Flare Sci-Fi Forums: Jeffries Starship for AMT?

my profile | directory login | search | faq | forum home

»	Flare Sci-Fi Forums » Star Trek » Starships & Technology » Jeffries Starship for AMT? (Page 1)

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2

Author

Topic: Jeffries Starship for AMT?

MrNeutron
Senior Member
Member # 524

posted

While poring over the items in the big Star Trek acution over on ebay, a few sketches done by Matt Jeffries immediately grabbed my attention.

For those who don't recall this, back in the 60s the AMT corporation released a spacecraft kit in conjunction with their Star Trek kits. This ship -- originally called the "Leif Ericson", and later rereleased as a glow in the dark "UFO Mystery Ship" -- bears a striking resemblance to some of Jeffries sketches...so much so that I have no question that it's Jeffries drawings that were the basis of it. Not only are the similarities too close, right down to the scout ship and engine pods, but the conning tower is downright DY100.

Click here for a comparision of Jeffries sketches to Leif Ericson kit.

Makes me wonder what those sketches were originally generated for. Was it for a ship never used on the show? Or was it an original design Jeffries did for AMT?

Curiouser and curiouser.

Anyone have any other info on this oddity?

[ June 20, 2002, 00:02: Message edited by: MrNeutron ]

--------------------
"Well, I mean, it's generally understood that, of all of the people in the world, Mike Nelson is the best." -- ULTRA MAGNUS, steadfast in curmudgeon

Registered: Feb 2001 | IP: Logged

Shik
Starship database: completed; History of Starfleet: done; website: probably never
Member # 343

posted

The guys over at Starship Modeler know all about it.

--------------------
"The French have a saying: 'mise en place'—keep everything in its fucking place!"

Registered: Jun 2000 | IP: Logged

Sol System
two dollar pistol
Member # 30

posted

I guess they look somewhat similar.

[ June 20, 2002, 00:01: Message edited by: Sol System ]

Registered: Mar 1999 | IP: Logged

MrNeutron
Senior Member
Member # 524

posted

I'd say more than somewhat...Same nose cone, same conning tower profile, same hull shape, same engine pod shapes, same doors on the top of the hull. Scoutship is similar in shape and labeled as such on both the sketches and the kit. Yeah, the wings are different on the sketches I found, but it's as recognizably the same ship to my eye as the final TOS Enterprise is to Jeffries concept sketches for that.

I went over to Starship Modeler but all I found about the ship was what I already knew: that it was the inspriation for the I.N.S.S. MacArthur from Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's "A Mote in God's Eye".

Was there more information on the design there?

--------------------
"Well, I mean, it's generally understood that, of all of the people in the world, Mike Nelson is the best." -- ULTRA MAGNUS, steadfast in curmudgeon

Registered: Feb 2001 | IP: Logged

Harry
Stormwind City Guard
Member # 265

posted

Interesting. The two ships look so similar, I doubt this could be a coincidence. Looking at the UFO Mystery Ship box, it almost looks like the design was originally supposed to be a Star Trek design. It sits right along side all the major TOS icons.

This is going to sound strange, but perhaps this was a Trek ship (perhaps another AMT joint project, like the shuttlecraft) that was supposed to make an appearance on the show. AMT acquired the modelling rights, and perhaps built the model a bit prematurely. The model was then never used on the show, and AMT was forced to give the ships silly names not related to Star Trek.

I've mailed the author of this webpage -> http://www.bol.ucla.edu/~frank/le.html
He seems to know a few things about this.

--------------------
Titan Fleet Yards | Memory Alpha

Registered: Dec 1999 | IP: Logged

Reverend
Based on a true story...
Member # 335

posted

Looks like an early Klingon concept to me...perhaps this is what the mysterious klingon scout was supposed to look like.

--------------------
Dark Knight Adventures & Batman Beyond:Stripped - DeviantArt Gallery
================================
...what we demand is a total absence of solid facts!

Registered: Apr 2000 | IP: Logged

Sol System
two dollar pistol
Member # 30

posted

Er...both look vaguely like spaceplanes. That isn't a damningly unique design, in my opinion.

Registered: Mar 1999 | IP: Logged

AndrewR
Resident Nut-cache
Member # 44

posted

Reverend - this is EXACTLY what I thought this ship was when I first saw that linked picture... The scout ship - the KLINGON scoutship from "Errand of Mercy" except they probably ran out of money - I guess.

It is SOOOO Klingon looking, It's not funny.

I would have loved to have seen this. Could we adopt this as a Klingon scout-ship PLEASSEEEEEE! Can someone ask Matt Jefferies!?! Does he have e-mail!?! PLEAAAASEEEEEEE! This would be fantastic. Why couldn't they have just used an ATML model instead of the silly flashing light.

