《星空奇遇記》的文化影響

格言：「勇踏前人未至之境」
電視劇
《星空奇遇記》（80集）
《動畫版》（22集）
《新星空奇遇記》（178集）
《銀河前哨》（176集）
《重返地球》（172集）
《星艦前傳》（98集）
《星空奇遇記：發現號》（55集）
《星空奇遇記：皮尚魯》（30集）
《星空奇遇記：底層甲板》（20集）
《星空奇遇記：神童艦隊》（20集）
《星空奇遇記：奇異新世界》（20集）
電影
第一部：《星空奇遇記》
第二部：《大汗的憤怒》
第三部：《魔宮龍虎鬥》
第四部：《回到地球》
第五部：《最後戰線》
第六部：《未来之城》
第七部：《星空奇兵》
第八部：《星空第一擊》
第九部：《星空反攻》
第十部：《星戰啟示錄》
第十一部：《星空奇遇記》
第十二部：《星空奇遇記》
第十三部：《超域時空》
主要勢力和種族
星際聯邦 · 人類 · 瓦肯人
羅慕倫（羅慕蘭帝國） · Q
克林崗人（克林崗帝國） · 索利安人
葛恩人 · 佛瑞吉人 · 波格人
卡松人 · 卡達西人 · 貝久人
希羅金人 · 自治同盟 · 布林人
新地人 · 貝塔索人
衍生作品
第二期 · 小說 · 宇宙
紙牌 · 遊戲 · 星迷作品 · 體驗館
延伸閱讀
正史 · 角色 · 星際艦隊
年表 · 時間線
星艦 · 艦級
行星 · 恆星 · 物理學 · 法律
文化影響
社會 · 星迷 · 格言

《星空奇遇記》，被認為是歷史上最有文化影響力的電視節目之一——也許還是歷史上影響最為深遠的科幻電視片集。首播於1960年代的《星空奇遇記》原初系列]，至今（2024年）已發展出了五代電視片集和十部電影（第十一部正在製作中），無以計量的商品，以及一個價值數十億美元的《星空奇遇記》傳媒產業（現在由CBS派拉蒙電視公司擁有）。事實上，在科幻作品和流行文化現象中，只有《星球大戰》擁有與其相當的流行文化影響力。

《星空奇遇記》，原初系列

金·羅丹貝利將原初的《星空奇遇記》作品（常簡稱為TOS）以經典冒險劇的形式賣給了NBC，當時將該劇描述成「星際間的《馬車隊》」和「太空裏的霍雷肖·霍恩布洛爾」。該劇設定於一艘名叫「企業號」的星艦上，而其形式則在很大程度上受到1955年電影《惑星曆險》的影響。實際上，羅丹貝利還想設定更多精巧的故事，用未來的情景來類比地球上的問題，並通過人文主義與樂觀主義來解決這些問題。而節目的編劇們則更多地在劇情中探討奴隸制、戰爭和歧視這些主題，並專注於道德和社會的議題。開場白「勇敢地航向前人所未至的領域」，幾乎是逐字地采自美國白宮在1957年發表的一本小冊子：這本小冊子發表於蘇聯人造衛星旅伴（Sputnik）發射後不久，意在激起公眾對美國國家太空計劃的支持。

原處系列的三位核心人物占士·T·卻克、冼樸和麥哥是按古典神話中的故事塑造出來的。為了體現人類的多樣性和統一性，羅丹貝利組建了一隊多種族的船員隊伍：其中有一名非裔美國女子、一名蘇格蘭男子、一名日裔美國男子——而最引人注目的是——一名外星人，半瓦肯血統的冼樸。在第二季中，為了反映同時期的冷戰，羅丹貝利還增加了一名俄羅斯船員。

File:STTOScrew2.jpg

在原初《星空奇遇記》中各色各樣的主角們。

儘管該片在今日經常因其低劣的特效與做作的表演而受批評，TOS還是因其播映期間獲得的多項艾美獎提名而成為有奠基意義的一部劇集，並為後來者作出了表率。在那個時候還有一些很成功的科幻電視節目，譬如《陰陽魔界》（The Twilight Zone），但TOS是第一部用多元描述的道德故事來吸引成人的劇集。儘管預算受限，該劇的特效要優於當時的其他節目，它的故事也通常是由著名的科幻作家撰寫，而且它大部分的製作——特別是服裝——是有很高品質的。

