The Naked Time
written by John D.F. Black
FINAL DRAFT, dated June 28, 1966
(with Revised Pages, dated July 1, July 5, and a NEW ENDING, dated August 11, 1966)
report & analysis by David Eversole

Those wanting more info on the early versions/details of this story will find very little in this script. It is chockfull of revised pages of only a line or two, and thus it is pretty much what was aired.

In the June 28 pages, the nurse is Christine BAKER. In the July revisions, she is Christine DUCHEAUX. I wonder why the final change to Chapel.

JOHN D.F. BLACK (1932 - 2018): A legendary television writer, story editor, director and producer whose work spanned 1957 - 1987. During those years he wrote for programs as diverse as Laredo, Mission: Impossible, Mannix, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, and Charlie's Angels (for which he also made his directing debut). He developed and wrote Wonder Woman, a 1974 telefilm starring Cathy Lee Crosby and Ricardo Montalban. His vision of the popular comic book character drew low ratings, and the more famous version with Lynda Carter was produced a year later. He wrote under several pseudonyms, including John Black, Geoffrey Dennis and Ralph Wills. On Star Trek, Black served as the first Story Editor and as an associate producer. He wrote "The Naked Time." Two decades later he was credited as writer when the story was remade as "The Naked Now" on Star Trek: The Next Generation. He was credited with the story for "Justice" (using his pseudonym Ralph Wills), another episode from that series. Harlan Ellison once described Black's beard as being of "truly Moses-like proportions."

Click here to return to the Unseen Elements Page.
Click here to return to the Articles Page.
Click here to return to the Main Index Page.