Leonard Nimoy Thinks Playing Volleyball and Skittles is Cool.

I was just going through some of my scans, and I came across a couple that I had totally forgotten about.

As it turns out, Leonard Nimoy enjoys taking his kids (Adam and Julie) to the beach to play Volleyball. I mean, can this guy get any more "down to earth"? He is my absolute hero - he has worked hard, deserves what he has, and tries to be family-oriented - he tries to follow his dreams and passions without leaving his loved ones behind.

It's small things like this that make us realize that he is not a god - just an ordinary man with great talent, and good fortune.

In the second scan we see Leonard and his first wife Sandi playing a game of skittles at their home. I didn't even know skittles was a game - apparently it's actually a sport! It seems to be (kind of) like bowling. I guess we just don't have it in Canada, or else I am blind.. Just look at the cute miniature version (table skittles) they are playing in the picture! (Thanks, google!)

Note: Click pictures to enlarge.

Sandi looks shocked! It must be his mad skill.

A permitted glimpse into any "idol"s personal life is always amazing, because sometimes as fans we begin to think of them as above us - gods - and we forget that they are human. I mean, Leonard as gone through periods of extreme poverty, divorce, and alcoholism - it is through faith and hard work he has made it to the very top.

Doctor Who - 25 Years of a Time Lord - The Calender 1988 (Part One)

I don't put nearly enough Doctor Who scans/pictures up here - now it is time I make up for the lack of Time Lord goodness. I came across this calendar from 1988 at an antique shop a while back - due to the year, it only has up the the Sixth Doctor (so that means no Sylvester McCoy, to my dismay). Still - not bad for ten dollars!

Now for January we have the floating head of William Hartnell as the First Doctor - one of my favorites. He's such a good grandfather to Susan, and acts like such an (awesome) cranky old man.

Honestly, in this picture he reminds me of my grandmother. But hey, she's pretty cool!

For February we have a wonderful floating Doctor - the sixth, played by Colin Baker. Colin and Tom Baker (no relation) had the best outfits of all the doctors, in my opinion. I mean, who doesn't lust after a rainbow patchwork jacket or a 10-20 foot long scarf?

Moving on, we have Patrick Troughton as the second doctor. He is such a wonderfully handsome man, unfortunately that does not come through in this photo/painting:

In fact, he kind of looks like Stuart Larkin from MadTV:

April must be a super-evil month, because it is represented by... the Master (the first, played by Roger Delgado). You can tell he's evil, because he has a goatee and red clouds around him, right?

PS. Roger Delgado was the best looking of all the Masters.

Last one for today - for the month of May we have a lovely LSD-induced painting of the third Doctor played by Jon Pertwee.

This is another one where he would have looked handsome if it have been done differently - he really wasn't as crazy as he looks here, I swear. 

I actually just realized that all of the portraits that I love were done by Andrew Skilleter - in my opinion, Stuart Hughes' portraits  look deranged and drug induced. Sorry, Stuart.

Not that I don't love the portraits, I just like Skilleter's more in for this calendar because they are more accurate. In fact, I love this calendar. Joke's on the antique shop I got it from, I would have paid fifty for it! (Insert evil laugh here)

More Vulcan-Inspired Art - Vulcan Salute

For the last few posts I have been focusing on some of my Star Trek art and crafts, and this is no different. This piece, however, is one of my favorites:

This is an exact mold of my hand, created using wax and plaster. In fact, I am pretty sure a criminal could use this to leave fingerprints at crime scenes.

On the palm is the word "tafar" (discipline) in ancient Vulcan calligraphy, and on the base is one of my favorite quotes by Surak:

"Kup-fun-tor ka'kiv na-ish du stau? Dom nam-tor vohris nem-tor ha'kiv."

"Can you return life to what you kill? Then be slow to take life."

After a show one time, the hand fell to the ground and all of the fingers snapped off, with the entire tip of one being lost. Luckily, I was able to put it back together, mix plaster to a thick consistency so that I could mold it into the tip (you can see the piece that I replaced), and repaint it. Good as new!

Vulcan Meditation Lamps = Cool Epic Meditation Times.

(Note: This will be my second last art/craft post for a while)

I took an art class for the first time last semester, and every single project I did tied into Star Trek (specifically Vulcans) in some way. I did a large portrait of Spock within the Plak Tow in micrography, and painted Vulcan's Forge with T'Rukh/T'Kuht/T'Khul etc. and it's moon.

The only practical thing I ever created in art was (as anyone could have guessed) linked with Vulcan culture as well. Modeled after Tuvok's meditation lamp, I created my own:

There are quite a few differences - I had to add a second stand because I wouldn't be able to keep it balanced in the kiln otherwise (or afterwords), and it is quite a but thicker and holds a larger candle. Also, it is less gracefully crafted.

