The little catalog put together by FTP founders Chuck and Sandy Weiss that ignited a couple of careers.
I had been meaning to do something on the Federation Trading Post East for some time now. I guess I’ve been waiting to see if any other pictures turn up documenting this bit of Trek fandom history. I’ve finally managed to scrape up enough for a post, so now children you must endure looking at them with me! In 1975 there was no-nuthin’! No movies, episodes, novels, DVDs, VHS… zip, zero, zilch, nada! Star Trek was a failed TV show. Then a little shop sprang up the most unlikely of places, mid-town Manhattan, and located on a chunk of pretty upscale real estate no less. 53rd and Third! The neighborhood merchants were taking bets on how long we would last. They were in for a shock.
No one suspected the militant, aggressive, creative, fandom groundswell that was building. At the time, Star Trek was in syndication and was being shown on the local station at something like eleven at night. A bunch of kids… us… raised the money to run a 30 second commercial on television during Star Trek itself. The next day there was a line down the block, and it stayed that way for a solid year! We had huge amounts of fun for the next two trips around the sun, and it was truly an important ignition point for Star Trek fandom.
(Below) 53rd and Third today. A skyscraper now stands on the spot where the Trading Post once thrived.
The Next Page – DISCLAIMER - Alright now… we’re going back in time a little bit… It’s the 1970s, ok?
I’ll just wait a moment while you get done laughing… It takes real guts to run a picture like this!
Anyway, there I am, mid twenties, I’m in my Star Trek glory. The store was a networking hub for Trek. On the left is a rack of the first fanzines. They were super creative and put together by folks who have gone on to become writers, engineers, and film people. In 1975, fanzines WERE the Internet. Dig the Matt Jefferies style door I cut into the wall. It leads to our Trek museum.
(Below) Yes, that’s Anthony Fredrickson stocking shelves with the AMT model kits.
(Below) Anthony and Doug putting together a backdrop for the Trading Post museum…
(Above)… while training for the big time! I positively loved laying out Star Fleet interfaces for real! Go Team Okuda!
The main room - 90% of everything in the store was fan-produced. From posters, to uniforms, to tribbles, to fanzines… there was very little in the way of main stream merchandise available, so fans made it themselves. It became a cottage industry. In the center is our leader, Ron Barlow, famous for his EC Reprints of the early 70s. He had an arcane and wacky sense of humor. On the left is world famous scenic artist Geoff Mandel, who must be all 14 years old! He was our Wesley Crusher. Talented beyond his years. We turned out many diagrams.
(Above) That’s my buddy, Mitch Green. Mitch and I met when we were ten. You wouldn’t recognize him today. He is a respected chiropractor in NYC. This is how jammed the store usually was. We would let three in when three went out. Here Mitch is demonstrating the “Nelson” phaser, the first authentic, and handcrafted replica of the prop. I think it cost like 700 bucks… 1970′s bucks. They were to be the phasers used in “Phase II”. Look at the faces, and look at the attention Mitch commands with the sophisticated prop! You must remember that these primitives have never seen a cell phone, or a even a VHS tape player!
It was a rainy night in NYC. I ran across the street to grab something from the snack bar. It was one of those nights where your glasses fog up as soon as you come indoors. Mitch calls me to the counter. I can barely see a thing. “Doug, I have someone here I think you should meet!” He says. I turn to the right and am looking directly into this fellows chest. I slowly roll my head back… I can barely make him out through the fog of my glasses… Gene Roddenberry? He was in the neighborhood. This was the first time I would come face-to-face with The Great Bird. He was a real gentleman, and seemed genuinely delighted by the store. He told me we were doing a good job, smiled, shook my hand and headed off into the Manhattan night. I was fortunate in that it would not be the last time he told me I did a good job.
(Above) Ahh, Mitch! You still ain’t normal! http://drexfiles.wordpress.com/2009/05/14/nothing-has-changed/
(Below) One of the most amazing things about NYC is the tremendous sense of neighborhood. Broadway is in the neighborhood. Nimoy was playing Sherlock Holmes on stage and decided to drop in, after all he was in the neighborhood. Too much fun!
(Below) We were drooling all over ourselves when sizzling hot Nichelle Nichol signed autographs at the Federation East. I designed a big sign announcing her appearance, and I remember she was smitten by it and asked to take it with her. It was slighty bawdy! Between us, her nick-name for me was “Huggy Bear”.
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(Above) The portal leading to our museum. Dig the architecture! By the way, the uniforms are authentic, as were the hand props. All from the collection of Allan Asherman. The incredible Nomad recreation was built by my friend Leonard Suligowski. Lookit that! There is a xerox’d ad for the fan edition of the Star Fleet Medical Reference!
(Below) 100% authentic communicator and hand phaser. Below that, Dr. McCoy’s infamous medical salt shakers, Spock ears, and medical hypo. To see this stuff in 1975 was unheard of. You couldn’t even find a decent photograph.
One day I was sitting behind the counter on a particularly warm pleasant day. It wasn’t that busy, and I was enjoying playing audio tapes of the show, answering questions from bewildered passerbys, and ringing up the occasional Spock Pop, a chocolate lolly that had Spock’s face emblazoned on it. A runaway best seller! I remember this gentleman comes in. A striking looking fellow with a big red beard, and looking like a Viking. He walked around the shop taking in the sights, a twinkle in his eye. He stopped at the paperback rack, picked up a copy of “The Making of Star Trek”, and hopped up on the front counter… “Stephen E. Whitfield” he grinned, hand outstretched. I fell off my chair! “The Making of Star Trek” started a fire in me. It’s an education in film making. I was truly blown away!