在最初播映的1966年到1969年間，TOS並沒有維持穩定的收視率，在第二季後就幾乎被取消。由愛好者們發起的一次電視史上空前的信件支持運動，說服了電視網取消他們的決定，並讓TOS續拍了第三季。NBC把該劇放在了垃圾時段播出，TOS最終在第三季結束後被取消。不久以後，電視網的市場部員工們便開始抱怨經理層太早地結束了這部劇集。在使用了新技術來統計觀眾數量的時候證明了這一點。他們發現《星空奇遇記》的觀眾是非常好的廣告受眾，至此以後電視網開始將該劇視作了一項有利可圖的所有物。但遺憾的是，這個發現對重新開始此劇已經太晚了。

Cancellation and aftermath

In 1976, a letter-writing campaign compelled NASA to name the inaugural (and test) space shuttle Enterprise after the fictional eponymous starship. In this image, Enterprise is rolled out of the Palmdale manufacturing facilities with Star Trek television cast members and creator Gene Roddenberry in attendance.

After its cancellation, Star Trek took on a life of its own, becoming more popular and reaching a much wider audience than when it had originally aired. In the early seventies, a group of fans decided to hold a convention featuring the original actors: hundreds were expected, but (surprisingly) thousands arrived.

In 1976, following another fan-organised letter-writing campaign, NASA named its first space shuttle orbiter, Enterprise (OV-101), after the fictional starship. The Enterprise was used in a number of flight tests, but NASA's plans to make it spaceworthy were cancelled as impractical. Enterprise was occasionally used for engineering tests and was also used to investigate the 2003 Columbia accident, but has spent much of its life in storage and is now displayed at the Smithsonian Institution's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center outside Washington, DC. The opening sequence of the later series Star Trek: Enterprise (2001) features a shot of this real-life space shuttle in homage, intending to show it as a namesake for other eponymous ships in the Star Trek universe.

NASA also employed actress Nichelle Nichols, who played Uhura – and is touted to have partaken in the first multiracial kiss with Shatner's Kirk on TV in the episode "Plato's Stepchildren" – to attempt recruiting African-Americans and women to become astronauts. During her work on the show, Nichols became frustrated at her relative lack of lines and was considering quitting. She was talked out of this decision by Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr., who told her that a show that depicted a black woman working alongside whites in a position of importance helped further the goal of racial equality.

A possibly direct follow-on to Nichelle Nichols' inspiration was once stated by Whoopi Goldberg, as she had once been quoted as saying that Nichols' role as Uhura was her inspiration to get into acting, and Ms. Goldberg was eventually to portray the recurring El-Aurian female character Guinan on The Next Generation.

Waxing and waning

In the mid-seventies, encouraged by the burgeoning fan base for the show, Roddenberry sought to start a second television series (Star Trek: Phase II); this abortive attempt morphed into Star Trek: The Motion Picture in 1979. The movie did sufficiently well at the box office, grossing more than $80 million, and spawned several more movies during the eighties. In 1987, Roddenberry created a second TV show, Star Trek: The Next Generation (TNG), which was set aboard the fifth Federation starship Enterprise (NCC-1701-D) more than seventy years after events in the earlier series and related movies. Unlike TOS – which often reflected a bold, interventionist American philosophy – TNG had a less aggressive and more socially liberal message. This show, unlike its progenitor, was syndicated and sold to individual local TV stations rather than a nationwide network. It became the number one syndicated TV show, lasting seven seasons, and spawned two sequels, a prequel, four movies, and a vast marketing business.

Star Trek and its spinoffs have proved highly popular in television repeats, shown endlessly on TV stations in the US and worldwide. The Star Trek franchise is similarly prolific: arguably, only Star Wars has had as significant an influence as a science fiction and pop culture phenomenon. According to Forbes magazine:

• the five live-action Star Trek series have garnered 31 Emmys and 140 nominations, and at least nine specials have been produced
• the ten movies have cumulatively grossed $1.76 billion at the box office: the most successful movie was Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986) grossing $133 million worldwide ($235 million in 2005 terms); however, none have garnered Oscar wins despite a combined nine nominations for four films
• at least 120 video games contain "Star Trek" in their titles, mostly soundtracks (with no Grammy nominations) and audio books but also Klingon language instruction
• about 70 million books are in print
• the franchise entails a merchandising business with a total lifetime gross of about $4 billion from companies including Playmates Toys, Hallmark, and Hasbro
• resorts include rides and attractions at Paramount-owned amusement parks as well as Star Trek: The Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton

Star Trek conventions have become popular, though waning and now often meshed with conventions of other genres. Fans coined the term "Trekkies" to describe themselves, or "Trekkers" to address the pejorative nature of the term to some fans, and produce an abundance of fanon material like fanzines with fiction and other fancruft such as art and songs. The word Klingon was later added to the Oxford Dictionary as well.

