I am to be a Drayan.
My transformation into a Trek alien begins with a call from Jerry Fleck from the Paramount lot in Hollywood, Calif.
Fleck, the first assistant director, is helping director Jim Conway prepare the “Voyager” episode “Innocence” (which aired Monday and will be repeated at 8 p.m. Saturday on WPWR-Ch 50.)
Fleck instructs me to head to a Manhattan designer who will take my measurements, so designers back at the studio can have my costume ready when I arrive a week later.
It’s a brutal January afternoon, with snow banks everywhere and cabs seemingly cloaked. I make it to my appointment on time by running like the wind.
A few yanks of a tape measure later, Kim Shull, a “Voyager” costumer who’s on the telephone in Hollywood, has gathered all the information she needs.
On Jan. 22, at 5:30 a.m., Shull and I exchange pleasantries at the Paramount lot. I try on my costume and head over to makeup artist Steve Weber, who takes 10 minutes to stencil an ornate tattoo — which will hardly be visible on screen — on my forehead.
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Then it’s back to the costume department, where I slip into a grayish-brown, loose-fitting outfit that resembles a potato sack.
Shull pulls a veil over my head, snaps a Polaroid and says, “Voila !”
Finally, it’s over to the set where another makeup person, Barbara Ronci, powders my face and applies lots of Couvre — a darkener — to hide my bald spot and make what little existing hair I have appear pitch-black and thicker.
“Hollywood magic at its best,” she says, proudly displaying her handiwork.
“It’s the biggest special effect in this episode,” I respond.
Then, it’s onto the impressive forest set, also called “Planet Hell,” that’s been created on Stage 16. It’s filled with lush flora, mock caves and a crashed shuttle.
Conway introduces himself.
“I’ve got a great scene for you,” he says. “You’re the head Drayan guard, and you and some other guards are looking for Tuvok (Tim Russ) and three kids who are hiding behind some plants.”
“You’ll even get a close-up,” he adds.
As elated as I am, I’d eat a pound of Klingon gagh to snag a line of dialogue.
Conway explains that that would throw him off-budget and earn the wrath of the Screen Actors Guild.
My fellow guards, all extras, and I are handed phaserlike weapons.
We rehearse our scene. We gaze around the area, search the shuttle craft, head toward the plants concealing Tuvok and the kids, see nothing, reconvene, mutter among ourselves and walk away.
After several run-throughs, Conway rolls camera and gets his shot. Following a camera move, we do it again from a different angle, then shoot my close-up.
It’s not quite noon when we extras are “wrapped,” as they say. One now-former guard races off to chat with Garrett Wang, while another is thrilled that he can race to the set of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Eraser” in time to work as an extra there, as well.
All the cross-country communications, the toiling by hair and makeup people, the hours and dollars spent — which were very cool and exciting — amount to about one minute of on-screen footage . . . assuming the scene isn’t cut or curtailed in the editing process.
Welcome to Hollywood.
Trek specs
George Takei, Nichelle Nichols and Grace Lee Whitney are filming a “Voyager” episode titled “Flashback,” which will air early next season to tie in with “Trek’s” 30th anniversary. . . . While not a “Trek” tidbit, genre fans should be interested to learn that “X-Files” star David Duchovny will guest-star in a special episode tonight of “Space: Above and Beyond.” . . . Avery Brooks, George Takei and Kate Mulgrew celebrate birthdays on April 18, 20 and 29, respectively. . . . Look for Clarence Williams III to guest-star in an upcoming episode of “DS9.”
Con calendar
Places to Trek to April 19-21:
– Creation Grand Slam at the Pasadena Center in Pasadena, Calif., featuring Patrick Stewart, Terry Farrell, Robert Beltran and more. (April 19-21; call 818-409-0960.)
– Creation at the Civic Center in Dearborn, Mich., featuring James Doohan. (April 20-21; 818-409-0960.)
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TREK/SCI-FI ALERT: If you have Trek or science-fiction news or trivia to share — or if you have questions relating to “Star Trek” — write to Ian Spelling, care of The New York Times Syndicate, 122 E. 42nd St., New York, N.Y. 10168. Be sure to enclose a self-addressed, stamped envelope if you would like a reply.