Majel Barrett Roddenberry passes away at age 76!

[PistolPete]

<p>Holy crap! First Bettie Page, now Lwaxana Troi.&nbsp; There is no justice in the universe!</p><p>From Roddenberry.com:</p><p>Majel Barrett Roddenberry passed away this morning, December 18, 2008, at 12:27 AM in her Bel Air home. She died peacefully, in her sleep, and was surrounded by family and loved ones. </p><p>"My mother truly acknowledged and appreciated the fact that Star Trek fans played a vital role in keeping the Roddenberry dream alive for the past 42 years. It was her love for the fans, and their love in return, that kept her going for so long after my father passed away." - Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry, Jr.</p><p>LINK </p><p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><em>So, again we are defeated. This victory belongs to the farmers, not us.</em></p><p><strong>-Kambei Shimada from the movie Seven Samurai</strong></p> </div>

 

[jim48]

<strong>I just saw that on Yahoo news. I thought she was younger. She was one of Shatner's biggest critics over the years, famously saying that he has an ego the size of a galaxy, and she was right. I wonder how <em>Star Trek</em> would have developed if they had kept her "Number One" character from the first pilot. Would Number One have caught on&nbsp;like Spock? Shatner would have had a fit, but then he did anyway when Spock became more popular. It's sad to see the <em>Star Trek</em> cast go.<br /><img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/0/2/a003d35f-97fe-4602-b2c5-d04c9f06a175.Medium.jpg" alt="" /><br /></strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p>NOO!</p><p>The voice of the Enterprise is gone...</p><p>I really liked her characters, her performance and her "s.p.u.n.k." as well.&nbsp; She was a gutsy, spunky lady who just had a kind of aura around her.&nbsp; You either liked her or hated her but, I can't find anything not to like about her.&nbsp; I am saddened by her passing but have the consolation that she will always be remembered by her fans and the immortal Enterprise as it carries her voice to the stars. </p><p>PS - ?&nbsp; You can't type "s_p_u_n_k" (without hardspaces) because of the fracking language filter?&nbsp; What gradeschool moron compiled the list for the language filter?&nbsp; I'd like to call them a few choice things their language filter doesn't have filters for...&nbsp; Idiot, moron, incompetant database monkey, etc.. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I just saw that on Yahoo news. I thought she was younger. She was one of Shatner's biggest critics over the years, famously saying that he has an ego the size of a galaxy, and she was right. I wonder how Star Trek would have developed if they had kept her "Number One" character from the first pilot. Would Number One have caught on&nbsp;like Spock? Shatner would have had a fit, but then he did anyway when Spock became more popular. It's sad to see the Star Trek cast go. Posted by jim48</DIV></p><p>I would have really liked to see Number One carried over into the series.&nbsp; I think it would have been an outstanding addition.&nbsp; But, I guess it was just too controversial maybe?&nbsp; The relationship between Spock, Kirk and McCoy may not have been as developed either.&nbsp; They might have been forced to distance Number One from the males otherwise certain situations would always be questioned and could detract from the story being told...</p><p>Still, it was an excellent character and a pretty maverick move on their part.&nbsp; But, it just didn't pan out.&nbsp; Luckily, for everyone, she still had her place as the voice of the Enterprise and made frequent appearances on TNG. </p><p>Some good stills here, along with her as Nurse Chapel.&nbsp; I had forgotten that.: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H3WOY9SwyOs </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[vogon13]

<p>&nbsp;</p><p>Classic sci-fi footage, Enterprise crew attempting to rescue their Captain on Talos IV;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><br /> <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/9/12/09c432cc-e87e-47dc-ac1e-7e51607b7d3a.Medium.jpg" alt="" /></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>It's wrong to create a race of human beings to live as slaves;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><br /> <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/2/6/d24a5b60-9fcc-46e8-86bd-f48a82d8a589.Large.jpg" alt="" /><br />&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff0000"><strong>TPTB went to Dallas and all I got was Plucked !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#339966"><strong>So many people, so few recipes !!</strong></font></p><p><font color="#0000ff"><strong>Let's clean up this stinkhole !!</strong></font> </p> </div>