For anyone who is curious as to what the original lamp looked like (as seen in the VOY episode "Juggernaut"), here it is:

Compared to the original, mine looks like it was made by a five year old out of mud. Still, it works! It is great for casting shadows on the walls and for, well - meditating!

"A flame, like emotion, is a primitive force. Left unchecked, it's chaotic, destructive. But if controlled, it can be a powerful tool. The lamp controls the flame, as you must learn to control your emotions" - Tuvok

Stay in school, kids - make Vulcan lamps.

Talla P'Trell Felt... Like Being an Engineer in Starfleet!

I finished my second felt plush today - Lt. Talla P'Trell (not an actual character), an Andorian (female/zhen/shen) engineer:

I was fortunate enough to find the exact color I wanted for the skin this time. This plush is slightly taller and thinner that that of Sarek (as some Andorians actually are) and the clothing was a bit more complicated.Also, I am actually super proud of how the antennae turned out.

And now felt-Sarek has a friend! Don't they both look thrilled.

I plan on eventually making felt-plushies of the entire TOS crew, as well as some other favorites and original characters - so stay tuned!

Ambassador Sarek Felt... Logical.

I finally went and got myself some felt sheets yesterday, and got to work on something I have been meaning to do for months now - making felt/plush Star Trek characters.

I am working on a couple right now, and already finished my first: Ambassador Sarek!

 

I couldn't find the exact color that I wanted for the skin - I didn't want to used peach (too human) and the only other options were too green, or white. As you can obviously see, I chose to go with white.

I also had a slight problem with the script (rata, tafar, tapan) down his robe, because it is practically impossible to cut tiny symbols out of felt with any amount accuracy.

As this was my first attempt at making anything felt-related, I am quite proud of the way it turned out. And just look at those button eyes! Adorable. If Mark Lenard was still alive, I would find a way to send this to him as a thanks for being so awesome.

Next up: an Andorian from engineering.

Dressing Room Secrets of Star Trek - Spock's Make-up

We all know Spock - that green tinted, matte skinned pointy eared Vulcan. What many don't know is that it took plenty of trial and error to get Leonard Nimoy to look that way, and even when a professional knew what he was doing it took an hour and a half to apply the prosthetics and makeup.

I scanned these from the Files Magazine Spotlight on Spock (and they scanned it from something else in 1967) - a series of photographs showing the hour-and-a-half long procedure.

According to good Mr. Nimoy, the ears were very painful wear and to take off because of the glue. I recently read a cute story in "The World of Star Trek" by David Gerrold about his Girl Friday, Teresa Victor.

After working for Leonard for a while, she wanted to do something special to show her appreciation. She decided that on the last day of her trial period she would wear Vulcan ears. Now, it was difficult enough for Leonard to get the right ears - for Teresa it was almost impossible. 

One of the casting directors eventually got a pair for her, but they were molded to Leonard's ears and she had to use a strong adhesive. She spent an hour putting them on and wore them all morning, trying to cover her ears with her hair so nobody would notice (although the tips kept poking out). They were immenslely painful, but finally at the end of the day she met with Leonard and pulled back her hair to show him the ears. "I am dying from the pain!" He cracked up laughing, but realized how important is was to her that she show him how she felt.

More problems arose when she had to go to a party that night and she couldn't get the ears off - and none of them knew who Mr. Spock was.

Here's another interesting fact: Spock's skin was originally going to be red, but Leonard pointed out that most people still had black and white TVs, and on those sets Spock would look pitch black. (It would also make him look even more "demonic".)

I will leave you with this wonderful clip of the great Leonard Nimoy speaking on that exact subject:

Zombies of the Stratosphere - A Role He'd Rather Forget

The following scans are from the Crew Files Magazine Spotlight on Spock, 1987. Click to enlarge.

Before Paris, Tom Kovack, or Spock, Leonard Nimoy had a role as Narab - a Martian in "Zombies of the Stratosphere" in 1952 (his third role).

The twelve-chapter serial was filmed and aired in 1952 and featured Judd Holdren as Larry Martin, or as I saw him - Powdered Toast Man with a cardboard mask. Larry would leap into flight dramatically, laying out in the sky, and all I could think of was epileptic-fit-causing lights and the powerfully said phrase, "Poooowwwderrred Tooooast MAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Anyways, the film is about Martians coming to earth because their planet is too far from the sun. They want to use an H-bomb to blow Earth away from the sun, so that Mars can take it's place. Larry Martin has an experimental rocket suit that allows him to fly. It is up to him to stop these people from Mars.

