July 16 – 24, 1968
48 years ago this week, William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy stopped filming of a Star Trek episode in protest over the script! They were working on “Is There in Truth No Beauty” (July 16 – 24, 1968) when the incident occurred. What was their beef?
It was the dining room scene where Miranda Jones, played by Diana Muldaur, compliments Mr. Spock on the IDIC medallion he wears. So what called the protest which delayed filming?
William Shatner said: “The show was getting sloppy, our scripts were suffering and cancellation seemed a probability. Making matters worse, it had become clear that Gene Roddenberry had drifted from the show, with no intention of ever getting seriously re-involved on any creative level. Most disheartening of all, however, were Roddenberry’s blatant attempts to milk every possible cent from his dying cash cow known as Star Trek, even at the expense of our scripts.” |
Roddenberry had actually written the scene they were to film that day, with dialogue explaining the IDIC medallion worn by Spock.
Producer Fred Freiberger said, “I went down [to the set], and Shatner and Nimoy were refusing to do the scene. They said, “Gene’s trying to sell merchandise; we don’t want to do this medallion thing.’ So I called him up and said, ‘Gene, we have a mutiny on our hands.’”
Director Ralph Senensky remembered it differently, saying, “Leonard had called [Freiberger] and told him there was a problem and he refused to do anything about it. He didn’t even come down to the set. I hadn’t even met him. So Leonard was the one who called Gene, and Gene came to the set…. They weren’t necessarily antagonistic; they just stated their point, and Gene of course denied that he was being commercial about it. It got a little heated. I don’t remember it ever getting into yelling, but I think there was resentment, and there was such a difference in opinion.”
Nimoy said, “What bothered me most about all of this was my sense of loss in regard to Gene. I mean, if Gene was at his best and on his game, he could help you enormously with a script. Sadly, though, by this time he had refocused his attention and his energies into helping Lincoln Enterprises.”
Roddenberry, defending himself, said, “The inclusion of the IDIC in that script was valid. I truly believed in the statement – in the message behind it – Infinite Diversity, Infinite Combinations. Why wouldn’t I want that in the story?”
David Frankham, appearing in the episode as Larry Marvick, said, “They spoke quietly to each other, and then Nimoy and Shatner said, ‘Well, this script, as it stands, is not acceptable, so we’re going home and get in touch with us as soon as it’s rewritten.’ And I thought it was unbelievable, and I watched them walk off the set. I thought, ‘You can’t go home; you’re the stars and we’re supposed to be shooting!” I liked them both; I mean, nothing against them whatsoever, but I thought, ‘’What’s going to happen now?’ And poor Ralph was standing there, probably as surprised as we were. It was a brilliant script, and I understand them being protective of it, but it put us all on a bit of a roller coaster ride.”
Producer Fred Freiberger said, “I went down [to the set], and Shatner and Nimoy were refusing to do the scene. They said, “Gene’s trying to sell merchandise; we don’t want to do this medallion thing.’ So I called him up and said, ‘Gene, we have a mutiny on our hands.’”
Director Ralph Senensky remembered it differently, saying, “Leonard had called [Freiberger] and told him there was a problem and he refused to do anything about it. He didn’t even come down to the set. I hadn’t even met him. So Leonard was the one who called Gene, and Gene came to the set…. They weren’t necessarily antagonistic; they just stated their point, and Gene of course denied that he was being commercial about it. It got a little heated. I don’t remember it ever getting into yelling, but I think there was resentment, and there was such a difference in opinion.”
Nimoy said, “What bothered me most about all of this was my sense of loss in regard to Gene. I mean, if Gene was at his best and on his game, he could help you enormously with a script. Sadly, though, by this time he had refocused his attention and his energies into helping Lincoln Enterprises.”
Roddenberry, defending himself, said, “The inclusion of the IDIC in that script was valid. I truly believed in the statement – in the message behind it – Infinite Diversity, Infinite Combinations. Why wouldn’t I want that in the story?”
David Frankham, appearing in the episode as Larry Marvick, said, “They spoke quietly to each other, and then Nimoy and Shatner said, ‘Well, this script, as it stands, is not acceptable, so we’re going home and get in touch with us as soon as it’s rewritten.’ And I thought it was unbelievable, and I watched them walk off the set. I thought, ‘You can’t go home; you’re the stars and we’re supposed to be shooting!” I liked them both; I mean, nothing against them whatsoever, but I thought, ‘’What’s going to happen now?’ And poor Ralph was standing there, probably as surprised as we were. It was a brilliant script, and I understand them being protective of it, but it put us all on a bit of a roller coaster ride.”
Read all about the roller coaster ride that became “Is There in Truth No Beauty?”, and all the other third season episodes of Star Trek: TOS [The Original Series], in Marc Cushman’s critically acclaimed book, These Are the Voyages, TOS: Season Three, available here.