 

[docm]

<p>Now I'm really bummed out.&nbsp; </p><p>One more icon of our youth gone into the mists of time.</p><p>Sucks.</p><p>Yes, for the sake of continuity Number One should make an appearance, perhaps as Morgan Lefler Primus. Look it up <img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/content/scripts/tinymce/plugins/emotions/images/smiley-wink.gif" border="0" alt="Wink" title="Wink" /></p><p><strong>Official family announcement -</strong><br /><br /></p><div style="margin:5px20px20px"><div class="smallfont" style="margin-bottom:2px">Quote:</div><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="4" width="100%"><tbody><tr><td class="alt2" style="border:1pxinset"><strong>"FIRST LADY OF STAR TREK" MAJEL BARRETT RODDENBERRY<br /><br />PASSES AWAY AT THE AGE OF 76</strong><br /><br />LOS ANGELES, CA (December 18, 2008) &ndash; Actress Majel Barrett Roddenberry, beloved star of sci-fi phenomenon Star Trek passed away early this morning surrounded by family and friends. Roddenberry was 76 years old. She began her acting career in the 1950's with roles in such popular shows as "Leave it to Beaver," "Bonanza" and "The Lucy Show; but it was her numerous roles in the legendary Star Trek franchise that fans came to know and love her. Roddenberry had featured roles in almost every Star Trek television and film entity and became an iconic figure within the fan community. Her roles included Nurse Chapel in Star Trek: The Original Series, Lwaxana Troi in Star Trek: The Next Generation and the voice of the USS Enterprise computer in almost every incarnation of the series. However, it was the love affair between her and the late Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry that earned her the title "The First Lady of Star Trek." Over the course of their more then quarter-century love affair, she became not only Gene's partner, but also his creative muse. Roddenberry helped Gene expand the Star Trek universe and was an integral part of its continued legacy after his death. Majel recently completed reprising her role as the voice of the USS Enterprise for J.J. Abrams' new Star Trek film. <br /><br />Roddenberry succumbed to a short battle with Leukemia at 12:27 AM on December 18 in her Bel-Air home. She passed away peacefully, surrounded by her son Rod Roddenberry and family friends. She is survived by her only son Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry Jr. The family has asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made in her name to the CARE Organization or Precious Paws both of which share Roddenberry's love for animals and dedication to animal rescue.

 

[jim48]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>&nbsp;Classic sci-fi footage, Enterprise crew attempting to rescue their Captain on Talos IV;&nbsp; &nbsp;It's wrong to create a race of human beings to live as slaves;&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; <br />Posted by vogon13</DIV><br /><br /><strong>Those are some good color pics, Vogon. I'm probably alone on this, but I wish they'd have kept the uni-sex uniforms for the series. Gave it a more military feel. I thought field jackets were pretty cool, too. Ray guns sucked. "The Cage" was really an amazing film for its time, either tv or movies. By the way, take another look at those pictures you're sharing with us. That was filmed in December of 1964... 44 years ago. Think about it. We're getting old, aren't we? I remember seeing crappy, pink-shaded copies of that at some <em>Star Trek</em> conventions back in the&nbsp; mid-'70s. We were so thankful when they went into the film vaults and cleaned up and restored the original color negatives. Paramount was making so much money off of <em>Star Trek</em> re-runs back then they forced local tv stations to run the same film prints over and over and over because making new copies cost money. I also remember seeing a similar crappy print of <em>Forbidden Planet</em> at a <em>Star Trek</em> con and was again thankful that MGM restored it prior to its video release in the mid-'80s. In other words, the studios finally listened to the fans!</strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[docm]

