Star Trek: The Original Series

Characterizations

The characters in the original series, and (to a lesser extent) later series, are a diverse multinational group. It was Roddenberry's intent to show that the future of humankind is a more enlightened time in which national borders do not divide people from working together.

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Like Star Wars, Star Trek was notable for the fact that it made stars of its cast of largely unknown actors. Kelley had appeared in many films and TV shows, but mostly in smaller roles. Shatner and Nimoy also had previous TV and film experience but neither was very well-known (although Shatner had starred memorably as the terrified air traveler in the classic Twilight Zone episode "Terror at 20,000 Feet"). But Star Treks casting certainly contrasted with that of its rival Lost In Space which featured several famous actors including Zorro star Guy Williams and Bill Mumy, who was at the time one of America's leading juvenile actors.

Related Topics:
Star Wars - Twilight Zone - Zorro - Guy Williams - Bill Mumy

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The three main characters in the original series were Captain James Tiberius Kirk, Doctor Leonard "Bones" McCoy, and science officer Spock. These three were a strong group who played well off each other and who were popular with viewers: Kirk was passionate and resourceful, Spock was calm and logical, and McCoy was sardonic and spoke his mind.

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The half-human and half-Vulcan Spock, who possessed superhuman intellect and strength, was clearly based on Sherlock Holmes. As the only non-human character starring in the original cast, he was meant to be a dispassionate observer against whom the strengths and flaws of humanity could be seen more clearly. The Spock character was at first rejected by network officials who feared that his vaguely "satanic" appearance (with pointed ears and eyebrows) might prove upsetting to some viewers. Indeed, Roddenberry discovered that the network had airbrushed out Spock's pointed ears and eyebrows from press photos of the character in publicity material sent to network affiliates in the more conservative southern states. But Spock went on to become one of the most popular characters on the show, arguably due to his role as the peaceful and impassive foil to Dr. McCoy's impassioned country-doctor personality. Numerous female fans also felt powerfully drawn to Spock, ostensibly because they fantasized about bringing forth the passionate human side hiding underneath the calm Vulcan exterior.

Related Topics:
Vulcan - Sherlock Holmes

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The series was created during a time of cold war politics, and the plots of its episodes occasionally reflect this. The original series infrequently shows encounters with other advanced spacefaring civilizations, including the Klingons and the Romulans, both of which were involved in separate "cold wars" with the Federation. However, the historical cold war is clearly portrayed as a thing of the past in the series; several human characters bear Russian names.

Related Topics:
Cold war - Klingon - Romulan

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