The Conscience of the King (Episode 13)
Shakespeare in Space!
Pennsylvania State University assistant English teaching professor Phillip Zapkin and Northeast State Community College associate English professor Colin Cox discuss “The Conscience of the King.” Video source: Theatre of Phil YouTube channel.
“Madness in Great Ones Must Not Unwatched Go”
If William Shakespeare had been a mid-20th Century Hollywood screenwriter, it’s quite possible that Gene Roddenberry would have pursued him to write a Star Trek episode.
The introspective brooding James Tiberius Kirk of early Star Trek would be quite familiar to Shakespeare. Kirk’s melancholia found in early episodes evokes Prince Hamlet, whose introspection and skepticism often leads him to question his decisions, if not his life-and-death authority over his crew. In her retrospective Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation, Yvonne Fern quotes associate producer Robert Justman:1
Captain Kirk was Hamlet, the flawed hero. Gene told me that, early on. He modeled him on Captain Horatio Hornblower and he had characteristics of Hamlet, who knows what he has to do, but agonizes over it … I think, looking back on it now, that Gene Roddenberry was Captain Kirk.
Fern wrote that Roddenberry told her Captain Kirk was his alter ego. (And sometimes Spock.)
Kirk eventually evolved into a love-’em-and-leave-’em reckless risk-taker, but even in the Star Trek films we have scenes where Kirk questions his motivations and actions.
Barry Trivers wasn’t Shakespeare, but like many writers was an aficionado. Marc Cushman wrote in These are the Voyages: TOS Season One that Trivers was “an admirer of William Shakespeare,” but like many of his era was influenced by the events of World War II.2 Trivers served during that war; he was blinded for a year after a combat air crash.3
How and where he intersected with Roddenberry is unclear, but it may have been in March 1966, when Gene addressed “a gathering of writers in the boardroom of the Writers Guild” of America, according to unauthorized biographer Joel Engel.4 Roddenberry hoped the writers would attend screenings of the two pilots and consider pitching script ideas. A Los Angeles Times article dated February 17, 1966 described Trivers as president of the WGA’s “TV-radio branch,” so it’s possible he was one of the writers in the room.5
Trivers was age 59 that day. He was one of the more accomplished writers in the industry, with film credits going back to 1930.6 Trivers won the 1961 WGA outstanding writing award for his Naked City scripts.7 Like many of the writers Roddenberry recruited, Barry had no science fiction experience. This turned out to be a mistake, because even the most experienced television writers struggled to grasp the Star Trek universe. In the spring of 1966, all they had to go by were two pilots with largely different casts, Gene’s March 1964 sixteen-page outline “Star Trek Is …” and supplemental memos Roddenberry issued as the series entered pre-production.
According to Cushman, Trivers submitted his first outline on April 5, 1966. His early concept was that Kirk’s father had been killed by “a group of revolutionaries led by Kodos,” a Hitler-like character who nearly conquered Earth. Kirk learns that Kodos may still be alive, and struggles to balance justice with his lust for vengeance.
Roddenberry immediately saw the Hamlet metaphor, but warned not to go too far. He wrote in a memo to associate producers Bob Justman and John D.F. Black:8
Kirk — a kind of Hamlet — is intent on learning the truth and punishing the villain. In other words, play the Hamlet theme with the exception that our Captain has not the Hamlet melancholia and vacillation.
It’s also possible that Roddenberry didn’t want to kill off Kirk’s father this early in the series, when that potential character might surface later. (We met Spock’s parents, after all.)
The premise certainly appealed from a budget perspective. As we’ve discussed in earlier columns, Star Trek episodes were expensive to produce, and often over budget. This episode required few effects and no new sets; existing sets were redressed when needed. According to Cushman, the episode came in $8,641 under the studio budget of $193,500, even though shooting ran a day late.9
“Yet Grace Must Still Look So”
In our column about “Miri,” the previously filmed episode, we discussed Grace Lee Whitney’s departure from the show after her sexual assault by an unnamed “executive.”
Whitney’s contract required the producers to use her in seven episodes. “Miri” was the sixth.
After filming “Miri,” production shut down for two weeks so Roddenberry, Shatner, and Nimoy could promote the show, which would premiere on NBC with “The Man Trap” on September 8, 1966. The visual effects for other episodes were nowhere near done, so “The Man Trap” went first using effects cobbled together from the pilots and whatever starship visuals had been completed.
