Conan O’Brien doesn’t know much about Star Trek or its popularity, if you go by one of his latest podcasts.
During a recent interview for Conan Needs a Friend which is one of the many podcasts in Team Coco’s arsenal of podcasts, Conan interviewed a woman named Jill who lives near Vulcan, Alberta, Canada. And the comedian was suprised to learn that not only is the town named Vulcan, the town is very much into Star Trek, even having a replica of the starship Enterprise for visitors to see as the go through the town.
Conan, in his usual joking manner, couldn’t believe that the town has a Star Trek theme, and he’s not quite certain how to take the continued information Jill imparts. She does admit that a lot of people who live in the town think it is weird. Conan countered with “I’m from Kirk, MA, and we didn’t lean into this at all. You guys are from Vulcan, and you’ve lost your minds.”
Conan O’Brien was clearly flabbergasted at Vulcan’s uniqueness and dedication to Star Trek.
He went on to say that it was unbelievable to him that a town has surrendered its dignity like this, which clearly says Conan doesn’t know much about the fervor behind the Star Trek franchise and its fans. Nor the financial aspects of being a tourist site for Trekkies.
Vulcan isn’t the only town that has “surrended its dignity” as others, like Riverside, Iowa, wanted to be associated with Star Trek and back in 1985, the Riverside City Council suggested that the town proclaim itself to be the future birthplace of Captain James T. Kirk, and the motion passed unanimously.
For Conan, he feels that people would eventually get tired of being connected to Star Trek, but when he asks that of Jill, she said she feels like no one talks about it. She went on to say that she had just moved there because her husband grew up there. Conan’s response? “You must really love your husband. He invited you to basically join him in a child’s bedroom and called it a town.”
There are Trekkies, and then there are those who don’t understand Trekkies. And we’re okay with that. I, for one, would love to pay a visit to Vulcan. How about you?