After its success this past weekend, Star Trek is suddenly on its way to becoming cool. This isn't the first time. Back in the 70s, when the franchise was new it was the epitome of cool. There, at the birth of the fanboy, Star Trek conventions gathered together people from all walks of life, remnants of the free love movement and science fiction fans collided it what almost seems like an orgy of Vulcan ears.

NewsWeek is running an amazing feature showcasing rare images from those very first, packed out Star Trek conventions. Comic Con, Dragon Con, and all the rest you owe a debt to these trail blazing geek fans. The pictures are incredible and narrated by a woman who was there, at the birth of everything.

I've included a couple of sample images here, click over to Newsweek and see the entire gallery to find out where this whole Trek thing came from.