Subj : Re: Star Trek TV is 39 years old today!
To   : alt.tv.star-trek.tos
From : Graeme
Date : Thu Sep 15 2005 20:17:49

From Newsgroup: alt.tv.star-trek.tos

>Yes.  Of course, it is forgotten by many that Spock's skin was
>originally supposed to have a reddish tint.  That along with the
>pointy ears, highlighted to the studio execs the Satanic aspect of
>Spock.


Yes.  Here's Roddenberry's description of Spock from the *original*
Star Trek series outline:

>>
THE FIRST LIEUTENANT.  The Captain's right-hand man, the working-level
commander of all the ship's functions - ranging from manning the bridge
to supervising the lowliest scrub detail.  His name is Mr. Spock.  And
the first view of him can be almost frightening - a face so
heavy-lidded and satanic you might almost expect him to have a forked
tail.  Probably half Martian, he has a slightly reddish complexion and
semi-pointed ears.  But strangely - Mr. Spock's quiet temperament is in
dramatic contrast to his satanic look.  Of all the crew aboard, he is
the nearest to Captain April's equal, physically, emotionally, and as a
commander of men.  His primary weakness is an almost catlike curiosity
over anything the slightest "alien."
>>

So, it's not the case that NBC took something perfectly innocent and
imagined Satan in it.  It was Roddenberry's conscious intention from
the get go that Spock's appearance should suggest this.  He describes
him that way twice.  His words here also suggest what I was saying two
posts ago.  That he was going for the contrast of opposites; that Spock
should look violent and aggressive, but behave in a very reserved way.

And the role he suggests here for Spock, as a kind of
jack-of-all-trades, lasted well into the First Season.  In lots of the
early episodes, Spock stays aboard ship when Kirk goes down.  Two
episodes filmed back to back (What Are Little Girls Made Of?, and
Dagger of the Mind), both have the same formula.  Horndog Kirk beams
down with a pretty female crewmember, Spock stays aboard to send out
the rescue party when necessary, but Kirk's group kind of saves itself
in the end.

.