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The Enterprise, NCC 1701 and The Model Maker Paperback – November 17, 2015

by N. Datin McDonald (Author), Richard C. Datin Jr. (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 48 ratings
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The Star Trek Enterprise Model NCC 1701 began its journey in 1964 in my father's model shop, most of us had our first sighting of it in 1966 when it flew across out TV screen. No other cinematic vessel is nearly as famous and is still the most recognized and successful "starship" in history. It was donated by Paramount Studios to the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC, where it will once again be on display for all its fans to view, in the summer of 2016. From Gene Roddenberry's imagination to Matt Jefferies ability to draw what was in Gene's head, to the Howard Anderson Co. for special effects, to my father's ability to read, decipher and construct from those blueline plans to what we see today, my father had a wonderfully specialized talent and this is his story to tell. A larger view of the blueline plans has now been included in the back pages.
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  1. Print length
    172 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publication date
    November 17, 2015
  4. Dimensions
    6 x 0.39 x 9 inches
  5. ISBN-10
    1518644880
  6. ISBN-13
    978-1518644887
  7. See all details
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About the Author

N. Datin McDonald is the daughter of Richard C. Datin Jr., The Star Trek Enterprise Model Maker. She spent her childhood in Malibu CA. Has a B.A. from U.C.L.A. and many years of experience as a floral designer and owner in Solvang, CA. She is currently a photographer of animals and landscapes, and resides with her husband and Chairman Mao, the cat boss, in the Pacific North West

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform (November 17, 2015)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 172 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1518644880
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1518644887
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 8.5 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 0.39 x 9 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 48 ratings

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
48 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

R G.
5.0 out of 5 stars For the love of craftmanship
Reviewed in the United States on March 21, 2023
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If you appreciate old school model makers skills, along with Hollywood circa 1960s visionaries, and just that much more to geek out about, and you're a TOS Star Trek fan, you want this book.

It's a rather informal, self published entity, by the daughter who grew up with dad as the man who made the model, and that's all very okay.

It's not a very dense book. It's not a technical book. It's not a book full of revealed secrets nor excessive insight into the man nor the filming Enterprise model itself. Pics are few, scans of old paperworks are problematic in quality.

It is however, if you truly are a fan of TOS, and are still thrilled whenever you see a quality shot of the 11 foot Enterprise model, this book is brings you in just a little closer to the process that brought that model to our televisions and beyond for 50 years.

There's also some information regarding the hanger deck, of course the 3 foot Enterprise model, and the K7 space station.

This is the kind of book you pick up not because of how amazing it it, but can appreciate it is what it is.
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Tim Kuzniar
5.0 out of 5 stars Meet the *Real* builder of the U.S.S. Enterprise..!
Reviewed in the United States on December 8, 2015
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Just finished reading "The Enterprise NCC-1701 and the Model Maker" by N. Datin McDonald. This short but extremely interesting book accomplishes the much needed task of filling in some gaps in the history of what is perhaps the most iconic spaceship ever created for American science fiction media.

As an artist and scale modeler myself, I greatly appreciated the clear technical treatment and information on how model maker Richard C. Datin constructed the original three-foot and the later eleven-foot shooting miniatures of the U.S.S. Enterprise. Alas, there are few photos of the time and the paper trail surrounding this project is thin -- but as the author points out, her father was a working modeler and at the time building these spacecraft was "just another job," as no one back then could ever guess as to just how popular Star Trek would become. As the original miniature undergoes some much needed restoration at the Smithsonian's National Air & Space Museum in preparation for its new unveiling in 2016 (Star Trek's 50th anniversary year), I felt very privileged to experience this book's nostalgic glimpse back on it's creation.

The volume also relates stories about some of the other TV and movie modeling projects Mr. Datin was involved in, culminating in later life with his interest in the collection and restoration of steam locomotive railroad engines and cars as the founding curator of the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Carson City.

I won't spoil it by telling you what it is, but at the books' end, readers are treated to a simple little photograph of the head-stone for Mr. Datin's final resting place and it is sure to spark a little thrill for every Star Trek fan. My posthumous thanks go out to Mr. Datin, who sounded like a wonderful man and a creative artist who gave us all an enduring legacy that has helped so many of our dreams take flight among the stars -- and also thanks to his daughter for taking the time and effort to compile this short but meaningful chronicle of her father's skill and talent.

