The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy [Paperback]

Grace Lee Whitney (Author), Jim Denney (Author), Leonard Nimoy (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1, 1998

She opened for jazz great Billie Holiday, shared the set with Marilyn Monroe, and flirted on-screen with Jack Lemmon. In her dream role, Gene Roddenberry beamed her aboard the Starship Enterprise as Yeoman Janice Rand in the original “Star Trek” series. But a terrifying sexual assault on the studio lot and her lifelong feelings of emptiness and isolation would soon combine to turn her starry dream into a nightmare.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Whitney's Star Trek character, Yeoman Janice Rand, appeared for only half a season, yet fans still send her mail. Her assisted account of her hitch on the Enterprise begins with her nightmarish rape by an executive she declines to name. Later she imparts how that incident affected her: she became alcoholic. Meanwhile, we learn that she smoked and had sex when very young--both behaviors, she says, are early signs of an addictive personality. She recounts her spiritual journey, from the Methodist Church to rejecting religion to Judaism, pointing out that spiritual understanding is a very important aspect of recovery, but her Star Trek production memories and analyses, especially her remarks about getting the role and later having it written out of the show, and her re sume of her non-ST career are more interesting. She is civil, perhaps remarkably so, when discussing people who victimized her or said nasty things about her and winds up exemplifying how one can, it seems, rise above anything. Jeff Ahrens --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Review

3 STARS (OUT OF 3) -- A good read! ... Former Star Trek star Grace Lee Whitney opens this account of her life at the point where Americans know her best--Star Trek. ... The TV show embraced her [and] promised to make her a star. ... But a sexual assault on the studio lot by a man she'll call only "The Executive" brought Whitney's pink slip from the show after just half a season. ... While her problems began long before she hopped aboard the Starship Enterprise, her substance abuse developed into a full-blown, threatening, menacing beast. ... They don't get any tougher than Grace Lee Whitney, who is 17 years sober this year. ... Whitney said she was a bit scared about the book's release. You'll see why. She throws it all out there. -- THE DETROIT NEWS / Saturday, October 3, 1998

Grace Lee Whitney had extensive TV credits before her dream role as Yeoman Janice Rand on the original Star Trek series. This book probes her life both within and outside the show, examining her evolving talents and career and a nightmare which overtook and changed her life. Star Trek fans will find this riveting -- a must have item for any collector. -- REVIEWERS BOOKWATCH / October 1998

Grace Lee Whitney's Hollywood memoir, THE LONGEST TREK [is] no cute collection of tribble stories. Whitney's role was abruptly dropped after she was raped by an executive of the show's production company. The crime sent her into a tailspin of drugs and sex addiction. ... It's been a burden on my soul all these years, she admits. I beat myself up. I felt cheated, but I've had to turn it around. She's ditched years of remorse, tears, rage and resentment, partly through writing her book. She says her story couldn't be more timely as America tries to come to grips with unwanted sexual advances in the workplace. Her friend, Leonard Nimoy, wrote the foreword. ... Whitney stays upbeat about the life she's led. It lifts you up to see that you're still alive. I can't be sorry. -- TV HOST, Portland, Oregon / September 1998

Grace Lee Whitney's Star Trek character, Yeoman Janice Rand, appeared for only half a season, yet fans still send her mail. Her account of her hitch on the Enterprise begins with her nightmarish rape by an executive she declines to name. ... She recounts her spiritual journey, pointing out that spiritual understanding is a very important aspect of recovery. But her Star Trek production memories and analyses, especially her remarks about getting the role and later having it written out of the show, and her resume of her non-Star Trek career, are more interesting. She is civil, perhaps remarkably so, when discussing people who victimized her, ... exemplifying how one can rise above anything. -- BOOKLIST / September 15, 1998