By the way, the show has nothing to do with Zombies.

So what was Nimoy's role all about? Well, his charecter (Narab) and Marex go around stealing supplies for the bomb and looking utterly ridiculous. Narab eventually turns against the others and reveals the location of the bomb. Not really much of a pride-inducing role - but it's too bad Nimoy couldn't have more fun with it.

Still - I am a sucker for old films and serials, and had watched it a while ago on the internet. Unfortunately I can no longer find it, but if you ever get a chance to see it, take it! The low-budget effects and story are actually strangely compelling...

(Part Three) Star Trek - Mission to Horatius by Mack Raynolds, 1968

Part one HERE
Part two HERE

Before the Enterprise leaves for the second planet, McCoy suggests that they use Neolithia for emergency shore leave to prevent cafard. Kirk rejects this idea, as he feels they are not welcome and the people on the planet are too primitive and savage. They then find that Sulu and Chekov have accidentally brought a stowaway on board - Grang, the boy who had helped them out on Neolithia and because of that, would be seen as a traitor and a criminal despite his young age. Kirk wants to bring him back down right away, but Spock feels that this returning after they have solved the horatian problem - whatever it is - may be redeeming for him, as he may be seen as a sort of hero. On top of this, they simply do not have the time to return to the planet.

Sulu, having been put in charge of Grang, shows him around the ship. He introduces him to a very bored crew, and Uhura plays what is left of her guitar and sings for him. Suddenly, a second string breaks. Grang was impressed none the less, and before departing states:

"I am sorry the gods broke the string on your... your box of music."

Meanwhile, McCoy has already put two men in Stasis so that their cafard would not spread.

Sulu then brings Grang to meet Lt. Peterson, who tells the small boy that working out would do him good, feeling the boy's biceps. Grang grabs and flips him to the floor.

"I am Grang of the wolves"

He carries on to beat Lt. Peterson in every match.

That'll teach you to touch me like that!

The enterprise approaches Mythra, an M class planet much like Neolithia. From the ship, they find some signs of "civilization". At this point, Spock pipes in (and says, in my opinion, something somewhat uncharacteristic):

"I would compare to a middle ages town. We Vulcan's hardly considered the period civilized."

All of the towns look identical, and the world has simple radios. Kirk hails the planet, and finds that they do, indeed, have a theocratic government.

"How is is that you speak on our sacred airwaves?"

Looking upon them, they see monk-like figures, as well as the man that they were talking to: Warren, Supreme Exarch of Mythra. He had stated that they had come to Mythra to escape Earth's evils, and that he did not want their assistance - the only way he would let them down is if they first took anodyne... all persons on Mythra are required to take it daily (for "religious" reasons). He believes that they are the "space pirates" who have been continually attacking them, raiding them and kidnapping their "churls". Kirk and Spock then discuss the Exarch:

Spock: A most interesting individual.
Kirk: I suspect you would find Lucifer most interesting, Spock.
Spock: Indubitably, Captain Kirk.

Once again, I find that there are many strange dialogues in this book. Anyways...

When they materialize on the planet, nobody pays any attention to them - strange, seeing as they had never witnessed anything like it before. They are met by a man named Pater Stuart, accompanied by two smiling boys. He bumps into one of them (a churl) and then kills him. All of the "churls" seem happy and unaware.

In those robes, from far away, they look like Vulcans.

Spock then tells a captivating story about one of the Gods that ancient Vulcans had worshiped: Maripol. Whenever it would storm, or an earthquake or a flood (floods on Vulcan?) would occur, "he could be placated only with the blood of twins". The twins' hearts would be torn out on Maripol's alters.

When they are taken to the Supreme Exarch, he is upset that they have not taken anodyne, but decides to accept their assistance against the space pirates. He orders refreshments for the crew, which is found to have anodyne in it, which they have figured out must act like LSD. The crew does not partake of the refreshments (all but Chekov, who has a sip before anyone says anything).

Spock: "Evidently a good many scientific discoveries have fallen into disuse on this planet. On the face of it, your culture is going backward, rather than advancing. Your priesthood, which abstains from this anodyne, is not great enough to maintain a high level of science, and your drug-bemused churls haven't the intelligence."

The exarch demands that they be given the Enterprise's weapons so that they can kill the pirates, but Kirk refuses. Chekov gladly gives him his phaser, with the "happy bemusement of those who had taken anodyne".

"All power is in the hands of your extreme Holy. Command me; I obey."

Chekov's dopey LSD face.

