Review of 'The Making of Star Trek'

The Making of Star Trek by Stephen E. Whitfield, and Gene Roddenberry

the_making_of_star_trek.jpg In “The Making of Star Trek” Stephen Whitfield (with input from Gene Roddenberry) describes the technical detail of creating a television show. This book was written following the second season of the original Star Trek season just as it was renewed for it's final third season. Whitfield includes a large amount of supporting material including excerpts from interviews from key people involved in the production, letters, writer's guides, budgets, and scripts that trace the creation of this famous series but also illustrate the details, dedication and effort involved in doing so. It is a mixture of tribute to the making of this series as it is also a technical manual for those wanting to become part of the industry (or, at least, at the time it was written in 1968).

In many ways it appears hopelessly dated but I think a few of things discussed regarding the industry are as much true today as they were when the book was created such as the single-minded goal of the creator and the compromises one needs to make to fulfil your dreams. Much is also made here of the idealism of Roddenberry and how it very much captured the zeitgeist of an often ignored segment of society…a segment that would go on to rule television and film.

An interesting, if often tediously detailed, book of the early days of the world-wide phenomenon of Star Trek. Really one for the die-hard fans.


This book includes two sections of behind-the-scenes black and white photos from the production of Star Trek.

Rating: “Really good but I have some issues”

Review Date: 2022-04-18


Genre: Non-Fiction

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Publication Date: 1968

ISBN: 345026977125