An NBC commercial for the upcoming premiere of “Star Trek.” Although the ad says September 15, it was actually September 8.
Whitney’s agent, and then Grace, were informed during the hiatus that her contract wouldn’t be extended. In her 1998 autobiography, The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy, Grace wrote that on or about September 1 her agent called to say that Janice Rand was being written out of the series. According to her memoir, the agent said:10
The producers feel the romantic relationship between Kirk and Rand is becoming too obvious, and it limits the story possibilities. Apparently, they think Captain Kirk needs to be free to have affairs with other women on all these different planets.
Cushman’s chapter on “The Conscience of the King” documents how the script drafts devolved to all but eliminate Rand. He cites an early memo from ever-frugal Bob Justman questioning if Rand was even needed for the episode.
John D.F. Black departed on August 12. His duties were divided between two new arrivals. Veteran TV writer Gene Coon, most recently a producer with The Wild Wild West, joined the staff on August 8 as a producer. Also starting that day was the far less experienced Steve Carabatsos, who’d been in the industry for only three years. Steve had the job title “Script Consultant,” although functionally he was a script editor. The one-week overlap helped the two newcomers become familiar with the Star Trek universe and format.11 Coon would have a more lasting impact on Star Trek history, while Carabatsos (like Black) only had a thirteen-week contract.
Coon began with polishing “Miri” while Carabatsos revised “Conscience.” During the hiatus, Coon edited Carabatsos’ draft, producing multiple revisions. Each revision dwindled Rand’s presence.
Filming began on September 13. Whitney’s first day was scheduled to be the 14th but, after she sat around all day, director Gerd Oswald decided not to shoot a scene in which Rand interrupts a flirtation between Kirk and Lenore Karidian. Grace returned on the 15th, but it was decided to drop Rand from the scene, so another day was wasted.
The on-set script changes support the evidence that the producers had decided to go with the Kirk the Womanizer. In the scene where Kirk takes Lenore to the observation deck, Lenore says, “This ship, all this power, surging, throbbing, but under control. Are you like that, Captain?” Rand was to enter with a duty roster for Kirk to sign, then leave without comment. After Lenore made catty remarks about Janice, Kirk was to say, “Yeoman Rand is strictly business.”12
But Rand’s presence was dropped. This eliminated the implicit competition between the two women. Lenore is only 19, while Kirk is in his early 30s, so the rewrite fulfills the male viewer (and perhaps aging executive) fantasy that an older man can attract a younger woman. In “Miri,” Kirk had a borderline inappropriate relationship with pubescent Miri.
Janice Rand enters the bridge as Lenore departs. Grace Lee Whitney’s final appearance was no more than a cameo.
Whitney was on call for the 16th to appear in a bridge scene, but was told not to report. Her final appearance was filmed on September 20, entering the bridge while Kirk and Lenore bantered. Her denouement was a walk-on.
“Out, Damned Spot!”
“Well, when the President does it, that means that it is not illegal.” — Richard Nixon, David Frost interview, April 1977. Video source: Meet the Presidents YouTube channel.
History is replete with individuals who commit heinous acts in the name of the greater good.
Richard Nixon not only orchestrated the Watergate affair, but also carpet-bombed North Vietnam and illegally invaded Cambodia. He’s alleged to have conspired with the South Vietnamese government to keep Hubert Humphrey from winning the 1968 presidential election.13 As seen in the above video, Nixon used national security as justification for his actions.
Harry Truman dropped two atomic bombs on Japan to end World War II. How many died in the bombings? Estimates range from 100,000 to 200,000.14 One could argue he saved millions by forcing Japan to surrender but, if one wants to play the numbers game, Kodos the Executioner sacrificed half the population of Tarsus IV to save the other half from famine.
Kodos killed 4,000 people. Anton Karidian, twenty years later, is the elderly leader of a small acting troupe touring the galaxy performing Shakespearean plays. Karidian is no longer the person who committed those crimes. Will punishing Karidian punish Kodos? A rhetorical question.
The passage of time often softens history’s perspective of political criminals. The threat of punishment is considered a deterrent for the commission of a crime. But when the punishment comes decades later, and the criminal is no longer who he once was, would that punishment be “justice” or “vengeance”?
