1976 Recording Session

In 1976, I suggested to my friend Ed Naha, A&R person for Columbia Records, that he should sign Gene to do a "spoken word" record. Gene loved the idea and wrote some great copy, inviting many science fiction luminaries to join him. "Inside Star Trek" was recorded at United Western Studios in LA, with Gene, Bill Shatner, and Ray Bradbury all present at this first session. (Isaac Asimov recorded his contribution in New York; DeForest Kelley and Mark Lenard's sessions came later.) I was there too, of course, snapping pictures for posterity. As you can see from this shot, Gene, Bill and Ray were discussing something important. I call this Gene's "shaggy dog" period. For more on this album, read about it in Log Entry 6!

Ray Bradbury - whose efforts wouldn't make the final album because of some contractual difficulties - looked unusually elegant for an L.A. summer's day in his "wonderful ice cream suit."

Bill Shatner arrived in his best tennis whites (white shirt, white shorts, tennis shoes) looking tanned and relaxed. A professional to the core, he had no difficulty getting into his Captain Kirk role, uniform or not.

Inside Star Trek" should really be called "Inside Gene Roddenberry." Here, as never before, we get a glimpse into the heart of the man who created Kirk, Spock, "Bones," and Spock's Vulcan father,