If you are near the Dallas Texas area this weekend (January 29 & 30, 2011) be sure to stop by the “Women Of Sci-Fi” convention that’s being held in Plano, a Dallas suburb. You will get the chance to see and hear a ton of great female actors from the sci-fi genre; including Star Trek’s own Nichelle Nichols (Uhura). If you aren’t in the area be sure to watch our site over the weekend because we’ll be there live blogging all the good stuff for you, so you won’t miss a thing.

This isn’t a Star Trek convention per se, but who could resist the amazing line up they have going. Chances are if you like Trek, then you dig other sci-fi shows too. Some of the other shows being represented at the con are; Battlestar Galactica, V, Firefly, Buck Rogers, Stargate, Stargate Universe, Smallville, and more.

Morena Baccarin, Tricia Helfer and Katee Sackhoff are among the actresses appearing at the upcoming Sci-Fi Expo celebrating “Women of Sci-Fi” in Plano, Texas. The two-day event will be Jan. 29-30 in the Plano Convention Center, 2000 E. Spring Creek Parkway.

We want to wish a very happy birthday to the dearly departed DeForest Kelley. De would have been 91 years-old today and it's been nearly 45 years since he first took on the role of the simply country doctor, Leonard H. "Bones" McCoy. De had quite a career before landing his role in Trek that included several westerns and TV guest spots. He even served his country during WWII in the Army's First Motion Picture Unit, making training films.

De was also a great lover of animals, he and his wife Carolyn had a wide variety ranging from the normal birds and dogs to a giant box turtle named "Myrtle".

It's been almost 12 years since De lost his battle with cancer and we wish we could make the trip to Hollywood and visit his star on the walk of fame.

Well, tomorrow is January 18th and we know exactly where we’re going to be at 7pm Central…sitting on the couch, smack-dab in front of the TV! That’s when PBS will be airing the “Pioneers of Television: Science Fiction”!!!

This episode (the Season 2 premiere) is going to be a doozy! It is focusing on 3 major pioneers of sci-fi television; Gene Roddenberry (Star Trek), Rod Serling (Twilight Zone), and Irwin Allen (Lost in Space). Not only will there be backstory and insights to all of these series, but there’s also a bunch of cast interviews including The Shat, Leonard Nimoy and Nichelle Nichols.

We reported earlier this week that Nichelle Nichols would be interviewed on the Tavis Smiley program and now it's available online for streaming. Nichelle was on the show to promote the upcoming PBS "Pioneers of Television" episode, airing January 18th. This new episode focuses on pioneering science fiction, not only featuring Nichelle, but The Shat & Leonard Nimoy to boot.

Nichelle Nichols did us all a favor on her Facebook Fan page (Nichelle Nichols Communications Page) today! She announced her upcoming appearance on PBS’s Tavis Smiley show. It looks like she’s recording the program tomorrow with scheduled runs this Wednesday the 12th and this Thursday the 13th.

Our local PBS station lists the first airing of Nichelle’s episode as Thursday, the 13th 12am, with several replays throughout Thursday afternoon and evening. Check your local listings to find out when it will air in your area. Here’s a link to the upcoming episode at the Tavis Smiley website.

I can’t imagine if we had missed the show. I think we would have cried. Thanks Nichelle for letting us all know!

William Shatner's "Star Trek: Ashes of Eden", originally published in 1995 has just been released in audiobook form with the big man taking on the role of narrator. Written by Shatner, Judith Reeves-Stevens, and Garfield Reeves-Stevens, the story is set six months before the fateful launch of the Enterprise-B where Admiral Kirk ultimately meets his fate. The place: Earth, where the galaxy’s most renowned hero must face the spectre of retirement. But Kirk’s path takes an unexpected turn when a mysterious woman offers him an irresistible adventure – a voyage to an uncharted planet where he will confront the ultimate threat to the peace between the Federation and the Klingon Empire, and the ultimate temptation – a chance to recapture his youth.

It would seem that December is rife with Star Trek birthdays. Today is the birthday of our lovely Lt. Uhura, Star Trek's own Nichelle Nichols. Before joining the crew of the Enterprise in 1966, Nichelle was an accomplished theatrical actress and singer, touring with Duke Ellington and Lionel Hampton. As we reported earlier this year, she originally saw "Star Trek" as a way to further her career on Broadway.

"It was rather interesting to me to be cast on the show, because I came up in musical theater," Nichelle said. "And somehow I was, like, really on my way to break through and do all of the things that I really wanted to do on Broadway. And I took 'Star Trek' because I thought it would be a nice adjunct to my resume and I'd get to Broadway quicker and as a star. And, I still think that way, but 'Star Trek' interrupted my career."

"I kind of got stuck there," She said. "As a matter of fact, I even tried to leave after the first season, because I thought, 'Oh, this is going nowhere for me."

Set for release sometime next year, William Shatner's "The Captains" documentary is coming close to completion. The Shat discussed his new documentary at both Vegas Khhaaann! & Plano Fan Days this, giving little details about the film. Heck, he even filmed portions of the documentary while walking around in the crowds in Vegas. If you don't know about "The Captains", it focuses on the lives of all five Trek captains with full interviews from each.

"We've got a great film, there's a lot of it and we're passionately putting it together. We'll have it ready in the near future. There are extensive interviews and there will be a lot of clips involving actors who played the captain on Star Trek and what elements unify us and what things are divergent about us. There's a great deal that is common among the actors, their experience, their temperaments." Says Shatner

A new comedy short film by Derek Nguyen called “The Potential Wives of Norman Mao” is being completed now, and is Executive Produced and Narrated by none other than Star Trek’s George Takei.

Here’s how the filmmakers describe the film: Norman Mao is an overweight, and socially-awkward man-child from Hong Kong, who at the age of 33 is still unwed. Desperate to get him married, his parents take him on an international junket across the globe to find him a worthy Chinese wife. The Maos arrive to a New York City hotel, which is their final stop on their trip and their last hope to find Norman a bride. Having hired a professional matchmaking service, the Maos meet with three matches for Norman. Will one of these women be a potential wife for Norman or is he destined to lead a terribly lonely life?