Former Cast Members Try To Save Star Trek: The Experience Sign

Star Trek The Experience at the Las Vegas Hilton closed its doors in September 2008 and earlier this year much of the attraction was auctioned off by CBS, but one piece remains. The original sign for ST: The Experience is still up at the Hilton, and some former Experience cast members are trying to preserve it. See the local news report below.  

 

Saving the Star Trek: The Experience Sign

While there is still hope that there will be a new Star Trek: The Experience built in Las Vegas sometime in the future, it is very unlikely it would require new signage, begging the question as to what will happen with the original sign that is still up at the Las Vegas Hilton. Former Star Trek: The Experience cast members Vernon Wilmer and April Herbert are trying to save the sign. Here is a video report on their efforts from Las Vegas’ 8 News Now.

 

 

TrekMovie will keep an eye on this effort and report any updates.

You may also want to check out Vernon Wilmer’s documentary "Star Trek: My Experience" at blip.tv. Here is a preview.

 

As for if or when there will be a new Star Trek: The Experience, while CBS has said they are committed to creating a new Star Trek-themed attraction in Las Vegas, so far there is now confirmed plans or dates.

 

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Well well well! TrekMovie.com back!

Good luck with the sign but it is just a sign.

A charity auction. I’ll start at $20 US.

BTW. Welcome back Anthony and to all…. Live long and prosper in the new year.
Xai

Hey. Welcome back trek Movie. Hey Anthony. How does it feel to be out of the Agoniser Booth. Oh. Great news about the Experence.

the problem is that the monorail runs next to the sign and it would be to costly to remove it, and is not worth it in their minds. That is the only reason it has not been removed. The rest of the attraction was gone by late 2008 (I saw the inside of what was left in Dec. 2008, which was only girders and a darkened saucer section of the D)

So deicated! I love it!

the problem is that the monorail runs next to the sign and it would be to costly to remove it, and is not worth it in their minds. That is the only reason it has not been removed. The rest of the attraction was gone by late 2008 (I saw the inside of what was left in Dec. 2008, which was only girders and a darkened saucer section of the D)

Always good to see the hot chicks enjoyin’ Trek.
I agree the sign’s not the really bestest souvenir. I never got to STTE. Did they sell (affordable) goodies? Nicely made unis, props, and junque?

the problem is that the monorail runs next to the sign and it would be to costly to remove it, an d is not worth it in their minds. That is the only reason it has not been removed. The rest of the attraction was gone by late 2008 (I saw the inside of wh at was left in Dec. 2008, which was only girders and a darkened saucer section of the D)

Save the clock tower!!

Sorry wrong website…

7. CmdrR – December 31, 2010
No affordable stuff. Everything was overpriced, in my humble opinion.
Further, they didn’t make much of an effort to keep the material fresh, so if you visited a couple of years apart, you saw the exact same stuff. That’s what lead to the decline in attendance.

The auction for the Expereince stuff was poorly run. Everything was junk and it was priced too high.

Hey! One man’s junk is another man’s treasure…;) anybody got a 40-foot high storage unit we can put that thing in? Oh and btw thanks for everyone’s support (especially Anthony—you rock!)

Hello Commander April always nice to see you posting and thinking bout you and the experience puts a smile to me face……

Since Sheri and I visited there almost every year from its opening, we also loved the Experience….

I like Vernons idea of a plaque displaying its historical Landmark for Trek fans….kinda like the statue of Elvis they have on the property….

Since it is right next to the monorail track and station I doubt anyone is gonna bother to do anything to it, its probably going to stay where it is at for the present…..

Thanks Anthony, and thanks everyone for caring enough either way to comment.

#1. Yes, physically of course it is just a sign. But for anyone who loved the place it is a symbol of happier days gone by, it depends on how you choose to look at it. The show was one of the longest running in Vegas history, it certainly at least deserves a place amongst the many other show relics preserved throughout different Vegas museums.

#11. I have to respectfully disagree with Phaser Guy, Alec Peters & Propworx did an awesome job being brought in at the last minute to handle the massive task of selling & auctioning those assets, and absolutely nothing that came out of Star Trek The Experience was junk. Not one little piece.

#9. “Save the clocktower!” LOL… maybe we should track down that actress and have her pander donations with a tin can infront of the sign!

here is a question to ponder about the placque or landmark sign …………

Even if we do get the money to have a Landmark sign or plaque made …will the powers that be allow us to permanently display it proudly on their property?

Please discuss …….options

The destiny of ST:TE – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbOGbkHlyVw

This young man is a genius!!!

And we’re back.

Welcome back Anthony :)

and its great to hear from Vernon again :), your videos of the Experience are so funny and yet intimate that I felt that i as able to go to the Experience and even be a part of the the behind the scenes staff.

