Star Trek and American Television

Star Trek and American Television PDF Author: Roberta Pearson
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520959205
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Book Description
At the heart of one of the most successful transmedia franchises of all time, Star Trek, lies an initially unsuccessful 1960s television production, Star Trek: The Original Series. In Star Trek and American Television, Pearson and Messenger Davies, take their cue from the words of the program’s first captain, William Shatner, in an interview with the authors: "It’s a television show." In focusing on Star Trek as a television show, the authors argue that the program has to be seen in the context of the changing economic conditions of American television throughout the more than four decades of Star Trek’s existence as a transmedia phenomenon that includes several films as well as the various television series. The book is organized into three sections, dealing with firstly, the context of production, the history and economics of Star Trek from the original series (1966-1969) to its final television incarnation in Enterprise (2002-2005). Secondly, it focuses on the interrelationships between different levels of production and production workers, drawing on uniquely original material, including interviews with star captains William Shatner and Sir Patrick Stewart, and with production workers ranging from set-builders to executive producers, to examine the tensions between commercial constraints and creative autonomy. These interviews were primarily carried out in Hollywood during the making of the film Nemesis (2002) and the first series of Star Trek: Enterprise. Thirdly, the authors employ textual analysis to study the narrative "storyworld" of the Star Trek television corpus and also to discuss the concept and importance of character in television drama. The book is a deft historical and critical study that is bound to appeal to television and media studies scholars, students, and Star Trek fans the world over. With a foreword by Sir Patrick Stewart, Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

Star Trek and American Television

Star Trek and American Television PDF Author: Roberta Pearson
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520959205
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 256

Get Book

Book Description
At the heart of one of the most successful transmedia franchises of all time, Star Trek, lies an initially unsuccessful 1960s television production, Star Trek: The Original Series. In Star Trek and American Television, Pearson and Messenger Davies, take their cue from the words of the program’s first captain, William Shatner, in an interview with the authors: "It’s a television show." In focusing on Star Trek as a television show, the authors argue that the program has to be seen in the context of the changing economic conditions of American television throughout the more than four decades of Star Trek’s existence as a transmedia phenomenon that includes several films as well as the various television series. The book is organized into three sections, dealing with firstly, the context of production, the history and economics of Star Trek from the original series (1966-1969) to its final television incarnation in Enterprise (2002-2005). Secondly, it focuses on the interrelationships between different levels of production and production workers, drawing on uniquely original material, including interviews with star captains William Shatner and Sir Patrick Stewart, and with production workers ranging from set-builders to executive producers, to examine the tensions between commercial constraints and creative autonomy. These interviews were primarily carried out in Hollywood during the making of the film Nemesis (2002) and the first series of Star Trek: Enterprise. Thirdly, the authors employ textual analysis to study the narrative "storyworld" of the Star Trek television corpus and also to discuss the concept and importance of character in television drama. The book is a deft historical and critical study that is bound to appeal to television and media studies scholars, students, and Star Trek fans the world over. With a foreword by Sir Patrick Stewart, Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation.

The Influence of Star Trek on Television, Film and Culture

The Influence of Star Trek on Television, Film and Culture PDF Author: Lincoln Geraghty
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 147661279X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
When the first season of Star Trek opened to American television viewers in 1966, the thematically insightful sci-fi story line presented audiences with the exciting vision of a bold voyage into the final frontiers of space and strange, new galactic worlds. Perpetuating this enchanting vision, the story has become one of the longest running and most multifaceted franchises in television history. Moreover, it has presented an inspiring message for the future, addressing everything from social, political, philosophical, and ethical issues to progressive and humanist representations of race, gender, and class. This book contends that Star Trek is not just a set of television series, but has become a pervasive part of the identity of the millions of people who watch, read and consume the films, television episodes, network specials, novelizations, and fan stories. Examining Star Trek from various critical angles, the essays in this collection provide vital new insights into the myriad ways that the franchise has affected the culture it represents, the people who watch the series, and the industry that created it.

American Science Fiction TV

American Science Fiction TV PDF Author: Jan Johnson-Smith
Publisher: Wesleyan University Press
ISBN: 9780819567383
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 322

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Book Description
Science fiction TV and the American psyche.

The Influence of Star Trek on Television, Film and Culture

The Influence of Star Trek on Television, Film and Culture PDF Author: Lincoln Geraghty
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 147661279X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
When the first season of Star Trek opened to American television viewers in 1966, the thematically insightful sci-fi story line presented audiences with the exciting vision of a bold voyage into the final frontiers of space and strange, new galactic worlds. Perpetuating this enchanting vision, the story has become one of the longest running and most multifaceted franchises in television history. Moreover, it has presented an inspiring message for the future, addressing everything from social, political, philosophical, and ethical issues to progressive and humanist representations of race, gender, and class. This book contends that Star Trek is not just a set of television series, but has become a pervasive part of the identity of the millions of people who watch, read and consume the films, television episodes, network specials, novelizations, and fan stories. Examining Star Trek from various critical angles, the essays in this collection provide vital new insights into the myriad ways that the franchise has affected the culture it represents, the people who watch the series, and the industry that created it.

Gender and Sexuality in Star Trek

Gender and Sexuality in Star Trek PDF Author: David Greven
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 078645458X
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
Studying the Star Trek myth from the original 1960s series to the 2009 franchise-reboot film, this book challenges frequent accusations that the Star Trek saga refuses to represent queer sexuality. Arguing that Star Trek speaks to queer audiences through subtle yet provocative allegorical narratives, the analysis pays close attention to representations of gender, race, and sexuality to develop an understanding of the franchise's queer sensibility. Topics include the 1960s original's deconstruction of the male gaze and the traditional assumptions of male visual mastery; constructions of femininity in Star Trek: Voyager, particularly in the relationship between Captain Janeway and Seven of Nine; and the ways in which Star Trek: Enterprise's adoption of neoconservative politics may have led to its commercial and aesthetic failure.

