Sure, the last show has been scrapped and the last two movies were total dogs, but for 20,000 people this weekend, "Star Trek" lives.
It must - why else would they buy ticket packages to the 40th Anniversary Star Trek convention that start at $142 (admission only) and go up to $679 (preferred seating, two parties, a handful of autographs, lanyard and a souvenir coin)? During your four days of final frontier at the Hilton (Thursday through Sunday), you can listen to and buy autographs from such luminaries as William Shatner ($70) and Scott Bakula ($169). Or maybe a minor star like Mariette Hartley ($40), who appeared in one episode of the original series and remembers fending off Shatner, who was apparently just as much an interstellar lothario off-screen as on.
"He was too short for me, anyway," she says.
The Thursday crowd laughed at that one. Knowingly.
About the crowd. Or, because a handful of them were in uniform, the crew. Now, there are some ugly stereotypes about Trekkies, such as that they are mostly men who look like they have to register with the police when they move into a new neighborhood, the few women are Alabama turtle ranchers and none of them has the social graces of a DMV clerk. That's entirely unfair. Those motley crew members comprise only a solid minority or at worst a slim majority. Many Trekkies appeared quite normal and made eye contact when speaking.
True, Ken Krob of Los Angeles did introduce himself as "Admiral" and was wearing a bright yellow "Next Generation"-era bodysuit stretched across his large frame. But that only means he matched the uniforms of his wife, (Capt.) Pat, and two toy poodles, Mr. Data and Lt. Tasha Yar. Not to worry, he says, both the Hilton and the convention granted special permission for the dogs, provided he either carried them around or pushed them in a stroller. And the dogs like it.
"They don't complain," Krob says. "They like the attention."
Well, right, they're dogs. What explains him and the missus?
"We just have to do it," Krob says. "It's part of our lives."
Even though Trek on TV is no longer a reality, Krob says that doesn't matter because the actors and the fans are like family to them and, besides, there are always reruns and DVDs. And, after a day of posing for pictures, he feels like he's part of the show.
"We're on. We don't get compensated, but we're part of the show. The dogs are part of the show," Krob says. "We're not nuts. We just have a heartfelt relationship with Trek and the actors."
(Possibly: When Avery Brooks, who played Sisko on "Deep Space Nine," took questions, and Krob hailed him with, "Greetings to the Emissary and welcome to Las Vegas," the actor seemed to know what Krob was talking about.)
Krob's feeling of a brotherhood of Trek was echoed by other attendees, people who said they came partly for the shared identity and a sense of family, albeit a science fictional one. What unites them is the optimistic vision of the future. In the words of David Winter, a 46-year-old San Jose court clerk wearing a yellow Captain Kirk uniform, "The philosophy is that the world can get along and cooperate and then get out into space and get along with other races."
It's a message even the non-uniformed can relate to. Brian Carroll, a 40-year fan wearing a plain gray shirt and blue jeans, says he likes a universe where "we've solved most of our problems and have new challenges to look forward to." Besides, he meets up here with friends from L.A. and the Bay Area. "It's as good a reason to come to Vegas as any."
Fay Forsythe also attends without wearing a uniform, limiting herself to a pair of anodized titanium Starfleet logo earrings.
"I have the patterns and I do sew, but I'm just not one for dressing up. I don't have the nerve for that," Forsythe says. "I'm a closet Trekkie.
"It's just a fun thing. It isn't my whole life. It's just a small part of my life."
She has been a fan since the original series, she says, but much prefers the depth of the characters in "The Next Generation." So much so that she sent a thank-you letter to the whole cast, and every cast member, but two got handmade birthday cards. Brent "Mr. Data" Spiner's card had a pop-up paper Oscar statuette inside it. That was back in the 1990s, when cast members signed autographs for free and convention tickets were cheaper, she says.
"It's gotten a lot more commercial," Forsythe says. "It was a lot more fun when you could buy neat things, cheap things. I don't have that big a budget."
Nonetheless, she still comes to the conventions to have fun and support an alternate universe that she has become increasingly worried about since Paramount canceled the last Trek series, "Enterprise," in 2005.
"People will lose interest if they let it die like this. It's a vision for the future - a vision of peace," Forsythe says. "It's not acceptable to let it die. We've got to keep hope alive."