Thank you so much :)

@ 12. April Hebert

Hi Ms Herbert, for me you were one of the Stars of Vernons Experience videos.
If i was 30 yrs younger, I would have a crush on you as big as my 12 yr old daughter has for some guy called Justin Breebar.

Anyways I wish You, Vernon and the rest of The Experience staff a very happy and peaceful New Year :)

LONG LIVE T’PRIL

It is just a basic sign…I am not seeing the big deal with this?

But thanks Anthony for returning finally…you were missed…and even manufactured Trek news like this is welcome after the long absence of anything on this site. Thanks!

@20 MJ
It may be just a sign, but it is a site of significance to some Trek Fans.
& as one of Vernons videos demonstrate, the Hilton has memorialized earlier entertainers to the Hotel, like Elvis who also had a huge cultural impact.

Its just a nice way to say, hey! Trek was here too :)

@16 T’cal, that is the best idea I have heard yet. Disney would be a perfect place for the Experience.

Disney? No, Paramount owns Star Trek.

Wow…I went there when I was 11, and being a guy who knows special effects, I still have no idea how on Earth I was transported to the Enterprise. Suffice to say, that experience is something that will stay with me for a long time, and it really, REALLY sucks to see it not only go, but be tucked under the carpet as well. It was really an amazingly place for Trekkies of ALL ages (Aside from walking down the strip, I dont remember being allowed to do anything else in Vegas at that age :P).

Anyways, I fully support anything that saves part of what ST:TE was, and Vernon’s My Experience series is insanely interesting to watch. I just hope we can look forward to something new sometime soon.

23. And Fox and Lucasfilm own Star Wars. Your point?

25. Someone said in this thread that the Experience would go to Disney. That will never happen.

And FOX doesn’t own Star Wars anymore. The Clone Wars movie was put out by Warner Bros, when Fox refused to partner up with Lucasfilm again.

Thank you again everyone for your positive comments about STTE and the documentary series.

As far as Disneyland goes, (and I told this to Tim Bab a while back,) that’s Star Wars territory. Any future STTE needs to be its own freestanding themed area, not couched in Fairy Princess parades and rediculous talking mice.

24. Paramount used to own “Star Trek”, which is currently owned by CBS. Well, Paramount owns the home media distribution rights for the TV and film incarnations of “Star Trek”.

27. Lucasfilm does indeed own “Star Wars”. 20th Century Fox holds home media rights to the S-Dub films while Warner Bros. holds the home media rights for “The Clone Wars” movie and TV series. Both 20th and WB are the only film studios associated with S-Dub.

#29

Actually, Paramount only owns the rights to the movies, as well as merchandise related to the current run of films. CBS owns the rest, including the tv series, books, action figures, models etc.

And I seriously doubt the resurrection of the Star Trek Experience is high on Les Moonves’ list. He is the one who will decide if it will ever happen. Considering how much he hates everything Star Trek (except, ironically, profiting from it, natch!) I wouldn’t hold your breath.

The Experience is gone. For good. Which is a shame, because I never got to go to it.

To be clear FOX never had the rights to Star Wars. They only distributed the movies. A

Yah I always enjoyed his Take the experience to disneyland video…funny but of course couldnt happen….its too late anyway…..everything that was the experience is gone with the exception of her talented staff and actors like April and Vernon….

As to if or when a new Experience will rise in Vegas….I am also starting to doubt Paramounts enthusiasm for doing anything since nothing is being done….the new 2009 trek movie would have been the best reason for them to start to do something….Vernon, I think someone needs to track down whats is name at neonopolis and try to get info from him what Paramount is really planning on doing with the Experience….Did they pay him off to shut up about it? He was so gung ho yet now we hear nothing….

And I also want to add that staff and actors like Vernon and April were the actual living breathing HEART of THE EXPERIENCE….without them it just woulda been a museum and a ride….and unless Paramount and a new Experience attract wonderful caring and dedicated people like them, any new Trek Experience would not even begin to equal the first one….

Why couldn’t the sign be given to the Neon Sign museum? That would really be a good spot for it and it would still be given attention on the tours that are given.

I imagine that paying for transportation of the sign to the museum could constitute a ‘donation’ to a non profit organization and that may be tax deductible and that could be appealing to someone willing to foot the bill for it to move.

Why is this deemed newsworthy? It’s a _commercial_ sign! Star Trek is not a cultural landmark, it’s a money-making franchise. Should we preserve traces of former Apple stores whenever they leave?

re: 34

The reason the sign cannot be given to the Neon Museum is simple….The sign is NOT NEON in any way……I belive Vernon already made contact with them and they declined…..

