STAR TREK: THE ORIGINAL SERIES: COURT MARTIAL (TV)
Summary
One in this series of science fiction programs about the voyages of the U.S.S. Enterprise. In this episode, Captain Kirk is the subject of a court martial hearing on the grounds that his panic in an emergency situation resulted in a crewman's death. Ben Finney, an old friend of Kirk's from their days at the academy, is apparently killed after failing to exit the "ion pod" during a violent ion storm. Kirk swears that he waited until the last possible moment, calling a red alert and ordering Finney to evacuate before jettisoning the pod, but the Enterprise's computer records show Kirk performing the maneuver while still at the yellow alert stage -- before Finney had fair warning. A past incident that resulted in acrimony between the two friends gives Kirk a motive for eliminating Finney, and the Enterprise's infallible computer record seems to unequivocally implicate the captain. Making matters worse is the fact that the prosecuting attorney in the court martial is a former lover of Kirk's, while Kirk's own counsel, an eccentric luddite named Cogley, bewilderingly refuses to cross-examine any witnesses. It is up to the logical Spock -- who reaches an epiphany while playing chess -- to discover an alternative explanation for the computer's damning evidence. After conferring with the Vulcan, Cogley delivers a passionately eloquent speech convincing the court martial judges to allow the lawyer to call the computer as a witness, which ultimately sheds light on the surprising "fate" of the resentful Ben Finney. Commercials deleted.
Details
- NETWORK: NBC
- DATE: February 2, 1967 Thursday 8:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 0:50:59
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:06442
- GENRE: Drama, fantasy/science fiction
- SUBJECT HEADING: Drama, fantasy/science fiction
- SERIES RUN: NBC - TV series, 1966-1969
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Gene Roddenberry … Executive Producer, Created by
- Gene L. Coon … Producer
- Robert H. Justman … Associate Producer
- Marc Daniels … Director
- Don M. Mankiewicz … Writer
- Steven W. Carabatsos … Writer
- Alexander Courage … Music by
- William Shatner … Cast, Capt. James T. Kirk
- Leonard Nimoy … Cast, Mr. Spock
- Percy Rodriguez … Cast, Portmaster Stone
- Elisha Cook … Cast, Cogley
- Joan Marshall … Cast, Areel Shaw
- DeForest Kelley … Cast, Dr. McCoy
- Nichelle Nicholls … Cast, Uhura
- Richard Webb … Cast, Finney
- Hagan Beggs … Cast, the Helmsman
- Winston DeLugo … Cast, Timothy
- Alice Rawlings … Cast, Jame Finney
- Nancy Wong … Cast, the Personnel Officer
- Bart Conrad … Cast, Krasnovsky
- William Meader … Cast, a Board Officer
- Reginald Lal Singh … Cast, a Board Officer