"Star Trek" The Corbomite Maneuver (1966)

Director:

Joseph Sargent

Writers:

Jerry Sohl (written by)
Gene Roddenberry (creator)

TV Series:

"Star Trek" (1966)

Original Air Date:

10 November 1966 (Season 1, Episode 10)

Genre:

Adventure | Sci-Fi

Plot:

In a section of unexplored space, the Enterprise comes across a marker of sorts that will not let it pass...

Plot Keywords:

Federation | Space | Starship | Computer | Vulcan

Cast

William Shatner	...	Captain James T. Kirk
Leonard Nimoy	...	Mr. Spock
Anthony D. Call	...	Dave Bailey (as Anthony Call)
Clint Howard	...	Balok
DeForest Kelley	...	Dr. McCoy
Grace Lee Whitney	...	Yeoman Rand
George Takei	...	Sulu
James Doohan	...	Scott
Nichelle Nichols	...	Uhura

Runtime:

50 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Argentina:Atp | Canada:PG (video rating)

Filming Locations:

Desilu Studios - 9336 W. Washington Blvd., Culver City, California, USA

Company:

Desilu Productions

Trivia:

The antagonist's "real" form is played by Clint Howard. At the time, Clint's brother Ron Howard was starring in another hit Desilu series, "The Andy Griffith Show" (1960).

Goofs:

Continuity: Sulu hears Kyle say, "They now have one minute." Then he looks up toward the screen and then back down toward his console. He is responding to a line of dialog from the alien Balok ("You now have one minute!"), voiced by the late Ted Cassidy. However, the audio of Ted Cassidy saying "one minute!" appears in the preview trailer (shown on the VHS and DVD's) pointing to the possibility that the line of audio was somehow lost between the people doing the preview trailer and the people doing the actual sound editing for the episode.

Quotes:

Dr. McCoy: [Rand enters the bridge carrying a tray] I thought the power was off in the galley?
Yeoman Rand: I used a hand phaser, and zap! Hot coffee.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Star Trek (2009)

My Favorite TOS Episode

This episode may make some Trekkers' Top 20 lists, but likely not many Top Tens. Yet quietly and without fuss this "bottle show" episode remains perfectly indicative of TOS's purpose, spirit and delivery.

Think Murray Leinster's classic sci-fi short story "First Contact" with an additional plot twist, possibly two. A scriptwriter or editor who may have had Uhura say the same line a tad too often but had to have served in the Navy, knew the true meaning of "countermand," and wasn't afraid to ask, "What are you going to do with that six percent when they give it to you, Jim?"

Add Joseph Sargent's direction, Fred Steiner's music, Gerald Perry Finnerman and his color gels, Anthony Call's laser-accurate performance complemented by that of the core ensemble, Clint Howard's eyebrows and dubbing, and Ted Cassidy's voice of authority as only he could deliver. Splendid sound effects and their editing, which offset the visual effects, though the physically infeasible appearance of the alien mother ship got the point across very nicely. And an ending that made me smile as a youngster, and does so today.

And Now I Digress, Somewhat: I often feel compelled to explain to today's "post-next generation" sated with digital effects and compulsory cheesecake just how TOS had its impact, my having watched its world premiere and nearly every episode at first broadcast. And I'm saddened to see TOS and its actors parodied today, much less by the actors themselves.

Friends, when TOS premiered "In Living Color!" its only competition was Irwin Allen's "running and jumping shows," which had as much science as a peanut butter sandwich left out in the double sun too long. The Outer Limits (in black-and-white!) had run its course after only two seasons, and not even the revered Rod Serling would attempt the genre on the 'tube with recurring characters.

We readers of Asimov, Bradbury, Clarke, Heinlein, Sturgeon and the other masters of the genre (okay, Harlan Ellison, we know you must scream, so you can count yourself) climbed down our trees and praised The Great Bird of the Galaxy for making the 'tube finally listen and display something hopeful to talk about before we finally caught up with our own imaginations on the moon.

The actors had chops, if the scripts couldn't make you feel they could make you THINK, the characters grew to make you care, and not one scantily-clad beauty was the token she first seemed if you were young enough to be allowed to watch. Wondrous times indeed.

So start with this episode, or return to it as you would an old friend, and from there go back and forth to your heart's content. Long live Balok, and pass the tranya!