Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE CITY -- A Utah Borg will make his national debut Wednesday night in a documentary about Star Trek.
Around the time Eric Hall was 7 years old, he fell in love with the TV series Star Trek.
"Star Trek is more than a show, it's a philosophy," said Hall. "It's really a worldwide phenomenon."
Hall recently got the opportunity to talk about his love of Star Trek with a group of film makers during a "Trekkie" convention in Las Vegas.
"A friend, who looks very much like Captain Sisko from Star Trek Deep Space Nine, told me that there was a film crew there doing interviews," Hall said. "And so I wandered over and I was in my Borg costume."
The elaborate outfit was one Hall had been working on since 1993. The costume cost him about $80 after piecing it together out of toys, old junk, spray paint and a voice box, which makes him sound like a Borg.
The film makers liked Hall's style so much, they sat him down for a half hour interview for an upcoming documentary about Star Trek.
Star Trek is more than a show, it's a philosophy. It's really a worldwide phenomenon.
–Eric Hall
"(They) asked me about what I thought about Star Trek; what I thought about the legacy of Gene Roddenberry, the creator of Star Trek," Hall described.
The documentary called "Trek Nation" is about Roddenberry's son, who tried to learn his father's legacy through meeting different characters and fans; people he did not know existed until after his father died.
Millions of people have become fans of Star Trek, with many of them gathering all over the world to celebrate their favorite TV show. Many of the fans dress up like their favorite characters.
"I do other costumes as well," Hall said. "Mr. Data, his evil brother Lore, Captain Kirk, a Klingon outfit and an Andorian outfit. And my wife has several outfits as well and so do our kids."
The love for Star Trek has become a family affair, with Hall decorating a stroller to fit the show's theme.
"I even found a three-seat stroller for our three kids, and I decorated it so it looks like a Borg vessel," Hall said. "So it flashes lights and tubes coming off of it."
Email: jboal@ksl.com