The show’s cultural influence goes far beyond its longevity and profitability. An entire subculture grew up around the show and, anecdotally, there are indications that Star Trek has influenced many peoples' lives. This is apparent from the reported testimonials of people, such as scientists and engineers, who claim that their professional and life choices were influenced by Star Trek. Whoopi Goldberg, harking of Nichols' portrayal, was compelled to act and would later appear on TNG regularly. In addition, phrases like "Beam me up, Scotty", "Resistance is futile" (from the iconic Borg), and Treknobabble have entered vernacular, and "Trekkie" is the only fan label listed in the Oxford English Dictionary. Fictional devices in the show have also been claimed as inspirations for actual devices like mobile phones (communicator), medical technology (hypospray and diagnostic imaging), and even elements of naval architecture (bridge).

Many fans contend that the Star Trek franchise, particularly after the death of Roddenberry in 1991 (during TNG’s run), is in decline and has reached a nadir. Reduced viewership of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine and Star Trek: Voyager, lacklustre performance of Star Trek: Nemesis, and the short tenure of Star Trek: Enterprise connote decreased popularity. Some assert that the many incarnations are formulaic, repetitive, mediocre, and sometimes discontinuous. Others ascribe this decline to static leadership at Paramount, which has been over-exploiting the phenomenon as a cash cow and asserting copyright at the expense of fandom. However, it should be noted that all these other programs competed with popular rival space themed sci-fi TV shows such as Stargate SG-1 (1997-2007) or Babylon 5 (1994-1998). Consequently, they could not be expected to command more viewership than TNG which was often the only major sci-fi TV series during its 1987 to 1994 run.

Parodies

Star Trek has held the record of the most parodies of a franchise. Starting with Mad Magazine, a whole genre of parody has followed, for example:

• Saturday Night Live:
  • A skit entitled, "The Last Voyage of the Starship Enterprise" explains why Star Trek was really cancelled. John Belushi as Captain Kirk, Chevy Chase as Mr. Spock, and Dan Aykroyd as Dr. McCoy, along with two extras portraying Sulu and Uhura, encounter an intruder who came out of nowhere. The intruder, played by Elliot Gould, happens to be an executive from NBC explaining that Star Trek was immediately cancelled, and all the props were slowly being dismantled. All but Kirk leave, leaving him to enter his final "Captain's Log".
  • Fifteen years later, Shatner hosted SNL and played Kirk as captain of an Enterprise that had been purchased by Marriott International and transformed into a revolving restaurant. Khan (played by Dana Carvey) arrives to menace Kirk with a dreaded health inspector (played by Jon Lovitz). (The same actor as in the earlier skit again portrayed Sulu, resulting in an ad-lib joke from Shatner about Sulu's having gained weight since the last time he saw him.)
  • Years after Shatner's appearance, Patrick Stewart, as SNL's host, parodied his own show with a skit titled "The Love Boat: The Next Generation." The skit, which mashed The Love Boat with TNG, included Stewart as Capt. Picard, Rob Schneider as 數據, Chris Farley as Riker, Tim Meadows as Geordi La Forge, and Ellen Cleghorne doing her impression of Whoopi Goldberg playing Guinan. In addition, Love Boat cast member Bernie Kopell reprised his role as Dr. Adam Bricker in a cameo.
• In Living Color:
  • In one skit entitled, "The Wrath of Farrakhan", a parody of The Wrath of Khan, Nation of Islam leader Louis Farakhan, played by Damon Wayans, convinces crewmembers to rebel against Captain Kirk, played by Jim Carrey.
  • Another skit, entitled, "Star Trek VII: The REALLY Last Voyage", shows the final voyage of an aging Enterprise Crew, including Captain Kirk losing his toupee, Mr. Spock (played by David Alan Grier), having drooping ears, explaining that his Pon Farr is days away and was starting to find Kirk attractive.
• The Simpsons:
  • In "Deep Space Homer", Homer Simpson is competing against Barney Gumble to be the next civilian into outer space. One of the competitions was to have a brawl in a ring. During this event, the competitors are dressed in Star Trek-like outfits and the infamous track, better known as the "Fight Song", from Amok Time is played.
  • In the episode "Itchy and Scratchy: The Movie", Grandpa Simpson, Bart Simpson and Lisa Simpson are watching TV when a commercial for "Star Trek XII: So Very Tired" comes on. Featuring a heavily aged crew, Captain Kirk complains of his Hiatal Hernia, that the ship is "drafty and damp" and notes how he complains, "but nobody listens." Sulu then reports Klingons off the starboard bow, to which Kirk responds with a sigh of frustration "again with the Klingons" before calling for "Full Power" from Mister Scott. The scene then changes to an overweight Scotty, whose girth prevents him from reaching the control panel, which he informs Kirk in reply to his request.
  • In the Itchy & Scratchy segment featured in the episode "Bart of Darkness" the Star Trek episode The Cage is parodied.
  • In the episode "A Star Is Burns", William Shatner, dressed as Kirk, auditions (in the much ridiculed idiosyncratic Kirk speak) for the part of Mr. Burns.
  • Several jokes about Star Trek in the show resolve around Comic Book Guy. In the episode "I'm Goin' to Praiseland" he hallucinates himself to be as a member of the starship "Enterprise". Also, in the episode "Das Bus", Comic Book Guy is seen trying to download a nude photo of Kate Mulgrew, who played Captain Kathryn Janeway in Star Trek: Voyager before being interrupted by a banner for Homer's home business.
• In 2005, shortly after its return to the Fox network, Family Guy paid tribute to Star Trek: The Next Generation with a parody skit featuring the voices of Patrick Stewart, Jonathan Frakes and Michael Dorn as their famed characters. In the parody, Picard asks Riker if he would join him in a laugh if he whispered in his ear that "Commander Worf's head looks like a fanny" to which Riker replies in the affirmative. When Picard does say such, rather than whisper it, he shouts it, causing the animated bridge crew to laugh, and irriating Worf who tells them both to "suck my ridges" to which Picard replies, "Oh get a sense of humor, Rocky Dennis."
• In 2007, Family Guy parodied Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan - specifically, Spock's funeral and Kirk's eulogy at the end of the film in a day-dream of Baby Stewie, worried over his missing teddy bear, Rupert. Stewie became Admiral Kirk, while Rupert became Spock. Stewie offered the exact same euology, word-for-word, including the momentary emotional pause as portrayed by William Shatner in the film. In near-exact duplication of the actual scene, Amazing Grace was then played on bag-pipes, as Rupert was shot out into space, with the music transitioning into standard instrumental as Rupert is shot into Genesis orbit. Cartoon equivalents of Nichelle Nichols as Uhura, DeForest Kelley as McCoy, Kirstie Alley as Saavik, and Merrit Buttrick as David where also included.
• Also, in the Family Guy DVD feature, Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story," a cutaway parodies "Deep Space Nine," with Stewie Griffin as Quark and Odo voiced by Rene Auberjonois. In the scene depicting the DS9 bar, Odo threatens to morph into a giant python and eat "Quark" alive if he breaks the law, but "Quark" just replies, "Why don't you morph into a guy with something interesting to talk about?"
• When Joey from Friends was asked what he knew about "Vulcanized Rubber" he immediately responded "Spock's birth control!"
• The skit show Sitz had a skit featuring a space faring hospital called the "Crown Health Enterprise". It was crewed by a Kirk look-alike in a Starfleet uniform commanding, bizarrely, sergeant shultz (from Hogan heroes), as well as several characters from Thunderbirds and "Journey to the bottom of the sea". It was eventually commandeered by a bald character in a red and black jumpsuit whose accent repeatedly changed from English to French.
• Boston Legal: William Shatner's character, Denny Crane, makes occasional Star Trek references.
