REPORTER:
00:00:05
Into my veins with that song. This week, we mark 60 years since the Starship Enterprise first flew onto our TV screens. The cast and crew of Star Trek didn't last long on television. It originally aired right here on CBS. But the sci-fi franchise ended up birthing dozens of movies, cartoons, and series still going strong today. Dave Malkoff boarded a vessel much different than the Enterprise to find out why Star Trekhas stuck around.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:00:31
Previously on Star Trek. Just to get you caught up, 60 years ago we first met Captain James T. Kirk from outer space. No, I'm from Iowa. I only work in outer space. Oh, well, I was close. This ship is carrying us all. We're all bound together.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:00:48
We chase the captain's legacy 'round Iowa, through outer space, to the Dominican Republic to track him down, fittingly on a ship. This is about as close as you're going to get to a starship anywhere on Earth. This is Star Trek,the cruise. Here come the stars.
ANNOUNCER:
00:01:02
Walter Koenig! 60 years of Star Trek!
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:01:07
This is 3,000 fans just in one location. And here he is, 95 years sharp, sitting at the helm of a franchise he once called-- Perhaps the most durable and profitable franchise in the history of entertainment. Sounds right. That's a lot for one show that was canceled three years in. And the ratings weren't very good. We were in the top 40 popularity, which is sort of in the middle.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:01:35
That's the central question I had for Mr. Shatner and for this story. How does a show that barely made a dent in the ratings go on to leave a mark on the entire world 60 years later? When it got into something they called syndication, which didn't exist, which was at an earlier hour, individual stations across the country played it at their time. And it got popular.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:02:01
But syndication in the '70s doesn't explain this--
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:02:05
--today. Trekkies, myself included-- that's me around 1991 in my bedroom. Hi. I'm Dave Malkoff in space, where I usually am, looking down at the Earth. It's certainly a lot of people around the world devoted to some fictional United Federation of Planets. I started watching the old series with my grandfather and my dad. And we just loved that. My gateway was Next Generation.
TREKKIE:
00:02:30
The makeup artists that are on the ship, fantabulous. I love seeing the smiles on everybody's faces.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:02:35
Fantabulous is a good way to describe the people who saw the series canceled and brought it back. They saw the success of Star Wars and brought Star Trek to theaters as well. I love them all.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:02:47
The late Leonard Nimoy told me that in 2009. I was involved in making the first six Star Trekmovies. Double dumb ass on you and so forth. You mean the profanity? Yes.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:02:57
There have now been 14 films and over 900 hours of television. To the fans out there who were paying attention, mostly the college kids at the time, they got the references and the metaphors. They're the ones who I really think kept Star Trekalive.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:03:14
This is current executive producer Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry. There's a reason that sounds familiar. I'm a mirror for you as well. Not for long.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:03:23
Have you worked on more episodes than Gene Roddenberry Sr. at this point? I mean, technically, yes. However, he did far more work than I did. The network certainly wasn't happy with it. They didn't know whether it was a kid show, adult show, or what.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:03:38
His father, Gene Roddenberry, created all of this.
EUGENE RODDENBERRY:
00:03:41
Yeah. The Star TrekI love is where it shows us as our better selves. To me, he was just Dad, and then all the fans told me he was the great bird of the galaxy. Unfortunately, he passed away just as Star Trek was becoming hugely successful. Gene Roddenberry died yesterday.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:03:56
The thing fans understand about Roddenberry's vision is it's actually in our own galaxy. This could be Earth's future, if only we can work together. Do you want to be here? Let's go. Show me you're worthy of this uniform. In the time of the Cold War, we had a Russian on the ship. In the time of civil rights, we had the first Black woman in a position of power. Hailing frequencies open, sir. What does Star Trekand specifically Deep Space Nine teaching us about the time that we live in right now? Ooh. They're still jamming our communications.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:04:31
Terry Farrell was Jadzia Dax in the '90s.
TERRY FARRELL:
00:04:34
I think Star Trekalways has the hope for a better future. [CHEERING]
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:04:42
That future, still centuries away, is bringing real people together at this vow renewal. He made my dreams come true by bringing me here. That's the thing about faith. If you don't have it, you can't understand it.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:04:56
Those years of playing the tough major Kira still impact Nana Visitor's life. Many of us can be virtual mentors for people. And that was a weird thought for me. That is just so touching. It feels like you've got a real connection to the fans here. It's a real connection, and it's long term. I love you, Nick and Brenda.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:05:20
Yeah, 60 years long. [SHOUTING] So maybe that's the answer I was searching for this whole story. Why did the canceled show last? It's about us somehow turning out OK. It's part of the magic of who we are and what we are, and why we live-- to live to discover that consciousness. And that's what's at the core of Star Trek. So I'm just so happy-- That, to me, is what Star Trekis. That's the magic and the beauty of Star Trek. Let's get the hell out of here.
DAVE MALKOFF:
00:05:53
For CBS Saturday Morning,Dave Malkoff, Earth sector 0017 to transport, energize. Please translate. What does that mean? Eh. Malkoff, you nailed it. Thank you for that. [LAUGHS] I didn't realize it's been 60 years. But it is incredible that a little TV show turned into such an empire. I caught the bug through the Next Generation, which was the '90s-era one, watched all the movies. And his point about how it's based on Earth and it's all about what the future could look like. I'm not a Trekkie. I didn't realize that Earth was still the center of-- Absolutely. That's what makes it so cool. We should point out you can find all things Star Trek, including the movies, TV series, and cartoons streaming on, where else, Paramount+.
