Galaxy Quest may have ridiculed this, but there's no denying the pure fervor, adulation and joy these fans had in those days. For true sci-fi fans there was nothing, NOTHING, to satisfy the passion. Between TOS (the Original Series) and TNG (the Next Generation), there was very, very little in episodic TV that offered intelligent, well written sci-fi drama. Space 1999? Battlestar Galactica? Buck Rogers? Each had perhaps one thought-provoking concept every eight episodes.

But the excitement of honoring, in person, the cast and creators of a beloved show (honed deep into one's experience through repeated viewings), held a very special place.

Have you ever seen the excitement of fans meeting an HOF ballplayer at a public gathering, getting an autograph and having a photo taken with their sports hero? It's the same thing.

Star Trek hit a nerve at a Mad Men time in our culture, the very cusp of revolutionary change. Free speech, civil rights and the chain-breaking of strict cultural norms were about to burst forth. From the safety of two centuries ahead, Star Trek allowed social-minded humans (mostly humans) to confront and address what other shows decidedly ignored. Plus it had shoulder rolls.

Thanks for this glimpse into what only the non-digital world of 1974 could offer in fan interaction.

[Diane here: Thanks, Marlark, for your emotion-tugging take on this. I went to some early Trek conventions myself, back in the pre-VHS/pre-PC days, when people were excited even to have Xeroxed publicity photos. Anything to do with the show was special then. In the current era of Trek overkill (and everything-else overkill), we're all too jaded. Cool to feel a few minutes of innocence again!]

The original series is still the "giant among men (and women)". In fact, many of the Star Trek NG were rehashed plots from the original series. In addition, there was a puckishness, a comaraderie, a "lightness" and chemistry between the characters that doesn't exist in the Next Generation series. This later incarnation is fairly humorless, too deadly serious.