More than twenty years later and I’m sitting at my desk in the Star Trek art department. The telephone rings. I pick it up… “Hi! Is Michael or Denise Okuda there?” No, I say, they are out at the moment… may I take a message? “Would you please tell them that Stephen Poe called looking for them?” Oh, ho! Stephen E WHITFIELD Poe? Sure enough! The eddies and backwashes of time strike again. Stephen and I would renew our friendship, this time while both working on Trek. He was back at it, writing a book about the Making of Voyager. One day I brought in the very paperback book he signed for me those many years ago at the Federation Trading Post. I asked him sign it to me again.
(Below) Two guys from Jersey cam in one day asking if we would be interested in displaying their six foot Klingon ship. We built a special display for it. It was better than they had on the series. Damn, I wish I could remember their names! Anyone?
(Below) Here Ron and I change a light bulb in the cobra head. See how gigantic!? It was a work of art.
(Below) One of our souvenir flyers, and one of my earliest Spock scribbles!
We had a press opening for our museum and invited the local news, which attracted even more attention for the shop. We were an unqualified success. One of my fondest memories was Stan Lee. I introduced him to my mother, and she said, “I want you to know that you had more to do with raising my son than I did,” Stan, in his inimitable style answered without missing abeat… “The last woman who told me that, her son was jailed at Riker’s Island!”
(Below) Have shovel, will travel. The invite to our museum opening. Look! No computers or 49 buck printers! Rub down type and tape!
I could write a book about The Federation Trading Post. It was pivotal for me in many ways. It lead to publishing books and magazines. The Trading Post begat the Star Trek Poster Book. I made contact with people in the entertainment industry. I learned there that you can have an effect. You just needed to want to.
This is a post I’ve been waiting for since Day 1 of the Drex Files.
“I could write a book about The Federation Trading Post.”
After reading this, I’m sure many visitors to the Drex Files will agree that you could and should.
I wish every day were the last Sunday of a month, but thanks for some great posts today.
One more thing:
I STUDY HORTA CULTURE
Wow. Just… wow. I never knew about any of this. This was the start of it all.
“In 1975, fanzines were the Internet.” I love it.
Think of how different fandom would’ve been if we’d had the Internet back in ’75….. We’re talking wildfire, man….. WILDFIRE !!
If the internet had existed in ’75, Mister Spock really would have been president
I remember reading about the Federation Trading Post in an issue of All About Star Trek Fan Clubs Magazine circa 1976 and wishing I had the money to go to New York and buy everything I could. Being 13 and living a long way from New York, I never made it there. But it was cool just knowing a place like that existed.
That is soooooo cool!!Thanks for opening the treasure chest for us Doug !!
What’s the word for a sense of loss that one feels upon discovering a wonderful place like the Federation Trading Post, a magical place that
(1) you never knew existed before,
(2) you would have made a special pilgrimage to have seen had you known it was there, and
(3) you can never visit because it’s trapped in the past?
I’m sure the French have a word for it.
And speaking of magical things…
ZOMG!!! A SIX FOOT LONG KLINGON BATTLECRUISER MODEL?!
I would maim small animals to possess that bodacious battlecruiser. What a monster! Ohhhh, I certainly hope that someone here knows more about this!
SIX FEET LONG!! :O
This place was the Trekker version of Graceland…..
They should’ve had contests for the best Kirk or Spock imitators !!
I’m pretty sure my old pal George Laurence built that 6″ Klingon ship…perhaps along with a fellow named John Vengrowski?
If memory serves George also built a full size Robby the Robot too. He worked for a Maryland plastics company and had access to their discards to use to build stuff.
Great look through the time portal Dougie!
I am in geek heaven. This kind of stuff comes out of my favorite drawer in the Drex Files. I will likely have more to say when I have had time to absorb the cornucopia of Trekkian delights. That first picture of vintage ’70s Drex addled me!
Christmas in January! I agree with JNG, Doug: you should write a book about the earlier days of ST fandom. Between the sort of stuf you posted here today, and the stuff from Fandom triumphs, I think you have the start of a book that a lot of folks would be interested in.
I’ll “third” this notion – there needs to be a FUN and insightful book on ’70s Trek fandom written by the people who lived it and helped make it happen, and sooner rather than later. No offense intended to those of us who came into fandom in the ’80s, ’90s, and after, but in the ’70s it wasn’t fandom so much as it was a MOVEMENT. Definitely worthy of colorful, amusingly anecdoted, and thoroughly illustrated commemoration!
TO ZEE PAPERMILL!
There was a book called ” Star Trek Lives ” that was SORT OF a study of Star Trek as a fan phenomenon but also a MOVEMENT, or even fandom as a sub – culture. Remember, this was the 70′s – Watergate, Vietnam, people losing faith in government, eco – wareness ( that the Earth was in trouble ) Star Trek fandom was almost like a religion to some people, an anodyne to people who needed reassurance.
Think about it.