Re: 32

Jim…As to the future of STTE In downtown Las Vegas, I personaly emailed our Mayor and asked if he could offer any new info about Neonopolis’s plan for the NEW STTE 2.0 and he replied….” sorry I have nothing new to share or report on that subject” He suggested I try to contact Mr. Hoshit directly (Owner of Neonopolis to inquire further. I called and left VM for him asking for any new updated info. To date ..no reply has come in to my VM.
Plus keep in mind te bad economy here in Las Vegas where there are numerous projects in bankruptcy status and no money to complete them.

Paul I’ve told you a million times, its “Rohit Joshi”. And stop bugging the Mayor.

The idea of STTE at the Neonopolis is dead Jim …Nightshade.

And yes Boris, all traces of former Apple stores should be preserved. Great contribution.

All I can say is, the 1990s and the 2000s are over, as is that particular era of Star Trek. Nobody wants to see their neighborhood peppered with old commercial signs from bygone times. It’s like a long-forgotten website which was last updated on January 5, 1997.

Re: 37

Vernon…. The only reason I emailed the mayor is because I was asked to do so about 2 months ago by Darn on his Star Trek: Experiece page on TREKSPACE.ORG. He commented on his page that someone should email the mayor and inquire if there was anything new he could share about STTE 2.0 and I accepted the request to see if he had any updates. Which he did not of course. As to yoru comment about “bugging the mayor” I only emailed him once. Lastly as to your comment about STTE 2.0 being DEAD at NEONOPOLIS, I belive you may be correct “it does appear to be dead for all intensive purposes” however I have yet to see anything confirming that fact. My personal opinion on this is straight forward…if Mr. Joshi has not done anything about STTE 2.0 it is due to the high costs of re-building a newer updated version and our horrible economy here (that I should not have to remind you about.) When I last spoke to Mr. John Van Citters from CBS back in Aug of last year I specifficaly asked him about Mr. Joshi’s contract and lack of developments and he (Mr. Van Citter’s) would neither comment yea/nea on his contractual terms of weather or not he still has control of the licence to be the new operator of STTE.

As to the Mr. Joshi’s name being spelled incorrectly my apologizes on that. I can never remember his correct name.

Our club will continue to pursue any information we can garner about the NEW STTE 2.0 and report it here to Anthony if we learn of any new developments on that subject. We will also undertake as I stated before a “New Mission” to “Save the Star Trek Sign” or get a plaque created. as you suggested.

I look forward to yoru feedback Vernon on this…..

I never got to see the star trek experience in LV but watching that video I truly wish I had. If they make another experience around the country some where I will not make the mistake of not going to see it. COME TO CHICAGO WITH THE EXPERIENCE!!!

“While there is still hope that there will be a new Star Trek: The Experience built in Las Vegas sometime in the future, it is very unlikely it would require new signage,”

Why is that? Is the future a signless future?

Wouldn’t a new Experience need a new sign anyway? I believe this particular arrowhead within an ellipse appeared around the time of “Generations”, so it looks dated already. I would choose a more TOS-like sign and font, in accordance with the recent TOS revival.

38, 42

Totally agree! The next Experience (if there ever will be one) should focus more on TOS and the new movie. I think people just got tired of seeing the same old TNG-era stuff. Nothing wrong with the TNG era, but they should have had some TOS in there from the beginning.

The next incarnation should definitely have the TOS bridge, transporter and bar from “The Trouble With Tribbles”.

I think this is more about nostalgia for the TNG-era than any sign. I’m informed enough to know that fan campaigns rarely matter; it’s all about potential business which can be generated for the studio. Or was there another reason for shutting down the original Experience?

@43 “Totally agree! The next Experience (if there ever will be one) should focus more on TOS and the new movie”

Now that I would fly to Vegas to see!

@45…provided they did not cover the Budweiser engine room, anyway…my only major problem with Trek 2010.

(Wouldn’t that actually be a horrible [but perhaps irresistible for the financiers of this new Vegas ST Experience] product tie-in if they had the engine room set up as a bar and you could get served Budweiser “Antimatter Beers” from “Dylithum Chamber Taps? LOL)

Wha? Another ST:EXP article?

Then that’s the first cue for 2011 to once again mention the permanent online official archive for Star Trek: The Experience at:

http://www.startrek360.com

Fantastic to read the passion is still there for this most remarkable destination. Perhaps the Rio will become a satisfactory substitute until the real thing returns… See you all this summer!

It was just a quip, Paul… All the work you do is greatly appreciated by many.

While I know it will never happen, Disney would be great. Lots of traffic from non-hardcore fans, which is what STTE needs to thrive.

I would be happy to donate to a save the sign fund if there was someplace for it to go.

I loved STTE. I never went to Vegas, business or vacation, without stopping by. I hope it comes back in some format.