Star Trek fans are willing to spend loads of cash to purchase memorabilia and collector’s items, and this New Yorker has gone beyond just spending for his obsession.
Anthony Sforza, 48, has been amassing memorabilia from Star Trek since the 1980s. He has collected more than 300 items including costumes, props, and figures. He has a transporter control unit, life-size models of characters, and a display case full of phasers. In 2010, however, he went all the way and decided to recreate the Starship Enterprise in his own basement, Mirror UK reports.
Sforza spent 1,500 hours, 3 years, and around $500,000 for his big project. He admits that recreating the Starship Enterprise was no easy feat. “It was very difficult at first to find materials that they used on the show,” he said. “I tried calling them but getting an answer was impossible.”
Despite having a hard time looking for the right materials, luck was on his side as he was able to buy a piece of Star Trek ‘s original set, which he pulled apart in order to find out the exact materials and paint that were used. “That’s how I created the basement,” he said.
According to The Daily Mail, Sforza is married, is a father of two, and his sons love Star Trek just as much as he does.
His 11-year-old son Michael said, “I would love to do something like this when I’m older—it would be pretty cool and I think it would be a good addition to any home.” His younger son Daniel, 7, said, “I think that it’s cool because he has all the belts and badges and everything is here to show just how much he loves ‘Star Trek.’”
Sforza’s wife Annette is also supportive of his Star Trek obsession. Annette said that he couldn’t see their basement being transformed into the Starship Enterprise when Anthony first told her of his plans. However, once her husband started working, the entire family got excited as they were seeing the vision unfold.
“I think it’s wonderful, I admire him so much for being able to put vision into something like this and for it to look so incredible—it’s wonderful and I’m so proud of him.”
Anthony’s sister Marion, however, thinks that building a Starship Enterprise in a basement is a bit odd. She said that Sforza has been a fan of Star Trek for as long as she can remember. “I think he’s a freak, but he loves it and he could be into worse things so if that’s what makes him happy then that’s great.”
Sfroza is still looking to expand his Starship Enterprise to accommodate more Star Trek items.
