M-113 Creature/"Salt Vampire" in "The Man Trap"

[t_smitts]

The creature was, arguably, Star Trek's first "alien of the week" (I guess that depends on whether you list episode by airdate or production).

What's compelling about this role, I thought, was the ordeal it apparently was for the performer in that suit. According to Memory Alpha, it was an actress named Sharon Gimpel, and it was both her first and last role. If MA's fairly brief bio is correct, she was only about 22 at the time of filming. The costume was extremely hot and reportedly left her in tears at least once.

Acting under this extremely hot, heavy, and unflattering costume (without even showing her real face on camera) was probably not what she had in mind when she came to Hollywood. It probably had quite a bit to do with her becoming disillusioned with the entertainment industry and leaving town soon after.

There's not really other any info I could find from an admittedly brief Google search, other than a black and white picture of her in the costume without the head on. I'm not even sure if she's still alive, but I'd be very interested to know what she thinks of the role today. She was part of a major milestone in the history of Star Trek (and, one could even say, TV in general).

I would be interested to know what became of her.

 

[Terok Nor]

She's pretty much a sci-fi icon for playing that role. I'd love to know what became of her too.

 

[telerites]

This Facebook page says she was a dancer. Take a look at her pics with the costume. I wonder the author of the Facebook page is a member here.

https://m.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10153684097588749&id=354542223748

 

[T'Girl]

If she was basically a background dancer, never headlined in that profession, and only worked once as a acting extra in a mask, backtracking her will be difficult.

She had no lines, so she wouldn't be in the screen actors guild, but she be might have once been in the screen extras guild (or whatever it was called then).

There's union/guild for ballet dancers, maybe there's one for the type of dancer she was.

 

[Sir Rhosis]

I'd never seen a picture of the Salt Vampire without its hairpiece. Insert Shatner joke here.

 

[tomalak301]

This Facebook page says she was a dancer. Take a look at her pics with the costume. I wonder the author of the Facebook page is a member here.

https://m.facebook.com/permalink.php?story_fbid=10153684097588749&id=354542223748

That looks so tight.

I just watched this episode and I think the monster was only in it for a minute. I can understand why the actress felt they way she did.

 

[Green Shirt]

I'd never seen a picture of the Salt Vampire without its hairpiece. Insert Shatner joke here.

The creature's face without hair reminds me of someone, but I can't put my finger on it. Its something about the eyes.

 

[telerites]

I'd never seen a picture of the Salt Vampire without its hairpiece. Insert Shatner joke here.

The creature's face without hair reminds me of someone, but I can't put my finger on it. Its something about the eyes.

This is the other pic posted on that page. Head with the hair.

 

[Mytran]

Thanks for posting these pics, a great find!

 

[The Old Mixer]

Say, that salt vampire is kind of cute....

 

[feek61]

Awesome photos! I love the BTS stuff

 

[kirsten187]

I love the salt monster. Don't know why, it just looks so cool.

 

[telerites]

I love the salt monster. Don't know why, it just looks so cool.

Remember too that she was reused, albeit as a display trophy, in Squire of Gothos.

 

[Tim Thomason]

If she was basically a background dancer, never headlined in that profession, and only worked once as a acting extra in a mask, backtracking her will be difficult.

She had no lines, so she wouldn't be in the screen actors guild, but she be might have once been in the screen extras guild (or whatever it was called then).

There's union/guild for ballet dancers, maybe there's one for the type of dancer she was.

You said it. There are two Sharon Gimpels who show up on the usual USA background check sites. One of whom is too young (according to a 1965 Bristol PA newspaper with photo) and the other has passed (according to her 2011 obituary - which revealed that she only became Sharon Gimpel in 1969 and was a beautician).

So, the "Sharon Gimpel" of Star Trek fame must've gotten married or was using a stage name at that point in time. Or her name might've been actually Sherry or Cheryl or something.

The information on Memory Alpha was added in late 2011 by user Ltarex, citing a website (starbaseandran) that no longer exists and isn't fully archived. It doesn't, of course, come only from there. It was in the Hal Shuster unauthorized books (1989's Trek Encyclopedia and 1995's Trek: The Unauthorized A-Z at least) before finding its way into the authorized Okuda Encyclopedia. She was uncredited in the actual episode.

So, I'm at a loss at this late hour as to where the information about Sharon Gimpel, the dancer who played M-113 with requisite BTS drama, came from. It doesn't seem to be present on the usual behind-the-scenes books on early Star Trek, at least not according to a quick Google Books search.

 

[Terok Nor]

I love the salt monster. Don't know why, it just looks so cool.

Remember too that she was reused, albeit as a display trophy, in Squire of Gothos.

That was a great little bit of continuity. We didn't always get that in the original series. The Salt Vampire truly looks alien which is another thing we don't always get in Star Trek. It was scary and sympathetic at the same time which left me conflicted about its fate. Whoever decided to choose The Man Trap as the first aired episode was a genius.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

In the Gothos display, I'm pretty sure a person was in the suit to fill it out and keep it upright. We'll probably never know who that was, but it wouldn't surprise me if the job was taken by a familiar background person we'd recognize.

 

[MANT!]

So a store mannequin wouldn't fill it out cheaper without rest breaks?

 

[T'Girl]

^ Or just a couple pieces of scrap lumber.

 

[ZapBrannigan]

I think they'd put a person in the suit as the surest way to make it look like a real creature. A mannequin is possible, but you'd have to find one in the right size and pose, and for all that trouble they might as well use a stand-in.

When TV shows of the period staged a museum set, they often used actors in heavy body paint to play statues. It was just cheaper than getting real statues of the desired number and type. Granted, that's not the same thing, but it comes to mind.

On the other hand, Star Trek rented an obvious department store mannequin to play a frozen woman in "The Naked Time." And that was crazy. I think it was a rookie mistake. But I still think the Gothos display question is up in the air.

 

[Tim Thomason]

I think they'd put a person in the suit as the surest way to make it look like a real creature. A mannequin is possible, but you'd have to find one in the right size and pose, and for all that trouble they might as well use a stand-in.

When TV shows of the period staged a museum set, they often used actors in heavy body paint to play statues. It was just cheaper than getting real statues of the desired number and type. Granted, that's not the same thing, but it comes to mind.

On the other hand, Star Trek rented an obvious department store mannequin to play a frozen woman in "The Naked Time." And that was crazy. I think it was a rookie mistake. But I still think the Gothos display question is up in the air.

DESILU EXEC: "We're so, so, sorry, Ms. Gimpel. Please don't leave Hollywood on account of a bad experience on one television episode. I promise, we have a meatier role lined-up, one with actual dialogue, more thought-provoking actions, and most importantly, you won't be stuck in that suit all day. What do you, say? Will you give us one more chance?"

----

The next day, after eight grueling hours standing in the suit for a two-second appearance:

SHARON GIMPEL: "That's it. I'm going off-the-grid."