Historical

50 Years of Star Trek in AC

In this collection honoring Trek’s golden anniversary, we dip into our archive to present a selection of articles documenting five decades of production and post on the seminal sci-fi franchise.

David E. Williams

The classic Trek troika of William Shatner, DeForest Kelley and Leonard Nimoy in a rare production shot.

To boldly go...


In this online-exclusive collection honoring Star Trek's recent 50th anniversary, we dip into American Cinematographer’s vast archive to present a selection of articles documenting five decades of production and post on the seminal sci-fi franchise. Beginning with the original 1960s TV series to its leap to the big screen in 1979 with Star Trek: The Motion Picture through the 1980s Next Generation continuation of creator Gene Roddenberry’s brainchild, direct from the pages of AC.


Among the subjects included are ASC members Linwood G. Dunn, Joseph Westheimer, Howard A. Anderson, Gerald P. Finnerman, Richard H. Kline, Don Peterman, Marvin Rush, Hiro Narita and Mathew F. Leonetti.


This is by no means a complete collection of AC's Trek coverage, but a 12-part sampler that will give the reader a taste of the artistry, technology and creativity that has resulted in a human adventure that fans have enjoyed for generations:


Star Trek 50 Part I — Original Series Effects
Star Trek 50 Part II — Shooting The Motion Picture
Star Trek 50 Part III — Effecting Wrath of Khan
Star Trek 50 Part IV — Star Trek Meets The Next Generation
Star Trek 50 Part V — Voyage Home Directing
Star Trek 50 Part VI — Voyage Home Cinematography
Star Trek 50 Part VII — Next Generation Production
Star Trek 50 Part VIII — Undiscovered Cinematography
Star Trek 50 Part IX — Shooting First Contact
Star Trek 50 Part X — Enterprise Goes Back to the Future
Star Trek 50 Part XI — The Trek Feature Re-Boot
Star Trek 50 Part XII — Star Trek: Discovery


All archive stories in this collection will retain their original text and style as they were first published.





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