Gene Roddenberry

TV Writer

1921 – 1991

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Who was Gene Roddenberry?

Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry was an American television screenwriter, producer, and futurist. He is best known for creating the original Star Trek television series and thus the Star Trek science fiction franchise. Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up in Los Angeles, California where his father worked as a police officer. Roddenberry flew 89 combat missions in the United States Army Air Forces during World War II, and worked as a commercial pilot after the war. Later he followed in his father's footsteps and joined the Los Angeles Police Department to provide for his family, but began to focus on writing scripts for television.

As a freelance writer, Roddenberry wrote scripts for Highway Patrol, Have Gun–Will Travel, and other series, before creating and producing his own television series The Lieutenant. In 1964, Roddenberry created Star Trek, which premiered in 1966 and ran for three seasons before being canceled. Syndication of Star Trek led to increasing popularity, and Roddenberry continued to create, produce, and consult on the Star Trek films and the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation until his death. In 1985 he became the first TV writer with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame and he was later inducted by both the Science Fiction Hall of Fame and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Hall of Fame. Years after his death, Roddenberry was one of the first humans to have his ashes carried aloft as into space.

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Born
Aug 19, 1921
El Paso
Also known as
  • Robert Wesley
  • Eugene Wesley "Gene" Roddenberry
  • Great Bird of the Galaxy
  • Eugene Wesley Roddenberry
  • Roddenberry, Gene
  • The Great Bird of the Galaxy
Parents
Siblings
Spouses
Children
Religion
  • Atheism
  • Agnosticism
Nationality
  • United States of America
Profession
Education
  • University of Miami
  • University of Southern California
  • Columbia University
  • Los Angeles City College
  • Franklin High School
Employment
  • Pan American World Airways
    (1946 - 1949)
  • Los Angeles Police Department
    (1949 - 1951)
Lived in
  • El Paso
Died
Oct 24, 1991
Santa Monica

Submitted
on July 23, 2013

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"Gene Roddenberry." Biographies.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.biographies.net/people/en/gene_roddenberry>.

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