You can't tell me that the distant ship on the cover of the box for the Leif Ericson, doesn't look very Klingon to you!?!

Andrew

--------------------
"Bears. Beets. Battlestar Galactica." - Jim Halpert. (The Office)

I'm LIZZING! - Liz Lemon (30 Rock)

Registered: Mar 1999 | IP: Logged

Sol System
two dollar pistol
Member # 30

posted

The unassembled kit might look a little Klingon. The picture on the box doesn't, though.

Registered: Mar 1999 | IP: Logged

Harry
Stormwind City Guard
Member # 265

posted

Okay. He replied.

My message:

quote:
Hi,

My name's Harry. I'm a Star Trek fan, and member of the
Flare forums. Recently, E-Bay started
a huge Star Trek auction, selling, among other things, design
sketches by Matt Jefferies, the man who designed the original
Enterprise and the Klingon battlecruiser. A fellow
Flare-member
found two sketches that look remarkably similar to the Leif
Ericson/UFO Mystery Ship and Mini Scout models
(http://fleetyard.host.sk/leif.jpg
and
http://fleetyard.host.sk/scout.jpg).
I did a little search and found your website. You seem to know quite
a bit about the two AMT model kits. Do you know if Matt Jefferies
designed the ship? Or is it just a coincidence? The fact that ERTL
seems to think it is a Star Trek ship is perhaps a clue that this was
supposed to be a Star Trek ship. What do you think?

Thanks for your time,

- Harry Doddema
[email protected]
http://fleetyard.host.sk

And his reply

quote:

Hi Harry,
Thanks for writing! I should update my Leif Ericson page soon. I've
been in contact with Mike Okuda (who's been very helpful with my web
page) and he mentioned that the Leif Ericson/UFO Mystery Ship were
indeed designed by Matt Jefferies. Other than this, I don't think
that there was a direct connection with Star Trek. Jefferies may have
done the design just for AMT, or he may have used an existing,
discarded Star Trek design. The e-mail is at home; Mike gave me
permission to put the info up, but I just haven't had the time. I'll
make the time now, though.
Do you mind if I put a link to those two sketches on my page? They're
a fantastic find. The Web is amazing, isn't it?

Frank

So there *is* a direct link between the Jefferies sketches and the AMT ships.

--------------------
Titan Fleet Yards | Memory Alpha

Registered: Dec 1999 | IP: Logged

Harry
Stormwind City Guard
Member # 265

posted

Oh. He updated his site (http://www.bol.ucla.edu/%7Efrank/le.html) with some interesting bits:

quote:
Mike Okuda, who's great work has been seen on several Star Trek shows, has given me some background info on the Leif Ericson design. The Leif Ericson was designed by Matt Jefferies, designer for the original Star Trek series. While it never showed up in the original series, Mike mentioned that the Leif Ericson showed up in a couple of places on Filmation's storyboards for the animated Star Trek series in the early 1970s, althoug the ship did not appear in any of the finished episodes of the animated series.

So, it's an unused TAS design! I've searched the "Time Trap" scenes on The Guardian of Forever, but Okuda's right, it doesn't appear anywhere.

--------------------
Titan Fleet Yards | Memory Alpha

Registered: Dec 1999 | IP: Logged

MrNeutron
Senior Member
Member # 524

posted

quote:
Originally posted by Harry:
So, it's an unused TAS design! I've searched the "Time Trap" scenes on The Guardian of Forever, but Okuda's right, it doesn't appear anywhere.

Well, I don't think that's quite accurate, either. The model kit appares to date from around 1967-68, while TOS was still on the air. So, it appears to be a "comporary with TOS" design at least. In fact, two of the other sketches on the site where I found those posted earlier features ships with the beginnings of the Leif Ericson type nose, one of which below a sketch that looks like one of the Klingon Battlecruiser development drawings.

Jeffries Sketches 2

Jeffries Sketches 3

[ June 21, 2002, 01:22: Message edited by: MrNeutron ]

--------------------
"Well, I mean, it's generally understood that, of all of the people in the world, Mike Nelson is the best." -- ULTRA MAGNUS, steadfast in curmudgeon

Registered: Feb 2001 | IP: Logged

Sol System
two dollar pistol
Member # 30

posted

Huh. Go figure.

Registered: Mar 1999 | IP: Logged

OnToMars
Now on to the making of films!
Member # 621

posted

Don't that beat all?

--------------------
If God didn't want us to fly, he wouldn't have given us Bernoulli's Principle.

Registered: Jun 2001 | IP: Logged

Masao
doesn't like you either
Member # 232

posted

The connection between Jeffries's design and TAS makes we wonder if he designed anything else for TAS, possibly ships that are better known, like Bonaventure and Huron. That would be sweet!

Registered: Oct 1999 | IP: Logged

This topic comprises 2 pages: 1 2

Printer-friendly view of this topic