zaranite star trek

Forgotten Aliens of The Motion Picture

The Motion Picture was the first time Star Trek fans got a look at some of the more exotic alien races that are supposed to be in the Federation. Low budgets on The Original Series had meant that its aliens looked an awful lot like humans.

Responsibility for designing these creatures fell to costume designer Robert Fletcher and makeup artist Fred Phillips, both veterans of The Original Series .

With Gene Roddenberry’s permission, Fletcher not only named the species but provided brief background for each one. After The Motion Picture was released, he shared his notes with Fantastic Films and Starlog magazines in early 1980. (Links point to scanned version of the interviews by My Star Trek Scrapbook .)

Aaamazzarites

Two Aaamazzarites can be seen in the air tram station in the beginning of the movie.

Fletcher described them as “Therbians from planet Aaamazzara.” It is unclear if he intended Therbians to be a species with multiple worlds. A planet Therbia was later mentioned in the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode “The Chase”.

They generate their own clothing from out of own mouths, like bees making hives. They manufacture everything they use from their own chemistry, from inside their own body, from clothing to furniture.

Their costumes were modeled in clay and cast in sheets of foam rubber.

Arcturians appear in various scenes, including at Starfleet Headquarters and when Kirk briefs the Enterprise crew in the recreation room.

Fletcher designed them to be identical, because they are clones. The only way to tell Arcturians apart is by their uniforms.

Hailing from an enormous planet, the Arcturians are a militaristic race who provide the Federation with infantry.

The costume worn by the Arcturian not serving in Starfleet was made of leather and linen. Fletcher originally wanted to use woven metal tubes for rope decorations.

It was to be silver-plated into a bandolier and also used for decorations on the shoulders and elbows denoting rank and regiment. It didn’t quite work out, so you’ll see very little of it in the film, toned down quite a bit.

Betelgeusians

Three Betelgeusian ambassadors are walking around the air tram station when Kirk arrives, and one member of their race, a scientist, is present on the Enterprise reaction deck during the briefing. (Look for the blue head.)

They are humanoid in appearance, but they have eagle and leopard blood.

Derived in evolution from giant leopard-like birds, have claw and bone structure like condor, but walk upright like leopards.

The Betelgeusian ambassador was dressed in an elaborate costume with real gold and silver wrapped around silk thread. His two deputies were dressed in simpler, green-gold robes.

The Kazarites are a shepherd people. On their home planet, they raise great herds of strange beasts — a combination of camels and goats. But don’t let their simple appearance fool you. According to Fletcher, the Kazarites have the power of telekinesis.

Two Kazarites are seen in the movie, both at Starfleet Headquarters.

Fletcher imagined they were on Earth to take care of the planet’s animals. “Really twenty-third-century ecologists.”

They typically carry small pellets with food around their necks.

A Megarite appears at Starfleet Headquarters the moment Kirk’s shuttle pulls into the air tram station.

They are humanoid in appearance, but according to Fletcher their body has a similarity to rhino hide. They are a gentle people, “who communicate in a lyric type of poetry which their four lips alone in the galaxy are able to produce.” Their musical poetry is treasured by other races, but because the Megarites live off marine species found only on their world, few except diplomats ever travel.

The Megarites build almost everything from jade, which their planet has in abundance. Most of their clothes are made from sea animals.

In the real world, Fletcher used indigo blue wool and cast the lower sleeves in plastic to represent graphite steel.

Rhaandarites

The Rhaandarites were featured semi-prominently. Billy Van Zandt played a Rhaandarite bridge officer and a pair of them appear at Starfleet Headquarters.

According to Fletcher, they are a child-like race that doesn’t reach maturity until the age of 150. They continue to grow physically until they reach 200.

There is little visual difference between the sexes. The women have a spot on their forehead, made of aluminum and black resin.

The Rhaandarites are “considered the country bumpkins of outer space,” which is why their native costume appears rather ragtag.

The Rigellians are the descendants of saber-tooth turtles. A lord and his servant appear at Starfleet Headquarters.

According to Fletcher, the lords (who are taller and wear a helmet) have no real power, except they lay their species’ eggs. It are the servants who control them.

The Rigellians were meant to be unisex.

Their costume, made of molded fiberglass, is not supposed to be armor but rather a manufactured exoskeleton, “because the poor turtles have lost their shells.”

Cedric Taporco appears far in the background of the recreation deck scene as a Saurian officer. At least one close-up photograph exists, giving us a better look at this lizard people.