The Supreme Exarch threatens to order Chekov to commit suicide they do not surrender all of their weapons. Kirk flips open his communicator and tells him that by federation law his hands are largely tied, so far as doing harm to him is concerned - but if there were any possible way for them to escape, they would. At this point, they shimmer out of view.

The crew decides that neither Neolithia nor Mythra were the source of the distress call, but they are still troubled by the state of the people living there under the control of a drug. McCoy synthesizes an antidote and they beam it down below the surface of the world's reservoir, at least giving the people a chance to revolt.

With that, the continue on to the third planet...

Spaced Out - The Very Best of Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner

Quite a while ago I ordered a copy of "Spaced Out - The Very Best of Leonard Nimoy and William Shatner"  from ebay. The day right after I finalized the order my mother came home with the very same CD that she got for me at Goodwill for two dollars. I enjoy having two copies, however - they are different releases. I had actually seen both versions for sale on ebay, but decided on the UK release.

I decided to order the UK version because of the design. first of all, Leonard and William Shatner are more visible (we can see Bill's snazzy striped pants!). Secondly, the colors are more appealing. Thirdly, the layout is super-simple and to the point: (Click images to enlarge)

The Canadian release (kindly brought to us by Space: The Imagination Station!) is simply cluttered and unnecessarily bold. William Shatner's cool striped pants are gone, the writing is in the most hideous combined colors known to man, and everything is all slanty. Not cool.

Still, however uncool - It is an awesome addition to my collection, and I will never pass up anything Shatner/Nimoy related. I play this one so that the other doesn't get scratched.

The selection of songs "sung" by William Shatner (from The Transformed Man, 1968) is fantastic, but I would have liked to see more of Leonard's original work and less covers (although I love his covers more than he originals). I would have liked to see on here original songs like The Sun Will Rise, Once I Smiled (in collaboration with Charles R. Grean, seemingly about Spock in "This Side of Paradise"), Maiden Wine, and Piece of Hope -  these are my favorite songs of his, along with Cotton Candy (written by Cliff Ralke). But hey, at least they put on the full version of Bilbo Baggins!

I will leave you with this gem - Piece of Hope written and sung by the wonderful Mr. Nimoy:

Trek or Treat - 1977 (Part 2)

Continuing on from Part 1, here are some more semi-amusing scans from the book: Trek or Treat, by Terry Flanagan and Eleanor Ehrhardt.

First we have a strained looking Spock, made out to seem like he is finally taking offense to McCoy's taunting... (but actually from "Is There in Truth no Beauty, where he starts going crazy)

I'll thank you to keep my ears out of this!

And then we come to McCoy, Kirk, and Spock, standing on the bridge while Kirk "imitates the Fonz". (I have always loved Happy Days, so this one appealed to me. There was also a page in this book where Spock wasn't doing his work because he was too busy watching the Fonz, but it wouldn't scan right.)

Aaaaa-yyy! 'Cause I'm the Captain!

Next we have Spock, wearing the IDIC (from "Is There in Truth no Beauty?"). I happen to love this picture, and despite Nimoy's opposition towards the use of the IDIC, I love what it stands for. I do not, however, love the fact that they keep making Spock out to seem like a disrespectful fool (once again, I feel illogically protective about his character).

Anyways, this is also the picture they used for the front cover of the book:

Same to you, fella.

From "The Changeling", we have here that internet-famous picture that has been dubbed the "Vulcan nipple pinch" and continues to fuel disturbing fan-fiction everywhere. I am afraid. None the less, here is a less disturbing take on things:

A little more to the left... that's good. Now scratch.

The next picture/caption duo is actually classic Kirk... I can actually see him making this face and saying this exact thing.

I have a friend that I met in an art class, and every art class I would talk non-stop about Star trek to her. I thought that eventually she had learned to tune me out, but later I found that even though she had never seen an episode, she knew the back-story of every character and the plot of most of the episodes from merely listening to me... she knows more about Star Trek now than a lot of the fans I know who have seen every episode.

Anyways, the whole point to this anecdote is that I am always posting creepy/flirty pictures of Kirk on her facebook wall, because... well, because I can. And because she freaked out in disbelief when she found out William Shatner was 80, and had never really seen how good-looking he used to be. And because I (still) think he is massively sexy (and I don't think she does). I'm a good friend.

But I digress. Again. To my friend - if you are reading this, this is for you:

Anyone for skinny-dipping?

Moving on, we have Spock, 1950's high school-girl musical style.

This is the pits! Got into my dress blues and now the party is called off.

Last one! (Of the half that I scanned.) A large portion of the photos in this book are from "The Enterprise Incident", which is quite alright because as I mentioned before, it is one of my favorites. One of the reasons why I love the episode so much is that Kirk disguises himself as a Romulan:

It goes well with your high heels.

