Wednesday, Nov. 19, 1997 | 10:19 a.m.
It won't take a tractor beam to drag fans of "Star Trek" to the Las Vegas Hilton's new $70 million themed attraction when it opens Jan. 4.
Resistance will be futile.
Loyal Trekkers aching for the chance to take a fantasy voyage on their favorite science fiction space vessel, the Enterprise, will find the new "Star Trek: The Experience" is just what the doctor ordered -- whether it be Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy, Beverly Crusher, Julian Bashir or a hologram that's simply known as "The Doctor."
The finishing touches are still being applied to the construction of the Hilton's 65,000-square-foot collaboration with Paramount Parks, but there's still plenty to do to make certain Las Vegas' newest theme park would pass a Starfleet inspection.
News media representatives covering the giant Comdex computer show at the Hilton were invited to check out 20th-century progress on the 24th-century attraction Tuesday night. A few locals got an earlier glance, and the assessment, so far, is universal: There's a lot more there than anyone had imagined. The attention to detail should please the legions of fans who are notorious for dressing up in costumes and memorizing the lines from the four different television series and the eight-going-on-nine motion pictures.
It's a good thing. "Trek" fans are notorious nit-pickers, quick to jump on any Hollywood continuity problem that would disrupt the story line that began with the debut of a cheap, campy series in 1966 and has evolved into the most successful syndicated television show in history.
It took several years after the original series was canceled before the world discovered its love affair with Capt. James T. Kirk, portrayed admirably by William Shatner. The series spawned "Star Trek: The Next Generation," by far the most popular of the TV shows, and "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine" and "Star Trek: Voyager," which continue to be filmed today while the "Next Generation" crew focuses on big-screen gigs.
Although the "Star Trek" crews were generations apart, a number of crossover stories and themes emerged as the characters bounded back and forth in time with the ease of a lane change. It's that alacrity the characters have with traveling through time that is at the crux of the "Experience" adventure.
The journey begins with a self-guided tour of the history of the future, a time line that extends from the birth of Galileo to the last reels of the most recent "Voyager" and "Deep Space Nine" stories. Set beneath a star field and models of four "Star Trek " ships suspended from the ceiling, displays show the red-letter days in the lives of the heroes and the United Federation of Planets. What's interesting is how seamlessly the details of the different TV shows and movies merge to develop a comprehensive story line.
The tour offers visitors glimpses of more than 200 pieces of "Star Trek" memorabilia, displayed like museum artifacts. Some displays have tributes to alien races central to the show -- the Klingons, the Romulans, the Ferengi and the Borg. Another display gives an A-to-Z accounting of every alien species the crews ever encountered.
Once through the displays, visitors will begin their 22-minute interactive voyage in which guests become a part of a "Star Trek" story line. Guests will be beamed aboard the USS Enterprise -- Hilton officials aren't saying how that technological feat is being accomplished.
From there, they'll visit the ship's bridge, board a shuttle and have a close encounter with a Klingon Bird of Prey. A battle with the Klingons, who figure prominently in the script, is part of a four-minute simulator experience aboard a 27-seat, six-axis ride.
As in most "Star Trek" scripts, it's a happy, logical ending. Visitors emerge at Quark's Bar & Restaurant, a locale on the promenade of "Deep Space Nine," known to fans as a crossroads to the space frontier to the Delta Quadrant. Quark's eatery has a menu filled with dishes only a true fan can appreciate -- Fisherman's Worf, Geordi's Nanite Pizza, Hamborger, Frozen Gagh and Deanna Troi's Ultimate Sundae. There's even a drink named for the Enterprise captain, the James Tea Kirk.
The largest collection of licensed "Star Trek" retail merchandise will be available on the promenade at Zek's Grand Emporium and Moogie's Trading Post. The most expensive items: a $2,000 "Star Trek" leather jacket and a $6,000 Borg uniform.
The Experience will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. and admission will be $10 apiece.
Hilton officials promise a star-studded send-off for the theme park in January but won't say which cast members have accepted their invitations.
Count on those avid Trekkers to find out before the Hilton is ready to make the announcement.