According to Fletcher, they have four hearts and can breathe a number of gasses, which makes them very useful as explorers. They have learned to communicate in Earth tongue. Their own vocal language is difficult for others to master.

A Shamin priest can be seen at Starfleet Headquarters. According to Fletcher, they hail from a primitive world known as O’Ryan’s Planet, discovered by Paddy O’Ryan in the twenty-second century. Their culture is similar to that of Native Americans.

The priest’s costume was originally designed for Spock. “That didn’t work out, so the Shamin got it.” Fletcher resisted putting the character entirely in rags, given that he also wore a lot of jewelry, “so this is the compromise we arrived at.”

Zaranites don’t breathe oxygen but fluorine gas, so they have to wear breathing masks on Earth. In addition, they wear a backpack that generates fluorine.

Their costumes were fashioned out of old suedes found at Paramount, left over from Cecil B. DeMille’s The Ten Commandments (1923).

Three Zaranites can be seen in the recreation room when Kirk briefs his crew on their mission.

Their jewelry, horn-like in appearance, was supposedly made of the horns of the most cultivated animal on their planet, the Berbbotjahaa. In reality it was made from a combination of fabric and liquid plastic. According to Fletcher, the top part (necklace) is a family totem and the lower part a personal designation.

The Zaranite breathing masks were reused in Star Trek IV and Star Trek VI , when similar-looking aliens appear in the Federation Council chamber and at the Khitomer Conference. Star Trek IV Sourcebook Update (1986) describes these aliens as Zaranites, but according to Teresa E. Victor, one of the actors who played them, they were called “Aammazarans” — not to be confused with the spider-like Aaamazzarites.

Thank you for posting this article. I love these aliens so much. I had all the Mego 3.75” figures for a few years. Best to you, hope you’re staying safe…

Fletcher and the production team spent so much effort on these characters and their design. Such a shame they were only used as background extras or in cutaway crowd shots. Except for Zandt’s alien ensign, who made it as a bridge crew member. Still with minimal purpose.

I was there, the Zandt makeup was one of mine(I still have pictures of the sculpture on his life mask) and Ve applied it on set. I still remember the day I had the meeting with Gene and Robert. As a young man in my twenties and a Trek fan it was difficult to maintain my composure in front of such giants. Spock’s ear were mine too until Charlie came along to change them mid-show and departed from the original design John Chambers created for TOS. Charlie didn’t care, a pointed ears was a pointed ear and know one would notice. Fred Philips was a friend and originally called me in to do the ears and then I moved on to other aliens. I brought in my friends bit by bit into the studio to help. Ve, my girlfriend at the time, was one of them. Her work was great and we made a good team. Little know Star Trek facts for you.

That’s so cool! Thank you for sharing.

My pleasure.

Thanks Steve! That’s Ve as in Ve Neill? My friend and I were trying to recall if there were cat-like aliens in Star Trek: The Motion Picture , in that scene when Kirk addresses the crew.

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Star Trek: Strange New Worlds is upending canon for its new engineer

Carol Kane plays the the mysterious, hilarious chief engineer Pelia

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As season 2 of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds comes to Paramount Plus this week, most things about the show are the same. It’s still the Enterprise as helmed by Captain Pike , Kirk’s predecessor. It’s still a return to the episodic Trek formula of yesteryear. And it’s all the same cast — except for one.

With last season’s heartbreaking death of chief engineer Hemmer, there’s a space to fill on the Enterprise roster. And as it’s still a little too early for Montgomery “Scotty” Scott to show up, that role has fallen to an original character: chief engineer Pelia, played by legendary actor and comedian Carol Kane.

Given that she’s brand-new, there’s very little anybody knows about Pelia — but in the season premiere, “The Broken Circle,” she’s already upending everything we know about Star Trek’s alternate history of humanity.

[ Ed. note: This piece contains spoilers for the season premiere of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds season 2.]

The usual sign that a character is human rather than one of Star Trek’s innumerable humanoid aliens is that they’re not wearing some kind of facial prosthetics. And you won’t find a pointed ear or ridged forehead anywhere in Kane’s show wardrobe. But, as “The Broken Circle” reveals, Pelia is definitely not human. The first hint we get is when she casually refers to being more than 100 years old. In the same scene, Uhura, the ship’s polyglot, takes note of Pelia’s accent and asks if she is “Lanthanite,” to which Pelia replies, “Guilty as charged.”

Which is very interesting, because there’s no analogous Star Trek species to that name. In the episode’s final scenes, Spock drops one more tantalizing, explosive line about Lanthanites in conversation with Pelia: “I’ve always been fascinated by your people. That you managed to live on Earth among other humans undetected until the 22nd century is remarkable.”

This is brand-new information for Star Trek canon, and it would mean that somewhere in the 2100s — a century that includes the founding of the Federation, the obsolescence of money, and the events of the Star Trek: Enterprise series — humanity discovered that there had been aliens living among them. And this is something that everybody in Star Trek has just... known this whole time, but not mentioned until now? Buck wild.

When Polygon spoke with Kane, the first thing we asked was how she’d reacted upon realizing her character was an alien who’d lived secretly among humans for potentially centuries.

“Just thrilled,” she replied, “because you can let your imagination run wild and it’ll work. Also, I like the fact that I get to be the one that knows the most — in my opinion. And I probably do,” she quipped, “because of the time I’ve been on the Earth and in space.”

Kane said she relishes playing an older character, not unlike the original series’ Dr. McCoy, who’s doing cool space stuff right alongside all the young folks. “I like that at my age, which is Pelia’s age, that I get to be on the ship and embraced by the other people, so I’m not solitary. I like that. I relate to that.”

Kane couldn’t tell us anything about Pelia or the Lanthanites that wasn’t already revealed in “The Broken Circle.” All we can say for now is that they appear to be a completely new addition to the galaxy of species that make up Star Trek canon, and that chief engineer Pelia has a friendly history with Spock’s mother, Amanda Grayson. There’s no telling when Strange New Worlds is planning to reveal more, but we, for one, eagerly await more answers about the aliens living among us.

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• 1 Home System
• 2 Home World
• 4 Government
• 5 Description
• 6 Physiology
• 7 Psychology
• 9 Mythology
• 13 Technology
• 15 Military
• 16 Federation Intelligence Files

Home System

• Quadrant : Alpha
• Location : Firus Sector (coordinates A24-0002-1298)
• Proper Name : Byrdica
• Star : It orbits a class A (Light Blue) star
• Distance from Star : its orbit is approximately 83 million km
• Companions : 3 other planets. It is the 1st planet in the system
• Moons : it has 6 moons.
• Proper Name : Zaran II
• Diameter : 21,509 km (13,365 miles)
• Gravity : 1.07 standard gravity with a density of 3.5
• Axial Tilt : 26.3% with moderate seasonal changes
• Orbital Period : 421 days
• Rotational Period : 29 hours
• Classification : L
• Surface Water : 52%
• Atmosphere : 1.32 is a standard pressure with 48% nitrogen, 34% carbon dioxide, 13% oxygen, 5% trace chemicals
• Climate : Temperate with large polar caps.
• Terrain : It has vast undulating plains, some deserts and vast forests.
• Population : Just over 3 billion

They have a history of peaceful coexistence which went hand in hand with their struggle for survival. Advances in technology were a matter of increasing their survival chances. Eventually they advanced to the point where survival was no longer the most important factor in their daily lives.

Zaranites were first encountered by humans in the 2070s, and soon came under control of a group known as the Totality, human fugitives from Earth's World War III, who used superior technology, eugenics and mental weapons to control them. The Zaranites used a special oneness-mind to fight back against the human oppression.

The Federation made diplomatic first contact with this race in 2257. As a Federation member, they had a delegation present during Earth's "Whalesong Crisis".

In 2274 a Zaranite microecologist named Havzora was part of the Federation team on the planet Mestiko working to restore that planet's ecosphere.

By the 24th century, Zaranite weapons research was a valuable asset to Starfleet. However, petitions for an all-Zaranite starship crew were denied due to their belligerent tendencies.

They have the council of 5 who are chosen to serve the people for 5 years.

Description

Zaranites are Semi-Humanoid and have shiny light-brown skin and breathe carbon dioxide. Zaranites always wear a heavy metallic mask with twin air hoses leading to a small environmental backpack, when in class M environments. They virtually always wear heavy robes in public.

Zaranite individuals have two hearts, one of which can stop from time to time. In this near-death state they meditate on choices made in life. Most people believe they are fluorine breathers, requiring them to wear gas masks and protective suits in Earth-like environments. They also breathe oxygen, but inhale fluorine-rich microorganisms (like Benzites ), which they need as other humanoids need base minerals in their diets.

