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Portraits of American Genius #2
Gene Roddenberry: The Last Conversation
Gene Roddenberry created a mythology for the twentieth Star Trek. One of the most successful television shows and cultural icons of all time, Star Trek was from the beginning a forum where its creator and its viewers could explore the most fundamental questions of What is the difference between sexuality and love? What does goodness mean? What is the role of government? Where does duty end and morality begin? And most What does it mean to be human?
The Last Conversation is a poignant exploration of the inner world of Gene Roddenberry as he faced the end of his life. Insisting that no one could really know him or the sources of his creation without becoming part of his private world, he invited Yvonne Fern to live with him and his wife, Majel Barrett. "I want you to write me," he said, and later told her she had. The Last Conversation, however, is more than a portrait of a single life - it is an intellectual embrace. Well-matched in the velocity of their imagination and the depth of their understanding, Gene and Yvonne shared a journey into the meaning and worth of human existence.
As Gene receded from life, Yvonne's increasingly solitary task was to convey the richness, the insight, the radiance they saw in each other and in humanity. This beautiful book, written as a philosophical dialogue, is a last confessional call upon centuries of earlier attempts to codify our understanding of human experience and what lies beyond.
Throughout their intense dialogue, Gene never once spoke of the future in the future tense. It was never "the future will be," but always "the future is." Echoing this immediately, the book is written in the timeless present, allowing each of us to take part in The Last Conversation.
As we read and reread this stunning work, we are moved a little closer to the luminous future that Gene Roddenberry knew was already within us.
The Last Conversation is a poignant exploration of the inner world of Gene Roddenberry as he faced the end of his life. Insisting that no one could really know him or the sources of his creation without becoming part of his private world, he invited Yvonne Fern to live with him and his wife, Majel Barrett. "I want you to write me," he said, and later told her she had. The Last Conversation, however, is more than a portrait of a single life - it is an intellectual embrace. Well-matched in the velocity of their imagination and the depth of their understanding, Gene and Yvonne shared a journey into the meaning and worth of human existence.
As Gene receded from life, Yvonne's increasingly solitary task was to convey the richness, the insight, the radiance they saw in each other and in humanity. This beautiful book, written as a philosophical dialogue, is a last confessional call upon centuries of earlier attempts to codify our understanding of human experience and what lies beyond.
Throughout their intense dialogue, Gene never once spoke of the future in the future tense. It was never "the future will be," but always "the future is." Echoing this immediately, the book is written in the timeless present, allowing each of us to take part in The Last Conversation.
As we read and reread this stunning work, we are moved a little closer to the luminous future that Gene Roddenberry knew was already within us.
244 pages, Hardcover
First published August 17, 1994
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
November 25, 2015
You can hear the clink of fine bone china and a perfectly beautiful glowing goblet of wine when Yvonne Fern speaks of Gene Roddenberry. She wants us to know how well she knew him and that he knew her well, too. so well that they had a special bond, beyond even his bond with his wife in some ways. Fern documents several occasions where she and Gene share a look or knowing glance or an exchange of insightful words after Majel has left the room.
In spite of all the fawning hero-worship and melodramatic language we do get a glimpse into the mind of the creator of Star Trek in his last few months of life. It's interesting to read the man's philosophy and thoughts on a wide range of topics. i would have rated this two stars but for this. he was a visionary of sorts but but Fern puts him on a lofty pedestal and herself on one as well. a lower one but one nevertheless.
It's certainly worth a read to any Star Trek fan and maybe to those interested in a little behind-the-scenes in the lives of television writers, especially one whose work became such an integral part of society at large.
In spite of all the fawning hero-worship and melodramatic language we do get a glimpse into the mind of the creator of Star Trek in his last few months of life. It's interesting to read the man's philosophy and thoughts on a wide range of topics. i would have rated this two stars but for this. he was a visionary of sorts but but Fern puts him on a lofty pedestal and herself on one as well. a lower one but one nevertheless.
