Majel Barrett, the widow of Gene Roddenberry, founding father of the Star Trek franchise, died on Dec 18th from complications of Leukemia at the age of 76 in her home in Bel Air, California. A devoted wife to Gene who died in 1991, she is survived by their only son.

She acted in almost every spin off series from the original classic Star Trek first as Number One in the pilot episode under Captain Christopher Pike. The role stirred controversy among network executives who could not accept a female commander so she was reintroduced as Nurse Christine Chapel, assistant to Dr. Leonard McCoy, with a secret crush on Mr. Spock.

She went on to star in The Next Generation as Ambassador Lwaxana Troi, daughter of the fifth house, holder of the Sacred Chalice of Rixx, Heir to the Holy Ring of Betazed. Often providing a complex dilemma for her daughter, Lt. Commander Deeana Troi, chief counselor and the longtime paramour of Commander Riker. Mrs. Barrett’s last appearance on The Next Generation was in the seventh and final season in “Dark Page”, a complex character study when her meta conscious mind collapses upon itself as a result of awakening guilt over the death of her first daughter, Kestra, an episode that featured a young Kirsten Dunst. It was filled with psychological imagery as Deeana enters her mother’s mind to help her deal with the guilt of the loss of a young child. She also appeared as Lwaxana Troi in Deep Space 9 and as the voice of the computer on TNG, Voyager and in the movies.

Before Star Trek, she had guest starring roles in such shows as Bonanza, The Untouchables and Leave It To Beaver. Ten days before her death it was announced that her voice would be in the new Star Trek film due out in May 2009 in already completed voice-over work. She will always be remembered as The First Lady Of Star Trek.

One of Science Fiction Cinema’s historical treasures is the original version of The Day The Earth Stood Still. Released in 1951, it was directed by Robert Wise in an adapted screenplay by Edmund H. North and starred Patricia Neal, Hugh Marlowe, Sam Jaffe and Michael Rennie as Klaatu - an actor with a commanding voice, unknown outside his native England, who portrayed a mysterious alien from outer space with a message for Earth foreboding extinction from nuclear proliferation.

Filmed in black and white, the screenplay was based on “Farewell To The Master“, a 1940 serialized short story written by Harry Bates that first appeared in Astounding Science Fiction, a magazine that was begun in 1930 during the golden age of Science Fiction. The periodical was part of a genre that included Strange Tales and Amazing Stories, a magnet for many of the Twentieth Century’s greatest science fiction writers. The original story is very different from its 1951 film adaptation, told in a narrative form by photo-journalist Cliff Sutherland who unravels the mystery of klaatu and Gnut, the robot whose name was changed to Gort for the cinematic interpretation.

Part of the reason why the 1951 film worked was because Rennie was not generally known by the American audience. This played well to the premise of the film, an other worldly ambiance to the story with a haunting score composed by Bernard Hermann using two theremin electronic instruments. A being not of this earth who is nevertheless human-looking, who searches for the humanity in the world he came to warn, climaxing in his austere speech at the end of the film to an elite group of respected international scientists. The Day The Earth Stood Still was well received by Hollywood, garnished a golden globe award and is still considered among the best of the Science Films of all time, heralding the era of such classics as Invasion Of The Body Snatchers (1956) and Forbidden Planet (1957).

Now we have the 2008 remake starring Keanu Reeves, Jennifer Connelly, John Clease, Kathy Bates and Jaden Smith. Directed by Scott Derrickson, screenplay by David Scarpa, the film is a dreadful attempt to make money by ripping off the name and some barely recognizable elements of the beloved 1951 classic. It alters the original nuclear premise to that of global warming, justifying the plan to eliminate mankind to save Earth for other species. Reeves has a knack for playing wooden characters, or is it that he just can’t act? His Klaatu is made possible by a premise similar to 1984’s Starman . A DNA sample, abducted in 1928 from a bearded Himalayan mountain climber also played with little emotion in flashback by Reeves, who could have instilled Klaatu in the same way Jeff Bridges‘ alien was imbued in Starman, a performance that earned him an Oscar nomination.

John Cleese, known for his Monty Python films, plays Professor Bernhardt who points out to Klaatu: “Most civilizations change when at the edge of the precipice.” This prompts an alteration in the annihilation plan but not before a terrible destructive force is let loose. Gort, here a completely CGI figure and reminiscent of the computer-generated Silver Surfer, is lost in space, somewhere between Central Park and an underground military facility. Although Jennifer Connelly provides the only credible acting, while Kathy Bates, the Secretary of Defence acts with the reserve of a hybrid between Madeline Albright and Hillary Clinton as the President and Vice President are nowhere to be found. The special effects are so lack luster that the end of the film, running 110 minutes, provides the only relief to a nearly empty theater. No where is the line, “Gort, Klaatu Barada Nikto”

If one wants to know why the Earth Stood Still, one should go back to the classic 1951 film and perhaps read “Farewell to the Master” in its original text. The 2008 version omits so much that it fails to relate the important public message that Rennie’s Klaatu came to convey, revealed at the end of the original version which made it so memorable.

For the full cast of characters of both films, and the original short story follow the links below:

The 2008 version: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0970416/
The 1951 version: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0043456/
Farewell To The Master: http://thenostalgialeague.com/olmag/bates.html

Social commentary has often been at the center of many films. Morality, insight, wisdom gained from choice, all common themes while reviewing the extensive library of cinematic history. Especially unique are the holiday films involving the myth of St. Nicholas, known by many names in different cultures as Santa Claus or Papa Noel, El Espiritu De La Navidad.

Legend says: “For thousands of years, I have been coming to the planet Earth, a beautiful one to Be, that my spirit came from a very distant galaxy, and lives in the place that today is known as Scandinavia with contagious joy and power of precipitation, who shares with everyone my knowledge of life in other parts of the universe. I am tall, thin and very youthful of stature.”

Like all other legends, this one has meaning and resonance, of sharing and generosity. Santa Claus became the figure of a man always ready to offer millions of gifts every year. “The image of his great wisdom over time reflected as an old man. His body radiated reddish light, giving rise to the clothes of that color that always symbolizes Santa Claus and the traditional characteristics of the cold region which reflect the countries where he resided.”

A variation of this fable, passed down for generations, was explored in a searing 1964 Science Fiction film, Santa Claus Conquers The Martians. Directed by Nicholas Webster, screenplay unknown. It received notice at the Canned Film Festival in 1986, and appeared on Mystery Science Theater 3000. One of the martian children, Girmar, is played by six-year old Pia Zadora, in her dramatic film debut.

The plot originates on Mars, covers several themes using martian family relationships, exploring how their society educates its youth. Momar and Kimar are unhappy about their kids watching too much Earth TV, especially Old St. Nicholas interviewed on Nickelodeon from his workshop in the North Pole. Seeking the wise counsel of the 800 year old sage, Chochem, he criticizes martian culture for being too strict in the methods of educating their children, “fed knowledge into their brains through machines, they are not allowed individuality or freedom of thought.”

He suggests this path is stifling their creativity. “The only way to correct this control is to allow the children freedom to have fun.” He argues that a Santa Claus figure like the one Earth would give the children the spirit they need, enhancing joy and happiness in their lives.

Unfortunately, as with many, advice is often not interpreted as intended. The leaders devise a plan to kidnap Santa Claus and bring him to Mars to work in one of their factories created for him, to make toys for martian children, and bring laughter and happiness to all the land.

Kimar flies to earth with other members of “the council”, and Torg, a robot, (an anagram of Gort, in The Day The Earth Stood Still, 1951). They use a freezing ray on Mrs. Claus forcing Santa to go Mars.

There are many complex subplots, the special effects, makeup, and robotics are extra cheesy, and some say it is the worst Science fiction film ever made, however the morals conveyed by the movie supersedes all that. Perhaps this film contains wisdom for adults and children alike. Don’t use TV as a babysitter; Be careful how you interpret advice from great sages, oracles and soothsayers; Don’t steal Santa Claus’s from other planets, and “It is” all about education, not assimilation (as in the Borg Collective).

As the film ends Santa is returned to earth as the martians choose one of their own to become the Santa Claus of Mars. Chochem, the guru would probably have said: “Listen up folks, you can’t find laughter and happiness by stealing it from someone else, but by finding it within.”

And so the tale ends as the spirit of Santa Claus conquers Mars, bringing laughter and cheer and a Ho Ho Ho, Merry Christmas.

My place of birth, thought to be unusual by most, seemed perfectly ordinary to me, taking place in Central Antarctica during an excavation expedition not far from the South Pole. As I sat drinking a cup of Java at the corner Starbucks, I remembered that the expedition was headed by Fritz, the great great grandson of Fabian Gottlieb von Bellingshausen , of the same surname. Fabian, an admirer of Captain James Cook, was approved by Czar Alexander I of Russia to lead that second expedition exploring the southern most continent from 1819-21. A wise choice as a graduate from the Kronstadt naval academy at age 18 who rose quickly to Captain than Admiral in the Imperial Russian Navy.

My mother, the late Gleda Heyworth-Smythe, born in Manhattan’s Greenwich Village, was a liberal woman’s rights activist and early birth control advocate, educated in Oceanography from Colombia University. Often arrested by the police for her public protests, she was a descendant from a family of Dutch Aristocrat emigrates who met my father, Terrance Smythe , a Theoretical Biologist from Bristol, England, while in chemistry class at Colombia. They soon fell in love and both applied and were accepted for the expedition, posted on the University bulletin board by Fritz Von Bellingshausen: ” Seeking Scientists to retrace my ancestors circumnavigation of the globe - Three years- Funded by the Von Bellingshausen foundation.”

Mom and Dad were married by uncle Fritzi, also Captain on the vessel, Suvorov III. The ships logs recorded the event. I was conceived during their two year exploration of Antarctica. My birth certificate read Fredrick Fabian Smythe . It was during this expedition that several green inscribed stone tablets near the south pole were found in 1947. I suppose it seemed natural that I would become an Investigative Journalist with an interest in photography, especially when I applied, years later, for a position at the North City Bugle, a newspaper periodical.

Odd occurrences, unexplained curiosities were my interest. Cultural mysteries that defied explanation. This is where it all began, as I started the chronicle of experiences during my career, gazing at the half eaten piece of apple pie that lay before me on the Starbucks counter.

It all started as soon as i began working at the Bugle with my first story, recorded in my journal, “Uncovering The Tail Of Nothing. “It was nothing that was circular, two-sided and dark. One could only describe it as something six meters high that hovered without movement.” This investigation led me to earn the title of the Bugle’s ACE reporter. My career had begun in earnest.

Awareness, the capstone that lies between two inverted pyramids, is the place where energies from the cosmic materialize if the subject defined is the physical world of “Matter”. The balance between spirit and form, joined at the point, when focused, crystallizing into something capable of being perceived by the five senses.

The capstone, urged by evolution to encompass more, expands perspective, growing larger in space, infinitely, never quite reaching everywhere, hopefully avoiding the gravitational pull Black Holes exert.

Whatever turbulence the external world extends on physical existence, any chaos created is far less than the struggle that ensues from internal conflict which can effect judgement.

Evolution suggests development of expanded Senses capable of interpreting more, enhanced if the unknown is approached without fear or doubt. From microscopic growth to macroscopic change, altering perception along the way, transforming the unknown into the known.

Assuming that it would be possible to travel back in time, the present would have already been visited by someone from the future. Perhaps a possibility at a time when invention taps into the stream of ideas and discovers a way to do it.

The thought of realizing one of the great fantasies of the imagination ever envisioned is captivating. Going backward or forward in time would present opportunities not only to move beyond the constraints of contemporary events but portray the patterns that define how things that do occur develop from a cause and effect relationship (Karma) - issues of war and peace or causes of ecological changes. The great orations of Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the opportunity to share the experience of seeing the premiere of Shakespeare’s plays acted for the first time with Queen Elizabeth I in the audience, would make it worth the trip.

H. G. Wells, in his masterpiece The Time Machine, speculated on the opportunities presented if a way could be devised to move through time into the future.

If Time, as the fourth dimension, describes movement of the three known dimensions through space, then any movement can only add to what already exists. Even moving backward is still moving from the present into the next moment which can only be the future, not the past.

It could only be possible to go back to what has previously occurred if we were able to subtract some of the present, enough to take us to the place that existed before the movement where the three dimensions in space intersected to become our current present.

If that was feasible, then going back to any given time would negate the memory of all that existed, from then to the present. So even if someone from the future came to the present, they wouldn’t recall being from the future.

The only scientifically valid observation about Black Holes that can be made with relative certainty is their existence. However, all further knowledge about them is obtained indirectly. Once trapped by the gravitational pull past the event horizon and entry beyond its rim, nothing including light or thought can escape. So we are left with an unknown “something” suggested by an absence of “anything” that one can interpret, for lack of better word as, “nought”.

Perhaps scientists are more qualified to comment about the containment of “nothing”, describing it “as round, sometimes rotating, other times not”, proposing scientific assumptions and hypothesis’s be held more valid than philosophers, poets or writers.

No advantage should be assumed since science acknowledges the impossibility of direct observation of what has been called, “singularities”, and returning to report its findings to the academic world. Recognizing that here, “nothing” is “something” which cannot be characterized or quantified. Although, poetically speaking, thought about its inner composition can suggest “anything” about the void, limited only by one’s ability to envision infinite possibilities.

The words “I don’t know, what do you think?” are highly predictable for any psychoanalyst to articulate in order to circumvent a patient’s attempt to evoke an answer from their therapist, especially those working with clients who display a perplexing array of symptoms where avoidance and denial are part of the repertoire of a neurotic complex.

Unfortunately, the delusional world of transference and counter-transference, a common occurrence in the artificially created world of therapy, often confounding the original basis for why help is offered: to assist the patient to find the answers for themselves. Slowly unfolding the onion, layer by layer, based on the presumption that the core pathological pattern will reveal itself in a catharsis of self-understanding.

Reflecting about sequestered thought, at best difficult when influenced by the sway of emotional neurosis, ruminations usually relegated by patients convinced they are unimportant, when in fact they are the ideations most important to reveal. Perhaps a painful display of embarrassment suggesting personality is kept together with Krazy Glue: a drop here, there, keeping all the feelings stuck together in a dam of in-congruent clutter. The emotional disarray of the affliction causing one to seek out the aid of a therapist in the first place.

A notable expert who expounded the words “I don’t know, what do you think?”, by portraying her vast expertise in the world of the pathological, was Deeana Troi, Counselor of the USS Enterprise 1701-D. Classically trained in Psychoanalytic Theory, perhaps the School of Neo-Freudians who often claimed eclectic causes for pathological behavior, Counselor Troi held firmly to the notion that the joy in helping someone find themselves is the primary reward. She interpreted through an empathic sense, characteristic of her Betazoid heritage. The words “I don’t know, what do you think?” often frustrated those around her as she approached a sensitive subject, causing the crew to consider beaming her to a planet inhabited solely by Argelian Amoebas. The only advantage having her as a therapist was not paying $250 for a 45 minute session, since money was abolished in the Twenty Fourth Century.

I don’t know, What do you think?

For Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Psychoanalysis that You Never Knew To Ask - Follow this Link

To all those parents out there who thought Comic Books were useless pieces of trash - including my mother who threw out my box of treasured DC classics, this original page from a 1988 Batman story, “The Killing Joke”, reported in a New York Times article dated June 30th, 2008, sold for over $31,000 at auction.

Ha Ha Ha, The Joke(r)’s On You!

On Kandor, The Lost City Of Krypton

Even As Captain Jean Luc Picard waves his arm and says, “Engage,” it’s time to unveil the next list of TNG episodes which embarrass the prime directive “To seek out new life, and go where no one has gone before” by presenting a dilithium array of stunted biogenic stories at the very moment the beloved Q appears in Captain Janeway’s inner sanctum, materializing in her bed as an offer of affection in the isolate Star Trek Voyager as it meanders through the Delta Quadrant lost on its maiden voyage searching for the right wormhole to return home.

