TMC
11-23-2015, 02:41 AM
http://www.agonybooth.com/agonizer/TVs_First_Interracial_Kiss_Star_Trek.aspx
On November 22, 1968, exactly 46 years ago today, NBC aired the Star Trek episode “Plato’s Stepchildren”, in which William Shatner’s Captain Kirk kissed Nichelle Nichols’ Lt. Uhura and they made TV history. Or did they?
Nowadays, it’s generally accepted that this episode depicted TV’s first interracial kiss, which was all the more historically significant considering the civil rights struggles of the time. Over the years, I’ve seen various books and articles and blog posts assert that the episode was highly controversial in its original airing, with some NBC affiliates (usually only identified as being in “the south”) refusing to air the episode, sponsors threatening to pull their ads, and viewers subsequently responding with an avalanche of hate mail. Given the times, it certainly sounds plausible enough, right?
Being the child of an interracial couple myself, I’ve long wondered what actually went down back then. Figuring that an episode that provoked such strong reactions must have made news at the time, I decided to dig through online archives of newspapers, books, and various periodicals to see what the media was saying about it in November of 1968.
Alas, I found virtually no mention of the episode being any sort of milestone or noteworthy event at the time it aired, or even for many years afterwards.
On November 22, 1968, exactly 46 years ago today, NBC aired the Star Trek episode “Plato’s Stepchildren”, in which William Shatner’s Captain Kirk kissed Nichelle Nichols’ Lt. Uhura and they made TV history. Or did they?
Nowadays, it’s generally accepted that this episode depicted TV’s first interracial kiss, which was all the more historically significant considering the civil rights struggles of the time. Over the years, I’ve seen various books and articles and blog posts assert that the episode was highly controversial in its original airing, with some NBC affiliates (usually only identified as being in “the south”) refusing to air the episode, sponsors threatening to pull their ads, and viewers subsequently responding with an avalanche of hate mail. Given the times, it certainly sounds plausible enough, right?
Being the child of an interracial couple myself, I’ve long wondered what actually went down back then. Figuring that an episode that provoked such strong reactions must have made news at the time, I decided to dig through online archives of newspapers, books, and various periodicals to see what the media was saying about it in November of 1968.
Alas, I found virtually no mention of the episode being any sort of milestone or noteworthy event at the time it aired, or even for many years afterwards.