Changes: Edith Keeler

Revision as of 16:38, 7 February 2021

Multiple realities
(covers information from several alternate timelines)

"She was right. Peace was the way."
"She was right. But at the wrong time."

– Kirk and Spock, 1930 ("The City on the Edge of Forever")

Sister Edith Keeler was a female Human social worker in New York City, United States, in the 20th century.

In 1930, she ran a soup kitchen out of the Twenty-First Street Mission. Known for her compassion and forward thinking, she sought to bring peace to the entire planet. That same year, she died in a traffic accident. (TOS: "The City on the Edge of Forever")

Alternate timeline

After traveling back in time from the year 2267 through the sentient time portal known as the Guardian of Forever, Doctor Leonard McCoy made the acquaintance of Keeler, who took care of him while he was in a delusional state as the result of an accidental cordrazine overdose. Keeler was a strong and vocal pacifist and her ideas on space travel, new energy sources, and a peaceful society brought ridicule from those at the shelter.

Upon recovering, McCoy saved Keeler from dying in a traffic accident, unwittingly changing history. This resulted in the creation of an alternate timeline in which Keeler continued striving for her goals, and eventually founded one of the largest peace movements in the United States. Her actions finally attracted the attention of President Roosevelt, with whom she met on February 23, 1936, to confer on her plan of action for assisting the needy. By the late 1930s, the growing pacifism caused by actions Keeler set into motion delayed the United States' involvement in World War II, allowing Germany to complete its heavy water experiments and be first in the development of the atomic bomb. This, together with the V-2 rocket, enabled Germany to conquer the world.

Edith Keeler and Jim Kirk — Keeler and Kirk

In the future, Captain James T. Kirk and Commander Spock learned of this alteration to history from the Guardian, who told them that, due to McCoy's actions in the past, history had been altered and the Earth they knew no longer existed. Having no choice, Kirk and Spock opted to travel to the past through the Guardian's portal, hoping to undo the damage to history caused by McCoy.

Arriving at a point in time before McCoy's arrival, they met Edith Keeler, with whom Kirk quickly fell in love and the two began a relationship. Keeler also observed that Spock was a true and loyal friend who belonged at Kirk's side and that he always would be. Keeler mistakenly thought that Spock and Kirk had served together in World War I, and that was why Spock referred to Kirk as "captain." Being trapped in the past where money was still used, Kirk and Spock stole clothes from a fire escape and needed food to survive. Spock also needed to acquire electronic components to build a mechanism with which he could retrieve essential information from his tricorder. Keeler was able to secure work and living accommodations for both men. Upon reviewing tricorder data taken from the Guardian, Kirk and Spock learned that, in order to restore the timeline, Edith Keeler had to die. Reuniting with McCoy, Kirk made the heartbreaking decision of stopping him from saving Keeler from the traffic accident, ensuring her death and thus the restoration of the timeline. (TOS: "The City on the Edge of Forever")

Appendices

Background information

Edith Keeler was played by Joan Collins, and stunt doubled by Mary Statler. She was listed as "Sister Edith Keeler" in the end credits of the episode.

Apocrypha

In the TOS novel Final Frontier, Kirk was so traumatized by Keeler's death that he retreated to his family's farm in Iowa, where he immersed himself in old letters from his father.

In the novel Battlestations!, Kirk named a schooner after Edith Keeler.

The alternate timeline in which Keeler was saved from death by McCoy was explored in the novel Provenance of Shadows. As suggested in the original episode, Keeler's influence grew, delaying but not preventing America's entry into World War II.

Numerous novels and comics have postulated that Kirk never got over Keeler's death and that he truly loved her. One example of this would be the The Final Voyage, when Kirk, being held prisoner by Klingons who had learned Talosian powers of illusion, was subjected to an illusion of Keeler willingly walking in front of the truck while mocking him about letting her die to save all history. This enraged Kirk and he beat the Klingon to death while berating him about how he buried himself in work, tried to lose himself in the Enterprise and other women, but that he had to make Kirk remember Keeler.

External links

[1]
Edith Keeler at Memory Beta, the wiki for licensed Star Trek works

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 {{multiple}}
 {{Sidebar individual
-| image           = EdithKeeler.jpg
+|image         = EdithKeeler.jpg
-| imagecap        = Edith Keeler
+|caption       = Edith Keeler
-| gender          = Female
+|species       = [[Human]]
-| species         = [[Human]]
+|affiliation   = [[United States of America]], [[Earth]]
-| affiliation     = [[United States of America]], [[Earth]]
+|occupation    = [[Social worker]]
-| occupation      = [[Social worker]]
+|status        = Deceased, killed in [[traffic accident]]
+|datestatus    = 1930
-| status          = Deceased, killed in [[traffic accident]]
-| datestatus      = 1930
+|died          = 1930
-| died            = [[1930]]
+|mstatus       = Single
-| actor           = [[Joan Collins]]
+|actor         = [[Joan Collins]]
 }}
+{{article quote|She was right. Peace was the way."''<br />"''She was right. But at the wrong time.|Kirk''' and '''Spock|1930|The City on the Edge of Forever}}
-{{article quote|She was right. Peace was the way."''<br />
-"''She was right. But at the wrong time.|Kirk''' and '''Spock|1930|The City on the Edge of Forever}}
 {{dis|Sister|title}} '''Edith Keeler''' was a [[female]] [[Human]] [[social worker]] in [[New York City]], [[United States of America|United States]], in the [[20th century]].
-In [[1930]], she ran a [[soup]]-[[kitchen]] out of the [[Twenty-First Street Mission]]. Known for her compassion and forward thinking, she sought to bring peace to the entire planet. That same year, she died in an traffic accident. ({{TOS|The City on the Edge of Forever}})
+In [[1930]], she ran a [[soup]] [[kitchen]] out of the [[Twenty-First Street Mission]]. Known for her compassion and forward thinking, she sought to bring peace to the entire planet. That same year, she died in a [[traffic accident]]. ({{TOS|The City on the Edge of Forever}})
 == Alternate timeline ==
 After [[time travel|traveling back in time]] from the year [[2267]] through the sentient [[time portal]] known as the [[Guardian of Forever]], [[Doctor]] [[Leonard McCoy]] made the acquaintance of Keeler, who took care of him while he was in a delusional state as the result of an accidental [[cordrazine]] overdose. Keeler was a strong and vocal [[pacifism|pacifist]] and her ideas on space travel, new energy sources, and a peaceful society brought ridicule from those at the shelter.
-Upon recovering, McCoy saved Keeler from dying in a [[traffic accident]], unwittingly changing history. This resulted in the creation of an [[alternate timeline]] in which Keeler continued striving for her goals, and eventually founded one of the largest peace movements in the [[United States of America|United States]]. Her actions finally attracted the attention of [[President of the United States|President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt|Roosevelt]], with whom she met on [[February|February 23]], [[1936]], to confer on her plan of action for assisting the needy. By the late [[1930s]], the growing pacifism caused by actions Keeler set into motion would delay the United States' involvement in [[World War II]], allowing [[Germany]] to complete its [[heavy water]] experiments and be first in the development of the [[atomic bomb]]. This, together with the [[V-2 rocket]], enabled Germany to conquer the world.
+Upon recovering, McCoy saved Keeler from dying in a [[traffic accident]], unwittingly changing history. This resulted in the creation of an [[alternate timeline]] in which Keeler continued striving for her goals, and eventually founded one of the largest peace movements in the [[United States of America|United States]]. Her actions finally attracted the attention of [[President of the United States|President]] [[Franklin D. Roosevelt|Roosevelt]], with whom she met on [[February|February 23]], [[1936]], to confer on her plan of action for assisting the needy. By the late [[1930s]], the growing pacifism caused by actions Keeler set into motion delayed the United States' involvement in [[World War II]], allowing [[Germany]] to complete its [[heavy water]] experiments and be first in the development of the [[atomic bomb]]. This, together with the [[V-2 rocket]], enabled Germany to conquer the world.
 [[File:Edith Keeler and Jim Kirk.jpg|thumb|Keeler and Kirk]]