Please, please say you will write a book about this Doug! This is absolutely facinating and well, awesome all wrapped in to one! I know you have mentioned the Federation Trading Post on occasion, but this is the first in detail that you have talked about it and wow! What a completely awesome experience this had to have been! I’m curious what went into deciding to open the FTP and how you got a hold of so many fan made treasures. What lead to the closing of the shop given the popularity that you guys had?
Oh man! This is great stuff! BTW – are those your legs up in that picture up there??
Boy oh boy, I may not have known about it then, but at least those of us who never went there can visit now. That background panel was rather LARGE, eh? And I love seeing you guys in front of Mike Okuda’s HUGE control panel (are you pointing out the tab with your name abbreviation?)!
The cottage industry marketplace that took the sci fi world by storm! I’m really blown away by the amount of merchandise and scores of people in the Trading Post actively participating in our free market economy. When you think about how many people would have come to the FTP IF they knew, had the money to get there, etc….wow! John Ellis has given me a glimpse of what was going on in Florida in the early days (through Facebook), and I am just, well speechless! I imagine Gene Roddenberry had a grin from ear to ear as he walked away from the store…how gratifying! I just can’t get over the Trek sense of community and all of the history.
BTW, love the legs and 70′s track shoes! And how many Trek geeks does it take to change a light bulb? Evidently two, if it’s a six foot Klingon ship.
Man that was a fun post! I ran a comic-book/sci-fi store on Chicago from ’78-’82 (my bud Rik is still there), and it was a blast, but nothing like this.
I’m still fuzzy, even more now, you had a store in CA too?
I can’t even fathom how you guys made the rent starting out. We had four stores around town, and wanted to open a fifth on Michigan Ave (The Miracle Mile), but could no way swing the rent. I think they wanted 6 months rent up-front if I recall as well.
So much fun you guys had. Man I wish I was there. I did see Nimoy in SH when it came to Chicago.
Thanks, Doug!
peace | deg
Was there supposed to be a photo of you and Gene? There’s the paragraph about your fogged-up glasses and you type “(Below) in front of it, yet there’s no Gene picture.
Just wondering.
This really is a bit of brilliant and important sharing Doug; if i may echo some of the above comments, I am sure this could be infinitely expanded upon. We are all very eager to follow a detailed story on this.
Word of the Trading Post even worked it’s way up to a kid in Maple Creek Saskatchewan, about as far from New York as could be. And I longed for the chance to touch that world – well, you have no idea how grateful I am that you shared it today.
PS: but maple Creek wasn’t all that far from Bozeman Montana, so maybe I’ll make it down there in time for the First Contact . . ..
Love the little look back.
An amazing trip down memory lane. Please do write a book about the trading post.
Notice the sign for the Medical Reference. I remember telling you the story about someone
on my first day of chiropractic school who showed my article to one of the most respected teachers at the New York Chiropractic College. I had no idea how it would be received but when I ‘fessed up later to having written the piece, the professor smiled patted me on the back,laughed and said good job!
What a wonderful store you had. I would have loved to have visited it. Thanks for sharing your photos and stories.
I’ve got that mail order catalog at home! It gives me warm fuzzies to dust it of and look it over every once in a while to remember back to those thrilling days of yesteryear when my uber-fandom started!
Oh, and the “Barrel o’ Tribbles?” Awesome!
Steven -
NEVER let that catalog go, even if Donald Trump or Bill Gates offer you a billion dollars, a Suite in Trump Towers or the Playboy Mansion, with dancing girls thrown in, my good fellow. That is a piece of pop culture history ( Straight off the Obviousville News Press ! ) & should be left to kids, nephews or maybe a museum or public collection.
Yeah, I’m green with envy…..
I’m rather an emerald color of envy as well!! I bet that is quite the mind trip thumbing through the pages. Best get that in a plastic sleeve so it doesn’t continue to get dusty.
(PS – a billion dollars? That may be a bit of a tough choice. I Think my daughter wouldn’t mind that!
)
Doug, this is perhaps the best post you have ever made on the drexfiles. It is incredible almost beyond words. The love, devotion and imagination you and early Star Trek fandom had is what saved the show, promoted it, and allowed others to share that same love.
The Federation Trading Post was amazing and thrilling, and as you stated in your post, it was all done before the Internet and cellphones, before home computers, before Photoshop and desktop publishing software, before Twitter and Facebook. People don’t realize how much work you and your friends put into this dream. But it was a dream fulfilled.
We salute you, sir.
That’s the stuff of grassroots movements & cottage industries at work. Free enterprise, indeed.
Could such a thing be done today with so much emphasis on ” intellectual property “, copyright infringement, & fear of litigation ? Hmmm…..
In the age of the DMCA and the ACTA negotiations to force that former statute upon the rest of humanity?
I wonder.
That’s an excellent point and an illustration of how much times have changed. So much of the golden age of Star Trek fandom (if I may call it that) was in the early to mid ’70s, before Mr. Lucas taught everyone how much potential there was in merchandising, merchandising, merchandising. Obviously Paramount and/or Gulf & Western had reaped some financial harvest from Star Trek prior to that with trading cards and action figures and novels and model kits, but my impression is that it wasn’t until the Star Wars phenomenon that the industry really saw the depth and breadth of the public’s willingness to not only “see the movie” but also breathe, eat, and sleep the movie. Prior to that, who really could have anticipated what a golden goose Star Trek would turn out to be? That first generation of Star Trek fandom demonstrated that there was an ever growing consumer market for Star Trek by satisfying its own demand with fan generated merchandise, and was able to do so in a significantly less litigious atmosphere than the would develop in the years that followed. Clearly, Paramount in those days didn’t understand Star Trek, didn’t understand its fans, didn’t know what they had on their hands, and thus weren’t prepared to deal with that wonderful “hey kids, let’s put on a show” creative energy that was the hallmark of early Trekdom.
This is amazing. I recently picked up a book from 1975 called “Star Trek Lives!,a collection of essays on the budding Star Trek fandom. Things like that and this great post leave me in awe of the people who singlehandedly invented rabid, activist fandom. Every show that has been a cult hit since has made use of some parts of the mighty Star Trek model.
What I’m saying is, Drex, you and your colleagues are true geek heroes that made my generation of geekery possible. I envy the amazing camaraderie and excitement that must have powered pre-internet fandom.
That’s exactly the book that I mentioned a few posts up & earlier. I can’t find my own copy from years ago.
Doug Drexler is not just an geek hero – he’s also a well-rounded person, with his own friends and credit cards and keys.
What kind of car do you think he drives ? Eco – friendly Prius or Gas – guzzling Hummer SUV ?
Well – rounded people have favorite types of vehicles, too.
Thanks Doug, your tales of the Federation Trading Post have brought back a lot of memories for me as well! I used to go to San Francisco when I was young to visit my Aunt and no trip was complete unless I made my way to Berkeley to the West Post! That store was fasinatingto me at the ripe old age of 15. You and yours are the best and please, please keep up all the good work!!
Nimoy as Holmes, huh?
Damn. What we missed by living anywhere that was not NYC, huh?
(Yes, I enjoyed the new movie with Downey and Law. Why do you ask?
)
From fan to active part of fandom to working on the show that no-one thought would survive cancellation… Wow, what a story!
And his legs are STILL that cute!!
xox
Mrs. Doug
Bah-dum-bum!
Doug,
Thank you for sharing this piece of nostalgia! I was living in California in the 1970′s and remembered my “adventures” going to the “Federation Trading Post” in Beserkly….I was in my high school years. A friend and I would travel using the San Jose Transit Authority to connect to BART in Fremont then on to Berkeley. I am very fond of the memory of seeing William Shatner at the “Federation Trading Post” dressed in trek uniforms armed with wooden phasers (Type 1) and wooden communicators (which I scratchbuilt). My best memory was of traveling all that way to pick up a “tribble” to give to and impress a girl!
Thanks again!
I used to visit the FTP and listen to the tapes of the shows playing as background “music”. Before VHS, even! Still have my Captain Kirk uniform, old-style braid. Great store run by real fans. Hope you do write a book. Hate to admit it, but I have drifted to that spot after a job interview, gone into Au Bon Pain and wondered just where the store would have been. Wow.
I remember this store from my youth. I still have a green army style bag with “USS Enterprise NCC-1701″ on it. The lettering has faded but the memories live on!
Doug, I hope you do write a book. It was an exciting store. We used to love to come over on our lunch hours. It was also great exposure for our ‘zine, The Intergalactic Etcetera. A great place because of the great people! Thanks for everything you did for us.
One thing- you did not mention Ron’s watch snake. I can’t remember the Boa’s name, but I think it could have deterred burglars!
Thanks for the post.
This is really, really fascinating.
It would be fantastic if you could add some of your information on the early history of the Star Trek fandom to Fan History Wiki at http://www.fanhistory.com/ so there is a wider audience for it and your information can be contextualized into a larger picture. 
Either way, fascinating read and the pictures are awesome.
OK, so after I stopped laughing at the photo of you in the shorts, I started laughing again when I realized that the picture shows the first issue of our fanzine in the racks! Thanks to all of you for being such gentlemen. We didn’t realize how young we were at the time and you, Anthony, and yes, even Ron always treated us like we were your kid sisters. So, thanks 30 years later!
OK, I’ll add to the Quirp messages, and say “thanks for the memories!” Those were good times! However, my memory is somewhat contrary to Sharon’s post in that “big brother” was not what came to mind. I’ll unabashedly say I had a crush on one of you guys, but I won’t say who… (lol).
hey, thanks for these pictures… just saw them, i didnt see them the first time i read a post here about the FTP NYC.
Amazing how the mind “keeps” images/ memories…
that barrel of tribbles “looked so much larger back then”;)
Do, or can such places ever exist again?…
such a different time.
Cube3 -
Can such places ever exist again ?
Have you ever seen the movie ” Brigadoon ” ?
In the 2060′s – 2070′s, it’ll materialize from the morning haze, kinda like a holodeck scene !!
Hey, you never know….. !!
holodeck is right:)
Theres an “international trekkers” group that has taken to holding SCIFI cons within Second Life this year. I attended, and even displayed some C3 stuff at one a few weeks a go.
Its a virtual worlds fair of SCIFI fans and such…not sure how many really attended, but its much more livelely than the “official” VR trek cons attempted in las vegas in the mid 00.
