Spinelli was a 23rd century Human man, an officer of Starfleet in the 2260s decade.
Biography[]
By the year 2267, Spinelli had reached the rank of lieutenant and served as a junior officer of the Federation starship USS Enterprise under the command of Captain James T. Kirk.
Spinelli was assigned bridge duty as ship's helmsman on the ship's departure from Modala, shortly after stardate 3012, and was directed by Captain Kirk to take the ship out of orbit. (TOS - The Modala Imperative comic: "For Whom the Bell Tolls")
Spinelli was also on the bridge during a mission to investigate the discovery of the spacecraft SS Botany Bay on stardate 3141.9. During the course of the mission, Spinelli pulled the Enterprise alongside that ship and matched its course, before a boarding party discovered it was a sleeper ship carrying Khan Noonien Singh and 72 of his "supermen".
After the reanimation of Khan, Captain Kirk invited Spinelli and other members of the crew to an officer's dinner to investigate their guest's origins and motivations. After Khan's identity became known, the genetically engineered superman escaped from quarters and sabotaged the Enterprise engineering control systems, trapping Spinelli on the bridge and cutting off that deck's life support. Kirk's captain's log recorded a commendation for Spinelli as he and the bridge crew lost consciousness from oxygen deprivation.
Khan had Spinelli and the unconscious bridge crew brought to the briefing room, where he tried to get them to pledge loyalty to him as the new commanding officer of the Enterprise, making them watch as Joaquin Weiss beat Lieutenant Nyota Uhura, and piped in viewscreen images as another of Khan's supermen slowly suffocated Captain Kirk in sickbay's decompression chamber. (TOS episode & Star Trek 2 novelization: Space Seed)
When Khan questioned Spinelli as to whether the pilot would set course for a colony planet for Khan to rule, Spinelli told Khan to "go to blazes". (TOS - Star Trek 2 novelization: Space Seed)
When Marla McGivers helped Kirk escape, Kirk and Spock flooded the briefing room with anesthesia gas, rendering Spinelli unconscious, along with the captors. (TOS episode & Star Trek 2 novelization: Space Seed)
- From the non-lethal nature of the gas, it can be assumed that Spinelli emerged from the incident without any permanent injury.
Appendices[]
Connections[]
Background[]
Spinelli was played by actor Blaisdell MakeeMA. He would go on to play a different character, Hayden Singh, in the subsequent season's TOS episode: "The Changeling".
Appearances and references[]
Appearances[]
- TOS - The Modala Imperative comic: "For Whom the Bell Tolls" (not seen)
- TOS episode & Star Trek 2 novelization: Space Seed
References[]
External link[]
- Spinelli article at Memory Alpha, the wiki for canon Star Trek.