“Star Trek” premiered September 8, 1966, on NBC, launching
what would become the most “successful failure” in television
history.
While the series lasts for only three seasons due to low ratings,
it eventually found new life in syndication, growing into one of
the longest-running and highest-grossing media franchises
of all time.
The show’s creator, Gene Roddenberry, a decorated B-17 World
War II and Pan American World Airways pilot, traded the cockpit
for a badge with the Los Angeles Police Department—an unlikely springboard to Hollywood.
Providing technical advice to the popular crime series “Dragnet,”
he leveraged his role into a screenwriting career by penning
episodes for “Dragnet” and various other shows.
In April 1964, Roddenberry submitted a 16-page outline and a $2
check to register a new show idea with the Writers Guild of
America West. It was called “Star Trek.”
Eugene "Gene" Wesley Roddenberry Sr.
(August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991)
