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Star Trek Memories
A living pop culture legend and one of American film and television's most enduring stars, William Shatner will forever be associated with the role of James T. Kirk, captain of the starship Enterprise. Star Trek Memories is Shatner's classic behind-the-scenes look at the legendary series that continues to put forth movies, books, and series spin-offs decades after the last...more
Paperback, 320 pages
Published
April 21st 2009
by It Books
(first published October 1993)
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Oct 21, 2008
Mauri
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
sciencefiction,
non-fiction
Written on the eve of The Next Generation's final two seasons and the movie Generations, this book represents the often hysterical and almost tragic recollection of the Original Series, as told by William Shatner.
The book can be fairly evenly divided into three sections: a first section, in which Shatner (or Chris Kreski, the dude helping him write) attempt to ease us into the first-person perspective, at the same time introducing the roots of Star Trek. Fairly painful and the reason I knocked a...more
The book can be fairly evenly divided into three sections: a first section, in which Shatner (or Chris Kreski, the dude helping him write) attempt to ease us into the first-person perspective, at the same time introducing the roots of Star Trek. Fairly painful and the reason I knocked a...more
Shatner's thoughts and reflections on his time as Captain James T. Kirk.
One of the first "kiss and tell" books about the behind-the-scenes drama of "Star Trek" and still one of the most entertaingly told. If you like Shatner, you'll love this. It's not as revealing as the "Inside Star Trek" book by the producers of the show, but it's still interesting, entertaining and will give you a look inside the mind of the man who brought James T. Kirk to life.
One of the first "kiss and tell" books about the behind-the-scenes drama of "Star Trek" and still one of the most entertaingly told. If you like Shatner, you'll love this. It's not as revealing as the "Inside Star Trek" book by the producers of the show, but it's still interesting, entertaining and will give you a look inside the mind of the man who brought James T. Kirk to life.
Mar 14, 2008
rytr_1
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Star Trek fans
Yeah, Shatner's a ham, he's a bit egotistical, but that didn't deter me from enjoying Star Trek Memories... too much. When he talks himself up in this book it comes across as humorous rather than serious, especially as it's usually to poke fun at Leonard Nimoy. There were stories in here I'd never known about, such as the encouragement Nichelle Nichols received from Dr. Martin Luther King. I do have to complain a bit in that over two-thirds of Star Trek Memories covers the period of time before...more
I began this book with serious misgivings because he started making snarky remarks about his fellow cast members on about the fifth page. But, that did not persist throughout the book, mainly jokes about Leonard Nimoy, which I assume were approved because Mr. Nimoy contributed several passages of his show memories – the most memorable was his tale of how “mean” Shatner was for perpetrating a series of bicycle thefts.
The majority of the book details all the behind-the-scenes wrangling to get the...more
The majority of the book details all the behind-the-scenes wrangling to get the...more
I approached this book like a man approaching strawberry Twizzlers: a delicious treat but not meant to be healthy or memorable. I'm a fan of Star Trek and Shatner (despite or because of his perceived ego -- and since he was willing to be vulnerable and play against that in Khan, I have to love him a little). The book tries too hard to be clever with word play (the ghost writer's fault, or Shatner's?) and I was hoping for a more detailed insider account of the television series than I got. Assumi...more
Fascinating read, mostly about bringing the TV series to life - the incredible amount of work, and the crazy small budgets that forced them to be very creative with story, location, sets & costumes. Lots of inside info on the nuts and bolts of creating the hour long weekly show, and the evil tactics of the network who never fully supported them. Shatner interviews the key players (those still alive at the time of writing) and presents the story from their perspectives. Shatner is honest and...more
When I first started this book, I didn't know what to expect, and I admit that the first couple chapters were quite difficult to get into. However, I persevered, and am extremely glad I did so.
William Shatner's unique personality echoes through this book, and while it feels like he does hold back occasionally, he reveals a side of Star Trek completely unknown.