<p>Agreed!! <em>The Cage</em> could easily have been a feature film.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[crazyeddie]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>NOO!The voice of the Enterprise is gone...You either liked her or hated her but, I can't find anything not to like about her.&nbsp; I am saddened by her passing but have the consolation that she will always be remembered by her fans and the immortal Enterprise as it carries her voice to the stars.<br /> Posted by a_lost_packet_</DIV></p><p>I liked her very much as a person, and I thought she, like Nichelle Nichols, was under-utilized as a character in TOS, but I must say I absolutely <span style="font-weight:bold" class="Apple-style-span">hated</span> her as Lwaxana Troi....that character was such a canned, shallow, cliche of the quintessential meddling mom. &nbsp;How much better it would have been if they had allowed her to be a more complex mother figure to Deanna.....although, to give her some credit, her best role as Luxwana was in the episode that guest starred David Ogden Stiers, as the alien scientist love interest who's culture demanded that their citizens be euthanized when they reach the age of 60. &nbsp;Had they given her more meaty plots like that, my perception of her might have been different.</p><p>Im am very grateful to her for being the executive producer of Andromeda, which I thought was an outstanding sci-fi series.&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[crazyeddie]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'> I wonder how Star Trek would have developed if they had kept her "Number One" character from the first pilot. Would Number One have caught on&nbsp;like Spock? Shatner would have had a fit, but then he did anyway when Spock became more popular. &nbsp;<br /> Posted by jim48</DIV></p><p>I thought it was cowardly of NBC to reject her as a second-in-command.....jeez, the networks were so sexist back then, hard to believe! &nbsp;But I'll bet some pretty torrid plots could have come out of that set-up. &nbsp;We knew from that scene in The Cage/Menagerie, when the Talosian read her mind, that she had something of an unrequited love for Captain Pike, so imagine how that might have played out over several seasons. &nbsp;Lots of plot possibilities, there....such as Pike discovering, perhaps to his surprise, that he loved her, too, and all the conflicts with the command structure that might present (sort of like O'Neill and Carter in Stargate SG-1).&nbsp;</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[docm]

Or many characters in different timelines discovering that she was an immortal, AKA Morgan Primus. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I thought it was cowardly of NBC to reject her as a second-in-command.....jeez, the networks were so sexist back then, hard to believe! &nbsp;But I'll bet some pretty torrid plots could have come out of that set-up. &nbsp;We knew from that scene in The Cage/Menagerie, when the Talosian read her mind, that she had something of an unrequited love for Captain Pike, so imagine how that might have played out over several seasons. &nbsp;Lots of plot possibilities, there....such as Pike discovering, perhaps to his surprise, that he loved her, too, and all the conflicts with the command structure that might present (sort of like O'Neill and Carter in Stargate SG-1).&nbsp; <br /> Posted by crazyeddie</DIV></p><p>I find it hard to believe I'd take an opposing view to your specific one here. </p><p>However, what I think it could have done is spead up the female protagonist television roles a bit quicker.&nbsp; Number One seemed to be a pretty gutsy, straight&narrow character from what little we saw of her, IMO.&nbsp; I think she could have been developed into a "chews nails, spits lightning and craps thunder" female lead on the series.&nbsp; No, she wouldn't have overshadowed Kirk.&nbsp; But, if she had been a more "Kirk Like" leading female character it may have transformed television way before Mary Tyler Moore, Police Woman, Cagney & Lacey, etc..</p><p>Far from being a love interest, I would have liked to have seen a very strong female lead there.&nbsp; Kirk banged everything that walked and a lot that didn't.&nbsp; But, wouldn't it have been interesting if there was one woman that would have ripped Kirk's well used dangly bits off of him and shoved them up his porthole if he had tried his sappy sueve manuevers on her? </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[jim48]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I find it hard to believe I'd take an opposing view to your specific one here. However, what I think it could have done is spead up the female protagonist television roles a bit quicker.&nbsp; Number One seemed to be a pretty gutsy, straight&narrow character from what little we saw of her, IMO.&nbsp; I think she could have been developed into a "chews nails, spits lightning and craps thunder" female lead on the series.&nbsp; No, she wouldn't have overshadowed Kirk.&nbsp; But, if she had been a more "Kirk Like" leading female character it may have transformed television way before Mary Tyler Moore, Police Woman, Cagney & Lacey, etc..Far from being a love interest, I would have liked to have seen a very strong female lead there.&nbsp; Kirk banged everything that walked and a lot that didn't.&nbsp; But, wouldn't it have been interesting if there was one woman that would have ripped Kirk's well used dangly bits off of him and shoved them up his porthole if he had tried his sappy sueve manuevers on her? <br />Posted by a_lost_packet_</DIV><br /><br /><strong>"... if there was one woman that would have ripped Kirk's well used dangly bits off of him and shoved them up his porthole if he had tried his sappy..." That's pretty good writing, by the way. You've just described what would have happened had he gone after the Romulan Commander in "The Enterprise Incident". She was one of the very few tough women on <em>Star Trek</em>.</strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[jim48]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>I liked her very much as a person, and I thought she, like Nichelle Nichols, was under-utilized as a character in TOS, but I must say I absolutely hated her as Lwaxana Troi....that character was such a canned, shallow, cliche of the quintessential meddling mom. &nbsp;How much better it would have been if they had allowed her to be a more complex mother figure to Deanna.....although, to give her some credit, her best role as Luxwana was in the episode that guest starred David Ogden Stiers, as the alien scientist love interest who's culture demanded that their citizens be euthanized when they reach the age of 60. &nbsp;Had they given her more meaty plots like that, my perception of her might have been different.Im am very grateful to her for being the executive producer of Andromeda, which I thought was an outstanding sci-fi series.&nbsp; <br />Posted by crazyeddie</DIV><br /><br /><strong>Sounds like you met her. Are you a Trekkie? I ask&nbsp;in the best sense of that word. I went to <em>Star Trek</em> cons a long, long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Never met Barrett. Went to a lecture Gene did back in '73 or '74. A captivating speaker. <em>Very</em> intelligent guy.</strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>"... if there was one woman that would have ripped Kirk's well used dangly bits off of him and shoved them up his porthole if he had tried his sappy..." That's pretty good writing, by the way. You've just described what would have happened had he gone after the Romulan Commander in "The Enterprise Incident". She was one of the very few tough women on Star Trek. Posted by jim48</DIV></p><p>I agree.&nbsp; Seeing that episode now, I can see how significant it was.&nbsp; Back then, when I was younger and saw it, I was a bit bewildered.&nbsp; I enjoyed it and thought it was "neat" that the commander was a woman. But, I didn't see it in all it's depth like I do today.&nbsp; Just another great thing about Roddenberry's vision... </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[docm]

