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==The Star Trek and Mary Renault Connection==

==The Star Trek and Mary Renault Connection==

In the first authorized biography of William Shatner, [[Shatner: Where No Man]] by [[Sondra Marshak]] and [[Myrna Culbreath]], one chapter is devoted to an interview with [[Gene Roddenberry]]. The authors compared Kirk's friendship with Spock to the bond between Alexander the Great and his friend Hephaistion. In context, a series of historical novels about Alexander's life by Mary Renault were appearing at the time this book was being prepared, and Roddenberry had read them. Shatner had played Alexander in a 1968 TV-movie, and both he and Roddenberry described themselves as fans of the historical Alexander.  

In the first authorized biography of William Shatner, ''[[Shatner: Where No Man...]]'' by [[Sondra Marshak]] and [[Myrna Culbreath]], one chapter is devoted to an interview with [[Gene Roddenberry]]. The authors compared Kirk's friendship with Spock to the bond between Alexander the Great and his friend Hephaistion. In context, a series of historical novels about Alexander's life by Mary Renault were appearing at the time this book was being prepared, and Roddenberry had read them. Shatner had played Alexander in a 1968 TV-movie, and both he and Roddenberry described themselves as fans of the historical Alexander.  

Roddenberry was interviewed the week after the announcement of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek_Phase_II Star Trek: Phase II], the originally planned television series. Marshak and Culbreath began by asking him a series of questions about the [[Kirk-Spock]] friendship, particularly in the context of [[Mary Renault]]'s [[The Alexander Trilogy|novels about Alexander the Great]].  

Roddenberry was interviewed the week after the announcement of [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Trek_Phase_II Star Trek: Phase II], the originally planned television series. Marshak and Culbreath began by asking him a series of questions about the [[Kirk-Spock]] friendship, particularly in the context of [[Mary Renault]]'s [[The Alexander Trilogy|novels about Alexander the Great]].  

{{Quotation2|''Marshak and Culbreath:'' "There's a great deal of writing in the Star Trek movement now which compares the relationship between Alexander and Hephaistion to the relationship between Kirk and Spock -- focusing on the closeness of the friendship, the feeling that they would die for one another --"  

{{Quotation2|''Marshak and Culbreath:'' "There's a great deal of writing in the Star Trek movement now which compares the relationship between Alexander and Hephaistion to the relationship between Kirk and Spock -- focusing on the closeness of the friendship, the feeling that they would die for one another --"  

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''Roddenberry:'' "Yes, there's certainly some of that, certainly with love overtones. Deep love. The only difference being, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_love the Greek ideal]... we never suggested in the series... physical love between the two. But it's the... we certainly had the feeling that the affection was sufficient for that, if that were the particular style of the 23rd century." (He looks thoughtful.) "That's very interesting. I never thought of that before."<ref>Page 148. Who is "we"?</ref></p>}}

''Roddenberry:'' "Yes, there's certainly some of that, certainly with love overtones. Deep love. The only difference being, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greek_love the Greek ideal]... we never suggested in the series... physical love between the two. But it's the... we certainly had the feeling that the affection was sufficient for that, if that were the particular style of the 23rd century." (He looks thoughtful.) "That's very interesting. I never thought of that before."<ref>Page 148. Who is "we"?</ref><ref group="note">In the same book, Nimoy affirms that Kirk and Spock are close friends, but doesn't agree with the "die for each other," "I can't live without you" business:  "I don't really see Kirk as needing -- in a functional sense -- as needing Spock. In other words, I don't think Kirk is incomplete without Spock. . . I think Spock needs an environment within which to function, to make himself useful. Kirk is an initiator of action. And therefore, if there's a need either way, I would say that Spock needs to have the initiator in order to be useful in the project that the initiator initiates. I think that Kirk needs a science officer, but not necessarily Spock. He needs a good science officer, to run the ship."</ref></p>}}

===Portrayed in Star Trek===

===Portrayed in Star Trek===