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In JJ Abrams’ 2009 “Star Trek” reboot, the usual flow of the franchise’s story is interrupted and completely changed by a time-traveling Romulan ship called the Narada. Narada has come back in time from the year 2387 (a little after the time of “Star Trek: Lower Decks”) and arrived in the year 2233 (the year Captain Kirk was born) on a mission of revenge. Emerging through his time vortex, Narada immediately attacks a nearby starship called the USS Kelvin, damaging it and causing the heavily pregnant Winona Kirk (Jennifer Morrison) to go into early labor. Her son, James Tiberius Kirk, is born in space.
The function of Abrams’ film, of course, was to reimagine the 1966 “Star Trek” franchise with entirely new, Abrams-invented parameters. It would follow the same characters as Roddenberry’s show, but they would now be younger, hotter, more impulsive versions of the ones we were used to. Kirk grew up to look like Chris Pine, and many of the surviving details of his life, established by 37 years of Trek lore, were now rewritten. This new “Star Trek” universe was more action-packed and exciting than the slow diplomacy-forward universe Trekkies were previously familiar with.
While “Star Trek” delved into parallel universes and switched timelines a lot in its story, some of the changes made in Abrams’ film still rubbed fans the wrong way. The fact that the 2009 version of the USS Enterprise was built on the ground, for example, instead of in orbit at Utopia Planitia, was a big bummer among Trekkies.
However, no one was more pissed about 2009’s “Star Trek” than the city of Riverside, Iowa. Since 1985, Riverside — after what “Star Trek” creator Gene Roddenberry wrote in the book “The Making of ‘Star Trek'” – has happily declared itself to be the future birthplace of James T. Kirk.
Thanks to Winona Kirk’s early work in Abrams’ film, Riverside was suddenly removed from the equation.
The 2009 “Star Trek” movie declared that James T. Kirk was no longer born in Iowa
Most Trekkies probably remember the scene in Leonard Nimoy’s 1986 film “Star Trek IV: The Voyager Home” when Admiral Kirk (William Shatner), having traveled back in time to the present, was confronted by a Dr. Gillian Taylor (Catherine Hicks). She was observant enough to notice something strange about him, and finally she says outright that he’s from outer space. Kirk smoothly reports that, no, he’s “from Iowa.” He only works in outer space. This was an official confirmation of what Roddenberry had previously written about Riverside, much to the delight of the Iowa City residents. Curiously, the name of Riverside was not mentioned aloud in Trek canon until a 2023 episode of “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds.”
Riverside has experienced quite a bit of tourism thanks to its association with “Star Trek,” and the city hosts an annual Trek Fest for visiting sci-fi fans who travel from across the country to see a plaque emblazoned with “The Future Birthplace of Captain Kirk, March 22, 2228.” Officials even embellished Kirk’s origins slightly by adding that he was actually born under the pool table at Murphy’s Bar and Grill, a detail provided by a 2009 report by Radio Iowa. Unfortunately, Murphy’s has since closed permanently.
According to a report in Crackedthe city of Riverside actually reached out and got Roddenberry’s blessing on their declaration. However, Riverside has not signed any contracts with Paramount and is not commercially tied to “Star Trek” in any direct way. In fact, as early as 1985 Paramount reportedly warned Riverside that they couldn’t say they were Captain Kirk’s birthplace. Riverside did anyway, and they’ve celebrated Kirk’s birthday every year since.
But with the rewriting of history with Abrams’ film, everything was suddenly questioned.
Of course, Iowa is now the birthplace of Enterprise
Tim Geerlings, vice president of an organization called the Riverside Club, went on the record with Radio Iowa to register his distaste for Abrams’ new take on Kirk’s origins. He even began to doubt the physics of the matter. Geerlings said:
“If Captain Kirk will be born in Riverside, which Captain Kirk? Which parallel universe? (…) I’m not sure about time travel. Even Stephen Hawking doesn’t believe in time travel. The scenario is that if you go back in time and kill your grandmother, you wouldn’t be here to go back in time and kill your grandmother. It’s an impossible loop.”
Geerlings said so he liked the 2009 moviebut wished Kirk’s Iowan origins had been left intact.
Of course, while Riverside lost its right to call itself the birthplace of Captain Kirk, it gained a new right from Abrams’ film. As mentioned, Abrams dramatized the building of the USS Enterprise on Earth’s surface. Spaceships are usually built in space in “Star Trek,” but a move to Earth could solve some problems.
As it happens, in Abrams’ film, Kirk was able to ride a motorcycle out to the Enterprise construction site, implying that it was relatively close to his Iowa home. If the members of the Riverside Club wanted, they could pick a spot in their town and note that it will be the future construction site for the USS Enterprise. Voilà, Riverside still has “Star Trek” related bragging rights, and they can still fit into any “Star Trek” canon they want.
Riverside still holds annual Trek parties.