Met Marina Sirtis at a con once.&nbsp; A <em><strong>very</strong></em> nice, sweet lady who took no small amount of time to talk to our son (10 at the time).&nbsp;&nbsp;Kid kept her autographed picture in his room 'til he was 22. <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Met Marina Sirtis at a con once.&nbsp; A very nice, sweet lady who took no small amount of time to talk to our son (10 at the time).&nbsp;&nbsp;Kid kept her autographed picture in his room 'til he was 22. <br /> Posted by docm</DIV></p><p>You know, I used to think that actor's who did the "tour" circuit, going to fan conventions and the like, were really just doing it for a bit of cash and some publicity and probably would have rather been anywhere else.</p><p>Then, I went to a convention with some friends and actually met some.&nbsp; You know, they were generally having a pretty good time and seemed pretty happy to be there, talking to fans and signing autographs.&nbsp; It really changed my opinion, seeing many who were as enthusiastic as their fans were. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[adrenalynn]

<p>I met her at a con many years back.&nbsp; She seemed really genuinely to appreciate her fans.&nbsp; (Actually, with only a couple notable exceptions, I found that to be true almost across the board).</p><p>Without her voice-over work for the ships, I can't imagine Star Trek ever making a come-back.&nbsp; At least not until _we're_ all gone too.</p><p>GodSpeed, <strong>Majel Barrett Roddenberry</strong> </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p>.</p><p><font size="3">bipartisan</font>  (<span style="color:blue" class="pointer"><span class="pron"><font face="Lucida Sans Unicode" size="2">bī-pär'tĭ-zən, -sən</font></span></span>) [Adj.]  Maintaining the ability to blame republications when your stimulus plan proves to be a devastating failure.</p><p><strong><font color="#ff0000"><font color="#ff0000">IMPE</font><font color="#c0c0c0">ACH</font> <font color="#0000ff"><font color="#c0c0c0">O</font>BAMA</font>!</font></strong></p> </div>

