Star Trek



The Star Trek franchise consists of five live-action (and one animated) TV series and eleven motion pictures, which boldly go where no one has gone before. The franchise began with the original Star Trek, which ran on NBC from 1966 until 1969, and the most recent incarnation, Enterprise, ran from 2001 until 2005. The franchise was successfully "re-booted" with a popular new film in 2009. As with Star Wars, the franchise has also been complemented by an array of video games, comic books, novels, audio dramatizations, and action figures. The Muppets have spoofed Star Trek on many occasions over the years.

Sesame Street

 * Sesame Street Episode 3698 is part of a story arc in which Slimey the Worm ventures to the Moon. The episode closes with a mission statement inspired by the narration that begins each episode of Star Trek: The Original Series and Star Trek: The Next Generation. The space shuttle that takes the worms into space, the wormship Wiggleprise, is also a spoof on Star Trek’s Enterprise.


 * Spaceship Surprise on Sesame Street parodied aspects of the original Star Trek, and the later incarnation Spaceship Surprise: The Next Generation specifically spoofed the cast of Star Trek: The Next Generation.


 * A Super Morphin Mega Monsters sketch on Sesame Street features the classic "door opening" sound effect used on the original 1960s Star Trek series when Zostic's minions enter his lair to do his bidding.


 * Wanda Cousteau's mission on Sesame Street is a reference to the opening narration from Star Trek. When she announces her mission "to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations -- to boldly go where no fish has gone before!"


 * Patrick Stewart, famous for playing Captain Jean-Luc Picard in Star Trek: The Next Generation, appeared in a segment with The Count. When The Count has trouble getting a set of Muppet numbers to stay in line, Stewart helps him out by commanding, "Make it so, Number One!" This is a reference to an oft-spoken phrase by his Trek character to his first officer.


 * Some German Sesamstrasse merchandise (mainly postcards and posters) has featured Ernie and Bert dressed as Starfleet officers.


 * In episode 4039 of Sesame Street, Bob greets Elmo and Zoe (who are pretending to be aliens) with the Vulcan hand sign and a Star Wars line.


 * In the animated short that appears in "i-Sam", the fourth chapter of A Sesame Street Christmas Carol, the voice-over narrator says: "And now your holiday will boldly go where no holiday has gone before," a reference to the title sequence of both the original Star Trek and Star Trek: The next Generation television series. The narrator continues: "In the future, Santa will use a rocket sled." Santa Claus is shown seated in a captains chair similar to that of the Starship Enterprise, with a reindeer as a crew member. Santa says "That's Earth. Warp factor three," to which the reindeer responds "Aye, captain."


 * Episode 3845 features The Amazing Mumford making a play of McCoy's oft-quoted line, "I'm a magician, not a contractor!"


 * When Elmo went to NASA for the week-long celebration leading up to the final launch of its Space Shuttle program, he held a press conference with two astronauts. When fielding a question from the audience, Elmo asked Mike Massimino to define the word exploration: "It means finding new things, and going someplace no one else has gone before." Elmo responded, "to boldly go where no one has gone before," quoting the famous Star Trek narration.

The Muppets

 * "Pigs in Space" is the Muppet Show spoof of the original Star Trek series. Sketches take place on the Swinetrek, and stories involve its crew travelling through space to the unknown regions of the universe.


 * The score for Muppets from Space incorporates Alexander Courage's music for the original Star Trek during a speech made by K. Edgar Singer, which is reminiscent of William Shatner's voice-over from the original series. In the same scene, Gonzo supporters carry signs that read, "Beam Me Up, Gonzo," another reference to a famously paraphrased line from the original Star Trek series.


 * The March 1980 cover of Crazy and April 1980 cover of Frantic feature an illustrated crossover involving the Pigs in Space crew and the crew of the U.S.S. Enterprise (William Shatner and Leonard Nimoy) from Star Trek: The Motion Picture.


 * Muppet Magazine issue 3 features what is mostly a Star Wars parody on board a ship resembling the Millenium Falcon. At the end of the comic, the U.S.S. Enterprise shows up and blasts the much smaller ship with its phasers.