It's certainly worth a read to any Star Trek fan and maybe to those interested in a little behind-the-scenes in the lives of television writers, especially one whose work became such an integral part of society at large.
March 18, 2019
If you are a Star Trek fan this book is a must. It's the very heart and soul of everything that made Star Trek great.
Gene Roddenberry had a dream. This dream included peace that reached as far as the heavens. Gene was a philosopher above all else. His philosophy was simple, everyone had/has a place, and its up to every individual to find their place in the universe, all the while maintaining the Prime Objective; don't interfere with perfection. Unfortunately, and Gene understood this, perfection is only a dream.
Gene Roddenberry's TV characters encompassed completely the ways and means to his dream of all that was good in humanity. They were Man as Man reasons. All reasons laid out on the table. Human Diversity, sometimes flawed in emotional flesh (except in Spock), had a voice. Gene's Enterprise crew was passionate in their teamed-up purpose; The Prime Objective. The common Good. The Social Contract in all its Utopian ways. Gene's nemesis was that not everyone has the same terms for a good imagination.
Gene's Star Trek was all human and is STILL all important. And Gene knew this had happened in his lifetime. It drove him to ideals far beyond the imagination of humanity. Gene believed in the Universe. He liked The Little Prince. Ayn Rand would have argued with Gene on many accounts, however she quite possibly may have agreed with Gene Roddenberry's Absolute philosophy. Ayn Rand might have liked Star Trek if she had had the chance to. She might have even seen her own theory of Howard Roark.
"God, to me, is intrinsic to humanity. To the whole cause of humanity. To the imaginative principle. To what we create, and think. He-or I should say It-is a source, yes, but more an involvement with the unknown. God is like the leap outside oneself, something that has no discernible source, but is a source." (pg.67) ....a source to the Prime Objective I would add, and I believe Gene would agree.
Dear Gene,
Thank you for showing
the world your Enterprise crew.
Thank you for Star Trek exploring
ideas.
I think you were on the right track.
You had the right dream.
And I am forever a fan.
If I could only imagine.
“What makes the desert beautiful,' said the little prince, 'is that somewhere it hides a well...”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
RIP among the stars in the Q.
Gene Roddenberry had a dream. This dream included peace that reached as far as the heavens. Gene was a philosopher above all else. His philosophy was simple, everyone had/has a place, and its up to every individual to find their place in the universe, all the while maintaining the Prime Objective; don't interfere with perfection. Unfortunately, and Gene understood this, perfection is only a dream.
Gene Roddenberry's TV characters encompassed completely the ways and means to his dream of all that was good in humanity. They were Man as Man reasons. All reasons laid out on the table. Human Diversity, sometimes flawed in emotional flesh (except in Spock), had a voice. Gene's Enterprise crew was passionate in their teamed-up purpose; The Prime Objective. The common Good. The Social Contract in all its Utopian ways. Gene's nemesis was that not everyone has the same terms for a good imagination.
Gene's Star Trek was all human and is STILL all important. And Gene knew this had happened in his lifetime. It drove him to ideals far beyond the imagination of humanity. Gene believed in the Universe. He liked The Little Prince. Ayn Rand would have argued with Gene on many accounts, however she quite possibly may have agreed with Gene Roddenberry's Absolute philosophy. Ayn Rand might have liked Star Trek if she had had the chance to. She might have even seen her own theory of Howard Roark.
"God, to me, is intrinsic to humanity. To the whole cause of humanity. To the imaginative principle. To what we create, and think. He-or I should say It-is a source, yes, but more an involvement with the unknown. God is like the leap outside oneself, something that has no discernible source, but is a source." (pg.67) ....a source to the Prime Objective I would add, and I believe Gene would agree.
Dear Gene,
Thank you for showing
the world your Enterprise crew.
Thank you for Star Trek exploring
ideas.
I think you were on the right track.
You had the right dream.
