15 years ago today, Star Trek: Voyager concluded its run on UPN.
The series had launched the network (which has since merged with The WB to become The CW) with a two-hour pilot episode in 1995, while Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was still airing new episodes in syndication.
It was the first Star Trek series to feature a female commanding officer in the lead role, with Kate Mulgrew playing Captain Kathryn Janeway before she went on to get TV attention again for Orange Is the New Black. Mulgrew reprised her role as Janeway in the 2002 feature film Star Trek: Nemesis.
Voyager never garnered the adoration that fans had for the original series and The Next Generation, but it lasted for seven seasons on UPN from 1995 to 2001.
Other notable May 23 happenings in pop culture history:
• 1950: The Asphalt Jungle, one of Marilyn Monroe”s earliest films, opened in theaters.
• 1964: Ella Fitzgerald”s cover of “Can”t Buy Me Love” peaked at No. 34 on the U.K. charts. It was the first cover of a Beatles song to chart in the U.K.
• 1969: The Who”s rock opera album Tommy was released in the U.K.
• 1971: Iron Butterfly played their final show before their break-up.
• 1979: Kiss released their seventh studio album, Dynasty.
• 1980: The Shining opened in theaters. See where it ranked in the top 10 of HitFix”s Ultimate Horror Poll. May 23 was also the birthday of Scatman Crothers, who played Dick Hallorann in the film.
• 1984: Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom opened in theaters.
• 1984: Once Upon a Time in America premiered at the Cannes Film Festival with a running time of 3 hours and 49 minutes.
• 1987: U2″s The Joshua Tree entered its fifth week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200. It topped the album chart for a total of nine consecutive weeks.
• 1989: At the 42nd Cannes Film Festival Steven Soderbergh“s Sex, Lies, and Videotape won the Palme d”Or.
• 1994: Pulp Fiction won the Palme d”Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
• 1995: The lead single of Pocahontas“s soundtrack, Vanessa Williams” rendition of “Colors of the Wind,” was released, a month ahead of the Disney film”s opening in theaters.
• 2000: Eminem released The Marshall Mathers LP. In its first week on sale, the album sold more than 1.76 million copies in the U.S., making it the fastest-selling studio album by any solo artist in American music history. The album went on to win the Grammy Award for Best Rap Album.
• 2003: Bruce Almighty was released in theaters, topping the U.S. box office that Memorial Day weekend.
• 2007: At a ceremony in Washington, D.C., the Library of Congress” first Gershwin Prize was given to Paul Simon. Among the recipients since have been Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, and Carole King.
• 2010: The series finale of Lost aired on ABC.