I must tell you about another #trekspertise project that discusses #startrek
In the early 70's, Russell Bates, a Ka'igwu (Kiowa Nation) sci-fi writer penned a quietly subversive episode of Star Trek: The Animated Series. It won the Trek franchise its very first Emmy.
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He was a smart writer, never fully recognized by Trek fans.
His other work made impressions on the likes of not just Gene Roddenberry, but Harlan Ellison, Gene L. Coon, and DC Fontana.
The Miami International SciFi Film Festival named an award after him, given to filmmakers every year. LINK: shorturl.at/dvh5H
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Bates wasn't just writing for Trek. His sci-fi stories appeared in various places, in literature compilations, in pilots that sadly didn't sell, and in the hearts of other writers.
Here is John Walters remembering his friend from the Clarion Writer's Workshop: https://shorturl.at/ZiclW
It is worth taking a moment to listen to him speak. This is our essay (attached) built around an interview we did with Bates in 2016.
by John Walters I have been reading a dynamic new book called The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee: Native America From 1890 to the Present, and I thought about my Native American friend Russell Bates and wondered what he might think of the book. I hadn't been in touch with him since I moved back to the States from Greece, so I ran a search to see if I might find a recent email address or Facebook page where I could re-contact him.That's when I came across his obituary. It said that he died on April 19, 2018, after a brief illness. He was seventy-six years old.
neoteotihuacan