It all began when Gene Roddenberry convinced Desilu to foot the bill for not one, but two "Star Trek" pilots; thanks to Desilu's boss, America's darling Lucille Ball, the world met Kirk, Spock and McCoy.

Paramount wanted to launch a fourth network with the new Star Trek series Phase II as its flagship. When the network proved unworkable, Phase II appeared doomed - until Star Wars and Close Encounters of the Third Kind proved box office hits. Phase II became the 1979 blockbuster Star Trek: The Motion Picture.

The 1980s saw Paramount release three linked Star Trek movies to huge box-office success. The first, The Wrath of Khan, saw Ricardo Montalban as Khan, a villain from the original series, return. It was followed by The Search for Spock, directed by Leonard Nimoy. He returned to the director's chair for The Voyage Home, the biggest Star Trek success yet.

Plagued by fledgling UPN's under-performance, Enterprise's premise (a prequel about the Federation's founding) was undercut by the decision to make the third season a reaction to 9/11. Lackluster ratings meant Captain Archer and his crew would only get four seasons.