Space. The Final Frontier... The voyages of the Starship Enterprise continue to inspire our collective imaginations and now CBS Home Entertainment is giving fans an incredible peek into the vault of Star Trek's own creator.
With the ultimate Star Trek 50th Anniversary celebration in full swing, and the eminent arrival of the Star Trek: Mission into New York, the largest Star Trek convention of its kind ever, fans have plenty to get excited about. In this landmark year celebrating one of the greatest and enduring science fiction franchises still going strong, the mission’s arrival into New York City's Javits Center will be bringing together casts from every generation of Star Trek as well as fans from all over the country.
Without Gene Roddenberry there would be no Star Trek. The television writer/producer and series creator — “The Great Bird of the Galaxy” as he’s most affectionally known by the fans — as determined to bring to life a series unlike anything that had ever been seen on television before. Having had success as a writer on televised western series, he envisioned a “Wagon Train to the Stars” when he pitched his unique vision of the future.
Roddenberry could hardly have imagined that 50 years later, after The Original Series launched and introduced the Captain Kirk and his valiant crew of the Starship Enterprise that even when the network cancelled the show after three seasons, when it entered into syndication it would evolve into a phenomenon that would inspire 13 motion pictures, 4 spin-offs series , an animated Saturday Morning show, and soon another new iteration for television.
Truly, going boldly where no one had gone before.
In preparation of the next chapter as expectations around the new CBS series Star Trek Discovery ride very high, CBS Home Entertainment and Paramount Home Media Distribution take a special look into some of the most treasured archives with Star Trek: The Original Series — The Roddenberry Vault. This special Blu-ray edition is set for release in December and will reveal an intimate portrait of the man behind this enduring legacy.
The 3-disc set will spotlight twelve episodes from the classic, original series in startling 1080p High Definition with DTS 7.1 Master Audio, as well as the option to play in the restored original mono soundtrack. Newly recorded audio commentaries will spotlight three of the fan-favorite episodes. The Blu-ray set will also include three newly produced documentaries, with previously unseen footage and interviews from key creatives exploring the “making of” Star Trek.
The three new documentaries are pertinent to the episodes featured along with this exclusively packaged set and give fans unprecedented access to Star Trek and Gene Roddenberry:
• Inside The Roddenberry Vault Rod Roddenberry introduces viewers to the discovery of his father’s long-lost Star Trek film reels. With footage from each of the 12 episodes, this three-part special feature offers a guided exploration into the historical significance of the newly discovered material through new interviews with dozens of Star Trek alumni and historians
• Star Trek: Revisiting A Classic offers a look back at the origins of the iconic series, including glimpses of life on the set with new interviews featuring guest stars, directors and production personnel.
• Strange New Worlds: Visualizing the Fantastic dives into the creation of spaceships, transporters, and the classic Star Trek visuals. The in-depth feature combines newly found original visual effects elements photography along with interviews with effects masters and Star Trek veterans such as Industrial Light & Magic founding member Richard Edlund, Doug Drexler, Dan Curry and Gary Hutzel.
Additionally unseen footage from The Original Series has made itself into a new feature Swept Up: Snippets from the Cutting Room Floor. For those of us who can’t wait until December for the package to be released a special panel will be convening on Saturday at Star Trek: Mission New York to give audiences their glimpse at this never-before-experienced side of the Final Frontier.
Check out this rare footage, a segment featured in one of the new documentaries appearing in this special edition release of Star Trek: The Original Series -- The Roddenberry Vault.