• Several characters in the comic strip Bloom County use the wheelchair of Cutter John as the starship "Enterpoop" during Star Trek roleplaying.
• On an episode of Drake and Josh, they get the geek boys, Craig and Aaron to stay with their Papa Nickels by giving them the first season of "Space Trek", an obvious reference to Star Trek.
• In an episode of Full House, the character Joey Gladstone lifts up the family's dog Comet's ears, saying, "Look, it's Spock, the Vulcan retriever. Live long and slobber."
• The comic strip The Wizard of Id celebrated 35 years of Star Trek with a series of 3 tribute strips-- One each to the original series, The Next Generation, and Deep Space Nine. The last strip came under fire from black advocacy groups for portraying Captain Sisko, Star Trek's first black captain, as a glutton.
• In the made-for-TV Disney Channel original movie "The Luck Of The Irish," a half-leprechaun boy, discovering that his ears have just become pointed, cries out, "Oh, no! I'm turning into a Vulcan!" in reference to the famous pointy-eared Star Trek species.
• The film Galaxy Quest parodies the original Star Trek series, elements of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and the Trekkie phenomenon.
• Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide:
  • In the Guide to: Secrets and School Car Wash episode Ned and Cookie were getting chased by Billy "Bully" Loomer and later ran into Moze, who one second later said "You guys look like you've seen a ghost" in a similar way Captain James T. Kirk told Captain Spock in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier.
  • Another "Star Trek" reference occurred in the "Guide to Fundraising & Competition" episode when Vice Principal Crubbs, Mr. Sweeney, and Coach Dirga told Ned and Cookie "You're the worst fundraisers ever!", Cookie responded "We're students, not salesmen!" A reference to the Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy "I'm a doctor, not a(n)..." catchphrase.
• Stargate SG-1 and Stargate Atlantis make multiple references to the franchise, most notably Dr. McKay's frequent comparisons of Col. Sheppard to Kirk, and Colonel O'Neill's repeated attempts to name a new ship the Enterprise.
• The television series Futurama often makes references to Star Trek and parodies some of its better known plot elements on a regular basis including the character Zapp Brannigan who is based on a combination of Captain Kirk and William Shatner. The episode "Where No Fan Has Gone Before", a reference to the Star Trek episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before", is entirely devoted to the Star Trek crew and features guest appearances by Shatner, Nimoy, Nichols, Takei and Koenig. Nimoy is also a recurring character on the show, playing his own preserved head in a jar and Nichols has also appeared in the episode "Anthology of Interest I".
• In the 1998 film "Free Enterprise," two young filmmakers (Rafer Weigel, Eric McCormack) meet their screen idol, William Shatner. Shatner, appearing as himself, has fun poking fun at his own image. The two young men, who idolize him and in their fantasies have seen him as a shadowy fairy godfather figure, are alarmed at the reality of the middle-aged non-Captain Kirk man that they meet.
• In a 2005 episode of the long-running British sci-fi series Doctor Who, titled "The Empty Child", the character Rose Tyler introduces the Ninth Doctor to Jack Harkness as "Mr. Spock". According to the subsequent DVD commentary by episode writer, Steven Moffat, the Doctor was going reply to Rose's enquiry of "What am I supposed to call you? Doctor who?" with the statement "I'd rather have Doctor Who than Star Trek" but the line was cut.
• In the 1999 movie Inspector Gadget, there is an incredibly subtle reference to Star Trek about 1hr, 1min, and 30sec into the movie. The movie's villain "The Claw" is seen dragging Inspector Gadget's love interest, Brenda Bradford, down a hallway to an elevator. When Claw goes to push the elevator call button, the screen is condensed to a tight-angle view of the button which is shaped remarkably like a Star Trek insignia patch or comm badge. When the button is pushed, the sound that emanates from the button is exact stock audio from the original series originally used for the transporter.
• In the fifth TMNT comic book, the four turtles are in a hovercraft when Donatello calls Leo captain, Leo;'s reponse is "Very good Mr. Scott."
• Star Wreck: In the Pirkinning is a fan-made profesional-level parody of both Star Trek and Babylon 5
• In the new Transformers (2007 film) movie, during the scene where Bumblebee acquired the Allspark, you hear him saying "Message from Starfleet, Captain.".
• On the internet:
  • A website called You Can't do that on Star Trek[1] features doctored photos of Star Trek scenes. Many contributors would combine scenes from other television shows or movies like Star Wars or Sesame Street and portray interaction. This was a play on the children's television show You Can't Do That on Television.
• Subtle Acknowledgments:
  • Though not parodies, many television shows and feature films have made acknowledgements both subtle and great to the various Star Trek series. The most recent example of such is the NBC drama Medium which employs a former long-term Star Trek staff member in its creative cast. In 2007, an address was given as "one-seven-zero-one Pike's Way" - 1701 being the original Enterprise's registry, and Pike being Captain Christopher Pike, the first captain in the failed pilot "The Cage". In April 2007, a subtle acknowledgement to Deep Space 9 was given when a deceased character offered a bribe in the form of a partial bank routing number to a private account. The numbers given: "seven-four-two-zero-five" - the same as the registry number of the U.S.S. Defiant.

Sources

• Nygard, Roger, director; Crosby, Denise, host. 1997. Trekkies (film documentary: official website). Los Angeles: Neo Motion Pictures.
• "Star Trek as a Cultural Phenomenon", US Centennial of Flight Commission
• "Star Wars Vs. Star Trek", Forbes.com — see also Star Trek versus Star Wars
• Whitfield, Stephen E. & Roddenberry, Gene. 1968 (27th printing, 1991). The making of Star Trek. (ISBN 4-501-62109-5; ISBN 0-345-34019-1 (27th pr.)). New York City: Ballantine Books.