 * In the Little Muppet Monsters episode "Space Cowboys," twice Tug narrates a space log, a common story device in Star Trek. His narrative also mentions ventures into "strange new worlds." Later, Tugs announces "Let's boldly go where no monsters have gone before!" Both quotes are references to the title sequence of the original Star Trek television series.


 * The 14th volume of "Gonzo's Weirder Than Me" column in the Spring 1986 issue of Muppet Magazine features a photo of the alien Balok as seen in the 1960s series episode, "The Corbomite Maneuver." Gonzo comments that it's easy to see why this stunning creature made space a place no man had gone before.


 * In the Winter 1987 issue of Muppet Magazine, Janice reviews Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, commenting that its premise of traveling back in time to 1986 Earth is "gnarly." A photo of William Shatner as Captain Kirk is featured.


 * Gonzo appears in the Jim Henson Hour Pitch Reel and asks of Jim Henson, "Beam me up, Jimmy!" This is a reference to the oft-parodied, but misquoted, line from the original Star Trek in which Captain Kirk would order chief engineer Mr. Scott to transport the landing party back to the Enterprise.


 * "Pigs in Space: Deep Dish Nine" was an attempt to update the classic Pigs in Space sketches from The Muppet Show to a new Muppet series, Muppets Tonight, in the same way Gene Roddenberry came back to his Star Trek universe in the 1980s series, Star Trek: The Next Generation.


 * First Mate Piggy made an appearance in the Special Collector's Edition of the Star Trek: 30 Years magazine in a section dedicated to celebrity experiences with Star Trek. In her interview, Piggy confesses that she is too young to have seen the original series on television, but became a devoted fan during reruns.


 * The 1997 Muppet Parody Calendar: The Sequel features a spoof of Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. In a scene on a transporter platform, Gonzo is dressed as Mr. Spock, Kermit as Captain Kirk, and Miss Piggy is showering covered only in bubbles: "The Bath of Pig." This was also printed as a wall poster.


 * In the Muppets Tonight episode (Episode 211) where Andie MacDowell guest starred it was established Beaker is a Trekkie.


 * In one installment of The Muppets comic strip (reprinted in Moving Right Along), Fozzie Bear refers to the daunting task of cleaning his room as "To boldly go where no bear has gone before!", a reference to the title sequence of the original Star Trek television series.


 * Another installment of The Muppets comic strip (reprinted in On the Town) features Dr. Julius Strangepork and First Mate Piggy engaged by "Clingons," a popular joke about Star Trek's alien race of Klingons.


 * In the Pigs in Space segment of The Muppet Show Comic Book: On the Road #2, Dr. Julius Strangepork offers a solution for how to get the Swinetrek crew back to normal: "According to Roddenberry's Theorum, the time-space continuum will snap back into its normal state if a temporal anomaly is introduced, jump-starting the standard timeline." As this translates in layman's terms, you just have to make a call on your cell phone. Gene Roddenberry was the creator of Star Trek.


 * When squire Arthur (Kermit) pulls Excaliber from the stone in Muppet King Arthur #1, the sword catches the sunlight. Slim Wilson remarks, "Nice lens flare." His companion replies, "Pfft... Like we didn't get enough of those in Star Trek." This is a reference to what many critics have called an overuse of lens flares by J.J. Abrams in the 2009 film.


 * In the Muppets Inside CD-ROM game, when Fozzie and Kermit first enter the "Data-Bus", Fozzie places a command: "Ahead, warp factor one, Mr. Sulu."


 * In Miss Piggy's Rules, Miss Piggy suggests taping your favorite Oprahs over your boyfriend's collection of Star Trek episodes.

Muppet Babies

 * Nanny gets a parrot named Polly on loan from the pet store in "Fine Feathered Enemies." The bird speaks various television catchprases including "Beam me up, Scotty" and "Warp factor nine, Mister Sulu."


 * In "A Punch Line to the Tummy," Baby Scooter is watching Star Trek: The Next Generation and imagines himself floating in space next to the U.S.S. Enterprise-D (it should be noted that Scooter anticipates the arrival of Captain Kirk, however the captain of the ship as featured is Captain Picard).


