Help support the Mego Museum
Help support the Mego Museum

Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Top Ten Star Trek: TOS character performances

Collapse
X
 
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts
  • PNGwynne
    Master of Fowl Play
    • Jun 5, 2008
    • 19444

    Top Ten Star Trek: TOS character performances

    My list of Star Trek's best character performances. Be forewarned, I like a little scenery-chewing:

    1. Morgan Woodward, Dr. Van Gelder. Amazing, he should have won an Emmy

    2. Roger C. Carmel, Harry Mudd

    3. Ricardo Montalban, Khan

    4. John Colicos, Kor

    5. Arnold Moss, Anton Karidian

    6. William Campbell, Squire Trelane

    7. Mark Lenard, the Romulan Commander: I rate this more highly than Sarek, though Sarek is probably the more challenging role.

    8. Lee Meriwether, Losira. Admittedly, a soft spot for Lee.

    9. William Windom, Commodore Decker

    10. James Daley, Flint--a very difficult choice over William Marshall's Dr. Daystrom, I could change my mind.


    My criteria: How engaging is the performance? Does it have range? What did the actor do with the material?

    A lot of difficult decisions, Trek was unusually well-cast. I looked carefully for non-generic antagonists and female characters. Honorable mentions follow.
    Last edited by PNGwynne; Dec 3, '17, 6:41 PM.
    WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.
  • PNGwynne
    Master of Fowl Play
    • Jun 5, 2008
    • 19444

    #2
    Honorable Mentions:

    *William Marshall, Dr. Richard Daystrom
    *Jay Robinson, the plummy Ambassador Petri
    *Nancy Kovack, Nona--she almost beat out Lee
    *Joanne Linville, Romulan Commander--a great performance, a difficult exclusion
    *Elisha Cook Jr., Samuel T. Cogley
    *Joan Marshall, Lt Areel Shaw--a layered performance
    *Mariette Hartley, Zarabeth
    *Michael Forrest, Apollo
    *Barbara Anderson, Lenore Karidian--sweet and creepy
    *Michael Strong, Dr. Roger Korby--love this character
    *Diana Muldaur, Dr. Miranda Jones--subtle
    *Louise Sorel, Rayna
    *Kathryn Hays, Gem--great character
    *Sandra Smith, Dr. Janice Lester--a good performance in a problematic episode
    *Janos Prohaska, the Horta--you try essaying a role on a mechanic's creeper
    Last edited by PNGwynne; Dec 3, '17, 6:40 PM.
    WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

    Comment

    • enyawd72
      Maker of Monsters!
      • Oct 1, 2009
      • 7904

      #3
      1. William Campbell as Trelane...terrifically theatrical performance, especially as he turns into a child at the end.
      2. John Colicos as Kor...cold and sadistic. A perfect Klingon.
      3. Keith Andes as Akuta...great portrayal of pure innocence and naivety.
      4. William Marshall as Dr. Daystrom
      5. Reggie Nalder as Ambassador Shras...not an obvious choice, but his accent and bizarre delivery made him seem truly alien.
      6. Ricardo Montalban as Khan
      7. Roger C. Carmel as Harry Mudd
      8. Michael Dunn as Alexander...a truly sympathetic turn.
      9. Michael Forrest as Apollo...another great sympathetic character.
      10. Yvonne Craig as Marta...did a fantastic job playing sexy and crazy.

      Comment

      • PNGwynne
        Master of Fowl Play
        • Jun 5, 2008
        • 19444

        #4
        Ach, I overlooked Michael Dunn. And you make an excellent point about Nalder.
        WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

        Comment

        • Earth 2 Chris
          Verbose Member
          • Mar 7, 2004
          • 32498

          #5
          Great lists, but no Michael Ansara as Kang? My favorite TOS Klingon, and the first one that pointed to the "honorable" Klingons we'd get in TNG and Star Trek VI.

          Chris
          sigpic

          Comment

          • PNGwynne
            Master of Fowl Play
            • Jun 5, 2008
            • 19444

            #6
            Originally posted by Earth 2 Chris
            Great lists, but no Michael Ansara as Kang? My favorite TOS Klingon, and the first one that pointed to the "honorable" Klingons we'd get in TNG and Star Trek VI.

            Chris
            I like Kang and the female Romulan Commander, I just personally rate Lenard's and Colicos' performances more highly.

            Kang has a bit of an advantage in being able to play off Mara. I'd rate Kor and Kang over Koloth surely, though.
            WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

            Comment

            • Earth 2 Chris
              Verbose Member
              • Mar 7, 2004
              • 32498

              #7
              ^As great as Campbell is as Trelane, his Koloth was probably TOS's worst Klingon foil. Michael Pataki steals the show in that one.