The females are known to have psionic powers for hunting, healing and mating, which enable them to attract males by arousing hormones in both sexes. The arousal of hormones means that a life-bond is formed between a couple. A bonded female is capable of making a joined mass-mind between members of a hunting group, and special hunting parties can form a greater mass-mind called "oneness", equivalent to a nation.

They are a very calm, stable people who can deal with incredible amounts of stress with no side effects. In fact they appear to be as emotionless as Vulcans but like the Andorians who hide their emotions from strangers, the Zaranites seem to conceal their emotional state from other species. In truth due to the masks, protective garments and other cultural differences this is all an illusion. Most species just cannot notice or understand the outward signs that would normally reveal their emotional state.

Zara is the name of their creator/observer. He/she respects perseverance and the will to survive. Once a year the entire species take one day and meditate on the challenges and difficulties that they have had to overcome in their life. During these 29 hours they will not eat, drink, sleep or move from their position for anything. This one day of worship is also a test of their abilities to survive.

They have a strong history of oral histories that still survive today. Many of these stories detail the trials and difficulties of survival for their people in the early pre-industrial ages.

They are a very hard working, self reliant people who work well with others. Regardless of their radical physiology they still take a very active role in the Federation and Starfleet. Crime is almost unknown on their home world and they live peacefully with each other. The community as a whole comes first as they work together to make things better for their community.

While they did have music prior to making contact with other species they did not have any of the other art forms. Now they have poetry, sculptures and paintings. At the same time music is still the more common form of artistic expression. Just now days that have many more musical instruments and forms of music to experiment with. Strangely enough a slightly modified version of the Terran bagpipes has become one of their favorite new instruments.

Zaranites are a hunting species. Their civilization is based on elaborate hunting practices. In Zaran's harsh environment, there is no native industry or agriculture, only the hunt of predators, led by females, though Zaranites may also hunt their females.

Zaranites have special necklaces symbolizing their social states and family relation.

They are slightly behind the majority of Federation member worlds in most fields except that of artificial environment technology and self contained artificial environment containers and suits.

They have a completely self sufficient economy but they do export numerous devices and parts used in creating unique environments for plants, animals or species that need to be provided living space away from their native environments.

They never had a military of their own. However since joining the Federation some have enlisted in Starfleet where they have served with honour. The Zaranite homeworld is out of the way from usual Federation traffic lines. The nearby Marie Celeste sector is known for unexpected disappearances, possibly due to pirates.

Federation Intelligence Files

Two Zaranite Federation counselors were at Kirk's trial in 2286. See file # ST4-2286-4517 and as Camp Khitomer attendants in ST6-2290-1426 .

Information was obtained from memory alpha and beta as well as the movies, Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country. Other sources of information used were: TOS novel Sarek, TOS eBook: Mere Anarchy: The Darkness Drops Again, TOS novel: Triangle, TOS novel: Ex Machina, FASA RPG module: Star Trek: The Next Generation Officer's Manual, FASA RPGmodule: Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home Sourcebook Update and the TOS comic strip: The Real McCoy.

This file was updated and approved by the SDC on 02 December 2013

• View history

Zaranites were a humanoid species , distinguishable from Humans by their bulbous foreheads and inability to breathe in a nitrogen / oxygen atmosphere . They wear a breathing mask in order to serve on a standard Starfleet starship or space station . ( Star Trek: The Motion Picture ; ( Star Trek: The Prospect Chronicles : " The Tzenkethi Incident "))

• List of Zaranites

External links [ ]

• Zaranite article at Memory Alpha , the canon Star Trek wiki.
• 1 Amy Peale
• 2 Vanessa Biondo
• 3 Waka class

Memory Beta, non-canon Star Trek Wiki

A friendly reminder regarding spoilers ! At present the expanded Trek universe is in a period of major upheaval with the continuations of Discovery and Prodigy , the advent of new eras in gaming with the Star Trek Adventures RPG , Star Trek: Infinite and Star Trek Online , as well as other post-57th Anniversary publications such as the ongoing IDW Star Trek comic and spin-off Star Trek: Defiant . Therefore, please be courteous to other users who may not be aware of current developments by using the {{ spoiler }}, {{ spoilers }} OR {{ majorspoiler }} tags when adding new information from sources less than six months old (even if it is minor info). Also, please do not include details in the summary bar when editing pages and do not anticipate making additions relating to sources not yet in release. THANK YOU

• View history
• 1 Biography
• 2.2.1 Appearances

Biography [ ]

Zantra solved the pure logic problem of Russell's Paradox . His solution was taught in all Vulcan schools by the 23rd century . He eventually became Special Advisor to the Zaranite High Council .

