Star Trek is an American science fiction entertainment franchise created by Gene Roddenberry and owned by CBS (TV series) and Paramount Pictures (Film Rights) - wikipedia 
William Shatner played the unflappable Captain James T. Kirk in ''The Original Series'', ''The Animated Series'', and seven films, helping to create the standard for all subsequent fictional Starfleet captains.
- wikimedia
# See also * Conception and setting * Mythology * History and production * Television series * Feature films * Merchandise * Star Trek: cultural impact * Awards and honors * Corporate ownership * See also * Notes * References * Bibliography * External links
The first series, now referred to as The Original Series, debuted in 1966 and ran for three seasons on NBC. It followed the interstellar adventures of James T. Kirk and the crew of the starship Enterprise, an exploration vessel of a 23rd-century interstellar "United Federation of Planets".
In creating the first Star Trek, Roddenberry was inspired by Westerns, Wagon Train, the Horatio Hornblower novels and Gulliver's Travels. In fact, the original series was almost titled Wagon Train to the Stars.
In November 2015, CBS announced the development of a new Star Trek TV series to be shown on a digital platform from January 2017.
Star Trek has been a cult phenomenon for decades. Fans of the franchise are called Trekkies or Trekkers. The franchise spans a wide range of spin-offs including games, figurines, novels, toys, and comics. Star Trek had a themed attraction in Las Vegas that opened in 1998 and closed in September 2008. At least two museum exhibits of props travel the world. The series has its own full-fledged constructed language, Klingon. Several parodies have been made of Star Trek. In addition, viewers have produced several fan productions.
Star Trek is noted for its influence on the world outside of science fiction. It has been cited as an inspiration for several technological inventions, including the cell phone and tablet computers. The franchise is also noted for its progressive civil rights stances. The Original Series included one of television's first multiracial casts. Star Trek references can be found throughout popular culture from movies such as the submarine thriller Crimson Tide to the animated series South Park.