Good Things Come to Those Who Wait

Sometimes you have to wait for a very long time, however. In this case, over 40 years. The unaired alternate pilot for the original Star Trek  has been found, and it is to be released on Blu-ray next month (this should mean that the quality is very good, and it was kept in pristine condition).

The announcement came from slashdot -

“Star Trek fans know there were two pilots for the original series. The first, ‘The Cage,’ was rejected by NBC for being ‘too ...

cerebral’ (ah, some things never change). The second, ‘Where No Man Has Gone Before,’ replaced the actor who played the captain with William Shatner and was more action driven. That pilot had an alternate version which was largely lost and has never aired. Apparently, a film collector in Germany acquired the print and ‘recently brought it to the attention’ of CBS/Paramount. CBS is now releasing this version on Blu-ray Dec. 15.”

and from The Live Feed

The alternate version is in three parts with 1970s-style act breaks, an entirely different version of Captain James T. Kirk’s opening monologue (”But now a new task. A probe out into where no man has gone before”) and music that contrasts from the famous opening theme and an extended action sequence.

From the release:

This version of “Where No Man Has Gone Before” was completed in 1965 and features archived footage that was not included in the pilot episode ultimately broadcasted.  Never-before-aired, this newly recovered version is believed to be what was originally screened for NBC, and the basis for their decision to broadcast STAR TREK®. … “When we first discovered the original film print existed, we jumped at the chance to give STAR TREK fans the opportunity to add this never aired pilot to their collections,” said Ken Ross, executive vice president and general manager of CBS Home Entertainment. “It will be a real treat for fans to see and hear how it all could have begun.”

The restored pilot will be included in the “Star Trek: Original Series - Season 3″ Blu-ray release..

Some people were commenting on the site that not much was changed, and that the scenes were largely the same, but then this stuff is the sort of thing that fans go nuts about, and others don’t give it a second thought.

It’s simply a matter of where you stand. For people like me, it’s something really cool, and I’ll be wanting to get it, no matter how little it might differ.

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Technorati Tags: Star Trek TOS,The Original Series,William Shatner,Leonard Nimoy,alternate second pilot episode,chenges not before seen,Blu-ray release,NBC,Paramount Studios

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Don’t part with your illusions. When they are gone you may still exist, but you have ceased to live.

Mark Twain

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