Basically, they two were schoolyard bullies. [via]

The original purveyor of green tail hits the big 80th B-Day.  Awesome.  The original Captain of the Starship Enterprise, William Shatner, celebrates his 80th Anniversary on Earth today and it’s well deserved.  I can only imagine all the kick-ass ways the Shat is celebrating his birthday. There will be strippers, booze, hobos and celebrities dancing the night away.

But I know how Shat will be celebrating his birthday. Don’t tell anyone, but he is going to make love to a mountain. Are you surprised?

Over the years the franchise has grown but that doesn’t mean it didn’t hit a few speed bumps on the way. Here’s a look back at Five Great Star Trek Commercials that I love, but the creators and cast may want to forget.

1975 Mego Star Trek Playset Commercial

Oh, how awesome! This Star Trek Playset utilizes the best in plastic and cardboard technology to bring to life the experience of being on the deck of the Enterprise. Actually, I can’t knock it too much. Toys today are pretty cheap and flimsy. This crew looks like it could take a beating.

But the best thing is the transporter room. Look at that Spock go! Around and round!

No More Star Trek

This commercial was aired before the premier of the last TV series for Star Trek, Enterprise, to advertise for the show. Pretty goofy and fun. Too bad it was for a series no one watched.

Star Trek Collectors Plates – with Scotty!

I never understood why anyone would pony up good cash for a collectors plate. Sure it may have an hand painted image of Elvis or JFK or Spock on it, but what good is it? Even if Scotty is pitching it.

It’s just a collectible. You’re not supposed to use it. That’s what the certificate of authenticity says, anyway. But I would want to serve it as my main set of dishes. That Spock plate just screams “Put your Mac ‘N Cheese on me!”

Star Trek Communication Console Commercial

C’mon. Wireless transistors … that technology will never catch on in our generation.

This Star Trek Communication Console Commercial was the bees knees in the 70s thanks to its ability to contact your pal Steve standing outside by himself with a communicator.

Think of Steve as expendable. It’s no coincidence that he’s wearing a red shirt.

Bonus Video: Plus, it goes great with the Star Trek phaser.

Star Trek KFC

No, you’re not tripping on acid. You are really watching this! This is happening.

To boldly go where no fried chicken has gone before. Little is known about this gem but it popped up with actors standing in for the original Star Trek crew, sans Bones and Spock, with a subtle use of lighting, makeup and voice overs.

Plus, Uhura is a tad hotter in this version. Grrrrrrrrr

The cool thing is after you get that two piece combo you can always use those collectible Spock plates to sever them up. I always get the Mac ‘N Cheese with my 2 piece combo so it’s all good.

Well one dude made his own set in his newly renovated home. The air-powered doors work very nice and he’s even put up a How-to on his blog. It’s lengthy but watch this video and tell me you don’t want these in your house.

“Captain’s Log, Stardate 43173.5839.332. We are en route to Oregon via this new game called “Oregon Trail.” Bones is busy treating dysentary and we have come under several attacks from the locals.

I have had my. Way. With.  Several. Of. Their. Women.”

William Shatner Commodore 64

Space… the final frontier. These are the voyages of the starship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new pizzas, to seek out new toppings and new cheeses, to boldy cut pizza where no man has cut before!

Yes, this officially licensed Star Trek Pizza Cutter collectable is everything you hoped it would be.

Laser etched stainless steel blade and solid metal construction make it perfect for battling Romulans in the neutral zone or precision pizza slicing.

Star Trek Pizza Cutter

If you ever wonder who they make those bonus discs with all the behind the scenes features and junk for than I should probably come clean.  I dig those features that show how they make a move almost as much as the movie itself.

It’s hard to believe that the world of Star Trek has been entertaining fans for over 40 years and in that time there are some great off camera pictures of the cast and crew floating around space with the Khan above being my new favorite.

Here’s a gallery of some more random awesomeness from the crew of the Enterprise from the original series to the movies to the Next Generation and finally to the latest movie by J.J. Abrams.

One extreme Austrian man, Felix Baumgartner wants to jump from 120,000 feet and on top of that he wants to break the sound barrier, which would make him the first free faller to ever attain those speeds.

You don’t have to be crazy to jump out of a perfectly good airplane at 5,000. But crank up the altitude to 120,000 feet and you might want to make sure all your mind grapes are working. And to achieve the crazy speeds at such a high level, Baumgartner will have to wear a special, pressurized suit.

If he didn’t, the lack of atmosphere and temperatures would this a very uncomfortable trip:

The suit creates an artificial atmosphere that allows pilots to survive in conditions that would be impossible otherwise. For example, Baumgartner will be in a -59 degree Fahrenheit environment and the air pressure will be so low that if the suit were to fail it would kill him instantly.

If Felix Baumgartner can break the sound barrier he will be able to walk into any bar knowing he’s the baddest man in town. He will also know that his testing of the suit will be used for future research in high altitude suits.

So, in a way, he’s helping bring to life this killer scene from J.J. Abrams “Star Trek” in which Kirk and Sulu do a space suit free fall.

Live long and prosper, Felix. You’re doing good work.

We really don’t recommend the red ones since that’s always the first dude to die and you don’t want to be in shark infested waters with that thing on.

Now if you are cruising underwater with your U.S.S. Enterprise submarine that’s a whole different story. Check out this R/C Enterprise flying underwater in a Japanese pool. Nice!

Grab your copy of “Star Trek” (on sale today – DVD/Blu Ray or catch it on Netflix) because it’s the best movie of the year and because of all the great bonus stuff.

One lucky chap went through it to find a stray R2-D2 flying around in space.  This little Easter Egg pops up early and we’re gonna be looking for R2 to make sure this isn’t a photoshop trick by Gizmodo.