Celebrating the 60th Anniversary of 'Star Trek TOS' – My Favorite Guest Stars (Part One)

 

Like the great Batman series – please check out my posts from earlier this year celebrating its 60th anniversary – Star Trek: The Original Series had many of the top and some legendary actors chomping at the bit to have a guest appearance on the show.

Since there are too many to explore them all, I'm going to go with the ones who are my personal favorites. So, if I miss someone that you liked, I apologize in advance for not including them. 

Here is my list (Part One) in no apparent order, but I am starting with my favorite guest star from this group. 

1. Roger C. Carmel

Roger C. Carmel played Harcourt Fenton Mudd in two episodes – "Mudd's Women" (Season 1, Episode 6) and "I, Mudd" (Season 2, Episode 8). At six foot four inches tall and sporting a rather distinctive mustache, Harry Mudd was all bluster and full of lies, but oh what fun it was to watch him chew the scenery all the while he's on screen. 

I enjoyed his episodes because he was having a grand time playing the part, and even Captain Kirk (William Shatner) and Mr. Spock (Leonard Nimoy) seemed to be in on the joke, so these two episodes are probably the funniest – except for maybe "The Trouble with Tribbles" (Season 2, Episode 15) giving them a challenge.

Fun facts: Carmel is the only guest actor who played the same character in more than one episode. He also played Colonel Gumm on Batman. 

2. William Campbell

Campbell played two roles to perfection in the series, and they couldn't be more opposite. In "The Squire of Gothos" (Season 1, Episode 17) he played the spoiled, seemingly all powerful Trelane. For those fans of Star Trek: The Next Generation, he is similar to Q (John de Lancie) in his childish nature and petulance.     

Campbell also played the Klingon Koloth in "The Trouble With Tribbles." While this episode is a bit lighthearted due to our furry friends, Koloth is vicious in his pursuit of taking control of the planet below the space station where the Tribbles are first found. In both episodes Campbell comes off as likeable despite his actions that are more annoying than dangerous. 

Fun Fact: This episode is also notable for the bar brawl between the Klingons and the Enterprise's crew started by Scotty (James Doohan), who was defending the ship's honor. 

3. Sally Kellerman

Playing Dr. Elizabeth Dehner (a psychiatrist) in the second pilot "Where No Man Has Gone Before" that becomes (Season 1, Episode 3), Kellerman brought elegance and grace to the role. While she genuinely wants to help the crew stay mentally healthy, she gets sucked into a morass of trying to save Lt. Cmdr. Gary Mitchell (Gary Lockwood) who has been injured along with herself by a strange space barrier that attacks the ship.

Kellerman brought a sense of credibility and decency to the role, and as Gary gets powers and his eyes turn silver, she tries her best to do the right thing, but she also starts getting powers and her eyes change too. The episode is famous for its climax on an alien planet where Dehner has to choose between helping Kirk or starting a new world with Gary's god-like character. 

4. Michael Dunn

Dunn plays court jester Alexander in "Plato's Stepchildren" (Season 3, Episode 10), an episode more famous because of the interracial kiss between Lt. Uhura (Nichelle Nichols) and Kirk – they were forced to kiss by the Platonians with their powerful psychic abilities. 

Alexander plays it like he goes along with his masters, but he is more powerful than they are. His good humored portrayal makes an impact on the plot, but the kiss seems to always overshadow everything else about this one.  

5. Mark Lenard and Jane Wyatt

Lenard is probably most famous for playing Spock's father Sarek, but in the first season he played a Romulan commander in one of the best Trek episodes ever. "Balance of Terror" (Season 1, Episode 14) features a battle of wits between the Romulan and Kirk that was inspired by the classic The Enemy Below, a movie about a battle between submarine captains. 

He first played Sarek in "Journey to Babel" (Season 2, Episode 10) where he is on a diplomatic mission with his wife Amanda (the legendary Jane Wyatt). This is one of my favorite episodes because we really get to know about Spock's origins in how he interacts with his parents. Lenard's performance is powerful, but Wyatt's subdued portrayal makes us understand the internal battle Spock faces every day.   