And I am forever a fan.
If I could only imagine.
“What makes the desert beautiful,' said the little prince, 'is that somewhere it hides a well...”
― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
RIP among the stars in the Q.
October 17, 2019
The Last Conversation deserves more press than it got. I happened to be at a Star Trek convention in San Francisco when the author was touring to promote the book. As cliche as it sounds when talking about anything Star Trek related: This book remains as fascinating today as it was in the 1990s. Ms. Fern spent several months with Roddenberry (some of that time with Majel Barrett Roddenberry also) at the end of his life. It meanders a bit, as all good conversations do. The author is very much a presence here - as the title is The Last Conversation, that seems to require at least two parties. The exchanges are insightful and thought-provoking. A must-read for Star Trek fans, but also recommended for anyone interested in the creative process, or, for that matter, this nebulous experience called life.
October 22, 2019
Worth a read for the fact it contains some insights into Gene's thoughts and philosophy in the last year or so of his life.
I didn't care for the authors heavy shoehorning of herself into this narrative.
It's very hard to tell who this book is written for. It doesn't seem like it was for Star Trek fans and I don't think a casual reader would get too much out of the book either.
Sadly, this just seems like a missed opportunity.
I didn't care for the authors heavy shoehorning of herself into this narrative.
It's very hard to tell who this book is written for. It doesn't seem like it was for Star Trek fans and I don't think a casual reader would get too much out of the book either.
Sadly, this just seems like a missed opportunity.
Read
December 7, 2011I have a revised and updated version of this book that contains previously deleted material. Very interesting read about an influential man.
While I have tremendous respect for Mr. Roddenberry's vision and work, I disagree with many of his conclusions which were a mix of optimistic humanism and faith in technology. I'm not at all confident we can defy gravity either in regards to Faster-than-light travel, or our human nature. Humanity's problems lay much deeper than Warp-Drive and Universal Socialism.
I was grieved to read about his last days and think it's a shame such a brilliant and creative man is no longer with us.
While I have tremendous respect for Mr. Roddenberry's vision and work, I disagree with many of his conclusions which were a mix of optimistic humanism and faith in technology. I'm not at all confident we can defy gravity either in regards to Faster-than-light travel, or our human nature. Humanity's problems lay much deeper than Warp-Drive and Universal Socialism.
I was grieved to read about his last days and think it's a shame such a brilliant and creative man is no longer with us.
September 13, 2015
Perhaps the best glimpse into the soul of Gene Roddenberry. Essential reading for anyone who loves him.
This was an extremely important book in my youth and I still value it. But after years immersed in Gene's universe, my life took a direction which would have horrified Gene, departing for a "strange new world" he could barely imagine … a world which is undoubtedly as alien to most people reading this book as it was to him.
Link to my "strange new world" here: http:corjesusacratissimum.org.
This was an extremely important book in my youth and I still value it. But after years immersed in Gene's universe, my life took a direction which would have horrified Gene, departing for a "strange new world" he could barely imagine … a world which is undoubtedly as alien to most people reading this book as it was to him.
Link to my "strange new world" here: http:corjesusacratissimum.org.
February 6, 2016
An intimate look into Gene's mind. At first I found his outlook refreshing. He seemed a strong, thoughtful person ~ a " gentle knight" indeed. then as the author and Gene's relationship and trust grew it became quite a beautiful thing to witness. It has made me think about some important issues. has given me encouragement not to give up on the world and humanity. We have a long way to go but one day we will be ready. :-)
November 7, 2012
I did not find this an easy book to read. It is a conversation and events of his nearing death. Some interesting insights in to society and religion. It is probably best read by those who know Star Trek and history of the actors. Many quotes of people, with some more information and some dates would have ben helpful. I had the original edition.
September 11, 2007
A really interesting read for those who want to know more about the worldview behind Star Trek and the personality that created it.
Want to read
October 17, 2013This man was a GREAT visualizer.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews