Matt Jefferies
Jefferies in circa 2002
Born
Walter Matthew Jefferies

(1921-08-12)August 12, 1921
Lebanon, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedJuly 21, 2003(2003-07-21) (aged 81)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)Artist, set designer, writer, flight test engineer
SpouseMary Ann
Websitewww.mattjefferies.com

Walter Matthew Jefferies (August 12, 1921 – July 21, 2003)[1][2] was an American aviation and mechanical artist, set designer, and writer. He is best known for his work on the original Star Trek television series, where he designed many of the sets and props, including the original Starship Enterprise, and the bridge and sick bay.

Early life

Jefferies was born in Lebanon, Pennsylvania.[1] He had three brothers, John, Richard and Philip, the latter two of whom would become production designers.[2] Their father was chief engineer at a power plant in Virginia. Matt's younger brother John worked with him as his chief draftsman.

He served in Europe in World War II, was inside of B-17, B-24, B-25 bombers and had four years as a flight test engineer.[3]

Star Trek

Besides creating interiors and exterior of the Enterprise, Jefferies was responsible for designing props (including phasers), sets, the Klingon logo and D-7 battlecruiser. Years later, his concept sketches were revisited and used to design the Starship Enterprise, the Olympic class USS Pasteur, the Daedalus-class and pre-Federation Vulcan ships. Jefferies worked with NASA engineers in designing the Enterprise and the technology it used.

Contrary to popular belief, Jefferies did not create Star Trek's original shuttlecraft design: although Jefferies submitted his own concept, it was too complex to build with the show's FX and budget limitations of the time. Gene Winfield's much simpler design was used instead, and Jefferies designed only its interior.[4]

Jefferies had a very pragmatic design ethic: reasoning that a starship's engines would be extremely powerful and potentially dangerous, he positioned them far away from the rest of the ship, with the added benefit of modular design so that they could be ejected quickly in an emergency. Figuring that whatever could go wrong would, he put all of the ship's workings on the interior for easy access, eliminating the need for spacewalking in case of exterior repairs. The bridge panels were given an ergonomic design for comfort and ease of use. He was opposed to the idea of PADDs, as well as the goose-neck viewers that appeared in the first pilot. Moreover, he disliked the idea of a large engine room because by his reckoning the entire ship could be run by a single panel on the bridge. Later, Jefferies' work on the bridge of the Enterprise influenced the design of the U.S. Navy master communications center at the Naval Base San Diego.[5]

When Jefferies saw Star Trek: The Motion Picture he fell asleep. He never watched subsequent incarnations of Star Trek, remarking that they had turned his Navy-esque bridge into "the lobby of the Hilton."[6]

Within the Star Trek universe, Jefferies tubes and Captain Jefferies, designer of the NX-class starships,[7] are named in his honor. According to Jefferies, the Enterprise was Starfleet's 17th starship design and it was the first in the series, therefore the ship had the number "1701". This story is documented in one of his sketches.[8]

In June 2003, Jefferies was the guest of honor at the presentation of a documentary about him prepared for the special edition of the Star Trek Generations DVD. Jefferies died the following month in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure.[2]

Additional activities

Matt was a member of the Aviation Space Writers' Association and one of the original members of the American Aviation Historical Society. He restored and flew period airplanes as a hobby. He owned a Waco YOC aircraft and stored it at Santa Paula Airport, California for many years. His YOC, NC17740, c/n 4279, built in 1935, is now owned by the Virginia Aeronautical Historical Society and was on display at the Virginia Aviation Museum, Richmond, Virginia.[9]

Personal life

Jefferies died July 21, 2003, in Los Angeles of congestive heart failure. He was survived by his wife, Mary Ann Jefferies, and his brothers John and Richard. His brother Philip died in 1987.[2]

Filmography (as art designer)

References

  1. 1 2 "Jefferies, Walter "Matt"". StarTrek.com. Retrieved November 21, 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Walter 'Matt' Jefferies (obituary)". Variety.com. July 23, 2013.
  3. ↑ "The 'All American' and WWII". www.mattjefferies.com. Retrieved August 18, 2018.
  4. ↑ "FSD: Starship Concept Art - Designing the Galileo Shuttlecraft". Starshipdatalink.net. Archived from the original on December 1, 2005. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  5. ↑ "Combat Information Center". Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved July 26, 2021. (...) The bridge of the classic Star Trek Enterprise was designed by Matt Jeffries. In a second stunning example of science fiction innovation it influenced the design of the U.S. Navy master communications center at NAS San Diego. On US naval vessels, their bridge design does not look anything like the bridge of the Starship Enterprise, but the Combat Information Center in a navy vessel does have some resemblances (mostly the Captain's chair in the center of the room). Again, refer to The Great Heinlein Mystery: Science Fiction, Innovation and Naval Technology by Edward M. Wysocki Jr. (...) Bridge of the starship Enterprise, designed by Matt Jeffries. This is a combination of a bridge (helm/navigation) and a CIC. Captain/Evaluator is in the command swivel chair in the center. All station are arranged so captain can look over the sholders of each operator and examine their displays. In the front is the big board viewscreen.
  6. ↑ "BBC Online - Cult - Star Trek - Matt Jefferies - A Hilton in space". BBC.co.uk. Retrieved October 3, 2009.
  7. ↑ "Home", Star Trek: Enterprise, Season 4, Episode 3, Airdate: October 22, 2004.
  8. ↑ Jefferies signed sketch: "17th CRUISER DESIGN, SERIAL No1 - 1701" Archived October 3, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  9. ↑ "Aircraft Data N17740, 1935 Waco YOC C/N 4279".

Further reading

  • Jefferies, Richard L (February 15, 2008). Beyond the Clouds: The Lifetime Trek of Walter "Matt" Jefferies, Artist and Visionary. Brown Books. pp. 328 pages. ISBN 978-1-933285-98-6.
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