Prior to the year 2273 , Zaran II joined the Federation and at least five Zaranites served as Starfleet officers aboard the starship USS Enterprise . Zantra was the leader of a secessionist faction, and in that year, he boarded the Enterprise for a trip to Zaran II. Zaranite crewmembers heard that he would petition for secession, but made it clear to Montgomery Scott that they would continue serving aboard the starship .

During a conversation in the officer's lounge with James T. Kirk and Spock , Zantra had a seizure and collapsed. He was comatose in sickbay while Doctor Christine Chapel tried to determine why his left heart was beating once every three minutes , whereas his right heart was still beating normally. In order to repair the ailing muscle tissue , Leonard McCoy proposed open-heart surgery , a questionable procedure in this case. Chapel had an operating room prepared with a fluorine - gas atmosphere so that Zantra could be operated on without his breathing apparatus. Just prior to the start of the surgery, a second McCoy appeared with Kirk and Spock, exposing the impostor as Anton Zauber . Zauber threatened Chapel's life with a laser scalpel , but Zantra regained consciousness. He removed Zauber's oxygen cable and the impostor choked on fluorine gas, unable to breathe.

McCoy explained that Zantra's heart condition was rare but a natural process. Zantra explained that their people use these times for meditation . He told Kirk and Spock that he had changed his mind and would argue against secession. ( TOS comic : " The Real McCoy ")

Appendices [ ]

Appearances and references [ ]

Appearances [ ].

• TOS comic : " The Real McCoy "
• 1 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-B)
• 2 Ferengi Rules of Acquisition
• 3 USS Voyager (NCC-74656-A)

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• View history

Zarabeth was an inhabitant of the planet Sarpeidon .

She was exiled to her planet's past by Zor Kahn because members of her family tried to kill this tyrant of her planet. She was transported to a barren Sarpeidon Ice Age by use of the Atavachron , a time portal . She was provided with weapons, food and shelter and as her punishment, and was to live out the remainder of her existence alone and unable ever to return to her time.

Spock and Leonard McCoy of the USS Enterprise accidentally entered Zarabeth's time era when they attempted to follow Kirk through the Atavachron. While seeking shelter in the frozen waste, they encountered her, and she led them to safety.

Suffering from loneliness, Zarabeth told Spock that they could not return to their own time, but was unaware that Spock and McCoy had not been "prepared" by the Atavachron as she was. McCoy noticed a growing attraction between Spock and Zarabeth, which had developed as a result of the Vulcan 's chronologically-induced regression to the wildness of his ancestors from that time period, and had Spock seriously thinking of remaining with her. McCoy accused her of deceiving them to persuade Spock to remain behind. An emotional outburst ensued, which brought Spock back to his senses.

Zarabeth eventually conceded to knowing only that she could never go back and sadly agreed to lead them to the portal. Spock, still reluctant to leave her behind, finally summoned the will to do so when they heard Kirk's voice. They found their way back through the door, where Spock acknowledged the painful realization that Zarabeth had been dead for 5,000 years, yet assuring McCoy that he had fully returned to the present in every sense. ( TOS : " All Our Yesterdays ")

• 1.1 Background information
• 1.2 Apocrypha
• 1.3 External link

Appendices [ ]

Background information [ ].

Zarabeth and Spock caring for McCoy

Zarabeth was played by actress Mariette Hartley . She was described in script notes as, " Hers is a face of the past: pure, clean, lovely, without benefit of visible artifice. "

The design of the costume for Zarabeth was influenced by the fact that Hartley was one of many Star Trek actresses whose navels – as NBC 's Standards and Practices department warned Gene Roddenberry – had to be hidden. ( Star Trek: The Original Series 365 , p. 343)

According to deleted references from the 12 December 1968 final draft of the script , Zarabeth was in her second year of banishment before the landing party from the Enterprise arrived on Sarpeidon; however, in the planet's corresponding "real time", Zor Kahn had been out of power for over a century since she had been removed to the past.

Apocrypha [ ]

In the novel Yesterday's Son , it is revealed that Spock and Zarabeth had a son named Zar and that Zarabeth died seventeen years after the events of "All Our Yesterdays" as a result of falling into an ice crevasse.

External link [ ]

• Zarabeth at Memory Beta , the wiki for licensed Star Trek works
• 2 USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-G)
• 3 Star Trek: The Next Generation