As the holidays approach, the Cafe's staff is always on the lookout for unique gift ideas for classic film and TV fans. A great recent find, Star Trek: The Art of Juan Ortiz, is sure to delight fans of the original Star Trek TV series. In his oversized 112-page book, Ortiz has designed a poster for each of the 80 episodes of Gene Roddenberry's 1966-69 series. While the majority of the posters are done in a movie style, some of them replicate the look of pulp novel covers, comic books, and advertisements.
One of my favorites (shown below) is the poster for the season one episode "Arena," which pits Captain Kirk against a reptilian alien in a potential battle to the death. Note the discoloration around the edges to give the impression that the poster was originally created in the 1960s.
In the book's introductory interview, Ortiz describes his approach to the posters: "Star Trek was many things. It wasn't just a show about science fiction. Episodes ranged from war, love, horror, court dramas, death, mental illness, politics, social issues, and of course the Western theme, to name just a few. Therefore, I was able to approach each poster with its own take, without feeling as though I were repeating myself."
At a suggested retail price of $39.95, Star Trek: The Art of Juan Ortiz is not an inexpensive book. Still, it's a must-have for fans of the original series. The posters are stylish, colorful, clever, and suitable for framing (though you'd have to cut up your book!). Any trekker would beam it aboard his or her starship without hesitation.
Titan Books provided a review copy of this book.
