Published Aug 4, 2017

TNG Cast Celebrates 30 Years at STLV17

By StarTrek.com Staff

Day three at Star Trek Las Vegas served as a massive celebration of Star Trek: The Next Generation’s 30th anniversary. Cast members appeared on stage throughout the day in unique combinations, and then they all gathered together at night for a full-on TNG30 Reunion. Check out details about the reunion and other Day three activities...

Star Trek: The Next Generation 30th Anniversary Cast Reunion

The TNG cast, to tremendous applause, greeted the nearly 6000 fans gathered together in the Leonard Nimoy Theatre to see them. Going moderator-free, ninety-minutes of memories, teasing and laughs followed as the actors answered fan questions.

“I do remember that I appealed to Rick (Berman) and the writers to write a romantic encounter for Picard that wasn't referencing a relationship that was 25 years old,” Stewart said. So, they did, and that led to ‘Captain's Holiday,’ and we know what that led to... don't we?"

Fired back Sirtis, “It led to any excuse for him to take his shirt off. He's very old, but he's in great shape. I don't say anything behind his back that I don't say to his face."

"I'm very optimistic about the show, very hopeful it's going to be fantastic,” Spiner said of Star Trek: Discovery. “I don't know that I need to be a part of it, necessarily, but I encourage them and hope for the best."

Crosby, asked where Yar might have gone as a character had she stayed with the show, replied, "Well... Data and I would've gotten married and had a little child. It's hard to know. I love what Patrick said (about) the melding of our personal selves with our characters. Tasha was dear to my heart. I would've hoped there would have been some real interesting, complex personal issues to deal with."

A fan wondered what advice the TNG actor had for the Discovery cast. Pretty much simultaneously, they shouted, “Save your money.” Dorn then added, "Appreciate where you are, because you are extremely fortunate.”

Check out our live coverage from TNG's 30th Anniversary Cast Reunion.

Patrick Stewart & the Preposterous Idea

A standing ovation greeted Sir Patrick Stewart as he took to the stage for his STLV session. He noted that he loves coming to Vegas for STLV to see his fans and his “beloved” co-stars, but explained that his busy work schedule prevents him from doing so more often.

So, he doubled cherished dinner with his cast mates/friends the night before. “It was delightful, fun, pleasant and the most enjoyable evening in a long time.”

Sir Patrick also discussed a childhood he described as “a bit difficult,” as he father experienced what would now be called PTSD. That led to a story about his unlike escape, acting, and the English teacher, Cecil Dormand. “We spoke two weeks ago,” Stewart said. “He’s in his mid-90s. He called me. He said, ‘Patrick, I’m worried about you. You’re doing too much. You need to take a break.’ My instinct was to say, ‘Yes, sir. Yes, sir.’ He was the first person to put Shakespeare in my hand, to put me on the stage and to say, ‘Have you thought of doing this professionally?’ It seemed to be a preposterous idea.”

Marina & Michael

Old friends, Marina Sirtis and Michael Dorn, displayed their familiar banter during their session.

Michael kicked things off with his first impressions of Sirtis, "I thought she was stuck up. I didn't know it was just the accent."

Comparing herself to her character, Sirtis said, "I'm about like Troi as chalk is to cheese."

Gates & Denise

Two of TNG's favorite ladies, Gates McFadden and Denise Crosby, teamed up for a session with moderator, Scott Mantz, to talk Trek.

Speaking of Star Trek creator, Gene Roddenberry, Crosby said, "The name was so legendary. But he was just a very warm human being. I always felt like we were in this together."

Upon McFadden's return in season three, Dr. Crusher didn't come across as her familiar self because, as McFadden said, the writers "didn't know I ws coming back, so there weren't 'Crusher, scripts."

Q's John de Lancie

John de Lancie told a rapt audience that he pitched the idea of a Q version of Where’s Waldo? to the TNG producers, where “you just see my character in different times, different periods. It… didn’t go anywhere.”

He also shared an anecdote about how and why he got involved with Alien Voices years ago with Leonard Nimoy. “I wanted to do dramatizations of classic science fiction,” explained the actor, who was dyslexic in his youth. “Sci-fi was the first genre I read.” First book: Mysterious Island. He took the idea to Nimoy, who partnered with him on the project. They went on to release several recordings of SF classics, many with Trek stars reading roles radio play-style, and a couple of originals, including Spock Vs. Q. De Lancie then noted Nimoy’s reason for doing it. “Leonard said, ‘I’ve been doing so many conventions. This would give them a new twist.” And it did, as Nimoy and de Lancie performed Spock Vs. Q at a number of conventions.

Terry Talk

The always-engaging Terry Farrell was perhaps even more engaging than usual during her session. And that's thanks to the moderator, Adam Nimoy, who happens to be her boyfriend. Their chat was fun, flirty and conversational.

Farrell remembered that casting director Junie Lowry-Johnson, "Didn't quite think I was right for it." However, the DS9 team couldn't find the right someone and brought Terry back, along with several other actresses. After a second audition, Farrell learned that she won the role just as she was about to visit TNG's Michael Dorn, Marina Sirtis and Jonathan Frakes. "I burst into tears," Farrell said, "because I got to play Spock's part on DS9."

Discovery Heads to Star Trek Timelines

Disruptor Beam used their time on stage to reveal that they will expand Star Trek Timelines later this year with fresh content from Star Trek: Discovery. Fans can expect the addition of new crew members to the game, including Lt. Commander Michael Burnham and Captain Phillipa Georgiou, as well as numerous new ships from the Federation and beyond.

Okudagrams

Mike and Denise Okuda regaled a large crowd with recollections of their time on Star Trek. The conversation, led by John Van Citters, was complemented by images flashed on a screen. A shot of an old control panel from Mission Control, Mike noted, inspired Matt Jefferies as he designed the Enterprise bridge for TOS.

Mike first worked on Star Trek IV, which led to an offer to join the team for TNG. He saw it as his mission to carry on the Jefferies look, to, in his words, "maintain a consistent style, a consistent style range."

Denise, who was the video/computer playback supervisor and graphic artist for Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Voyager, and Enterprise, as well as for several Star Trek movies, noted that the graphics "we're meant to convey the message of the scene on the screen (in a given shot)."

Starfleet Academy Spelling Bee

Star Trek fans welcomed the challenge of spelling some of Trek’s strangest, toughest words. It came down to two contestants who couldn’t spell the final word, resulting in a tie.

Co-Champions Kristen A. and John K.

Gamers & Their Games

John Van Citters led Star Trek Gamers & Their Games, a conversation that brought together key players from Ubisoft (Ryan Barber), Spyr (Ralf Adam), Disruptor Beam (Paul Siegel) and Perfect World (Steve Ricossa). They talked, respectively, about Star Trek: Bridge Crew, the upcoming addition of Trek IP to Pocket Starships, Star Trek Timelines and Star Trek Online. Van Citters quite referred to the games as an "opportunity" to expand the Trek universe.

CBS All Access Stage

Jordan Hoffman and Ian Spelling anchored the CBS All Access Stage, welcoming another wealth of guests to engage in intimate talks with fans. Here’s who appeared on stage: