The weekend saw two major awards ceremonies and two Star Trek dignitaries receiving prestigious honors from their respective show business guilds. Dorothy "D.C." Fontana, who worked side by side with Gene Roddenberry to help create the original Star Trek, was honored by the Writers Guild of America (WGA). And Robert Wise, director of "Star Trek: The Motion Picture" which brought life back to the franchise in 1979, was recognized by the Producers Guild of America (PGA).

Saturday night Fontana was the first honoree of the star-studded WGA event. Introduced by WGA president Victoria Riskin as "the unknown soldier of this guild" for 40 years, Fontana accepted the Morgan Cox Award for service to the organization, in recognition of her extensive committee work, two terms on the board of directors, and other volunteer efforts to serve fellow writers. "I've benefited so much from the networking and the friends I've met," Fontana told her comrades at the black-tie affair. "But the great reward of my service is the joy of giving back something to the guild that has given me so much." Her entrance and exit were accompanied by the Original Series theme music by Alexander Courage.

Fontana, a television writer since the early 1960s, is of course best known for her work on Star Trek, including the scripts for "Charlie X," "Journey to Babel" and the TNG pilot "Encounter at Farpoint." But she has also written for The Six Million Dollar Man, Babylon 5, The Waltons, Dallas, and several other TV shows.

Sunday night the PGA's Milestone Award was bestowed upon Wise by screen legend Julie Andrews, star of one of Wise's greatest films, "The Sound of Music." The Milestone Award is the PGA's most prestigious honor, recognizing industry leaders for their "historical contribution" to the entertainment business. Past winners include Alfred Hitchcock, Bob Hope and Steven Spielberg. "Being recognized by my peers at the Producers Guild of America is a tremendous honor," Wise said. "I am thrilled to join such an elite group of past Milestone Award winners and am thankful to the industry that has provided me such wonderful opportunities." (Robert Wise photo courtesy Vince Bucci/Getty Images)

At the Writers Guild ceremony Saturday night, another Star Trek name was part of the program as a presenter. Harlan Ellison, who penned the award-winning script for "The City on the Edge of Forever," was there to present the Edmund H. North award to fellow television writer Christopher Knopf. Typically irreverent and vociferous, Ellison appeared on stage wearing a bathrobe and an ascot. He explained, "They said to me, come in business attire. This is the way I work."

Citing that the North award is given in part for "courageous leadership," Ellison lauded Knopf, a former WGA president, for his efforts to stand up for writers and the integrity of their work before producers and even the Writers Guild itself, a kind of courage that Ellison considers rare in Hollywood. "We talk about courage in this town... This town is filled with weasels and wormers and people who will stab you in the front if they can't reach your back. I mean no offense, I mean it in the nicest possible way..." Ellison told the partly laughing, partly befuddled audience. He qualified his remarks by saying, "I don't work a lot, you'll notice that. There are entire [television] networks where they won't talk to me, but that's okay."