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Ian Spelling

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File:Ian Spelling, Sanctuary.jpg

...as a Bajoran officer

Ian Spelling (born 5 November) is a freelance journalist and writer who is best known for his numerous interviews for magazines, websites, and newspapers.

Spelling was born in Long Island, New York and attended the SUNY Albany where he graduated with a major in English. He has been a Star Trek fan from early age on and started to interview people while still in college and working for the Albany Student Press. He attended several conventions and located the famous guests in their hotels where he tried to get interviews via phone.

One day, Spelling was able to get in contact with Gene Roddenberry and after a few days on the phone and several interview parts, he managed to sell this interview to Starlog. Since then, he has interviewed almost every major Star Trek actor, including Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, Walter Koenig, James Doohan, George Takei, and Mark Lenard, and from the early '80s on his interviews and articles have been published in dozens of Starlog and Starburst magazines. Spelling also contributed outside the Trek universe and interviewed actress Tahnee Welch for example.

His special connection to the Star Trek phenomenon allowed him access to various Trek sets, including Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Star Trek: Deep Space Nine, Star Trek: Voyager, Star Trek Generations, Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, Star Trek Nemesis, and Star Trek, where he interviewed cast and crew members, guest actors, and people behind the scenes. He saw James Doohan slipped into the water tank on the Paramount lot for Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, William Shatner, James Doohan, and Walter Koenig filming the deleted skydiving scene from Star Trek: Generations, and visited the biggest set ever for a Trek production, the Enterprise-E hull scene with Patrick Stewart, Michael Dorn, and Neal McDonough in First Contact.

File:Ian Spelling, Innocence.jpg

...as a Drayan soldier

Spelling himself appeared two times in a Trek production. During a set visit he was invited to portrayed a Bajoran officer in the Star Trek: Deep Space Nine episode "Sanctuary" in 1993. In his scene, filmed on the OPS set, he stopped behind Colm Meaney and watched the viewscreen. During this time he was also photographed with Avery Brooks and guest actress Deborah May. Three years later he interviewed cast and crew of Star Trek: Voyager and after a conversation with Rick Berman Spelling found himself portraying a Drayan soldier in the episode "Innocence". His experiences were published in the article "A Day in the Life of Star Trek" in the May 1996 Starlog edition, Issue #226. His costume from his latter Trek appearance was later sold off on the It's A Wrap! sale and auction on eBay. [1]

He also wrote Inside Trek for the New York Times which has been later renamed into Strange Worlds, and was a prolific contributor to Star Trek Monthly/ Star Trek Magazine. In addition, Spelling co-wrote The Making of Star Trek: First Contact with Lou Anders and Larry Nemecek. Spelling worked on the actors' profiles for the book.

As a full time freelance entertainment writer, Spelling contributed articles and interviews to the New York Times, TV Guide, Reader's Digest, the Chicago Tribune, the Denver Post, and websites such as UGO.com and SciFi.com. During an interview for the Official Charmed Magazine on set, Spelling made another jump in front of the camera. In the eight season episode Kill Billie: Vol. 1 in 2005, he portrayed the unfortunate Ian who just asked a question and was sent to hell by a demon. Recently he interviewed Harrison Ford during filming of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008) and wrote a movie review of the comic adaptation The Spirit (2008).

Trek interviews and articles

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