Space Age TV Rarity: William Shatner Starring In "The Night of the Auk"

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Several years before William Shatner first took the conn of the U.S.S. Enterprise on Star Trek, the beloved icon starred as a space crew leader in Arch Obler's television adaptation of his Broadway play “The Night of the Auk.” Obler's apocalyptic tale concerns the fateful actions of an extremely wealthy, egotistical industrialist (played by William Shatner) who finances a pioneering space flight for the U.S. government. As a member of the historic space crew, the industrialist’s malignant narcissism emerges under the allure of the media spotlight, triggering an escalating cascade of horrific events. The claustrophobic videotaped production, set entirely on the bridge of a spacecraft, provides a master showcase for Shatner, foreshadowing the trademark acting style he would soon perfect in the role of his lifetime as Captain James T. Kirk.

Based on his drama “Rocket From Manhattan,” produced for the radio program Lights Out in 1945, Obler’s artful teleplay for “Night of the Auk” poetically examines the existential dangers of the space age amidst the backdrop of nuclear proliferation that defined the Cold War. Viewed 65 years after its original broadcast, this rare Play of the Week production proves eerily prescient, serving as a grim cautionary tale warning of the undue privilege, power and attention bestowed upon the ultra-wealthy, regardless of deficits of character.

—John H. Mitchell Television Curator Mark Quigley

Play of the Week: “Night of the Auk”

U.S., 5/2/1960

DCP, b&w, 120 min. Syndicated. Production: National Television Associates. Executive Producer: Worthington Miner. Producer: Lewis Freedman. Directors: Nikos Psacharopoulos, Mel London. Writer: Arch Oboler. With: William Shatner, Shepperd Strudwick, James MacArthur. Preserved by the UCLA Film & Television Archive. Video transfer at DC Video. Engineering services by David Crosthwait.