Riverside
From Memory Alpha, the free Star Trek reference.
| This article is written from the Real World point of view |
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Riverside, Iowa, is widely accepted by Star Trek fans to be the birthplace of legendary Starfleet Captain, James T. Kirk. Long before Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home established that Kirk was born in Iowa, Gene Roddenberry had stated in his book The Making of Star Trek that Kirk had been born in Iowa on March 22, 2228. However, he had not been more specific.
In March of 1985, Riverside was looking for a theme for its annual festival. Steve Miller, who was a member of the Riverside City Council, had read Roddenberry's book and suggested that Riverside proclaim itself the future birthplace of Kirk. This motion passed unanimously. [1] The council contacted Roddenberry for permission to be designated as the official birthplace of Kirk. Roddenberry agreed, and designated Riverside as Kirk's birthplace. This, however, has yet to be established in canon.
In 2006, William Shatner, the iconic actor who portrayed Kirk, starred in a reality mini-series entitled Invasion Iowa which took place in Riverside, Iowa, since it had been declared as the future birthplace of Kirk. The series had Shatner recruiting Riverside residents as actors for a film he was directing; however, it was all an elaborate joke on the people of Riverside.
