Remastered "Menagerie" in Theaters, followed by High-Def Season 1 DVD

Mark your calendars, Trek fans: the official Star Trek site has announced that a high-definition, digitally remastered version of the Original Series two-part episode "The Menagerie" will play in hundreds of theaters in the U.S. and Canada.

The new version will include "never-before-seen footage," new CGI special effects meant to replicate the look and feel of the original show, a re-orchestrated and rerecorded version of the theme, an introduction by creator Gene Roddenberry's son, Eugene "Rod" Roddenberry, and a 30-minute behind-the-scenes featurette on how the facelift was done.

The event will take place one night only: Tuesday, November 13, 2007 at 7:30 p.m. local time. A list of theaters participating in the event can be found here; the list is subject to change. Tickets are $12.50 and can be pre-ordered at the local box offices or online through the event's sponsor, Fathom Events. (To purchase tickets at the Fathom Events site, first enter your zip code to find the nearest participating theater.)

"The Menagerie" is a unique episode in the Original Series canon. A deadline crunch during the production of the first season required the show's creators to fill a gap in the schedule fast, so they elected to build a two-part episode around the rejected first pilot for the series, "The Cage." Because only Leonard Nimoy's Spock had been retained when the show was rethought for the second, successful pilot ("Where No Man Has Gone Before"), the new episode, "The Menagerie," was built around Spock attempting to help his previous captain, Christopher Pike (played in the reused pilot footage by Jeffrey Hunter).

The timing is apt, as next year's Star Trek movie may well reintroduce us to Pike, though the role has not yet been confirmed or cast. The remastered "Menagerie" is the latest in a series of scrubbed and polished high-def Original Series episode reissues; more about that program can be had from our friends at TrekMovie.com.

In fact a week after the screenings, on Nov. 20, the remastered entire first season of the original series will be released on HD-DVD (compare prices). The 10-disc set will abound with special features, which are described in the press release posted at Star Trek.com.