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- Today, April 5, marks a unique day in history for Star Trek fans, as it commemorates a historical event not set to occur until 2063: mankind’s first use of warp drive and first contact with the Vulcan race. First Contact Day highlights Star Trek’s impact on pop culture, world history, scientific innovation, social reform, and creative endeavor.
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Sep 23, 2024 · First Contact Day as a holiday was first established in Star Trek: First Contact, which saw Captain Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) and the USS Enterprise-D crew travel back in time to stop the Borg from altering history.
- First Contact Is The Origin Story Star Trek Needed - Screen Rant
The genius of Star Trek: First Contact was the conceit that...
- First Contact Is The Origin Story Star Trek Needed - Screen Rant
- Overview
- Biography
- Relationships
- Personality
- Memorable quotes
- Appendices
"Don't try to be a great man. Just be a man, and let history make its own judgments."
– Zefram Cochrane, 2063 (Star Trek: First Contact)
Early life
Cochrane was born in the 2030s. (TOS: "Metamorphosis"; ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" library computer file) His place of birth was Montana, North America, Earth. (ENT: "Shuttlepod One") Cochrane's circumstances were somewhat affected by World War III, gaining him at least minimal knowledge of ECON, one of the aggressors in that conflict. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Developing warp drive
During the 2060s, Cochrane and his team of engineers began developing the warp drive. (Star Trek: First Contact) The challenge of inventing warp theory took Cochrane an extremely long time. (ENT: "Anomaly (ENT)") In 2061, he was responsible for Earth's first successful demonstration of light speed propulsion, though his work was far from complete. (VOY: "Friendship One"; ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" library computer file) His primary motivation for commencing warp technology was financial gain in the devastated, poverty-stricken America that existed in the wake of the Third World War. He finally built Earth's first warp ship, the Phoenix, in the hope its success would prove profitable and allow him to retire to a tropical island filled with naked women. A historical irony was that, contrary to the fact he went on to use the Phoenix to inaugurate an era of peace, Cochrane incorporated a weapon of mass destruction into its design; he constructed the Phoenix in a silo on a missile complex and used a Titan II missile as his launch vehicle. By 4 April 2063, Doctor Cochrane had made plans to pilot the Phoenix on a test warp flight that was scheduled to launch the next morning. That night, he was witness to an attack from a Borg sphere that fired on the missile complex from above; Borg photon torpedoes exploded extremely close to him, as he desperately struggled to escape. Cochrane was thereafter sought by the crew of the Federation starship USS Enterprise-E, who had recently come back in time from the year 2373 to stop the Borg sphere from preventing first contact. He was temporarily considered by the Enterprise crew to have been killed in the Borg attack. By the time Dr. Cochrane was located by the Enterprise crew, he had abandoned hope for the continuation of the Phoenix, wishing that the prototype craft would "rest in peace." Cochrane was convinced to half-heartedly persist in his endeavors by the Enterprise-E crew, who treated him like a historical figure, which he was to them. When they confronted him with some particulars of his future image as herald of a better world, Cochrane refused to accept this new role. He initially attempted to literally flee from his destiny, pretending that his departure was merely temporary so he could urinate. He was subsequently pursued by a squad of officers and shot down with a phaser – which he thought of as a laser – set to a minimal power output and wielded by an impatient Commander Will Riker. Cochrane then became more cooperative; by 10:00 a.m. on 5 April, he had mentally prepared himself to make history (despite a distinctly uncomfortable hangover) and had begun readying the Phoenix for liftoff, even though he still disputed the notion of being idolized. An hour later he was aboard the Phoenix as it launched, with Commander Riker and Lieutenant Commander Geordi La Forge accompanying him. Cochrane was not only instrumental in the flight of the Phoenix – at one point giving the instruction to activate warp drive with the command, "Engage" – but was also amazed to view the Earth and the Enterprise-E from space and was shocked to experience the sensation of traveling at warp. He broke the warp barrier just after 11:00 a.m., enough to draw the attention of the T'Plana-Hath, a type of Vulcan survey ship which was passing near Earth. That evening, Cochrane was among many Human spectators who watched the Vulcan ship land in Bozeman, Montana, thereby making first contact with Humans and opening a new era for the whole of mankind. Finding difficulty in returning a Vulcan salute, he welcomed the arrival of the ship's Vulcan captain by engaging him in a handshake, for which Cochrane was thankful. (Star Trek: First Contact) (VOY: "Relativity"; Star Trek: First Contact) In 2064, Cochrane acknowledged details about the first contact in Bozeman, in a commencement address at Princeton University. He claimed it had involved "a group of cybernetic creatures from the future" which had been repelled by a group of Humans who had come from the same era. However, Cochrane's remarks were largely shrugged off by his audience as a result of his tendency toward imaginative stories and intoxication. (ENT: "Regeneration") In time, Cochrane resigned himself to the role history had apparently written for him, rather than maintaining the more fantastical truth of what had happened. (Star Trek: First Contact; ENT: "Regeneration") He recanted his own statements regarding first contact and the two warring groups involved in the event a few years after making the claims. (ENT: "Regeneration") In 2073 he was recorded as proclaiming, "Don't try to be a great man; just be a man, and let history make its own judgments." (Star Trek: First Contact) In the early 22nd century, Cochrane designed a style of warp reactor that was fitted aboard J-class freighters. It was rumored that he personally signed the inside of each reactor casing. (ENT: "Horizon") He also collaborated with Henry Archer on the warp five engine around this time, working hard to develop it and help make it a reality. In 2119, Cochrane officially opened the Warp Five Complex on Earth, making a speech at the opening ceremony. (ENT: "Broken Bow") Cochrane met Henry's son, Jonathan Archer, the future captain of Enterprise NX-01, while the elder Archer was giving his son a tour of the facility. (ENT: "Singularity", "Daedalus") In a historic holoprogram, Cochrane was said to have given Henry Archer a bottle of whiskey in celebration on the day they broke ground at the Warp Five Complex. (ENT: "These Are the Voyages...")
Later life
At the age of eighty-seven, Cochrane left his new home on Alpha Centauri colony for an interstellar expedition. (TOS: "Metamorphosis"; ENT: "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" library computer file) In a state of tiredness and dying from old age, he chose to die in space. (TOS: "Metamorphosis") His body was never recovered and he was presumed dead. (TOS: "Metamorphosis"; ENT: "Future Tense", "In a Mirror, Darkly, Part II" library computer file) Star Trek: Star Charts Cochrane ended up on an asteroid in the Gamma Canaris region. He was brought there, while in a disabled spaceship and virtually dead from old age, by a cloud-like entity which he called the Companion. Cochrane was rejuvenated by this entity, which went on to keep him young and alive for 150 years. At one point he cannibalized his ship, using left-over tools and supplies to construct a building where he could live. Necessities including food and water were provided for him by the Companion, with whom he could telepathically communicate. However, Cochrane eventually wished to be released from the entity's supervision, finding immortality boring. In an attempt to obtain freedom from the Companion he explained that he was lonely, so it decided to bring him other Humans for company. In 2267, Captain James T. Kirk, Commander Spock, and Dr. Leonard McCoy of the USS Enterprise were ferrying Federation Commissioner Nancy Hedford, who was terminally ill, aboard the shuttlecraft Galileo when they were mysteriously brought to the asteroid by the Companion. Cochrane was delighted to meet the newcomers there, exchanging handshakes with each of the other men, and was impressed by the configuration of their shuttlecraft. Nevertheless, he originally kept the truth from the visitors, saying he had crashed on the asteroid an indeterminate time ago and feigning ignorance of the Companion. Under duress from Kirk, he conceded the facts, such as confessing the actual specifics of his arrival. Cochrane repeatedly talked with the Starfleet officers about the differences in the galaxy since his disappearance, remaining tempted to leave the asteroid. The Federation and universal translator were both new concepts to Cochrane. His knowledge of modern propulsion was also updated thanks to Spock and Kirk, the latter of whom observed that Cochrane didn't "look a day over thirty-five." Faced with the quandary of either escaping the Companion and helping Commissioner Hedford to a hospital or risking the death of the Companion, Cochrane reluctantly opted to endanger the entity, despite being exceedingly grateful for its guardianship; this choice led to his being struck down and momentarily rendered unconscious. In a conversation that Kirk had with the entity, the Companion repeatedly called Cochrane "the man". Once it was discovered that the Companion was actually feminine with romantic feelings toward Cochrane and the female entity entered the body of Hedford, Cochrane was finally allowed to leave with his guests, though the merged entity was unable to accompany him. Feeling greatly indebted to the Companion for having rescued and cared for him, Cochrane began a new life on the asteroid with the newly integrated being, both of them now with a typical Human life span. Cochrane had Kirk swear never to reveal his fate to the authorities. (TOS: "Metamorphosis")
Lily Sloane
One of Cochrane's good friends was Lily Sloane, whom he had known since the Third World War. She nicknamed him "Z". (Star Trek: First Contact)
Eddy
He was also on first-name terms with several residents of Bozeman, including a bartender called Eddy.
Deanna Troi
Cochrane was physically attracted to Deanna Troi for a brief time after first meeting her, though he had difficulty remembering her first name. He made several sexual advances on her, though these were spurned, Troi drunkenly concluding he was "nuts". Even with these rejections, he was not disheartened to the extent that he stopped socializing with her – at one point voicing satisfaction to learn Riker was not her husband – and Troi was later among Cochrane's collaborators during the test flight of the Phoenix, as she announced the final countdown before liftoff from outside the craft. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Often wearing civilian clothing that incorporated a thin neck-scarf and a backwards cap on his head, Cochrane had a cynical streak. For example, he skeptically questioned Lily Sloane's theorizing that the attacking Borg sphere was an ECON craft, and he took considerable persuading before he finally came to realize the truth about the Borg and the officers from the Enterprise-E. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Cochrane also had an alcohol abuse problem. He commonly drank whiskey but was also known to imbibe shots of tequila. (Star Trek: First Contact) The inventor of the transporter, Emory Erickson, adopted Cochrane's practice of celebrating scientific breakthroughs by consuming large amounts of alcohol and once recalled of Cochrane, "Now there was a man who knew the benefits of a little liquid courage." (ENT: "Daedalus")
Cochrane was well acquainted with the stars in Earth's proximity, owning a telescope and being able to identify the constellation Leo on sight. (Star Trek: First Contact) His favorite food was cheese pierogi. (VOY: "Homestead") He had an intense dislike for air- and space-travel and preferred taking trains.
Cochrane was a fan of late-20th century rock and roll music. His favorite songs included "Ooby Dooby" by Roy Orbison and "Magic Carpet Ride" by Steppenwolf. He often became stressed if he couldn't listen to recordings of such music when he wanted to, and introducing the Vulcans to rock and roll was one of his first priorities during their encounter. (Star Trek: First Contact)
Cochrane was also somewhat interested in agriculture. In his initial deception of the Starfleet officers who visited him on the asteroid where he eventually resided, he alleged that he grew vegetables in fields near his house. Cochrane later admitted that the Companion provided gardens for him, and, moments before his visitors from Starfleet departed, he supported his determination to remain on the asteroid by saying its surface conditions were optimal for growing things and by suggesting that he might try planting a fig tree. (TOS: "Metamorphosis")
After Lily Sloane advised him that he would regret drinking alcohol to the point of having a hangover while piloting the Phoenix on its maiden voyage into space, Cochrane claimed to her that he never had regrets. This was not entirely true, however. (Star Trek: First Contact) For instance, he regretted his early prejudice regarding the Companion's love for him. (TOS: "Metamorphosis")
"Who is this jerk? (slurring) And who told him he could turn off my music?"
- Zefram Cochrane, after Will Riker unplugs his jukebox (Star Trek: First Contact)
"And you people, you're all astronauts on... some kind of star trek?"
- Zefram Cochrane, checking his understanding of the Enterprise crew members (Star Trek: First Contact)
"You people got some pretty funny ideas about me! You all look at me as if I'm some kind of... saint, or visionary or something!"
"I don't think you're a saint, Doc. But you did have a vision. And now we're sitting in it."