It has been a long voyage home for Actress Grace Lee Whitney. Whitney talks in depth about her horrific spiral through all of the seven deadly sins and eventual spiritual salvation in her frank autobiography, "The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy." ... The name of Whitney's book refers both to her short stint as a member of the original "Star Trek" cast in 1966 and her current belief she has risen out of the ashes of her own life. ... Whitney's not the first member of the "Star Trek" family to write a book; however, none that have gone before her have written so boldly about their lives. -- THE FRESNO BEE / September 27, 1998

Leonard Nimoy was one of the first to read Grace Lee Whitney's book. ... If I could get a positive recommendation from him, she says, I would know that I had done good work. ... The book is dedicated to her sons, her Star Trek castmates, and Harlan Ellison--all of whom have played a role in her life. ... She details her relationship with Ellison, her two failed marriages and the plastic surgery she had--all before she found the courage to give up drinking and to accept God. ... Reading her book, Star Trek fans will notice the parallel between the real life Grace Lee Whitney has finally found and the fantasy world created by Gene Roddenberry. Both universes are filled with unconditional love, acceptance of self, and that belief that something is there, beyond the stars. -- Paramount's STAR TREK COMMUNICATOR / October/November 1998

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Product Details

• Paperback: 208 pages
• Publisher: Linden Publishing; 1st edition (July 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884956033
• ISBN-13: 978-1884956034
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 7 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #629,494 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What a Trek!, March 5, 2005

By 

Greatwood (Sugar Land, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy (Paperback)

Grace Lee Whitney was a large part of Star Trek in the beginning and I always wondered why she just disappeared from the series..Well, this very insightful autobiography tells you, along with other very interesting anecdotes about her involvement with the series. Yeoman Rand was an interesting character and it would have been neat to see where Grace would have taken this character if she had been allowed to continue in the role.

It's quite revealing how Grace plunged into the depths of alcoholism and other addictions and how she literally "ruined" her career in Hollywood with a bad reputation. However, it's quite inspiring to read how she pulled herself out of this hole and gradually came in touch with her religion and the realization that she needed to change her aberrant behavior and start respecting herself again..For anyone who has experienced great lows in their life, they should read this book and be inspired!

Of all the autobiographies written by former castmembers this is the one that is most heartbreaking..however it does have a happy ending! For all you Trekkies out there this is a must read!!

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A study in addiction, March 1, 2006

By 

Billie Rae Bates "BRBTV.com, BillieRae.com" (Washington, D.C.) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy (Paperback)

Grace Lee Whitney writes this book for "Star Trek" fans, certainly, but what she says to addicts -- and those whose lives are affected by them -- is far more powerful. I had the pleasure of interviewing Ms. Whitney and reviewing this autobiography for The Detroit News when the book was first released. I was struck by her graciousness and kindness, but I was also struck by the gritty strength she conveys in this book. Frankly describing incidents like her hit-and-run on Grand River Avenue in Detroit, and her guarding the bathroom door of a Chicago club while the heroin-addicted Billie Holiday was getting shot-up inside, she just puts it out there, none too concerned what her cult-TV fans will think of her. You've got to appreciate that. And it's pretty clear, throughout the book, that her motives are not to make herself look good, or bad, but to shine a light on the effects of a gruesome and very common illness.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A moving and inspiring book, July 9, 2000

By 

Jo Blow - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Longest Trek: My Tour of the Galaxy (Paperback)

I am a long time Star Trek fan who bought this book because I have had the honor of meeting Ms. Whitney at a couple of conventions, and she has impressed me with her warmth and wit. I read this book in a single sitting because I could not put it down. Unlike the other Trek memoirs I've read, this one focuses not on a TV series, but on the incredible story of a woman's fight to find peace with God and herself. This book is a must read for anyone who has ever experienced tragedy, loss of self esteem, or addiction. The one thing that concerns me most is that I feel too many people will look on this as just another Star Trek book when its audience should be far greater than just Trek fans. The author has bared her soul in an attempt to help others, and the courage that must have taken is awe-inspiring. Bravo, Grace Lee!