| − | In addition to his views on religion, Gene Roddenberry had views on relationships which were considered controversial at the time the Original Series was on air, and even today. A kiss between Captain Kirk ([[William Shatner]]) and Lieutenant Uhura ([[Nichelle Nichols]]) was shown in the episode “Plato’s Stepchildren,” aired Nov. 22, 1968. This is generally considered the first interracial kiss on U.S. television, although Sammy Davis Jr. did give Nancy Sinatra a peck on the check in "Movin' with Nancy." (Dec. 11, 1967)<ref>Miss Cellania, "[http://www.neatorama.com/2013/04/10/TVs-First-Interracial-Kiss/#!rjF17 TV's First Interracial Kiss]”, ''Neatorama'', April 10, 2013</ref> More recent Trek material is restrained in this respect. Picard and Lily did have an interracial kiss in ‘’Star Trek: First Contact’‘ (1996). But this was only a brief goodbye kiss. | + | In addition to his views on religion, Gene Roddenberry had views on relationships which were considered controversial at the time the Original Series was on air, and even today. A kiss between Captain Kirk ([[William Shatner]]) and Lieutenant Uhura ([[Nichelle Nichols]]) was aired in 1968.<ref>“Plato’s Stepchildren,” Nov. 22, 1968.</ref> This is generally considered the first interracial kiss on U.S. television, although Sammy Davis Jr. did give Nancy Sinatra a peck on the check over a year earlier.<ref>''Movin' with Nancy'', Dec. 11, 1967)</ref><ref>Miss Cellania, "[http://www.neatorama.com/2013/04/10/TVs-First-Interracial-Kiss/#!rjF17 TV's First Interracial Kiss]”, ''Neatorama'', April 10, 2013</ref> There was also an interracial kiss between Picard and Lily in ''Star Trek: First Contact'' (1996). But this was only a brief goodbye kiss. |
| | Gene Roddenberry was also supportive of same-sex relationships, and wanted to integrate homosexual characters into his second series, ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', reasoning that by the 24th century "no one would care." However, this proposal was met with resistance by [[Paramount Studios]] who reasoned that because the show would eventually be syndicated, it would be accessible to young children for whom such material would be extremely inappropriate. | | Gene Roddenberry was also supportive of same-sex relationships, and wanted to integrate homosexual characters into his second series, ''Star Trek: The Next Generation'', reasoning that by the 24th century "no one would care." However, this proposal was met with resistance by [[Paramount Studios]] who reasoned that because the show would eventually be syndicated, it would be accessible to young children for whom such material would be extremely inappropriate. |