[Gates McFadden interview starts at 19:05]
After a look at the news—new John de Lancie updates via Cameo, Discovery’s costume awards win, the new Fleet Command ads featuring Sonequa Martin-Green and Karl Urban, and the latest business news from Paramount+ and ViacomCBS—Tony and Laurie eagerly welcome guest Gates McFadden to chat about her new podcast InvestiGates: Who Do You Think You Are? and her work on the upcoming History Channel documentary The Center Seat: 55 Years Of Star Trek. She also talks about TNG’s “Sub Rosa” (!), directing the episode “Genesis,” and Beverly Crusher’s past as well as her future.
The podcasters wrap up with a look at a Q&A session from the very first Star Trek convention and William Shatner’s guest appearance on Mork & Mindy.
Links to topics discussed in the pod:
The Shuttle Pod Crew Visits The Continuum To Contemplate The Future Of Q
‘Star Trek: Discovery’ Wins 3 Costume Guild Awards
Watch: Karl Urban And Sonequa Martin-Green Spar In ‘Star Trek Fleet Command’ Game Promos
SpongeBob, ‘Star Trek’ and sports drive subscriptions to Paramount+ (NYT)
Additional mentions:
History Channel Launching ‘The Center Seat’ Docuseries All About Star Trek
TNG’s “Genesis”
Treksperts Briefing Room podcast with Brannon Braga
Creation Announces ’55-Year Mission’ Convention For 2021
Interview: Gates McFadden On Cons, COVID, Crusher, And “Code of Honor” From ‘Star Trek: TNG’
Trekbits:
Laurie: Dorothy Fontana & Majel Barrett talk to fans at the first Star Trek convention (from Fact Trek, via Neil Shurley’s Star Trekking newsletter)
Tony: William Shatner on Mork & Mindy
Let us know what you think of the episode in the comments, and please post your suggestions for topics we should cover in the future as well as guests you’d like us to have on.
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I met Ms. McFadden in Ticonderoga at the Set Tour.
She is a lovely person.
What struck me was how poised she was. She has a devoted group of fans who follow her around to events. She takes time to meet with them and see how they’re doing. My spouse was the event planner for that year’s Trekonderoga. We had recently adopted a small dog. My spouse was sitting out front, holding our dog in her lap. When Gates came outside, she handed her phone to one of her fans and posed for a picture with our terrier, Tilly.
Doesn’t surprise me at all. She’s funny, smart, warm, thoughtful, and utterly fascinating.
Paramount+ has the worse platform for any streaming service out there IMHO. From what I understand there was a glitch in the algorithm as not only was “Star Trek” episodes was missing some other shows were missing as well. I refuse to use there standalone platform; instead I purchase/watch the channel on Prime Video (Amazon) it’s easier to find things and the closed captioned doesn’t speed or jump ahead.
Can we assume that the topic of the actual podcast is ripping on Paramount + and it’s shortcomings? I’d just assumed it was about Ms. McFadden’s latest venture….
First of all, you do not know me; so stop the judgement. I stop the podcast before they got to Gates interview to post my comment before I resumed listening to Gates and will be listening to her podcast. But I stand by my statement regarding Paramount+
Phil is a troll. He is best ignored.
warning for simply being rude and trolling.
If you listened to the pod you would understand the context so not sure why you felt the need for the drive by snark.
I did, but obviously didn’t attach a higher level of significance to a throw away comment around the twelve minute mark that others did, in context. So, I stand corrected.
The Star Trek channel within Paramount+ is actually quite good for the series. It is well organized. I have been using it for years and never had an issue with missing episodes or significant glitches.
The weakness with Paramount+ when it comes to Trek are the movies. Most of the movies are not on the platform, and those that are are hard to find because they are usually buried in the action category. Paramount+ does need a better movie infrastructure. Their films are not easy to search, nor can one save them on a watchlist. That is a major deficiency with the site.
Disney+ have pretty much all worthwhile Star Wars content on their service which is brilliant value for money really for those feeling the urge for a short term binge once in a while.
Star Trek should surely have the same full access to all Star Trek content, the movies and TV shows as part of the Paramount+ service.
