Star Trek [TOS] "The Cage" Home Video B&W Poster (1986)

 

Star Trek "The Cage" home video release promotional mini poster. Be sure to click the image above for a larger version!

Size: 8.5" x 11" (single-sided)
Artist/Illustrator: Charles deMar
Release Year: 1986
Region: North America
Notes:

• This mini poster/flyer user an alternate version of the key art used for the one-sheet promotional poster for "The Cage."
• In this version of the art, the character of ship's surgeon Dr. Boyce is depicted next to Vina on the lower right instead of Captain Pike. Boyce is holding a laser pistol (later known as a phaser), which is also missing from the final art. Presumably, someone in charge felt that Pike should be the hero rescuing the damsel in distress here, and had the art repainted, sans pistol. An animated GIF comparison is below.

• Other changes between this art and the final version are more less obvious. Highlights were added to the final art in a few places, most obviously the sketchy red and blue streaks on either side of Pike's head. These may have been necessary to hide the "seams" created by the repaint, or may have been a simple cosmetic change, at either the artist's discretion or the studio's (or other party's) request. Other highlights can be seen in subtle alterations to Vina's eyes and hair as seen in the GIF above, and, over on the other side of the poster, thin strips of pink around the Orion dancer's right arm.
• UPDATE January 2026: I first discovered this image at the History of Star Trek: TOS On Consumer Home Video site. According to that source, Paramount distributed these black-and-white mini posters or flyers at conventions, presumably in Spring / Summer 1986, as promo for the then-upcoming VHS release. While I still have not been able to find more on this poster's history anywhere else online, I did manage to acquire one recently from eBay. The image embedded above is my scan.