Charting the Memoirs-verse

[EnriqueH]

Inside Star Trek: The Real Story by Herb Solow and Bob Justman is a must read memoir about the making of the original series.

This & Solow's "Star Trek Sketchbook" are probably the most insightful books into the making of TOS. And David Gerrolds' "Making of Star Trek" & "The Trouble with Tribbles"- excellent!

I find most of the autobiography books disappointing. The actors don't seem to remember a lot. They recite a lot of what they've said in interviews 100x before. Or the history we're already aware of. I want the little details of their experiences on set, and rare pics.

Well, then have you read "Chekov's Enterprise"? I recently read it for the first time and think it has the qualities you want.

It's basically a diary of Walter Koenig's experience of making TMP and it's successful as a day in the life of a Star Trek supporting cast regular on the set.

HIGHLY recommended.

In fact, you should hit eBay right now and get yourself a copy. RIGHT NOW.

 

[KTJ]

Shatner: Where No Man by William Shatner, Sondra Marshak & Myrna Culbreath is one of the weirdest things I've ever read. Seriously psychedelic. Should only be read with incense and peppermints.

The authors were certainly on something, I'm just not sure what.

I'm looking for confirmation to a statement on another forum (and in another discussion on TrekBBS) that Shat bought the rights to this book along with every outstanding copy, which he burned.

 

[Daddy Todd]

Shatner: Where No Man by William Shatner, Sondra Marshak & Myrna Culbreath is one of the weirdest things I've ever read. Seriously psychedelic. Should only be read with incense and peppermints.

The authors were certainly on something, I'm just not sure what.

I'm looking for confirmation to a statement on another forum (and in another discussion on TrekBBS) that Shat bought the rights to this book along with every outstanding copy, which he burned.

Seems unlikely. Shatner may very well control the rights, and has basically locked it up forever, but I just snagged a copy off Amazon, so he doesn't appear to have "every outstanding copy". Unless that means he had the publisher pulp unsold copies in 1980 or so. But as unsold mass market paperbacks are "stripped" for credit, he wouldn't have had to bother.

Distribution of this book was not wide. I was looking for it in 1978-1979, but only acquired a copy years later at a convention, at massively inflated prices. I think I paid less than a dollar for the copy I just acquired, and it was in unread condition, so there's not a lot of demand for this one, either.

 

[elric428]

Here's a new one coming up....

Born with Teeth: A Memoir by Kate Mulgrew

 

[EnriqueH]

Here's a new one coming up....

Born with Teeth: A Memoir by Kate Mulgrew

Awesome!

I wish someone in Harve Bennett's family or estate would release his memoirs.

 

[Therin of Andor]

Unless that means he had the publisher pulp unsold copies in 1980 or so. But as unsold mass market paperbacks are "stripped" for credit, he wouldn't have had to bother.

I got mine at a movie specialist book store in Sydney, Australia, in 1980. Imported books of this ilk are non returnable to the USA. So any that left US shores wouldn't have been able to be recalled.

By the way, read the hilarious excerpts at:
http://fanlore.org/wiki/Shatner:_Where_No_Man

I'm looking for confirmation to a statement on another forum (and in another discussion on TrekBBS) that Shat bought the rights to this book along with every outstanding copy, which he burned.

Again, http://fanlore.org/wiki/Shatner:_Where_No_Man

"Speaking in the Google Groups/Usenet discussion board alt.startrek.creative..., JayPHailey (writing in a discussion dated Feb. 21, 1998) says:

'Keep that book close to you. [Shatner] bought the rights and all outstanding copies. He destroyed all copies of the book and deep sixed the rights. You'll never see that book reprinted again.' "

​

 

[elric428]

Since Leonard Nimoy's son Adam is producing a documentary on his father, you might want to read his memoir as well...

My Incredibly Wonderful, Miserable Life: An Anti-Memoir by Adam Nimoy

 

[KTJ]

By the way, read the hilarious excerpts at:
http://fanlore.org/wiki/Shatner:_Where_No_Man

I'm looking for confirmation to a statement on another forum (and in another discussion on TrekBBS) that Shat bought the rights to this book along with every outstanding copy, which he burned.

Again, http://fanlore.org/wiki/Shatner:_Where_No_Man

"Speaking in the Google Groups/Usenet discussion board alt.startrek.creative..., JayPHailey (writing in a discussion dated Feb. 21, 1998) says:

'Keep that book close to you. [Shatner] bought the rights and all outstanding copies. He destroyed all copies of the book and deep sixed the rights. You'll never see that book reprinted again.' "​

Thanks -- I wrote that entire Fanlore article! That's why I'm looking for more confirmation about Shat's reaction.

 

[Idran]

Seeing as the only references to it I can find anywhere for it points back to that one single Usenet post, I'd say it's almost certainly apocryphal. If it were true, you'd expect there to be at least one separate corroborating piece of evidence somewhere.

 

[elric428]

According to Amazon this is coming in December

Gene Roddenberry: The man who created Star Trek: A biography by Lance Parkin

 

[bbailey861]

According to Amazon this is coming in December

Gene Roddenberry: The man who created Star Trek: A biography by Lance Parkin

I can't imagine what he'll write that hasn't been written about before.

 

[Avro Arrow]

Here's a new one coming up....

Born with Teeth: A Memoir by Kate Mulgrew

This one is out now. Has anyone read it? I'm trying to be careful with my money, but I was wondering if this one is worth a purchase?

(Sorry, I didn't see a review thread, and a forum search on the title only returned this one thread.)

 

[EnriqueH]

According to Amazon this is coming in December

Gene Roddenberry: The man who created Star Trek: A biography by Lance Parkin

I can't imagine what he'll write that hasn't been written about before.

In the last year, I read all the Roddenberry bios for the first time.

In discussing them here, some have opined that the "definitive" Roddenberry biography has yet to be written.

I'm intrigued since this would be the first Roddenberry bio to be written in many years, no?

 

[elric428]

Yet another biography of Roddenberry is now on sale at Amazon, with a similar name.

Roddenberry: The Man Who Created Star Trek

by James Van Hise

 

[EnriqueH]

James Van Hise is back, eh?

 

[dstyer]

Here's a new one coming up....

Born with Teeth: A Memoir by Kate Mulgrew

This one is out now. Has anyone read it? I'm trying to be careful with my money, but I was wondering if this one is worth a purchase?

(Sorry, I didn't see a review thread, and a forum search on the title only returned this one thread.)

Borrowed this from my local library and I'm about a quarter of the way through. It has held my interest so far and her writing style is whimsical to my mind.

If you're interested, the portion of the book devoted to her time on Voyager is less than 25 pages of this 306 page book. I guess it depends on how much you care about Ms. Mulgrew's life in general rather than her personal observations on Star Trek.

 

[Avro Arrow]

^ Thank you for that!

 

[bfollowell]

I wish they'd release more of these as ebooks. Many of them, probably most of them, are unavailable in ebook format, or at least they were the last time I checked.

 

[bfollowell]

After I posted my previous, that got me to wondering if any had been released as ebooks since the last time I'd checked. I was able to find these:

Takei - To the Stars
Kelley - From Sawdust to Stardust (biography, not autobiography)
Wheaton - Just a Geek
Shatner - Most of his post-Memories and Movie Memories books

I also saw this:

Leonard: My Fifty-Year Friendship with a Remarkable Man Kindle Edition by William Shatner with David Fisher
available February 2, 2016

http://www.amazon.com/Leonard-Fifty...p_27:shatner,p_n_feature_browse-bin:618073011

 

[elric428]

Looking forward to this one....