Since itrs mainly fan replicas of all things scifi- and yes- sold for mini bucks- not so muh different than the value of the 70s dollar:) it is very much your holodeck:)
Though as one who grew up with the paper/and plastic of the 70s, and who entered the digital /virtual way early… i can say that something is missing from the virtual.
nothing that wasnt touched on in a dozen TNG or DS9 or Voyager- someone kicked the plug wrong in a holodeck episode:) but something…
maybe its just the actual guts people had to have to actually dress up in a gold valor shirt in public. While today its all too easy to hide behind a screen and while doing the same- virtually- not having to look for an escape path/door in the room, in order not to be beaten up or laughed at.
or its just nostalgia for us old folks:) either way.
Yeah, something’s missing from the virtual scene – autographs, shaking hands or actually TALKING to a celebrity ( that little moment of ” butterflies in the stomach / Oh, my God, I’m actually near a celebrity !!” feeling. ) Second Life could NEVER really reproduce that, at least not 100 %.
Even getting an e – mail from a celebrity isn’t the same as getting an actual written / typed autographed note or acknowledgement from such a celebrity.
Second Life just doesn’t strike my fancy. Maybe if it could be MORE 3 – dimensional.
was checking here to see if anyone had found the “galileo” yet:)lol
saw an update on the FTP posts…
FYI- this weekend . the followup to that VR Sci Fi CON is being held in second life by that same fan group….
this year Genes son, Rod. is the guest speaker…..
from tron guy to roddenberys son…..:) the virtual will eat all.
anyhow.;)
ill probably pop in later today…lol virtualy
c3
Well… we did have the Starship Building contest Judged by the special guest..”THE TRON GUY”..;) he was there in a TRON GUY avatar—made for him..very funny…
at least he “said” he was the TRON GUY… but then again, in VR no one knows your a dog;)- but who WOULD want to pretend to be the TRON GUY;)lol
hey btw—-ill cross link a url from a friends site…
http://www.fanboy.com/2010/02/fritz-lang.html#more-12516
worth a look for this sites fans. if not already the same behind the screen dozen;)
c3
The Tron Guy – Bruce Boxleitner ? Beau Bridges ? ( I think he was in that movie ) Sorry – I’m just engaging in some free – association.
I remember seeing ” TRON ” at a drive – in. Yeah, that shows my chronological age.
Cube3
Thanks for the link, that was a great article about Fritz Lang. I had a VHS copy of that. God knows what happened to it. Just thought I’d mention. I didn’t know that Metropolis influenced the look of ” Blade Runner “. Cool.
no..lol
sorry to say THIS Tron Guy…lol
http://www.tronguy.net/
Not only Blade Runner– didnt that “Robot Girl” Look Familiar to ya;)?
The character of Maria / Hel ( Brigitte Helm ) kinda resembles a female C3 P – O. Beyonce even wore a costume like hers at a performance.
Hmm…..
http://www.nsftools.com/misc/C3POandR2D2.jpg
or a male “maria”…”it depends on your point of view..” to quote a certain jedi;)
Ralph McQuarrie’s 1st version of Threepio & Artoo. Got it in my selection of wallpapers ! Oh, BTW – ” Tron guy ” reminded me a little of Peter Griffin dressed as a ” Tron guy “, except for the moustache.
speaking of Metropolis..
http://www.arte.tv/de/arte-magazin/3032192.html#
restored and streaming this week
I’ll look at this – But the ” Translate ” function on my Google toolbar isn’t cooperating, & gets me really lost as well.
Thanks !!
Coming to the party late but not too late
Federation Trading Post was an oasis for us in the flyover states. I never even thought about it being a cool place t visit–I just knew they had that incredible catalog. I was trying to find mine to post–the red white and blue one for Bicentennial days, yep, Doug–but I had the plain B&W one before that. It’s here somewhere…
I DO have the FTP Spock-adorned mailing label on the mailing tube that brought me my McMaster Klingon D-7 blueprints …
And yep, the fan Medical reference Manual was what got me in, as well…
Oh, hell, now I gotta blog on this and link back over to yours.
But what great pics, Doug–I had no idea FTP was not just a fulfillment house, but a monument! The candids are, yes, priceless.
Wesley Crusher?! Really?! Just kidding, it’s great to see all the photos and remember what it was like to hang out at the Trading Post back in the 70s. It was pretty exciting for a geeky teenager to be trusted with the keys to the store, sitting behind the counter and seeing the look on the faces of the people who walked in the door for the very first time…the precise moment when they realized that there were other people just like them in the universe.
Great job, Doug, you SHOULD write a book!
G.
along similar lines..
http://www.fanboy.com/2010/02/70s-star-trek-cast-reunion.html
founds this a pals site today…. video from a 1975 tek con.
enjoy.
c3
That vid was a lot of fun; that must have really been something for actors and fans alike!
Thanks for sharing.
Wow! When I was a lad of around 10 my father would occasionally take me across the Bay Bridge into Berkeley and take me to the Federation Trading Post over there, but I had no idea that there was an East Coast branch as well. Even though they were on different coasts, these photos brought back a lot of good memories of going to a shop that was full of Trek items that no one else seemed to be even aware existed. Thanks for this!
What a rush of memories this article brings back! I used to have a collection of Federation Trading Post catalogs. Wonder what happened to them? After 5 or 6 moves, boxes disappear.
Raising 2 kids, one of them mentally challenged, prevented us from making that trip to NYC to actually see this wonderful store. But we were very envious! We’d have liked to have such a store here on the West Coast.