6. William Windom 

Windom plays Commodore Matt Decker like a train wreck that tries to undo itself in "The Doomsday Machine" (Season 2, Episode 6). As the commander of the U.S.S. Constitution that has been disabled by the titular alien device that killed his crew, to call Decker troubled is an understatement. 

As a kid I got ticked off when Decker took command of the Enterprise from Spock, who has more things to worry about because the device could destroy the ship with Decker in command like an out of control Ahab, and Kirk is stuck on the disabled Constitution. Windom's acting is amazing, but it's Nimoy's quiet determination as Spock countering him that makes this one of my favorite episodes. 

7. Joan Collins

Joan Collins portrayed Edith Keeler in "City on the Edge of Forever" (Season 1, Episode 28) with so much warmth and passion, that Kirk couldn't help falling in love with her (and so did we). 

Kirk and Spock are forced to go back in time through a portal on an alien world because a drugged McCoy has gone through the portal first and changed history. They find themselves in Depression era New York City, and Keeler runs a soup kitchen there. 

This is often cited as fans' favorite episode, and it is certainly one of my favorites. The love story that develops between Kirk and Keeler is unforced and beautiful to watch, but the truth of what has to happen to set history right is a heartbreaker.  

8. Michael Ansara

Ansara's portrayal as Klingon Commander Kang "Day of the Dove" (Season 3, Episode 7) is memorable because he leads his men and interacts with Kirk and his crew on a planet where an unseen entity has lured them. The creature feeds on hatred, so Kang and Kirk have to forget about fighting one another in order to survive. 

I like this episode because Ansara took a Klingon in a different direction instead of just being another wild-eyed warrior. There was a lot to fear in this one but also a thin line of humor that even leads to Kang playfully slapping Kirk on the back like an old buddy. 

9. William Marshall

Theater legend Marshall's Dr. Richard Daystrom appears in "The Ultimate Computer" (Season 2, Episode 24) as the brilliant inventor of M-5. As the title tells us, Daystrom believes his computer will make human space explorers unnecessary. Of course, this makes Kirk and company a little uneasy. 

After Daystrom installs M-5 on the Enterprise, what we suspect will happen does, and then Daystom is challenged – like a Dr. Frankenstein of the future – by his own creation. Marshall was a Shakespearean actor who played Othello on stage and many other roles, so it makes all of this seem exceedingly tragic, and his performance is worthy of watching this one more than once. 

Series creator Gene Roddenberry – who liked to send messages with his show – made this episode a warning about being careful what you wish for in regards to relying on technology. 60 years later with us living in a tech crazy world, the message still is valid even if you are reading this on a phone held in your hand.   

10. Yvonne Craig 

As she was busy playing Batgirl in Batman over on that other channel, Yvonne Craig took out time to play Marta, an Orion slave girl in "Whom Gods Destroy" (Season 3, Episode 14). Her image will make true Trek fans recall Susan Oliver who played an Orion slave girl in one of Captain Christopher Pike's (Jeffrey Hunter) fantasy sequences in the first pilot "The Cage." 

In keeping with that tradition, Marta performs a risqué dance for Kirk and others present, but her goal is more pernicious. She desires to not only dance for Kirk but to get into bed with him too. Certainly I didn't understand this as a kid, but now, when I looked at the episode again, I realized she was trying to lure Kirk to sleep with her because – as with all her conquests –she wants to stab him to death. 

Craig gave this part her all and comes off as fragile, enticing, and dangerous. I hope she got off all that green paint before she went back to the Batman set. 

What's Next?

So, what did you think of my favorite guest stars list? In my next post, I will take a look at my ten more of my favorites. I hope they will be some of your favorites too.

Until next time, Live Long and Prosper!

Please check out this video of Marta's dance in "Whom Gods Destroy."