-In the future, [[Captain]] [[James T. Kirk]] and [[Commander]] [[Spock]] learned of this alteration to history from the Guardian, who told them that, due to McCoy's actions in the past, history had been altered and the Earth they knew no longer existed. Having no choice, Kirk and Spock opted to travel to the past through the Guardian's portal, hoping to undo the damage to history caused by McCoy. Arriving at a point in time before McCoy's arrival, they made the acquaintance of Keeler, with whom Kirk quickly fell in love and the two began a relationship. Edith also observed that Spock was a true and loyal friend who belonged at Kirk's side and that he always would be. Edith mistakenly thought that Spock and Kirk had served together in World War I, and that was why Spock called Kirk "Captain."  Being trapped in the past where money was still used, Kirk and Spock needed clothes and money to survive. Spock also needed to acquire electronic components to build a mechanism with which he could retrieve essential information from his tricorder. Edith was able to secure work and living accommodations for both men. Upon reviewing [[tricorder]] data taken from the Guardian, Kirk and Spock learned that, in order to restore the timeline, Edith Keeler had to die. Reuniting with McCoy, Kirk made the difficult decision of stopping him from saving Keeler from the traffic accident, ensuring her death and thus the restoration of the timeline. ({{TOS|The City on the Edge of Forever}})
+In the future, {{Captain}} [[James T. Kirk]] and [[Commander]] [[Spock]] learned of this alteration to history from the Guardian, who told them that, due to McCoy's actions in the past, history had been altered and the Earth they knew no longer existed. Having no choice, Kirk and Spock opted to travel to the past through the Guardian's portal, hoping to undo the damage to history caused by McCoy.
+Arriving at a point in time before McCoy's arrival, they met Edith Keeler, with whom Kirk quickly fell in love and the two began a relationship. Keeler also observed that Spock was a true and loyal friend who belonged at Kirk's side and that he always would be. Keeler mistakenly thought that Spock and Kirk had served together in [[World War I]], and that was why Spock referred to Kirk as "captain."  Being trapped in the past where money was still used, Kirk and Spock stole clothes from a fire escape and needed food to survive. Spock also needed to acquire electronic components to build a mechanism with which he could retrieve essential information from his [[tricorder]]. Keeler was able to secure work and living accommodations for both men. Upon reviewing tricorder data taken from the Guardian, Kirk and Spock learned that, in order to restore the timeline, Edith Keeler had to die. Reuniting with McCoy, Kirk made the heartbreaking decision of stopping him from saving Keeler from the traffic accident, ensuring her death and thus the restoration of the timeline. ({{TOS|The City on the Edge of Forever}})
 == Appendices ==
@@ Line 34: / Line 32: @@
 === Apocrypha ===
-In the {{dis|Star Trek: The Original Series|Pocket|TOS novel}} ''{{dis|Final Frontier|novel}}'', Kirk was so traumatized by Edith's death that he retreated to his family's farm in [[Iowa]], where he immersed himself in old letters from [[George Samuel Kirk, Sr.|his father]].
+In the {{dis|Star Trek: The Original Series|Pocket|TOS novel}} ''{{dis|Final Frontier|novel}}'', Kirk was so traumatized by Keeler's death that he retreated to his family's farm in [[Iowa]], where he immersed himself in old letters from [[George Samuel Kirk, Sr.|his father]].
-In the [[novels|novel]] ''[[Battlestations!]]'', Kirk named a schooner after Edith.
+In the {{novel}} ''[[Battlestations!]]'', Kirk named a schooner after Edith Keeler.
 The alternate timeline in which Keeler was saved from death by McCoy was explored in the novel ''[[Provenance of Shadows]]''. As suggested in the original episode, Keeler's influence grew, delaying but not preventing America's entry into World War II.
+Numerous novels and comics have postulated that Kirk never got over Keeler's death and that he truly loved her. One example of this would be the ''[[The Final Voyage]]'', when Kirk, being held prisoner by Klingons who had learned [[Talosian]] powers of illusion, was subjected to an illusion of Keeler willingly walking in front of the truck while mocking him about letting her die to save all history. This enraged Kirk and he beat the Klingon to death while berating him about how he buried himself in work, tried to lose himself in the {{Enterprise}} and other women, but that he had to make Kirk remember Keeler.
 === External links ===