or thereabouts in the SF Bay Area.
Also, the title "Best of Both Worlds" was chosen primarily to
confuse the audience. Worked, didn't it? :-)
* As stated before, no book on Star Trek is considered canonical. This
will change in the Summer of '91, when the STTNG Technical Manual
is scheduled to be published.
* FASA does NOT publish anything canonical, and in fact, their license
to produce Star Trek-related merchandise is no longer in effect, due to
unspecified problems...
* From "The Neutral Zone", yes, this really was the Federation's first
encounter with the Borg...
* Star Trek 6 is still on hold. There is no production crew for it,
and no script has yet been accepted. The "Academy" idea is dead.
Paramount still wants to release Star Trek 6 in time for the 25th
Anniversary of Star Trek.
Harve Bennett, the major proponent of the "Academy" idea, has been
off the Paramount lot as of June 30th.
* LeVar Burton hadn't yet worked on Season 4, because he was in the
hospital for a gall bladder operation. Treatment appears to have
been successful, and he was scheduled to appear for work on the
following Monday (July 30th). He won't be doing alot of running
or leaping, though...
* Lots of sets from the Star Trek movies has been reused or redressed
to work on STTNG. For example, remember Ceti-Alpha 6 from ST:TWOK?
Well, you are looking at the same place when you see Ten-Forward.
Also, the door that closes in Engineering (after Engineering is shot
up) has been reused as the Shuttle Bay door in STTNG.
* Star Trek 2 was originally called "The REVENGE of Khan". At the
same time, there was another big budget movie called "REVENGE of
the Jedi". Since "Revenge" appeared to be overused, there was
a gentleman's agreement to change one of the titles, so Star
Trek 2 became "The Wrath of Khan". Ironic, since Jedi's title
was also changed in the end...
[Note - Richard told *us* that there was a mutual agreement for both movies
to change their names. Dunno - ed.]
* Ricardo Montalban is a consummate professional. During most of
the filming of Star Trek 2, he was just PERFECT. However (you
knew there had to be a 'however', didn't you? :-)), even his
patience was sorely tried by a counter that wouldn't work.
While filming one of the final scenes for ST2, he had to drag
himself across the Bridge of the Reliant, and activate the
Genesis Device. Not an easy thing to do, especially since
both his legs were suppose to be broken. Again and again, he
played the scene to perfection, and again and again, the counter
for the Genesis Device refused to start. Finally, he turned
to Nicholas Meyers (the director) and snapped "Will you get someone
to fix this (*&(*% thing!!". Meyers turned to someone and said
"Is it too late to get another MEXICAN?!?!" The whole set broke up.
Of course, quotes are not necessarily accurate.
* The story on Transwarp Drive: it doesn't work. The Warp Drive
that we see on STTNG is not Transwarp or Ultrawarp or whatever
you want to call it. It is an improved version of the same
Warp Drive that we saw on STTOS.
The Excelsior proved that Transwarp wouldn't work by being
destroyed by it during a test flight...
* From "ST4: The Voyage Home", remember the scene where Chekov and
Uhura were trying to find the Naval Base, and some lady came up
and said "it's in Alameda"? The actors were in shock, because
none of the extras used in that scene were suppose to have any
speaking lines.
It seems that this lady was out walking her dog, and SOMEHOW
managed to get onto the set while filming was going on. She
was just a passer-by. Of course, the crew had to track her
down later and get her to sign a release...
* From "ST4: The Voyage Home", there was a side story where Sulu
runs into this kid on the streets, and holds a brief conversation
with him (the boy using colloquial Japanese, and Sulu speaking
more formally). At the end of the conversation, Sulu asks the
boy his name, and finds out that the boy is his great-great-
grandfather.
Unfortunately, when filming this scene, the boy got stagefright
and froze, so, in the end, the storyline was cut. (In the slide
show, there was a picture of Leonard Nimoy, dressed as Spock,
trying to comfort the boy...)
* From "ST4: The Voyage Home" (again), Kirk and company took command
of NCC-1701A. No, Starfleet did *not* break all speed records
in constructing a Constitution class cruiser. NCC-1701A *used*
to be the Yorktown, until recommissioned as the Enterprise.
* From "ST4: The Voyage Home" (yes, again), a storyline cut was a
bunch of lines which indicated that Saavik was pregnant. When
they started running out of screen time, these scenes were cut,
since they were not essential to the main story in the movie.