It is a beautiful tale, where hopes and dreams are realised and perfectly formed, before being dashed away and leading to heartbreak and f...more
William Shatner's unique personality echoes through this book, and while it feels like he does hold back occasionally, he reveals a side of Star Trek completely unknown.
It is a beautiful tale, where hopes and dreams are realised and perfectly formed, before being dashed away and leading to heartbreak and f...more
A barely interesting book, but interesting enough.
I had a hard time believing that Shatner was the author, especially in the beginning pages of the book where he speaks of Roddenberry pre-Star Trek. The voice sounded very non-Shatner and seemed as if this was the "co-author" writing about what he researched.
In any case, the "voice" was a bit more believable as Shatner as the book enters the Star Trek years, but still doesn't quite reconcile with what was in my head. This could be due to a real l...more
I had a hard time believing that Shatner was the author, especially in the beginning pages of the book where he speaks of Roddenberry pre-Star Trek. The voice sounded very non-Shatner and seemed as if this was the "co-author" writing about what he researched.
In any case, the "voice" was a bit more believable as Shatner as the book enters the Star Trek years, but still doesn't quite reconcile with what was in my head. This could be due to a real l...more
Shatner wrote this book aftr the final Star Trek movie and wistfully, nostalgically reflects back on the TV series. He brings in his own interviews with Nimoy, Roddenberry's widow and more. In this audiobook he narrates the whole work (nice), but does no voice alterations for his interview subjects, which makes some of it confusing. By his own account, this is an incomplete history forcussing only on the TV series from its inception to conclusion, but it is enjoyable for its honesty and revelati...more
Ok, I am a trekker and I loved this book. Yes, there are those who say William Shatner hogs the spotlight from the show. But hey, he was the Captain of the Enterprise and was integral to most story lines. I really enjoyed the book and the behind the scenes goings on laid out by Shatner. As a youngster watching the show I found inspiration in the characters and the plots. It inspired me to think big. Astronomy has been a passion of mine since the age of five. Star Trek encouraged my study of the...more
I was drawn in to this book as bees are to sugar. honestly. And I wished it so to be brilliant, maybe because I am a trekkie and maybe because I love everything Shatner does..I was NOT disappointed. I Loved this book, i don't think you need to love Star Trek to enjoy this book because the writing is so great. Down to earth, funny, personal and professional. I literally couldn't put it down sometimes. He starts out with one of the most interesting parts of Star Trek history, Roddenberry and his r...more
A good, strong memoir and bio, with a surprising quantity of "warts and all" reporting. Much is made of setting the record as straight as possible, including things that might not be considered particularly flattering to the author or even his co-stars... all of whom get to add their various coinage (two cents and more), quoted directly for the book. A good read for anyone who lived through the 79 episodes of the original Star Trek, either during first run or in the near-infinite number of rerun...more
This is the third Star Trek-related auto/biography/memoir that I've read this year. Gene Roddenberry's authorized bio and Leonard Nimoy's ST memoir/auto are the other two-- and I think this is my favorite of the three. Gene's needed an editor with a ruthless red pen, Leonard's needed to be less myopic, and the Shat's was the best of the three. I really appreciated that he sat down with cast and crew members from TOS and let them speak for themselves in his pages. It was refreshing and kept his p...more
Shatner is such a blowhard of a person and so impersonal when you meet him, that how well he connects with audiences in this book is amazing. He writes nice anecdotes about his time in the chair. He leaves out some of his ego to explore other people, but still distances himself from the real complaints the other actors had about him. His ego can't handle that I guess. He is a great performer and in this book he does just that.
Jul 03, 2010
Michael Hawk
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
Star Trek Fans
This thing has been sitting on my book shelf for probably a decade and I finally grabbed it and tore through it in a couple nights of leisurely reading. Super easy read and for a Trekkie, I found a number of interesting anecdotes about the series. Nothing groundbreaking, and it doesn't go into Shatner like a proper biography would, but if you're familiar with the franchise, you'll get a kick out of it.
