Conan O'Brien's fascination with Vulcan, Alta., prompts parade marshal invite
A podcast mention of the southern Alberta town of Vulcan, and its embracement of all things Star Trek, has prompted festival officials to invite Conan O'Brien to lead its parade.
Vulcan Tourism & Trek confirms an invitation has been extended to the former late night talk show host turned podcast host to be the parade marshal for the 30th anniversary of Vul-Con — Vulcan Alberta's Star Trek Convention — in July.
The Jan. 4 episode of Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend involved an interview with Jill, an Alberta-based fan of the show instead of a celebrity.
When O'Brien asked Jill where she was in the world, the host was fascinated to discover that the Albertan lived on a farm outside of a town that shared the name of the home planet of the character Spock, portrayed by Leonard Nimoy, in the television series Star Trek and the films that followed.
"The town is called Vulcan?" questioned O'Brien of Jill. "Tell us about Vulcan. Paint a picture for us."
"I don't know if you guys are Star Trek fans, but the town has kind of taken on the Star Trek theme," said Jill of the town of approximately 2,000 people.
Mural in the town of Vulcan in southern Alberta. (file)
O'Brien, and his podcast co-hosts Sona Movsesian and Matt Gourley, appeared enthralled by the connection with the series. "Wait, you're telling me the town is leaning into it?" sought O'Brien. "And it has a Star Trek theme?"
After learning that the town has a statue of the USS Enterprise — the starship captained by the character James T. Kirk played by William Shatner — and hosts Vul-Con and Spock Days, summer festivals attended by fans in costume, the hosts became both amused and bewildered.
"To be honest, I'm from Kirk, Massachusetts and we didn't lean into this at all," said O'Brien during the podcast interview. "You guys are from Vulcan and you've lost your minds!"
The former host of Conan, Late Night with Conan O'Brien and The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien struggled to comprehend, to the amusement of his co-hosts, the community's approach.
"This is unbelievable to me that a town has surrendered its dignity like this. This is incredible"
The podcast hosts erupted in laughter when they later learned the Star Trek-inspired festival takes place at the same time of year as a local rodeo, resulting in encounters between Klingons and cowboys on the town's main street.
"Boy, do I have a picture of where you live," O'Brien said to Jill, after referring to Vulcan as a real-life version of 'a child's bedroom.'
"And I'll be coming to Vulcan. I want you to tell the people I'll be coming."
O'Brien would not be the first celebrity to visit the town of Vulcan. Nimoy participated in the event in 2010 as have numerous Star Trek authors and actors over the years.
Leonard Nimoy waves to fans in Vulcan, Alta., April 23, 2010. (THE CANADIAN PRESS / Jeff McIntosh)
Vulcan is located roughly an hour's drive, approximately 90 kilometres, southeast of Calgary. The 2023 Vul-Con is scheduled for July 28-30.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'They needed people inside Air Canada:' Police announce arrests in Pearson gold heist
Police say one former and one current employee of Air Canada are among the nine suspects that are facing charges in connection with the gold heist at Pearson International Airport last year.
House admonishes ArriveCan contractor in rare parliamentary show of power
MPs enacted an extraordinary, rarely used parliamentary power on Wednesday, summonsing an ArriveCan contractor to appear before the House of Commons where he was admonished publicly and forced to provide answers to the questions MPs said he'd previously evaded.
Leafs star Auston Matthews finishes season with 69 goals
Auston Matthews won't be joining the NHL's 70-goal club this season.
Trump lawyers say Stormy Daniels refused subpoena outside a Brooklyn bar, papers left 'at her feet'
Donald Trump's legal team says it tried serving Stormy Daniels a subpoena as she arrived for an event at a bar in Brooklyn last month, but the porn actor, who is expected to be a witness at the former president's criminal trial, refused to take it and walked away.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Doug Ford calls on Ontario Speaker to reverse Queen's Park keffiyeh ban
Ontario Premier Doug Ford is calling on Speaker Ted Arnott to reverse a ban on keffiyehs at Queen's Park, describing the move as “needlessly” divisive.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Woman who pressured boyfriend to kill his ex in 2000s granted absences from prison
A woman who pressured her boyfriend into killing his teenage ex more than a decade ago will be allowed to leave prison for weeks at a time.
Customers disappointed after email listing $60K Tim Hortons prize sent in error
Several Tim Horton’s customers are feeling great disappointment after being told by the company that an email stating they won a boat worth nearly $60,000 was sent in error.