Of course, this means that, officially, IT NEVER HAPPENED. :-)
* Data has NO feelings whatsoever. No script has shown Data with
any feelings, and it's felt that if he were to get feelings later,
it would take a whole episode devoted to that subject to cover it
adequately. This is the official line.
The tantalizing glimpses that we've seen up to now have been
the interpretation of the scripts by Brent Spiner...
* In honor of the 25th Anniversary of Star Trek, Paramount will
give the fans these presents:
1) Star Trek 6: <The missing movie> :-)
2) A *very* special season opener for the 5th season of
Star Trek: The Next Generation.
3) A "Coffee Table Book" will be published in August '91.
Among other things, this book will contain lots of photos
from the show (old series), and many behind the scenes
photos...many of which have never been seen before in
public. Apparently, alot of these photos were the
property of collectors. The book is expected to retail
for $40-$50.
* Concerning Wesley Crusher's future: Wil Wheaton has an 8-episode
contract for Season 4 (which is renewable). He did 15 episodes
for Season 3. Future episodes will move away from the "growing up"
type plots to ones which concentrate on Wesley's career...
* With VERY FEW exceptions, nothing from the old series is to be
mentioned on STTNG. This includes everything.
[Richard actually said "Everything is forbidden". I note the
reference from "The Naked Now" when I say "very few". --AT]
* The current lineup for Season 4:
1) "Best of Both Worlds" part 2 [Not the real title --AT]
2) "Suddenly Human" (NOT a Data story)
3) "Brothers"
4) "Family" (Part 3 of "Best of Both Worlds")
* Earlier this year, STTNG tried something new as they relaxed the
requirement that writers needed to submit story ideas via an
agent. Ever since they "opened the floodgates", scripts have
been pouring in at an incredible rate. It's gotten so bad that
there is a room filled to the rafters with boxes which are labeled
by month (the month the script came in).
There are 3 or 4 people on staff who do NOTHING but read the
scripts, and submit the more interesting ones up for further
consideration. These people are not, and CANNOT be, Star Trek
fans...they are there to judge a story on its merits.
* A question came up about the in-jokes that occasionally pop up
in the episodes, and when the Front Office was going to take
them out. Richard replied that there was no intention to stop
putting in the in-jokes, and said that many of them were from
anime (Rick Sternbach's influence). Sickbay has "4077" appearing
from place to place (Mike Okuda is a *M*A*S*H* fan).
As documented elsewhere, other references are from "Buckaroo
Banzai", and various Science Fiction films.
* A small problem popped up with Stardates. As we all know,
Stardates are in the form: 4Sxxx.x where '4' represents the
24th Century, 'S' is the season number (3=3rd season, etc.),
and the xxx.x is some random number. Given this, all episodes
in the 4th Season should have "Stardate 44xxx.x".
This presented a problem with "Best of Both Worlds", part 2. As
a 4th Season episode, the Stardate should start with 44. BUT,
it begins right where "Best of Both Worlds" left off...only seconds
have elapsed between seasons. An exception was made in this case...
Side note: '.x' represents 2.4 hours or 1/10 of a day.
* The original idea with Stardates is that they reflect entries inside
of a "Captain's Log". In a nautical sense. Remember that Star Trek
was the space version of a Captain Hornblower adventure. At sea,
a Captain's Log would have entries of the form "Months/Days out from
port". Instead of some absolute time, entries would reflect RELATIVE
time. In the same way, the Stardate was to reflect the time out
from a Starbase, again in months/days. The idea was implemented
at the beginning of STTOS.
Needless to say, the idea fell apart after about a dozen episodes...
* From "Captain's Holiday", the episode happened because Patrick
Stewart wanted to get away from his role of standing on the bridge
and talk to people. He wanted to DO something...
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Alan Takahashi ! hplabs amdahl
Northern Telecom Inc. ! \ /
Mountain View, CA !UUCP: ...!{-----}!ntmtv!takahash
! |
"When you need to knock on wood is when ! ames
you realize the world's composed of !INTERNET:
aluminum and vinyl." -- Flugg's Law ! ntmtv!takahash@ames.arc.nasa.gov
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Edited by Jim Griffith - the official scapegoat for r.a.s.i.
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