If you're at all interested in Star Trek or model building, treat yourself with a copy of this book for your home library.
13 people found this helpful
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Ron S
4.0 out of 5 stars Quick read- worth the price
Reviewed in the United States on February 10, 2019
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This is a book written by the person who made the 3 foot model of the Enterprise for the original show. This person also designed and supervised the outsourced building of the famous 11 foot model used for most of the filming. His daughter wrote a lot of the book and it seems he was not given the recognition that he deserved. Like a lot of the people involved in the making of TOS, it was just another job until it became super popular. Then people came crawling out of the woodwork to take credit for anything involved in the show. This book tells the story of one of the previously unsung contributors to the show.
Very interesting to see the original “plans” for the Enterprise, although the drawings are so old that they are not very clear. Still very interesting for fans of TOS.
2 people found this helpful
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LoveOldClocks
5.0 out of 5 stars What a great little book
Reviewed in the United States on October 29, 2016
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What a great little book. Extremely interesting to those of us who must know all about Trek. Since I too have dealt with the Smithsonian regarding displays and references, I can truly sympathize with his continuing frustrations! At times, the museum personnel can understandably be pinpoint-focused on a single point of possible contention in their efforts for absolute accuracy, and, in my humble opinion, they can lose sight of the big picture. One example I'm reminded of is that during their past Star Trek exhibit, they unknowingly presented some fan-made reproductions as actual screen-used props. Refusing to take Mr. Datin's word that he actually constructed the Enterprise model was a grave disservice to him, asking him to provide written proof of a kind that nobody could produce. I'm glad his daughter wrote this book, as now the record can be set straight. Mr. Datin was an exceedingly talented model maker, and I'm thankful he used those skills in constructing what surely is the world's most recognizable spacecraft. It is a shame that he often does not get the credit he deserves.
4 people found this helpful
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Jordan Hofer
5.0 out of 5 stars Perhaps the most lovingly produced Star Trek book of all time.
Reviewed in the United States on November 1, 2017
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Perhaps the most lovingly produced Star Trek book of all time. The story of Datin is one of recognition sought from pride felt. How could it be that the name of the model maker, who built both Enterprise models in the late '60s, was forgotten? Datin's many notes about the ships' dimensions, paint, decals and lighting are fascinating stuff if you love that ship! This book has a proud place on the shelf alongside the Starfleet Technical Manual and Bjo Trimble's Star Trek Concordance.
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John F Foster III
5.0 out of 5 stars Trekkie's Will Enjoy
Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2019
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I've been a Trekkie since the beginning (9/8/1966) and have thought the design of the Enterprise, and subsequently, the model of the starship, was one of the best in the market. This explains the build of the 3' model, the 11' model, and, unknown to me, the hangar bay filming model.
A must read for anyone that enjoys the original Enterprise in all her splendor and glory!
2 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Harry Orme
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on May 19, 2016
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Interesting look at the development of the NCC-1701
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 21, 2016
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A good read, a must for any Trekkie who loves the Enterprise
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Reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on November 6, 2016
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Interesting historically!
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Ray Lefebvre
4.0 out of 5 stars A worthy read!
Reviewed in Canada on February 23, 2016
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Although he is largely recognized now, particularly by those who paid attention to such things, Richard Datin wasn't always given the credit he deserves as the man who built the 33 in. and 11 ft. filming models of the original TOS Enterprise. He also built the familiar miniature set of the ship's Flight Deck that housed the small Galileo shuttlecraft filming miniature. And finally he also built the K7 space station, albeit the K7 was a modification of a pre-existing model. And while he didn't build the small shuttlecraft miniature he did once repair it when he built the famous hangar deck miniature set.

Last November (2015) Richard Datin's daughter released a new book that sets to put the record straight on the man who actually built the starship designed by Matt Jefferies.

It does talk about dimensions, paint colours, materiels and construction details. It sets out to denounce and debunk some long accepted "truths" reprinted in some respected publications. It certainly asserts that no original drawings of the final form of the ship ever appeared in print no matter what has been claimed by various sources. That said it does acknowledge some respectable fan efforts have been done over the years.

Datin appears disappointed and regretful that he was never consulted for any of the 11 footer's previous restorations. He was happy to hear the model was finally getting the present recognition and respectful restoration it deserves.

If there is a disappointment to this book it's in the lack of good images of original source materiels. We don't get to clearly see (at least well) original construction drawings although there are tantalizing glimpses. We also don't get to see any previously unreleased shots of the original Enterprise filming models.

Nonetheless at any rate I do recommend this book for those interested in such things. It's certainly not heavy reading and while the book's focus is predominantly on Datin's involvement with Star Trek it does also touch on his life before and after TOS.
2 people found this helpful
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