Star Trek Enterprise Original Series Set Rebuilt To Perfection, See The Astonishing Results

James Cawley is a 56-year-old Elvis impersonator from Ticonderoga, New York with a passion for the Star Trek franchise. His passion was so strong, that he invested an unknown amount of money into building his own live-action playground. The set Cawley built was so exquisite that it thrust his internet show into the limelight with some very popular names. 

During the time when Cawley was filming Star Trek: New Voyages, his replica of the Enterprise brought volunteers from all over the world together because they wanted to be a part of the project. Some of the writers and actors from the original series, including George Takei, Walter Koenig, and Nichelle Nichols, also turned up to take part in the fun. 

Cawley’s passion for Star Trek began when he was just a kid. He used to watch the original series every day and play “Star Trek” with his buddies. Instead of growing out of his love for the show, his interests grew deeper and more expensive as he grew older. 

When he was a teenager, Cawley decided he wanted to be an actor. He thought he might build a set from his beloved Star Trek series, and he didn’t want to build a shabby version of the Enterprise. So… when Cawley was 18, he called up Paramount Pictures and asked to speak to the original costume designer on the show, Bill Theiss. “And they put the call through,” he said. 

Cawley built a connection with Theiss during that conversation that led to Theiss sharing fabric samples, color choices, and even a set of blueprints for the entire soundstage with him. Cawley made good use of the blueprints and began construction on his Star Trek replica of the Enterprise in 1996. 

He released his first fan-made Star Trek film on his Enterprise set in 2003 and began a new journey in his life. Cawley played the role of Captain Kirk but with Elvis-inspired hair, as his “day job” was working as an Elvis impersonator. 

Cawley was quoted saying, “People were like, well, why does he have Elvis hair? … And you’d have to explain, well, look, that’s my day job. I’m not getting paid to play Star Trek. Elvis is paying for me to play Star Trek.”

Star Trek: New Voyages has since ended production on Calwey’s Enterprise, but it was fairly popular among fans of the franchise online for many years. Cawley played Kirk on the show for a while before passing the role on to someone else. Production ended in 2015. 

After production ended, Cawley turned his Star Trek playground Enterprise into the “Star Trek Original Series Set Tour” in upstate New York. It is officially licensed by CBS Television and open to visitors for most of the year, except for a brief time during the winter when it’s just too darn cold to do anything. 

You can tour the set, take pictures with friends on the bridge, and well, play Star Trek with your buddies. 

At the age of 93, William Shatner’s role in Star Trek: The Original Series as Captain James T. Kirk of the Starship Enterprise is still the driving force behind the actor’s fame today. It’s been nearly 60 years since the original Star Trek series first aired, and the imprint of the show on today’s culture is still evident.

Source: Star Trek Tour