the list of 9 for march 9, 2007:
NINE ODD CONNECTIONS BETWEEN "STAR TREK" AND "MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE"
The topicality of this list is vague at best, though it does look forward to the future a little bit (see entry #3, below) and also has to do with my former place of employment (see entry #2).
- 1966. Both TV series debuted in this watershed year, when color TV was still new.
- I Love Lucy? Both shows began life at Desilu Productions(named after Desi Arnaz and Lucille Ball, who owned the studio space adjacent to the ParamountPictures lot) and then became Paramount properties after the studio acquired Desilu. Paramountstill owns both franchises and continues to make millions off of them.
- J.J. saves the day. TV producer J.J. Abrams was entrustedwith directing the feature film Mission: Impossible III (2006), which many hail as the bestof the films but didn't do as well as expected due to the public's growing apathy towardsobnoxious weirdo Tom Cruise. Paramount, seeing Abrams' talents, hired him to produce and directthe still-forthcoming feature film prequel to the Star Trek saga, tentatively titledStar Trek XI. Screenwriters for the new Trek film are Alex Kurtzman and Roberto Orci, who wrote the script for M:i:III with Abrams.
- Paramount looks after their own. For Mission:Impossible II (2000), Paramount hired Star Trek: The Next Generation (et al)writer/producers Brannon Braga and Ronald D. Moore to pen the screenplay.
- Landau's sloppy seconds, part one. Academy Award-winningactor Martin Landau was Gene Roddenberry's first choice for the role of Mr. Spock in the originalStar Trek series, but he turned it down to co-star in Mission: Impossible.
- Landau's sloppy seconds, part two. Leonard Nimoy, who ofcourse wound up playing Spock after Landau refused the part, went on to replace Landau inMission in 1969, after Trek was cancelled and Landau simultaneously leftMission.
- An actor's ironic "Trek." In 1967, Mission:Impossible actually had an episode entitled "Trek." The guest star of that episode was MarkLenard, who went on to play Spock's father Sarek in an episode of Star Trek as well as in manyof the subsequent features.
- More crossover casting. Of the literally dozens of actorsto appear in both shows - thanks to them both being in production at the same time on the samelot - Trek regulars William Shatner and George Takei also guest-starred in the originalMission. Other luminaries who appeared in both shows include Joan Collins and RicardoMontalban.
- Strange music. Finally, as many Trekkies and fans ofkitsch are aware, Leonard Nimoy released an album entitled Mr. Spock's Music from OuterSpace in 1967, to cash in on his Trek success. Two years before he appeared onMission himself, Nimoy inexplicably included the famous Mission: Impossible themesong on the album, amidst Star Trek music and other sci fi-themed songs sung by Nimoy(though not the Mission theme, which remained an instrumental - thankfully!).
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