EUGENE, Ore. — Allan Quick and his family have boldly gone where no one has gone before — at least anyone living here in Eugene, Oregon, on planet Earth, anyway.
Quick, 54, with the support of wife Karyn Quick and 8-year-old daughter Rachel, has recreated the bridge of the fictional starship USS Enterprise from the original “Star Trek” TV show in an extra bedroom of his Eugene home.
For the non-Trekkies out there, “Star Trek” was a science-fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry that debuted in 1966. Pitched as a “wagon train to the the stars,” the show ran for three seasons.
More: Beings of Oregon: Micki Voorhies, Blue River metal artist
“I was born the same year that ‘Star Trek’ came out, but remember seeing it in syndication when I was young. The images of the ship, the chair, the lights and colors, have been in my mind ever since,” Quick said.
“My wife and I first got into cosplay, dressing up and going to science fiction conventions,” he said. In addition to “Star Trek,” they own costumes and props from shows like “Batman,” “Planet of the Apes” and “Star Wars.” They are members of a group of “Star Wars” fans called Star Wars Oregon that attend community events dressed as characters from the movie franchise.
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of “Star Trek,” Quick and a friend, Bruce Boyd, decided to build a replica of Captain Kirk’s command chair.
More: Beings of Oregon: Ryan Hoffstot continues family tradition for the holidays in Creswell
The pair spent months pouring over photographs, researching the specifications and even made trips to the Museum of Pop Culture in Seattle to see the original props on display there.
“I knew if it wasn’t right, it was going to bug me,” Quick said.
They completed matching chairs, one for each, in 2016.
While it hasn’t quite been a five-year mission, a two-person transporter platform was assembled in 2017, and the navigation console to complete the bridge was finished earlier this year. The plan was to have all ready for Eugene Comic Con 2020, but the coronavirus outbreak put the debut on hold.
For now, the transporter platform sits in the family’s garage and the bridge pieces are taking up most of the guest bedroom of their home. While crowded, Quick delights in inviting visitors to take a seat in the command chair while showing off the lights, buttons and authentic sounds all wired into the armrests and console.
Seated in the Captain’s Chair, it is easy to imagine being on the set of the show in 1966, if not actually traveling through space on missions of exploration in the 22nd century.
Looking over his creation, Quick said, “These are my childhood memories. With all the other things going on around us in this world right now, I can come in here and sit in this chair and imagine I am on the bridge of the Enterprise,” adding: “This is my happy place.”