              Chris
              sigpic

              Comment

              • PNGwynne
                Master of Fowl Play
                • Jun 5, 2008
                • 19444

                #8
                Worse except for Tige Andrews lol. But you are so right about Pataki. I feel the same way about Morgan Woodward as Van Gelder. His performance never ceases to "wow" me, he totally overshadows the episode's antagonist. I normally love to watch James Gregory, but his performance there is pedestrian.
                Last edited by PNGwynne; Dec 4, '17, 7:20 PM.
                WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

                Comment

                • TrekStar
                  Trek or Treat
                  • Jan 20, 2011
                  • 8354

                  #9
                  Good list, IMO Colicos Kor was the best TOS Klingon, evil and sinister, he would have chewed up and spit out Tige Andrews Klingon character and banished him from the Klingon empire.

                  Roger Carmel, Montalban, Arnold Moss all gave excellent performances,
                  but I didn't see Joan Collins on the list? Edith Keeler.

                  Comment

                  • PNGwynne
                    Master of Fowl Play
                    • Jun 5, 2008
                    • 19444

                    #10
                    Originally posted by tjacwave50
                    Good list,..but I didn't see Joan Collins on the list? Edith Keeler.
                    She's adequate, not great IMO. I think Joan Marshall did more with her smaller role in "Court-Martial" than Collins did with her featured one. Muldaur is better, too.
                    WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

                    Comment

                    • Mikey
                      Verbose Member
                      • Aug 9, 2001
                      • 47242

                      #11
                      The Malachi Crunch guy teasing Scotty on Tribbles

                      Comment

                      • Klosterheim
                        Persistent Member
                        • Mar 23, 2013
                        • 1121

                        #12
                        1. William Windom — Commodore Matt Decker
                        2. Michael Ansara - Kang
                        3. John Colicos - Commander Kor
                        4. Ricardo Montalbán as Khan Noonien Singh
                        5. Antoinette Bower - Sylvia
                        6. Mark Lenard - Romulan Commander
                        7. William Campbell - Trelane
                        8. Anthony Caruso as Bela Oxmyx
                        9. Gary Lockwood - Gary Mitchell
                        10. Steve Ihnat - Fleet Captain Garth

                        runners up:

                        William Shatner - "Evil" Kirk, second version from transporter incident.
                        The 3 brains in "The Gamesters of Triskelion"
                        Ted Cassidy - Voice of Gorn Captain
                        Bobby Clark - Gorn Captain
                        Roger C. Carmel - Harry Mudd
                        Arnold Moss – Anton Karidian / Kodos

                        Comment

                        • Earth 2 Chris
                          Verbose Member
                          • Mar 7, 2004
                          • 32498

                          #13
                          She's adequate, not great IMO. I think Joan Marshall did more with her smaller role in "Court-Martial" than Collins did with her featured one. Muldaur is better, too.
                          Heresy! "Court-Martial" has always been a snore fest to me, probably because someone at DC Comics REALLY loved that episode, giving every character in it a featured page in their "Who's Who in Star Trek" mini-series, while other more important characters were totally left out or marginalized. I know that's not fair to the episode, but it still left a mark on it for me.

                          Chris
                          sigpic

                          Comment

                          • PNGwynne
                            Master of Fowl Play
                            • Jun 5, 2008
                            • 19444

                            #14
                            I think "Court-Martial" is a good episode with some great performances, while "City on the Edge of Forever" is a great episode with some good performances.
                            WANTED: Dick Grayson SI trousers; gray AJ Mustang horse; vintage RC Batman (Bruce Wayne) head; minty Wolfman tights; mint Black Knight sword; minty Launcelot boots; Lion Rock (pale) Dracula & Mummy heads; Lion Rock Franky squared boots; Wayne Foundation blue furniture; Flash Gordon/Ming (10") unbroken holsters; CHiPs gloved arms; POTA T2 tan body; CTVT/vintage Friar Tuck robes, BBP TZ Burgess Meredith glasses.

                            Comment

                            • HardyGirl
                              Mego Museum's Poster Girl
                              • Apr 3, 2007
                              • 13933

                              #15
                              No one has mentioned Frances Nguyen of "Elaan of Troyous" or Barbara Babcock from "Taste Of Armegeddon" and "Plato's Stepchildren".
                              "Do you believe, you believe in magic?
                              'Cos I believe, I believe that I do,
                              Yes, I can see I believe that it's magic
                              If your mission is magic your love will shine true."

                              Comment

                              Working...
                              😀
                              🥰
                              🤢
                              😎
                              😡
                              👍
                              👎