I’m in the UK and it’s mildly annoying that content is split between Netflix (which has all the TV shows from TOS through ENT) and Amazon (Lower Decks and Picard) and there is no streaming service that has the movies available (apart from renting them of course, or buying outright)
I suppose the movies must have a lot of legal red-tape preventing them being available to stream either in the UK or US?
Yeah they have everything except the academy award winning original Star Wars films, the ones that made the AFI list. All they have is the latest 2020 Special Edition, which is horrible. Especially Empire Strikes Back its basically unwatchable.
I personally don’t have some major issue with the Star Wars Special Editions and for most part I generally find them OK. There are a few things that’s were stupid beyond reason such as Vader screaming Noooo! At the end of Jedi, blinking Ewoks for example but it’s not enough to ruin anything.
I’m not sure what you’re issue is with Empire? If anything that’s the least changed movie of the three originals.
I think that you are right about why the Trek movies are not all together on Paramount+; their rights have been licensed out to multiple other streaming platforms. Beyond is (or was recently at least) on IMDB’s streaming channel. Hopefully in time they will all come back to Paramount+.
Over here, Netflix has two of the Kelvin movies (Into Darkness and Beyond), but none of the others. I also don’t like that the new shows are split between Netflix and Amazon Prime.
Great interview. It was neat to hear how McFadden wanted Crusher to be more than just “concerned mom” in her relationship with Wesley. There was so much potential there.
Also interesting to hear a bit more about what she thinks precipitated the (dumb) firing — and about how she pushed back (with a better idea) as a director.
Great present-day stuff, too – but it’s always fascinating to get more context on 30-year-old decisions.
That early ‘70s convention bit was great – I think I forgot (or never knew) how edgy those years could be (I’d just stumbled upon a YouTube clip of Lucille Ball on the Tonite Show, where Carson asks her if her kids would check with her before doing an X-rated movie… and Ball starts talking about the pornography industry)
It’s always seemed, as McFadden touched upon, that Roddenberry was still carrying some of those sensibilities into the ‘80s – which had become a very different time.
Until she said it, I had never thought about the Wesley thing. He had a mom who was a scientist but the writers never made that into a connection between the two of them. I know engineering was more his thing, but still… that could’ve made for some good mother/son bonding.
Yeah, me neither. She had a neat point about how Sisko acted as both parents in guiding Jake.
I personally think Sisko is the best parent in all of Star Trek. But yes, DS9 really tried to show that single parent life, and an intimate father-son relationship. They fell back on mom stereotypes for Wesley & Beverly, and never explored the fact that both were scientists, that she had a high position on a starship, etc.
Found myself agreeing with just about everything Gates said! I love that she’s genuinely interested in the fans. I’ve experienced this myself when I met her. The podcast sounds great. I imagine there won’t be much Trek but that at least will avoid lots of repetition for those who have heard the same stories before.
I think it’ll be great too. I listen to some other podcasts hosted by celebs and it’s especially fun when they’re friends with their guests.
Hi!,
I’ll be honest. I’m not the biggest fan of TNG and I almost did not listen this week. Well I listened anyways and absolutely loved it. Gates seems to be a warm and friendly person and has found a way for the audience to learn more about trek veterans through discussions outside trek.
Thank you Tony and Laurie for another awesome podcast. I will be listening to InvestiGates.
Thanks Kevin!
Great podcast, as always. But I think there was an elephant in the room that was avoided on purpose, or maybe it was just me:
Will Gates be interviewing Patrick Stewart for her podcast?
It seems like she interviewed every other TNG cast mate except Sir Patrick. Or maybe she did and I just missed it? In that case then I apologize.
Anyway, I look forward to her podcast. She seems to really know her Trek as well!
He’s not on the list we have! Funny, we should have asked about it. All that Picard talk and somehow we didn’t ask about Patrick Stewart being on the podcast. D’oh.
Oh ok, so it was not on purpose. I’m just speculating if there is some drama there: Gates is upset she is not in the Picard show and the only TNG cast member she did not interview is Patrick Stewart.
I agree that Beverly Crusher SHOULD be on the Picard show, probably more so than any other TNG character. She had the deepest connection to Picard, so I don’t get why she was not on the show. And it seems that Gate McFadden actually wants to be on the show. Soooo, does Sir Patrick have beef with her?