Fun book to read. Full of anecdotes about how the original Star Trek TV series was made. The interesting parts came from the interviews Shatner did with the other people in the show. So if you are a fan don't pass this one up, because it does give you a behind the scenes look at some of the struggles and accomplishments it had in the 60s during its run on TV.
Dec 24, 2010
Sarah Pi
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
teenage-reads,
memoir
I found an old notebook with a list of everything I was reading in the early nineties. I had a system of 0-3 stars going and gave this one no stars. I don't remember what my system meant, but I think no stars was a baseline ok, and any stars beyond that meant it was more than ok. I have no memory of this book whatsoever.
What? You're surprised? Shut up ... and don't judge me, so I'm a trekkie, so what? Actually a very good autobiography of the years making TOS (the original series) - although Shatner didn't quite come completely clean about how he used to treat the cast members who weren't part of the "big 3" (Kirk, Spock & McCoy).
Not that big of a Shatner fan, but the book was a wonderful insight into the Star Trek phenomena. Explained the struggle to get the show on air, the overwhelming amount of work needed to produce a show every week, the downhill spiral clearly evident in the third season, and the large fan following during syndication. All in all a fun and quick read.
Shatner's version of the show's history tells some interesting and amusing stories but is mostly bland. There are hints of some of the darker side of the show in particular and tv in general, but Shatner elides over them. Mildly entertaining but trite and flat, and not terribly well written.
If you are a science fiction fan, then you must be a Star Trek fan (or else you cant call yourself a SciFi Fan). That being said, this was one great read. Shatner's other stuff usually bores me, but this was wonderful. Loved the humor and humility (yes I said that about Cap. Kirk's alter ego).
I like watching the episodes, but reading about how it all came together was a bit boring. Not enough of a trekkie, I guess. The humanistic worldview of Shatner was interesting to observe. All the divorces going on in Hollywood back in the early '60s. TV network politics, etc.
If you're a fan of Trek you will love all the history of the show. If you're not a fan you will still enjoy the refreshing honesty. Shatner does not attempt to sugarcoat any of the trouble relationships between him and some of the cast.
My review / What I learned from this book? WTF? I ain't learned sh*t from this book. LOL But, I really, really enjoyed it!!! Shatner is one of my favorite actors. And although this was published waaaay back when. . . is it still cool.
An entertaining but unimportant book. Shatner comes across as unlikable as the rest of the cast tells him he is, but you have to admire him for owning up to that. Well, admire his honesty. He seems fine with things as they are.
Sep 27, 2009
Gilly McGillicuddy
rated it
4 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
star-trek,
read-in-2009
Loved 'Up Till Now' better, but fuck it, there's nothing wrong with getting a history lesson in geekdom by William Shatner. *fawns a bit*
(Also, kudos on adding that last chapter. I was wondering whether he would.)
(Also, kudos on adding that last chapter. I was wondering whether he would.)
I like all things Star Trek, so this book was a revelation to me. It details the concept behind the original TV series and has lots of detail about how the show was made and its history.
Funny to find out what happened to the actors between the end of the series and the start of the movie franchises broke homeless crappy acting gigs. Cool stuff here.
Dec 18, 2012
Patricia
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
biography,
non-fiction
If you read some of the other biographies by Star Trek alumni, you'll see where Shatner is stretching the truth, taking things WAY out of context, and/or outright lying. But it's still an interesting read.
I'm a big fan of Bill Shatner and it was great to understand how Star Trek was born. I can strongly recommend the audio book version, narrated my Mr. Shatner himself.
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William Shatner is the author of nine Star Trek novels, including the New York Times bestsellers The Ashes of Eden and The Return. He is also the author of several nonfiction books, including Get a Life! and I'm Working on That. In addition to his role as Captain James T. Kirk, he stars as Denny Crane in the hit television series from David E. Kelley, Boston Legal -- a role for which he has won tw...more
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Jul 03, 2010 10:24am