Episode 111- Hide and Q, presented the second appearance of Q as the Omnipotent representative of The Q Continuum. Flamboyantly dressed as Napoleon with bluish lips and aristocratic blush, attempting to seduce Riker by giving him powers of Q and subjecting the crew to attack by fanged animal soldiers after a cold sip of pink lemonade on some alien planet. Worf, in unlikely Klingon fashion, points as the creatures march dressed as Bonaparte soldiers in Nineteenth Century European uniforms with bayonets and French hats, declares in horrified frenzy, “the monster things are coming.” This from the eldest son of Mogh, who would endure a Klingon pain stick in the Rights Of Ascension or hitting himself with one in a moment of solitary meditative flagellation to prove his worthiness as a warrior.

As the series evolved, the writing improved, season one displayed the worst episodes of its seven year run. Had Tasha Yar not died in Skin of Evil (ep122) - a victim of Armus, a non-humanoid alien who resembled an oil slick of pure evil trapped on V(i)agra II, yet another victim of poor writing - she would have survived long enough to star in one of the best episodes of the series, Yesterday’s Enterprise (ep163). Instead, her alternate universe doppelganger got the part while learning from Guinan that the real Tasha suffered a death without meaning. A useless demise unworthy of a true warrior who survived the rape gangs of her home planet, Turkana IV, before escaping and entering star fleet academy where she was selected as Picard’s chief tactical officer when she saved a colonist by braving a minefield.

Episode 144 - Up The Long Ladder. A society that left Earth on the SS Mariposa, a DY-500 class cargo freighter, splintered into two distinct cultures. One evolved to cloning for reproduction, while the other reverted to a pre-industrial society with a tinge of Irish in their accent, farm animals and a lot of hay. Beamed aboard the Enterprise by Riker when the Enterprise-D receives an automated distress call from Bringloid V, the daughter of Odell, the leader of 200, tries to seduce Riker. When Brenna lets her hair down and kisses Riker, she notes his reservation and asks, “you do like girls , don’t you?” Putting aside the interesting idea of cloning in the 1988 second season episode, the plot’s confusing convoluted reproductive premise, abducting some of the crew’s DNA to diversify their genetic structure and the five minute finale where Picard decides to leave them on their own to discover their own DNA diversity. A wise decision for the man with a reputation of accomplished mediator who would soon become the arbiter of Succession for the Klingon empire when K’Mpec, leader of the High Council asks him to decide who will take his place, Duras or Gowron and discover which one poisoned him with Ridian 6, for which there is no cure, aided only by the council of the lovely Klingon ambassador K’Ehleyr, in Reunion (ep181). Up The Long Ladder should have been called, Down the Broken Staircase.

Episode 199 - In Theory. A treasured classic directed by Patrick Stewart who has a knack for directing the worst episodes such as, A Fistful Of Datas (ep234). Here the android pursues a relationship with Ensign Jenna D’Sora on the rebound from breaking up with her boyfriend who she claimed was a bit unemotional. In a wonderfully original line, she accuses Data of exhibiting artificial behavior even with a fully functional male anatomy. Finally realizing that perhaps there was a pattern to the focus of her affections, then rejecting Data for his synthetic nature. A bit transparent of her and the writing staff. Perhaps if Tasha Yar who took Data’s virginity in The Naked Now (ep103), before dying a senseless death, could have been there to convince Ensign D’Sora that Data’s fully functional anatomy could have been a more fulfilling experience than even Commander Riker as he continually subjected the crew and guests on Red Alert to run for cover as the Enterprise D engaged Warp Drive through the galaxy.

This completes the Third Generation list of the worst ST-TNG episodes. A Fourth Generation list is being compiled at this very moment and will be released at a later date. Please feel free to comment on my ongoing saga to identify the worst of the Enterprise 1701-D.

The Second Generation List of The Worst TNG Episodes

The Worst Start Trek TNG Episodes

The Legacy Of Star Trek The Next Generation

Star Trek - TNG’s Assimilating Challange

The Top Ten Science Fiction Films Of All Time