John and I started Lincoln Enterprises for Gene Roddenberry, and met the challenge of creating a mail-order company with very little start-up money. Everything we sold that first year had to be mailed flat (padded envelopes were cheaper than boxes) so we also used a good deal of fan-produced material.
Those were amazing pioneering days on both coasts! Thanks for the memories. — Bjo
Bjo Trimble, welcome!
Bjo and John practically invented organized Star Trek Fandom. If it wasn’t for them, Trek probably would have died at the end of it’s second season!
If you want to hear the real story of how it all got started, Bjo and John have the scoop. I hope we can entice Bjo to tell us how it all began!
Hi Bjo! Thanks for chiming in on the Drexfiles, and please, oh please, Bjo, tell us a story or two!!
Welcome, indeed! An honor to have among us the original high priestess of our cult
Bjo -
I bought a fair amount of stuff from Lincoln Enterprises. I still have 2 medallions with ribbons commemorating the release of ST IV: The Voyage Home. I’ve moved 3 times in the last 5 years, & some of it has been misplaced or lost. Oh well, c’est la vie…… WAAAHHHH !!!!
Is Lincoln Enterprises still in operation, somewhere, somehow ?? ( On – line, maybe ? )
Thanks for joining our forum here.
http://www.roddenberry.com
Hi Bjo!! Welcome to the Drex Files! Doug has created a fantastic little place here for things Trek and other wonderful goodies! I like to consider it the virtual Trading Post because it’s truly a treat for the eyes and mind! I hope that you’ll become a regular around here!
Thank you so much for all that you have done for Trek fandom! You guys really got it done when it counted most and thanks to people like you and Doug, generations for years to come will be able to enjoy Star Trek. I don’t know if I have the words to properly express how much that means to me. Some may say it’s only a TV show, but I have had so many wonderful experiences in my life as a result of it.
I’ll 3rd what Doug and Dea said! I’d love to hear some of your experiences and any stories that you’d like to share with us!
As I live and breath! Bjo Trimble herself! Well, as I have ya, I just wanna say THANKS, Bjo! for all your stalwart efforts in the name of Star Trek. Trek (and sci-fi), and space/NASA fans across the globe owe you (and John) a hardy and hearty debt and thanks thereof for helping Trek make it though the roughest of times. Mahalo!
peace and long life | deg
Hello Bjo.
I too am of that generation brought up in the first level reruns and the early mid 70s Trekdom.. Please tell more..;)
Somewhere in a box in a basement on Long Island theres a well “spun” wheeled ist ed. Concordinance gathering mildew;) I think i saved my Tech Manual and Blueprints in one of those many boxed moves from preteen to middle age;)
ah .. before it was the “franchise”…
You were fortunate. My Trek Enterprise blueprints & Tech Manual vanished down a black hole during one of my moves ( Or maybe a wormhole ), along with the James Blish Star Trek episode versions. None of these items was in mint condition, but I still miss ‘em.
i loved the FOTONOVELS.. had em all. in the days before VCR and DVD, they were the only way to see all “the angles” and cool stuff for visual study….
Strangely enough, I don’t remember the FOTONOVELS. Just the Blish books, which were based on the Original Star Trek episode scripts.
I loved getting to see episodes projected from 16mm film prints at the conventions (and club meetings)…and the bloopers. WOW, seeing the shows REALLY BIG with their vivid colors was a treat. And being in a room packed with people who enjoyed them as much as you did…that was great! Everybody was high on Star Trek!
Here’s a great interview with Bjo from the extras of the Star Trek Season 3 discs (she’s up at the beginning of the video just after Shatner):
http://www.livevideo.com/video/ggld2001/E57157164D384D61B134C971D503AA93/star-trek-to-boldly-go-sea.aspx
And something fun, a brief appearance by Bjo at a 1974 convention:
Dig the hair and shaggy beards in this video!
The early days of Trek fandom seemed somewhat analogous to the early days of the space program, or any pioneering movement – slim budgements, grass – roots support, inadequate equipment compared to what is available now, etc, & a dearth of support from ” the Establishment “, TPTB, etc. Maybe my analogy is somewhat flimsy, but I like it.
I don’t think it’s too outrageous to say that ST fandom would be a template for later ” brands ” of fandom such as Star Wars, Space : 1999, the original BSG, Babylon Five, Stargates SG1 & Atlantis, on & on, pert near ad infinitum.
As to Trek being a franchise, in my hometown, we had only between 3 – 4 ST conventions TOTAL over a 3 – 5 year period before Creation Conventions decided that having them there was just not as profitable as having them in Nashville, Chattanooga, Memphis, etc.
I think that’s one of the awesome things about the Trek “movement” (if you wish to call it such) is how it reached those seemingly far, out of the way places where conventions were not a regular occurance. I know that we’ve only had a handful of Star Trek conventions here in Michigan since my family moved here in ’91 and none in the last 7 years. Chicago tends to have a few more, but I haven’t been able to make it over to those.
In any case, I’m very much in awe of Trek fandom. There have definitely been some pretty neat moments. Such as how fans rallied for the letter writing campaign to NBC that brought Trek back for a 3rd season when there was no internet to rally the masses.