 * Gonzo presents "Weirdo Trek" in "I Want My Muppet TV!" using a combination of footage from the 1960s series and featuring the Babies as Star Trek characters. Gonzo plays Mister Wierdo, Kermit as Captain Kirkmit, Rowlf as Dr. Dogbones, Scooter as Scootie and Skeeter as a Spaceship Secondprise crewmember, and Piggy, Beaker, Bunsen and Fozzie as Static Klingons.


 * In "Muppet Babies: The Next Generation," Rowlf travels to the Starship Boobieprise in a phone booth and meets his grandson, Lieutenant Woof (spoofing the Klingon character Worf). When Rowlf expects to find Captain Kirkmit and Mr. Weirdo, Woof explains that they're in The Next Generation now, but beams up the former characters anyway. Scooter appears as Geordi La Forge.


 * The Muppet Babies comic book #2 features a spoof of both Star Trek and Star Wars franchises called "The Big Space Adventure." Baby Piggy appears in a Princess Leia costume, while the rest of the babies play her loyal crew in classic Star Trek uniforms, including an upside-down arrowhead badge, reminiscent of the Star Trek logo.


 * The Muppet Babies comic book #13 included a Star Trek story, "Out of This World". The story featured Kermit as Captain Kermit, Gonzo as Spock, Rowlf as Scotty, Scooter and Skeeter as Sulu and Chekov, and Piggy as a space princess. The Babies' spaceship (which looks a great deal like the Swinetrek) runs out of fuel on their way to bring Princess Piggy back to her home planet. The ship makes an emergency landing on Jokeville, where everything is a gag. This story was written by Muppet writer Bill Prady.


 * In the Summer 1987 issue of Muppet Magazine, the Muppet Babies appear in a comic spoof titled Star Cluck.

Fraggle Rock

 * In episode 101, Uncle Traveling Matt refers to Outer Space as "the final frontier for Fraggledom."
 * In many episodes of the Fraggle Rock Animated Series, the Fraggles were heard to utter the words "to boldly go where no Fraggle has gone before" (a reference to the famous line uttered by William Shatner and Patrick Stewart).

Muppet Mentions

 * In the 1988 Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Neutral Zone," a character from the 20th century finds herself 400 years in her future on board the starship Enterprise-D. When researching what has become of her descendants, a graphical family tree shows amongst the names, Kermit T. Frog, Miss Piggy, Mary Richards and several actors who have portrayed the Doctor on Doctor Who.


 * A blooper reel titled "Totally Naked" was produced for a Star Trek: The Next Generation wrap party using outtakes from the show with a few clips from other sources. Kermit, Scooter and Rowlf are shown from "The Magic Store" at the end of The Muppet Movie, as well as a shot of the Swinetrek flying through space from The Muppet Show.


 * Miss Piggy was interviewed for the Star Trek 30 Years celebration magazine in 1996 (pg. 74), published by TV Guide. Featured as a famous player sharing Star Trek memories in her role as First Mate of the Swinetrek, she claims to have been far too young to have seen the original series on the air, but that she became a devoted fan in reruns. A mention was also made of her run-in with Star Trek actor Leonard Nimoy who appeared in a "Pigs in Space: Deep Dish Nine" sketch on Muppets Tonight.


 * In the 1997 documentary Trekkies, Marc Okrand (creator of the Klingon language) states that one of the many songs that fans have translated into Klingon is the "Sesame Street Theme."


 * During promotion for Star Trek in 2009, Zachary Quinto (the actor who played Spock) sang the "Fraggle Rock Theme" during press junkets more than once.


 * In the special features for the Star Trek (2009) home video release, Rachel Nichols appears in the featurette, "To Boldy Go: The Green Girl." Nichols plays Gaila, a green-skinned alien, and is required to undergo hours of green makeup application before filming. While speaking with one of the film's child actors, she jokes that her boyfriends could be the Grinch, the Hulk or Kermit the Frog.