 

[CalliArcale]

<p>Yeah; the actors who go round to cons generally do not do it for the money.&nbsp; They can get better money on the stage.&nbsp; No, they do it because it's fun, although some actors really don't like the extra attention, and as a result, shy away from such events.</p><p>Majel Barrett did work elsewhere too, and was a fine actress.&nbsp; I loved her guest shot on Babylon 5, where she played the widow of the Centauri emperor and delivered ominous prophecies for Londo and Vir.&nbsp; It took a while for me to realize I was seeing the same woman as Lwaxana Troi, the character was *that* different.&nbsp; And played dead serious, unlike Troi, who I think Barrett probably really enjoyed playing.&nbsp; Yeah, Lwaxana Troi was annoying, but she was so over-the-top that it must've been a blast to play her.</p><p>Heh -- according to Wikipedia, Union Pacific hired her to record voice annunciations for their locomotives, so that when defects were detected in the tracks, it's her voice that tells the engineers about the problem.&nbsp; That's kinda cool.</p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p><font color="#666699"><em>"People assume that time is a strict progression of cause to effect, but actually from a non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint it's more like a big ball of wibbly wobbly . . . timey wimey . . . stuff."</em>  -- The Tenth Doctor, "Blink"</font></p> </div>

 

[Kerberos]

<p>How could Majel Barrett be so bland and whiny as Nurse Chapel, yet so scorching hot as Number One? </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p> </p><p><font size="1" color="#0000ff">LSD, 100 micrograms I.M.</font> </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[Kerberos]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>Heh -- according to Wikipedia, Union Pacific hired her to record voice annunciations for their locomotives, so that when defects were detected in the tracks, it's her voice that tells the engineers about the problem.&nbsp; That's kinda cool. <br />Posted by CalliArcale</DIV><br />She was Bitchin' Betty? That is way cool!</p><p><br /><img src="http://sitelife.space.com/ver1.0/Content/images/store/0/12/7047fe1b-a260-4773-ace5-a6ffc4125cc2.Medium.gif" alt="" /><br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p> </p><p> </p><p><font size="1" color="#0000ff">LSD, 100 micrograms I.M.</font> </p><p> </p> </div>

 

[jim48]

Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>How could Majel Barrett be so bland and whiny as Nurse Chapel, yet so scorching hot as Number One? <br />Posted by Kerberos</DIV><br /><br /><strong><font size="2">Good acting!</font></strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[a_lost_packet_]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>How could Majel Barrett be so bland and whiny as Nurse Chapel, yet so scorching hot as Number One? <br /> Posted by Kerberos</DIV></p><p>She was a sultry long haired brunette as Number One.&nbsp; As Nurse Chapel, she was a blonde with her hair piled up on top of her head.&nbsp; She was much more appealing with her hair framing her face.</p><p>I'm a sucker for long full hair anyway so my opinion is biased. </p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <font size="1">I put on my robe and wizard hat...</font> </div>

 

[jim48]

<strong><font size="2">It is now late January. It has been announced that her cremated remains will be blasted into orbit along with the remaining remains--seriously--of Gene Roddenberry. Previously some of his remains went up. God bless them both. Standard orbit, Mr. Sulu.</font></strong> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> </div>

 

[starsinmyeyes44]

<p><BR/>Replying to:<BR/><DIV CLASS='Discussion_PostQuote'>It is now late January. It has been announced that her cremated remains will be blasted into orbit along with the remaining remains--seriously--of Gene Roddenberry. Previously some of his remains went up. God bless them both. Standard orbit, Mr. Sulu. <br />Posted by jim48</DIV></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p><font size="2" color="#0000ff">Yes...I found this article....</font></p><p>&nbsp;</p><p>http://www.popeater.com/article/gene-roddenberry-wife-to-spend-eternity/318581?cid=35</p><p><br /></p> <div class="Discussion_UserSignature"> <p><font color="#ff00ff">In the book of life, the answers aren't in the back.<br /></font><strong>Charlie Brown</strong></p> </div>