Matt:
Trekkers & other fans of other science – fiction, fantasy, etc., shows, have been mis – cast as ” dateless wonders* ” ( * Quote attributable to The Simpsons ” Mayor Quimby ” ) who are 30 & 40 – ish year old virgins who still live with their mothers & / or fathers in a basement apartment. Trek fandom has supported many good causes in its 40 + – year existence, whether it be support for the space program, food & clothing drives, what have you. Trekkers are often inspired to enter science – related fields because they were inspired by their love for the show ( The same could also be said about fans of Babylon 5 & Stargates SG – 1 & Atlantis ).
Strangely, the general public at large still doesn’t get this after 40 – plus years & tends to view ST fans & other fans of other, similar shows as ” nerds “. Remember the acronyms FIAWOL = ” Fandom is A Way of Life “, & then FIJAGH = ” Fandom Is Just A God – damned Hobby ” ( Not my choice of words, mind you. ). Lots of fans like myself fall into gray areas between FIAWOL & FIJAGH.
And the letter – writing campaign was actually inspired by a similar petition campaign by fans of the Country & Western show ” Hee – Haw ” to CBS when it was threatened with cancellation, so I have heard & read. Six degrees or less of separation, & a dose of irony, perhaps !!
Star Trek MAY have been turned into something of a ” franchise ” over the years, but it’s still been a force for good.
Talk about a blast from the past!!!!!
One of my very first trips into New York City was to visit the Trading Post. I can still recall the walk on a sunny day from the 42nd Street bus terminal.
As the street numers rose higher so did my thirteen year old heart beat. I recall a banner stretched across an iron fence, and climbing a flight of stairs. Opening the door and being blow away by the tresure trove within.
Being only 13 years old and posessing limited funds I could not come away with all I would have liked. But my first purchases were a pair of rubber vulcan ears, and a starfleet command patch.
Those early days were magical, and looking back did we ever imagine that Star Trek would come this far? Or still be part of our lives?
Thank you for this look back.
Wow, thanks for this great post! It really brings back memories. I had the good fortune to visit the Berkeley, California location of the Federation Trading Post on Telegraph Ave. What a gas! As a kid I was a big fan of the show during the original broadcasts of those first two seasons. At the time I was unaware of the nascent Star Trek convention phenomenon which was just getting started when I visited the shop in Berkeley at age 16, in the Summer of 1975.
Live Long and Prosper
Doug,
Thanks for the look back at a piece of Trek fandom. At the time, I was on the west coast, so I never had the good fortune of a Trek-specific store at my location. One thing–in yoour opening, you wrote:
“In 1975 there was no-nuthin’! No movies, episodes, novels, DVDs, VHS… zip, zero, zilch, nada! Star Trek was a failed TV show”
Well, that’s not exactly true, since by 1975, there was the animated series, an official action figure/playset line based on the series (no company such as Mego–one of the “big boys” of the period–would have made such a major investment in a property unless they realized it would rake in the profits), best selling model kits (always off the shelves where I lived), bestselling novels (Blish, Gerrold, et al), the Gold Key comic was still going strong, along with puzzles, jewelry, Halloween costumes, posters, various toys, the two View-Master sets (TOS and ANI) and innumerable Trek items since the “explosion” of Trek interest after the syndication boom circa 1972.
Before ’75, Trek was so omnipresent, that I really did not know where to start regarding collecting, as it sort of overwhelming. Sure, during and after ’75, more Trek merchandise was produced, but pre-1975, Trek was a rapidly growing property.
Hi Marty – You’re right about that. For certain it was growing, otherwise we never would never have opened the store, yes? There just was nuttin’ much that I wanted to call my own! It was fairly a wasteland beside fan created goodies. Of course this is my opinion. For me, aside from the AMT kits, and a small selection of books, it was all pretty horrible.
Marty: the materials you list aren’t something I’d have bought either had I been the right age at the time, because they were intended for casual fans, not for those blowing up film clips in order to read onscreen text (yes, they had a solution in the age before HD screencaps
), measuring photographs from “The Making of Star Trek” because a phaser replica needs to be exactly right, or mapping Kirk’s voyages using references to real stars (which is how Star Trek Maps came to be, more or less).
What ever happened to the authentic comm and Phaser 1 that were on display? Can you give us any history on how those pieces were acquired? Any other pics of them?
Thanks for the blast from the past!
Don
LA, CA
Hi Don! Those belonged to Allan Asherman, and I assume that he still has them,
Hello Mr. Drexler,
Great memories of a great place. Even though I only went one time (1977), but it was a very memorable and amazing experience. I bought the Tech Manual, 2 posters and insignia patch–which I treated like gold. I was a teenager who had to rely on parents to drive me there, but had your store remained open a little longer I would surely had made the Trek (pun intended) myself regularly.
I have always tried to remember the layout inside, but I did not make a mental snapshot because I thought I would be back again. The photos definitely help.
Do you happen to have any photos of the outside of the front of the store that you can post? I loved that big front window with the Vulcan saluting.
Please keep adding to the memories and photos (maybe some video of the inside, or your TV commercial?)
Thank You,
Gary
Doug Drexler,
Wow I stumbled upon this article doing some research for a documentary that I am currently working on. We just interviewed Chuck and Sandy about the FTP in Berkeley and they talk about the NY store. Would it be possible to use a couple of the photos that you have posted?