Connections

 * F. Murray Abraham played Ahdar Ru'afo in Star Trek: Insurrection (1998, film)
 * Kirstie Alley played Lieutenant Saavik in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982, film)
 * Wayne Allwine edited sound effects for Star Trek V: The Final Frontier
 * LeVar Burton played Geordi La Forge on Star Trek: The Next Generation
 * Bill Cobbs played Emory Erickson in the Star Trek: Enterprise episode, "Daedalus" (2005)
 * James Cromwell played Prime Minister Nayrok on the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Hunted" (1990) and Jaglom Shrek in "Birthright, Parts I & II" (1993), Minister Hanok in the Star Trek: DeepSpace 9 episode "Starship Down," and Zefram Cochrane in Star Trek: First Contact (1996, film) and the Star Trek: Enterprise premiere episode.
 * Juliana Donald played Tayna in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "A Matter of Perspective" (1990), Emi in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Prophet Motive" (1995), and Shoreham in Star Trek: Borg (1996, video game)
 * Paul Dooley played Enabran Tain in four episodes of Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.
 * Michael Dorn, played Lt. Worf on Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine
 * Jane Espenson wrote the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Accession" (1996)
 * Matt Frewer played Berlinghoff Rasmussen in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "A Matter of Time" (1991)
 * John Glover played Verad in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Invasive Procedures" (1993)
 * Whoopi Goldberg played Guinan on Star Trek: The Next Generation (seasons 2-6)
 * Kelsey Grammer played Captain Morgan Bateson in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Cause and Effect" (1992)
 * Bob Gunton played Captain Benjamin Maxwell in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Wounded" (1991)
 * Mariette Hartley played Zarabeth in "All Our Yesterdays" (1969)
 * Teri Hatcher played B. G. Robinson in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Outrageous Okona" (1988)
 * Sally Kellerman played Dr. Elizabeth Dehner in the Star Trek episode "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (1966)
 * Gates McFadden played Doctor Beverly Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation
 * Virginia Madsen played Kellin in Star Trek: Voyager
 * Andrea Martin played Ishka in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Family Business" (1995)
 * Michael McKean played the Clown in the Star Trek: Voyager episode "The Thaw" (1996)
 * Leonard Nimoy played Spock on Star Trek and in subsequent movies.
 * Josh Pais played Gaila in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episodes "Business as Usual" and "The Magnificent Ferengi" (1997)
 * Robert Picardo played the Doctor on Star Trek: Voyager
 * Suzie Plakson, played Selar on the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "The Schizoid Man" (1989) and K'Ehleyr in "The Emissary" (1989) and "Reunion" (1990), Female Q on the Star Trek: Voyager episode "The Q and the Grey" (1996), and Tarah in the Enterprise episode "Cease Fire" (2003)
 * Bill Prady wrote the season five Star Trek: Voyager episode, "Bliss."
 * Deep Roy played Keenser in the 2009 Star Trek film.
 * Zoe Saldana played Uhura in the 2009 Star Trek film.
 * William Schallert played Nilz Barris in the Star Trek episode "The Trouble with Tribbles" (1967) and Varani in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Sanctuary" (1993)
 * William Shatner played Captain James T. Kirk on Star Trek and in the animated series and subsequent films.
 * Michelan Sisti played Tol in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Bloodlines" (1994)
 * Patrick Stewart played Captain Jean-Luc Picard on Star Trek: The Next Generation
 * George Takei played Hikaru Sulu on Star Trek and subsequent films, and voiced various aliens on Star Trek: The Animated Series
 * Nick Tate played Durgo in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Final Mission" (1990)
 * Kirk Thatcher worked on Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, as associate producer, composer/singer of the song "I Hate You," voice of the Vulcan computer, and appeared as "Punk on the Bus" in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.
 * Brian Tochi played Ray Tsingtao in the Star Trek episode "And the Children Shall Lead" (1968) and Ensign Kenny Lin in the Star Trek: Next Generation episode "Night Terrors" (1991)
 * Neil deGrasse Tyson appears in the Star Trek: Voyager season 3 documentary "Real Science" (2004)
 * Ben Vereen played Dr. LaForge in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode 'Interface" (1993)
 * David Warner played Ambassador St. John Talbot in Star Trek V: The Final Frontier (1987, film), Chancellor Gorkon in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991, film), and Cardassian Gul Madred in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Chain of Command, Part I and Part II" (1992)
 * Frank Welker voiced child Spock's screams in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984, film) and an alien in the Star Trek: Voyager episode "Nothing Human" (1998)
 * Wil Wheaton played Wesley Crusher on Star Trek: The Next Generation.
 * Alfre Woodard played Lily Sloane in Star Trek: First Contact (1996, film)