Appearances
•TOS: "Metamorphosis" ••ENT: •"Broken Bow" •"Regeneration" (photo) •LD: "Grounded" (hologram)
Apocrypha
In the novelization of "Metamorphosis" (as adapted by James Blish in Star Trek 7), Cochrane made mention of having been on Vulcan and professed, "I was always pretty much of a loner. Spent years in space by myself." After Spock outlined that he had concluded the Companion's homeworld was once a moon of some now-destroyed larger celestial body and was colonized by a highly advanced civilization, Cochrane agreed and attested that he had found some artifacts that corroborated these theories. In the novelization of Star Trek: First Contact, it was suggested that Cochrane's alcoholism was not his only issue. He also suffered from bipolar disorder, a condition that had been treated with a cerebral implant that delivered the necessary medications. After World War III, however, Cochrane was unable to find either a way to refill the implant, nor a suitable replacement, so he took to self-medicating with alcohol. The crew of the Enterprise-E was able to stabilize his condition enough for him to complete his work on the Phoenix, and Beverly Crusher cured the disorder permanently, shortly before returning to the Enterprise. In addition, this novelization specified that Cochrane was born in the year 2013, as opposed to 2030 or 2032, which would be more consistent with actor James Cromwell's real-life age and countenance in the film. The reasoning for Cochrane having a far more weathered and older appearance than his natural age had often been given in non-canon literature (most notably the Pocket Books novel Federation) as being a result of him suffering from radiation poisoning. In the comics story "A Warp in Space" (printed as the forty-ninth issue of Gold Key TOS), Cochrane was shown as an elderly-looking man, even in flashback events from "Metamorphosis", with no explanation given for the change in his appearance. The novel First Frontier divulged that Cochrane accidentally stumbled on the secrets of the warp drive and that he had originally been looking for something else, though it was never indicated what he had been looking for, exactly. A lot of the Star Trek literature of the 1980s describes Cochrane as a native of Alpha Centauri, which is inhabited by Preserver-transplanted Humans. The novel Memory Prime explains that "Zefram Cochrane" is an anglicized version of his true name: "Zeyafram Co'akran". FASA's RPG sourcebook The Federation gives his full name as "Zephram Edark Cochrane" and claims he was born in Lurivala, Alpha Centauri. Cochrane appeared via flashback in the second issue of the comic crossover mini-series Star Trek vs. Transformers where he and Lily Sloane are shown witnessing the Autobots leaving Earth aboard the Titan Fortress Maximus during the beginning of World War III. In the reference book Star Trek: Federation - The First 150 Years, Cochrane grew up with a love for science, as his parents, Jesse and Hilde Cochrane, were academics. He had a rough adolescence because of the fallout from various wars and conflicts and learned to internalize his love of science. As interest in science went down around the country, Cochrane got a job with a military contractor, at one of the last places with an active science lab. There, he began designing antimatter weapons, as he was fascinated with matter/antimatter reactions and it was the only way to access the latest research.
External links
•Zefram Cochrane at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works •Zefram Cochrane at Wikipedia
Apr 4, 2023 · What is the Significance of First Contact Day? First Contact Day pays tribute to the flight of the warp-capable Phoenix and the pivotal first interaction between humans and Vulcans, which occurred on April 5, 2063.
First Contact Day is an informal commemorative day observed annually on April 5 to celebrate the Star Trek media franchise, and was created by Ronald D. Moore, screenwriter of the 1996 film Star Trek: First Contact. [1] He chose the day based on his eldest son's birthday.
First Contact Day was a holiday celebrated to honor both the warp 1 flight of the Phoenix and first open contact between Humans and Vulcans on April 5th, 2063 in Bozeman, Montana. (Star Trek: First Contact) The mirror universe equivalent of First Contact Day was also on April 5th.
Feb 19, 2022 · Following the disappointing Star Trek Generations, First Contact was the first "proper" Next Generation movie, and felt like a potent statement of intent for this era of Trek films.
Nov 28, 2022 · The genius of Star Trek: First Contact was the conceit that Riker and his TNG crew had a direct hand in ensuring Cochrane achieved his first-ever warp flight. Further, the Borg time traveling to 2063 to assimilate Earth to stop First Contact shows that it is the pivotal moment that the entire future of Star Trek depends on.
