- "Even in this corner of the galaxy, Captain, two plus two equals four. Almost certainly an attempt will be made to kill you. Why do you invite death?"
- ―Mister Spock
| "The Conscience of the King" | |
|---|---|
| Series Star Trek Season 1, Episode 13 | |
| |
| Air date | December 8th, 1966 |
| Writers | Barry Trivers |
| Director | Gerd Oswald |
| Producers | Gene Roddenberry; Gene L. Coon; Robert H. Justman |
| Starring | William Shatner; Leonard Nimoy |
| Episode guide | |
| Previous "The Menagerie (Part 2)" |
Next "Balance of Terror" |
"The Conscience of the King" is the thirteenth aired episode of season one of the American science fiction television series Star Trek, but the twelvth official episode of the series discounting the original unaired pilot episode. It was directed by Gerd Oswald and written by Barry Trivers. It first aired on NBC on December 8th, 1966. Like all episodes from the series, "The Conscience of the King" was digitally remastered with upgraded visual effects. The remastered version of the episode aired on CBS on September 22nd, 2007. In this episode, Captain Kirk's chilldhood friend, Doctor Thomas Leighton brings a man named Anton Karidian aboard the Enterprise under the pretense that he is a trained Shakespearean actor. Before long however, the crew begins to suspect that Karidian may actually be a mass murderer known as Kodos the Executioner who was responsible for a massacre some twenty years ago.
Cast[]
Principal Cast[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| William Shatner | Captain James T. Kirk |
| Leonard Nimoy | Mister Spock |
Guest Stars[]
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| DeForest Kelley | Doctor Leonard "Bones" McCoy |
| Grace Lee Whitney | Yeoman Janice Rand |
| Nichelle Nichols | Lieutenant Nyota Uhura |
| Bruce Hyde | Ensign Kevin Riley |
| Arnold Moss | Anton Karidian |
| Barbara Anderson | Lenore Karidian |
| William Sargent | Doctor Thomas Leighton |
| Natalie Norwick | Martha Leighton |
| David-Troy | Larry Matson |
| Karl Bruck | King Duncan |
| Marc Adams | Hamlet |
| Majel Barrett | Enterprise computer |
| Frank da Vinci | Crewman |
| Eddie Paskey | Lieutenant Ed Leslie |
| Ron Veto | Security guard |
Notes & Trivia[]
- Production code number: 6149-13
- Stardate: 2817.6
- This is the first episode of the series directed by Gerd Oswald. He also directed the season one episode, "The Alternative Factor".
- This is the only episode of Star Trek written by Barry Trivers.
- This is the second and final appearance of Ensign Kevin Riley. He appeared last in "The Naked Time".
- Majel Barrett, who usually plays the role of Nurse Christine Chapel, is also the voice of the Enterprise computer system in this episode. She is uncredited for her role in this capacity.
- Frank da Vinci, Eddie Paskey and Ron Veto are all uncredited for their participation in this episode.
Home Video[]
- The digitally remastered version of "The Conscience of the King" appeared on disc five of Star Trek: The Original Series: Season One in HD.