The Menagerie: Part I

"The Menagerie" Part 1 (Nov. 17, 1966) Old TV Guide synopsis: 'Spock inexplicably abducts the Enterprise's former commander, locks the ship on a course for a forbidden planet and turns himself in for court-martial.' Gene Roddenberry's rejected first pilot "The Cage" had been completed in December 1964, Leonard Nimoy as Spock the only cast member to return in the same role, though Majel Barrett as Number One would find herself recast as Nurse Christine Chapel (billed here as 'M. Leigh Hudec,' her actual name). This Spock sported the same pointed ears but was otherwise just another crew member capable of emotional outbursts; first officer Number One would merge with a new Spock for the second pilot, and Nimoy would 'logically' take it from there to contrast William Shatner's man of action. The network brass found the conception convincing, feeling as though they were actually on a starship, but otherwise found the storyline wanting and lacking in action, so this unaired footage would be utilized by Roddenberry for a two-part episode that helped the series stay afloat while keeping costs down (were it not for Lucille Ball's enthusiasm at Desilu, we never would have had a STAR TREK). Jeffrey Hunter's world weary Captain Christopher Pike was no swashbuckling adventurer like James Tiberius Kirk, and a commitment to a TV series would have been problematic (too many on set injuries led to his premature death in 1969). For "The Menagerie," little known Sean Kenney took the mantle of a severely injured Pike (going on to play helmsman DePaul in two episodes), kidnapped by Spock in an emotionally charged act of mutiny, locking the Enterprise on a course for the one planet deemed by the Federation worthy of the death penalty. For those already familiar with "The Cage," this is the most fascinating aspect of part 1, watching Spock behave in a manner untypical of Vulcans to achieve a goal that could very well end both his career as well as Captain Kirk's.