The search for Nazi war criminals continued into the 21st Century. Convictions continued into the 2010s. Iwan Demjanjuk, dubbed “Ivan the Terrible,” was tried and convicted in German court in 2009, at age 89. He died in a German nursing home in 2012 at age 92 while his case underwent appeal.15
Suppose that, as this episode was being written in 1966, a 77-year old Adolph Hitler had been discovered leading a small non-profit delivering food and medical supplies to improverished villages in South America. He’s using the alias “Alberto Hernandez.” Would justice be served by executing Alberto? Again, a rhetorical question.
Some Star Trek episodes have suggested that, in its future, punishment is an obsolete concept. Criminal behavior is treated more like a mental illness, such as in “Dagger of the Mind” produced two episodes ago. In the prequel series Strange New Worlds, the Vulcans have a rehabilitation facility where criminals are taught to purge their emotions so they can return to civilized society. But in The Next Generation, Ro Laren was sent to a Starfleet stockade for disobeying direct orders. Justice is in the eye of the beholder. Or the screenwriter.
As our story unfolds, Karidian shows little contrition for his deeds as Kodos. “Penance” and “punishment” are different concepts. According to religious sources, penance is a voluntary act of atonement or rectification, while punishment is an external remedy, an infliction of pain or suffering by society to achieve a collective resolution of justice.16
This is a question “Conscience” raises. What is the appropriate judgment for Karidian? Kirk’s duty should be to arrest him and deliver him for trial. Others seek vengeance. The story’s climax denies us an answer, but perhaps the point is to find the answer for ourselves.
So let’s venture into the story.
The episode opens in the middle of the play Macbeth. Anton Karidian as Macbeth murders King Duncan. Kirk is in the audience with Dr. Thomas Leighton, an old friend. Leighton tells Kirk he’s certain Karidian is Kodos the Executioner.
Kirk is skeptical, but Leighton reminds him that the only evidence Kodos died was a body burnt beyond recognition. (Hitler’s body was burned outside his bunker.) The body was found twenty years ago by “Earth forces” — the term “Starfleet” has yet to be introduced in the series. They are two of only nine witnesses who saw Kodos.
Despite his skepticism, Kirk accesses the Enterprise database to study the Kodos history files and Karidian’s biography. (Majel Barrett voices the computer.) No records exist for Karidian prior to the Tarsus IV holocaust. Kirk decides to attend a cocktail party hosted by the Leightons that evening for the acting troupe.
Kirk zeroes in on Lenore, who welcomes his attention. She says that her father never sees anyone personally, and never attends parties. With no prime suspect to interrogate, Kirk takes Lenore by the hand and escorts her outside. (The legend begins …)
As they stroll, Lenore says Kirk is lonely. They’re about to kiss when Kirk spots a body in the brush. It’s the now ex-Tom Leighton. In the next scene, the body has been brought inside by someone. The widow Leighton covers the body with a blanket but doesn’t seem all that upset. This is a personal nitpick I have with many TV shows; suddenly widowed spouses or paramours show little grief, much less hysteria.
Kirk calls the captain of the civilian ship transporting the actors, and asks him to leave early. The Enterprise will transport the troupe to their next stop. In exchange, Lenore offers to have the company perform for the crew.
You’re in my spot!
Sitting at Spock’s bridge console (a rare occurrence), Kirk further queries the database. He learns that only two witnesses are left who can identify Kodos — him, and crewmember Kevin Riley. (“Star Service Lieutenant Kevin Riley,” as Kirk calls him. Again, not “Starfleet.”) Kirk orders Riley transferred to Engineering, without explanation.
Spock goes to Sickbay to question McCoy about the captain’s behavior. The scene doesn’t do much to advance the plot, but it does have an exchange that helps build the Vulcan universe:
McCoy: Would you care for a drink, Mr. Spock?
Spock: My father’s race was spared the dubious benefits of alcohol.
McCoy: Oh. Now I know why they were conquered.
Hmmm … We’ve seen Spock inebriated in several episodes of Strange New Worlds. Perhaps it’s his half-human blood. If Vulcan were conquered in its past, we never heard about it again. Perhaps Roddenberry or Coon left this thread dangling, thinking it might tie to the Romulans one day. But it never did.
