D.C. Fontana, R.I.P.

I'm sorry — for my sake as well as yours — that I didn't know Dorothy Fontana well enough to have any great stories about her. I did know a lot of great stories she wrote and not all of them were for Star Trek, which is the impression you'll probably get from some of the forthcoming obits. But she also wrote for other TV shows including Ben Casey, Kung Fu, The Waltons, Dallas, The Streets of San Francisco, Land of the Lost and oh-so-many more. The length and breadth of her career could easily be drowned out by itemizing her contributions to the love and longevity of Captain Kirk and his merry band, as well as their successors in that franchise.

I knew her best from her service and devotion to the Writers Guild of America West. Things can get chaotic within that organization where some committees can feel dominated by folks who are angry about their careers and are taking it out on the Guild. Any time I was in a Guild meeting room with Dorothy, she was a wise presence, dispensing sanity and selflessness, gently reminding all to focus on the bigger picture.

She was very smart and very principled and, as far as I could see, respected by all. Dorothy Fontana died peacefully last evening at the age of 80 following a brief illness.