Thanks in advance for your time,
Strephon Taylor
I cant believe it! I visited your store twice in NYC back in 75–It was one of the greatest times I remember from childhood and stood in awe at your store. My whole family drove in from Ct. If I remember correctly I saw your ad on channel 11 wpix during the 6pm Star Trek timeslot. I BEGGED my parents to bring me and our whole family came. I have pictures somewhere which Ill have to dig out. I was a young kid probably about 11 or so and was enthralled at your store and couldnt believe it when I saw the back area where you kept your museum models –the Klingon ship and Nomad in particular. At the time I was building my own models as well, in fact I brought in a phaser I had constructed out of balsa wood and pieces I found in our car repair shop, (We owned a Texaco service station and body shop) and you guys were kind enough to look it over and compliment me on it. At home I had made the briefing room computer console made out of smoked plexiglass, linoleum, and colored clear cellophane and lights I purchased from radioshack that flicked on with a toggle switch.(I made an artoo out of a trash can as well) I did buy –and still have a phaser–still works– I purchased special order for $75(which I had to work to pay off–at that time a hefty price for an eleven year old) from your store from someone named Brad? something or other who lived in Valley Stream NY.
Now 36 years later, Ive been a Comic book artist for Marvel Entertainment for 20 years on books like Captain America and Wolverine and have worked in movies like I am Legend as costume illustrator. Sad to see the skyscraper where you guys used to be.
Oh Ok I see the picture of Mitch up there talking about the phaser –yeah his name was Brad Nelson who made it…
thanks for the memories Doug
Ron!
That really knocks my socks off! I think you just about made my day! I’m honored to have played some part in you having fond memories!
LOVE your work! I’m very excited to see that one of our peeps is kicking booty at Marvel Comics! I wanted to be a comic book artist, but that never happened! I will live it vicariously through you, and I would love to hear about how you made it happen.
When I was growing up, Don Heck, and John Buscema live within a few miles from me. I scared them up by going thru the phone book and looking for Marvel Artists. They were terrific. Don Heck allowed me to come over every Sunday with my sketches. He would throw a piece of tracing paper over them and show me where I went wrong! I still have the yearning!
Fondly,
Doug
I BEGGED my parents to bring me and our whole family came. I have pictures somewhere which Ill have to dig out. I was a young kid probably about 11 or so and was enthralled at your store and couldnt believe it when I saw the back area where you kept your museum models –the Klingon ship and Nomad in particular.
WOW! Talk about memories! I was like 14 and remember driving by the store, making my uncle stop his car in the middle of manhattan and running in. I had to be literally dragged out! I purchased some Star Trek Giant Poster Magazines that I wish I could find (There’s no way I threw them out!).
Recently I was talking to someone about “this Star Trek store in the middle of Manhattan that I was in once” and they didn’t believe one ever existed (Young Fans! – hah!). I just stumbled on your website while looking for updates on where the original Galileo 7 is now (I saw it once at a convention).
Talk about a nostalgic day!!
Thanks for the memories!!
Hello Star Trek fans,
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Also I am a professional writer and have recently had published a science fiction thriller novel THE POWEDER MERCANT to 5 excellent reviews that call it totally original– a mastermind tries to escape judgment by attempting to inhabit Cyperspace forever before a NYPF lady cop can stop him.
Now The Powder Merchant is also being asold an an EBOOK for $1.99 on Amazone Kindle Ebooks and also Barnes and Noble Nook book.
It your reading pleasure loves “to go where no man has gone before,” purchase THE POWDER MERCHANT
Thank you,
thelsepyklingon@davidorange.net
http://www.davidorange.net
And we here on the West Coast had the Federation Trading Post on Telegraph Avenue in Berkley. I remember the posters and the trek background music and sounds from the show playing constantly. I don’t know who ran that one, but it didn’t last all that long. I recall some kind of back room, but I certainly don’t remember it being like the one in N.Y. I still have the catalog from the store. And two, still in mint condition Brad Nelson guns, had to have one after seeing them on the “Tomorrow Show with Tom Synder”. Still have the Spock holding the pilot Enterprise poster in mint condition on the back of my office door. And, of course, every one of the poster books, too. Boy, I sure do remember those days when everything was fan made. And it was nice to discover in the early 70′s that there were more fans then my immediate circle of friends. Never visited the trading post in New York, but I’m sure I would have gone crazy seeing Nomad, the props and everything else in the display. And that Klingon Ship! Wow.
Does anyone know where Chuck Weiss is today?
We interviewed Chuck and Sandy for our documentary regarding the early Star Trek conventions and their shop. Review:
http://www.dvdtalk.com/reviews/49406/back-to-space-con/?___rd=1
On a whim I just googled ‘Federation Trading Post’ and found this page; I can’t say I remember that much, but 210 East 53rd Street was a REGULAR stop almost every weekend for my dad and this fat little Star Trek freak. I got my first Tribble from that bin in the photo (!) and all the books my dad would shell out for (I was big into the books – easiest way to escape…) Other diversions came along as I got older, but that street address will be in my head forever; being in that little store was being in Nirvana. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
What memories… My dad took me there when I was eleven years old. I immediately remembered the Tribble barrel (above pic). I remember my dad buying me a dollar bill with Kirks picture in lieu of G. Washington…. Buying these awesome Enterprise schematics. Again, thanks for the wonderful memories.