Spock pieces together Kirk’s inquiries. In another visit with McCoy, he tells the doctor about the events on Tarsus IV. Due to the famine, Kodos seized power and relied on his personal belief in eugenics to cull the population. “Unfortunately, he wasn’t the first,” McCoy comments. Barry Trivers (or whomever added the line) may have been referring to Hitler, but in “Space Seed” we’ll encounter Khan Noonien Singh and his super-race created by Earth eugenics in the late 20th Century.
Spock concludes that Karidian’s history “begins, almost to the day, where Kodos disappeared.” He’s also discovered that the Karidian troupe was always nearby when the other eyewitnesses died.
Segue to Engineering, where Riley is alone. A gloved hand poisons his milk. His gasps are heard over the intercom, so the assassination attempt is foiled. (Perhaps the milk was past its expiration date.)
Spock and McCoy confront Kirk about the investigation. This is one of the first times we see the dynamics of the “triangle” in action. Kirk says he’s only seeking justice, but McCoy asks if he’s seeking vengeance. Spock is certain that Karidian is Kodos. Kirk still has some doubt. McCoy says that arresting Karidian won’t bring back the dead; Kirk counters that the dead might rest easier.
Someone places an overloaded phaser inside Kirk’s quarters. Another assassination attempt foiled, as Kirk tosses it out a chute. It stretches creduility that the assassin not only has access to engineering but also to the captain’s quarters, a toxic lubricant, and a phaser. This is an ongoing problem with the scripts to date, in my opinion — security is lax when it needs to be.
Kirk goes to confront Karidian. He doesn’t deny being Kodos, but doesn’t admit it either. “Let bloody vengeance take its final course!” Karidian seems to welcome his fate, but shows no regrets, arguing that Kodos did what had to be done, as Kirk does in command of the Enterprise.
Despite all this, the troupe nonetheless performs Hamlet for the crew. Karidian plays the role of the ghost of Hamlet’s father. Further proving my point about lax security, Riley breaks into a weapons locker to steal a phaser. (Where did the overloaded one come from?) Kirk disarms Riley backstage.
Lenore reveals to her father that she’s the assassin — further stretching credulity. She’s an ingenious serial killer for a teen actor. “More blood on my hands!” he cries. Lenore snatches yet another phaser off the belt of a security officer. (Police holsters have a safety strap to keep this from happening.) Aiming for Kirk, Karidian intervenes and takes the phaser fire, saving the captain but dying from the injury.
By saving Kirk, did Karidian redeem himself for his past sins? Should he have received mercy in his old age, as Lenore argued? Or was it karma, the universe paying him back for his mass murders?
All are questions that only we can answer for ourselves.
Yvonne Fern, Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation (Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1994), 66-67. A digital copy is available on the Internet Archive.
Marc Cushman, These are the Voyages: TOS Season One (San Diego: Jacobs/Brown Press, 2013), 324-325.
Terry Vernon, “Opaque Contact Lenses Teaches Actor Blindness,” Long Beach Press-Telegram, March 30, 1962, C-1.
Joel Engel, Gene Roddenberry: The Myth and the Man Behind Star Trek (New York: Hyperion, 1994), 70.
"35 Nominated for TV, Radio Script Awards,” Los Angeles Times, February 17, 1966, Part VI, 12.
"Dramatic Workshop to Begin,” Los Angeles Citizen-News, August 22, 1962, D-5.
Cushman, 326.
Cushman, 338.
Grace Lee Whitney with Jim Denney, The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy (Sanger, California: Quill Driver Books, 1998), 9. The book is available on Google Books at this link.
It was also during this one-week transition that John D.F. Black, Gene Roddenberry, and Bob Justman composed the title credits’ opening narrative that begins, “Space, the final frontier …” Black’s final contribution was his most lasting.
Cushman, 334.
John A. Farrell, “When a Candidate Conspired with a Foreign Power to Win an Election,” Politico, August 6, 2017.
Alex Wellerstein, “Counting the Dead at Hiroshima and Nagasaki,” Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, August 4, 2020.
United States Holocaust Memorial Museum webpage. “John Demjanjuk: Prosecution of A Nazi Collaborator,” US Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Fr. Charles Grondin, “Penance is Not Punishment,” Catholic Answers, n.d. Msgr. Charles Pope, “The Difference Between Penance and Punishment,” The Roman Catholic Diocese of Washington, July 15, 2018.