Was Star Trek's original Captain Kirk always fond of antiques?

Question

In The Wrath of Kahn (TWOK), there are at least 2 references to Kirk's fondness for antiques. Spock states that he's aware of this fondness when he gives him an old edition of A Tale of Two Cities; McCoy tells him to get away from his antiques and get his command back, and I think there's a reference to this as well when McCoy gives Kirk his reading glasses (along with a reference to Kirk's medication allergy).

I grew up watching the original series (some during the original run and all, many times, in reruns) and had seen all of the animated series when TWOK came out — and had endured Star Trek: The Motion Picture several times as well. I remember when I was watching TWOK in the movie theater for the first time being "jarred" by the lines about antiques. While it was not out of place, I don't remember any reference to such an interest in any preceding Trek at that time.

It's quite believable that, as he aged, and was no longer on a ship, that Kirk had time on his hands and needed a hobby or to become drawn to out-of-date objects — since he may have felt past his usefulness, so it's not that such a reference is wrong or out of place. But I have long wondered if I missed something along the way.

Excluding books (which the producers rarely counted as canon), was this interest of Kirk's ever mentioned before TWOK? And, as long as I'm asking, was it in any of the very few Trek books that had been published before TWOK either?

Answer 1

According to a de Forest Research memo for Star Trek: The Wrath of Khan from October 14, 1981:

Kirk has NEVER collected antiques. Perhaps a line might be planted that he has developed a new interest. (One of the problems with the Kirk character is that he was never consistently written. He was always what the writers needed THAT week.)

The quote was found here. The poster said:

UCLA has many of [de Forest's] memos from the original series in the Roddenberry papers. The one from TWOK is in the Nick Meyer papers at the University of Iowa.

Answer 2

It's notable that Tale of Two Cities is literature, not simply an antique. References to Kirk's interest in literature comes up several times. Examples: In "Where No Man Has Gone Before," Gary tells Kirk he's had time in sickbay to read some of the "long-haired" stuff that his friend had been recommending. In "The Ultimate Computer," Kirk quotes John Masefield: "And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by" (http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/John_Masefield). In "Space Seed" Kirk and Khan briefly chat about Milton, and Kirk even quotes from Paradise Lost."

This may partially explain the nature of that particular antique.