Star Trek: A Cultural History

Star Trek: A Cultural History PDF Author: M. Keith Booker
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1538112760
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 217

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Book Description
First airing in 1966, with a promise to “boldly go where no man has gone before,” Star Trek would eventually become a bona fide phenomenon. Week after week, viewers of the series tuned in to watch Captain Kirk, Spock, and the rest of the crew of the USS Enterprise as they conducted their five-year mission in space. Their mission was cut short by a corporate monolith that demanded higher ratings, but Star Trek lived on in syndication, ultimately becoming a multibillion-dollar media franchise. With merchandise spin-offs, feature films, and several television iterations—from The Next Generation to Discovery—Star Trek is a firmly established part of the American cultural landscape. In Star Trek: A Cultural History, M. Keith Booker offers an intriguing account of the series from its original run to its far-reaching impact on society. By placing the Star Trek franchise within the context of American history and popular culture, the author explores how the series engaged with political and social issues such as the Vietnam War, race, gender, and the advancement of technology. While this book emphasizes the original series, it also addresses the significance of subsequent programs, as well as the numerous films and extensive array of novels, comic books, and merchandise that have been produced in the decades since. A show that originally resonated with science fiction fans, Star Trek has also intrigued the general public due to its engaging characters, exciting plotlines, and vision of a better future. It is those exact elements that allowed Star Trek to go from simply a good show to the massive media franchise it is today. Star Trek: A Cultural History will appeal to scholars of media, television, and popular culture, as well as to fans of the show.

Star Trek and Sacred Ground

Star Trek and Sacred Ground PDF Author: Jennifer E. Porter
Publisher: State University of New York Press
ISBN: 1438416350
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 334

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Book Description
Drawing on a number of methodologies and disciplinary perspectives, this book boldly goes where none has gone before by focusing on the interplay between Star Trek, religion, and American culture as revealed in the four different Trek television series, and the major motion pictures as well. Explored from a Trek perspective are the portrayal and treatment of religion; the religious and mythic elements; the ritual aspects of the fan following; and the relationship between religion and other issues of contemporary concern. Divided into three sections, this detailed study of religion, myth, and ritual in the Star Trek context extends the boundaries of the traditional categories of religious studies, and explores the process of the (re)creation of culture. The first section explores the ways in which religion has primarily been understood in the Star Trek franchise in relationship to science, technology, scientism, and 'secular humanism.' What do Star Trek and its creator Gene Roddenberry have to say about religion, and what does this reveal about changing American perceptions about the role, value, and place of religion in everyday life? Section Two examines the mythic power and appeal of Star Trek, and highlights the mythic and symbolic parallels between the series' story lines and themes taken from both western religious tradition and the scientific and technological components of contemporary North American Society. In the final section, contributors discuss the mythic and ritual aspects of Star Trek fandom. How have Star Trek fans found meaning and value in the television programs, and how do they express that meaning in their lives? Contributors include Robert Asa, Michael Jindra, Larry Kreitzer, Jeffrey S. Lamp, Peter Linford, Ian Maher, Anne Pearson, Gregory Peterson, and Jon Wagner.

Star Trek

Star Trek PDF Author: Susan R. Gibberman
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN:
Category : Motion pictures
Languages : en
Pages : 462

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Book Description
Star Trek was first beamed into peoples homes in 1966 and when it went off the air three years later it was on its way to being the most successful failure in television history. Along the way it spawned nine feature films, three new television series, novels, books, video and audio tapes, records, computer games, merchandising tie-ins, fan clubs and conventions. Gibberman has summarized 25 years of just about everything written about Star Trek including details about the stars and guest-stars and information about the making of the television series and feature films. This work lists over 1,300 English-language articles about every aspect of the phenomenon; fully indexed.

Living with Star Trek

Living with Star Trek PDF Author: Lincoln Geraghty
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 0857714457
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 241

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Book Description
There is a wealth of literature on "Star Trek", and this book is a welcome and original contribution to it. The book not only sets "Star Trek" in dialogue with ideas and stories of utopia, community, self-improvement, that are central to American culture and history, but goes further to examine the ways in which these are taken up and used by 'ordinary' fans, who engage with "Star Trek" in complex and significant ways. Lincoln Geraghty explores, for example, "Star Trek's" multiple histories and how "Star Trek" has used the Puritan American Jeremiad, one of the nation's foundational texts to create a narrative that relates how through communal effort and personal change, utopia can be achieved. He discusses how fans define the series as a blueprint for the solution of such social problems in America as racism and war and shows how they have used the series to cope with personal trauma and relate to such characters as Data and Seven of Nine in moments of personal transformation. This is all in all an enjoyable and revealing book on "Star Trek's" active relationship with its many thoughtful fans.

Prime-Time Families

Prime-Time Families PDF Author: Ella Taylor
Publisher: Univ of California Press
ISBN: 0520074181
Category : Performing Arts
Languages : en
Pages : 211

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Book Description
Prime-Time Families provides a wide-ranging new look at television entertainment in the past four decades. Working within the interdisciplinary framework of cultural studies, Ella Taylor analyzes television as a constellation of social practices. Part popular culture analysis, part sociology, and part American history, Prime-Time Families is a rich and insightful work the sheds light on the way television shapes our lives.