Where no man has gone...

As we sit down to draft a pitch for a new idea, be it a product, a deal a new company or the like, it is helpful to find inspiration in write-ups that have been successful in the past. The particulars -- the industry, the technology, the circumstances -- don't really matter. It's the thought process behind the pitch that we are looking for.

Thanks to Jason Kottke's blog, we just came across Gene Roddenberry's original draft of a concept for a new TV show called "Star Trek." As an example of a successful pitch, one would be hard pressed to beat this one. Nearly 50 years later, the multi-billion-dollar franchise created by this document continues to draw new generations of viewers into its web of fantasy.

What is it about this document that helped bring an idea to such a long and prosperous life?

-- It starts in a familiar place  -- the "Wagon Train" TV series -- and takes it to a new world.

-- It has integrity in that the combination of characters, plots and settings make sense,once you accept the basic premise. And the premise itself is justified by the mathematical probability of intelligent life elsewhere in the universe.

-- It doesn't stop with a pilot concept but offers a number of places to go with the idea, a series of  episodes and plots for the future.

-- It anticipates studio executive concerns, in this case potential budget-busting scenery or special effects required by a space drama.  Get this: "For example, interiors and exteriors temporarily available after an 'Egyptian' motion picture, a 'horror' epic, or even an unusual telefilm, could be used to meet the needs of a number of story premises listed here."

-- It conveys that it was put together by someone with not only the passion but the  wherewithal to carry it out successfully in the real world of Hollywood production.

Remember,  the objective of preparing this kind of document is to get someone to believe in the possibility of bringing an idea to life. The movie sequels, comics, video games, conventions and all the rest may come, but they have no place in the first pitch.