So there you have it! Some very strange captions to go with epically amazing pictures. Not bad for a dollar, not bad at all.

Doctor Who: Classic Dalek 3-Pack Info Scan - Shortest Post Ever!

Remember when I was talking (and by talking I mean typing) about my Doctor Who: Classic Dalek 3-Pack? Well, I spent hours and hours cleaning my room yesterday and when I pulled out a dusty stack of papers and pieces of cardboard, I found this:

Click to enlarge for reading/copying/gawking purposes. Unfortunately though, I can't make it large enough to be comfortably readable.

This snazzy piece of paper came with my Dalek 3-Pack, and contains a brief history of each of the Daleks whose figures you would find inside. Now if only I could find the next sets...

I met a Klingon, and then I slept with Spock.

At the Comic and Toy expo a while ago, dressed as a Vulcan Priestess, I met a Klingon. After going through comics and posing with people babies for photos, I sat down with some fellow nerds and there he was.

We have gotten together and spoken since then, mostly about Star Trek, Cosplay and Doctor Who. Then he found out that I have never watched Harry Potter (and never will) and stripped me of one of my metaphorical nerd stripes. Then I threatened to take all of his away because he didn't speak Vulcan or Klingon.

Anyways, a couple weeks ago I met him at a coffee shop and was handed a box that looked like a crappy cardboard coffin. What was inside?

I find this skin color highly illogical.

A moderately large plush-Spock, with the correct insignia and a quizzical expression. Needless to say, I was overjoyed and can now tell people that I slept with Spock. Which is true - he is a now permanent resident of my bed.

I do find one thing strange, however. Why is his skin so pink? My skin has a stronger green tint that his here, and I am less than half Vulcan. Crazy plush-company.

Trek or Treat - 1977 (Part 1)

There are some pretty strange books out there, books that make no sense and rely on strange humor. This book definitely falls into that category - I only got it because it pertained to Star Trek, had amazing pictures, and cost one dollar at the convention. It was poking out from underneath a Worf doll.

The book: Trek or Treat, by Terry Flanagan and Eleanor Ehrhardt.

Snarky Spock? Quite strange.

I only scanned about half of the pages - these are only my favorites.

First we have a wonderful shot of the "Vulcan death grip" as invented by Spock in "The Enterprise Incident" (one of my favorite episodes... then again, aren't they all?)

I said... no peeking!

We then move on to a picture of Kirk from "The Empath" where he was captured, hung by chains, and tortured - Something strange fan-girls everywhere will never forget.

But hey, it gave Kirk an opportunity to be shirtless, so why not? We all know he loved to show off his chest.

Would you believe... I used to be a 99-pound weakling?

Next we have a grumpy-looking Kirk (again from "The Enterprise Incident"). Poor Kirk, having to seem all crazy... having a temper tantrum.

I do so have a sense of humor!

Now I know these things are supposed to be funny, and it isn't logical for me to feel this way, but i actually feel very protective about Spock's character. I don't like to see him made out to be unintelligent, or "clutsy/goofy" like below:

Gee, I didn't know it was loaded!

Next we have another shot from "The Empath" where "Gem" (so named by McCoy) is healing Kirk. Her hands always had a strange effect on me - they are just so perfect. Smooth. Flawless.

And poor dying/reviving Kirk's face...

There, there Captain - It's only a tetanus shot!

One of the pages I actually enjoyed and thought made sense was a shot from I, Mudd (another one of my favorites... insert Liars Paradox!) where the crew was doing everything in their power to appear illogical. It worked. We all laughed. The day was save.

PS. Jack Black would make an amazing Harry Mudd if the need ever rose.

Okay, together now: "Tea for two and two for tea"

Next we have another one for crazy fan-girls everywhere - and a weepy Kirk.

Love means never having to say you're sorry.

Moving on... NOMAD! Remember when Spock mind-melded with Nomad in "The Changeling" and almost went insane? Of course you do. I actually quite enjoyed nomad, it didn't mean to cause any harm, merely to sterilize. It was it's function.

But I digress. Putting an amusing spin on things:

Nomad: Sometimes I think you only love me for your body.

Another one of my favorite episodes is "Journey to Babel" where we first meet Spock's parents, Sarek and Amanda. I love how the two compliment each other even though they are Vulcan and Human - they are the perfect couple in every way. I always imagine Spock growing up with his mother saying and doing the most human things, and this fits right in:

Get a haircut, Son!

Even without posting all of the scans, I can't possible fit all of them into one post. Therefore, this is part one of two. If you liked these, check back in a couple of days for part two!