# Scotty didn't die; James Doohan did **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [July 21, 2005, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441 "2005-07-21T08:48:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Scott\_Plaid](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/258eb7/32.png) [@Scott\_Plaid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scott_Plaid)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/21 "2005-07-21T14:26:45Z")
> [@Uvula Donor](#): > > We’ll stand around reminiscing about a little boy who had vivid dreams. “Time to get Nemo! Wake up, boy! What ails that youngster, eh? Nemo! Nemo!” I told him not to eat all that Welsh Rabbit. Now look at him! ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 2:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/22 "2005-07-21T14:33:40Z")
> [@Jinks](#): > > The guy was a D-day veteran who survived being shot 5 times. I wish people would remember that as much as they’d remember his time on the USS Enterprise. > > But i can understand why they don’t. Did you even read the thread? His service is mentioned often and with plenty of respect. ---
**Author:** ![Jinks](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/d9b06d/32.png) [@Jinks](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinks)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/23 "2005-07-21T15:43:06Z")
Yes, i did read the thread in the CS forum, the posters were/are very respectful, i expect nothing less from my experience reading the SDMB. However, the OP did not specifically mention any one thread on any one forum though so i assumed he was speaking generally. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/24 "2005-07-21T16:25:54Z")
> [@spooje](#): > > I met him once. > > Well, I didn’t _meet_ him. He yelled at me for parking in a handicapped spot. > > I was young. Feh… **I** had dinner with him. Really. ---
**Author:** ![DogMom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9c0ed/32.png) [@DogMom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DogMom)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/25 "2005-07-21T18:20:48Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > And I think it trivializes the death of this real person to pretend he was interchangeable with a fictional character he once played. Would this make a difference in your perspective? From the Yahoo! news service: > [@](#): > > When the series ended in 1969, Doohan found himself typecast as Montgomery Scott, the canny engineer with a burr in his voice. In 1973, he complained to his dentist, who advised him: “Jimmy, you’re going to be Scotty long after you’re dead. If I were you, I’d go with the flow.” > > “I took his advice,” said Doohan, “and since then everything’s been just lovely.” Full article [here](http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20050720/ap_on_en_tv/obit_doohan). So even he knew that he’d be memorialized as “Scotty”, and not as “James Doohan”. ---
**Author:** ![rjung](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/45deac/32.png) [@rjung](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjung)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 9:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/26 "2005-07-21T21:27:55Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > Now I know, nobody really thinks Scotty was a real person. But James Doohan was a real person. He had a wife and seven children. And I think it trivializes the death of this real person to pretend he was interchangeable with a fictional character he once played. How much indignation do you have, then, for the fact that _his own authorized autobiography_ is titled [“Beam Me Up, Scotty”](http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/102-3492698-4575338)? If it’s good enough for him, it’s good enough for me. ---
**Author:** ![Telemark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/telemark/32/372_2.png) [@Telemark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Telemark)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/27 "2005-07-21T21:56:59Z")
> [@rjung](#): > > for the fact that _his own authorized autobiography_ It’s those unauthorized autobiographies that you have to worry about. ---
**Author:** ![fubbleskag](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/c2a13f/32.png) [@fubbleskag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fubbleskag)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 10:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/28 "2005-07-21T22:15:01Z")
i didn’t read this thread, so if someone already said this, my apologies. > [@Little Nemo](#): > > In at least half of the recent posts about the recent death of James Doohan, people are saying things like “Scotty died” and “the Enterprise losts its engineer” and “he’s hanging out with McCoy”. > > Now I know, nobody really thinks Scotty was a real person. But James Doohan was a real person. He had a wife and seven children. And I think it trivializes the death of this real person to pretend he was interchangeable with a fictional character he once played. get over yourself. ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 10:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/29 "2005-07-21T22:30:06Z")
We all realize who died. And it doesn’t hurt to mention “Scotty.” That’s what he was best known and best loved for. I don’t see that any aspect of his death has been trivialized. ---
**Author:** ![SlyFrog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a3d4f5/32.png) [@SlyFrog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlyFrog)\ **Post date:** [July 21, 2005, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/30 "2005-07-21T22:36:03Z")
Well, I understand there are a lot of actors who are bothered by the fact that people only know them for one role, believing it somehow trivializes them as a human being. It’s not merely the OP who believes/has expressed this point. I understand it, not exactly sure where I fall on the scale. I think a lot of us do not think about it because we will never be famous enough to be known for one thing only. I could see it being a bit irritating if, at the age of 50, I thought I had produced some really good work, or had produced a life’s worth of good work, only to have everyone focus on, “Hey, that was a really awesome jhow you worked at the checkout counter at Starbucks for those 2 1/2 years back in 1987! Gimme a Frapucinno!” ---
**Author:** ![Cervaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cervaise/32/16693_2.png) [@Cervaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cervaise)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/31 "2005-07-22T00:17:19Z")
> [@bizzwire](#): > > Feh… **I** had dinner with him. Feh. _ **I** _ jizzed in his _ **ear.** _ ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/32 "2005-07-22T00:18:01Z")
I knew when I wrote it, I’d touch some nerves and offend some people. But still I stand by what I said; there’s a difference between saying James Doohan _played_ Scotty and saying James Doohan _was_ Scotty. ---
**Author:** ![Nature\_s\_Call](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nature_s_call/32/19006_2.png) [@Nature\_s\_Call](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nature_s_Call)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 12:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/33 "2005-07-22T00:22:46Z")
> [@Little Nemo](#): > > I knew when I wrote it, I’d touch some nerves and offend some people. But still I stand by what I said; there’s a difference between saying James Doohan _played_ Scotty and saying James Doohan _was_ Scotty. [nitpick]Your OP complained not using the actor’s name trivialized his death, with the implication those who say “Scotty’s dead” are doing a disservice.[/nitpick] While agreeing with you that Scotty was played by the actor James Doohan (a point you also concede everyone knows), the reaction to your post was not over which name should be used, but to the implied disrespect. ---
**Author:** ![bizzwire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/958977/32.png) [@bizzwire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bizzwire)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/34 "2005-07-22T00:34:08Z")
> [@Cervaise](#): > > Feh. _ **I** _ jizzed in his _ **ear.** _ ok…good one… But really, it was my one “brush with greatness,” and since none of you ungrateful bastards has the decency to ask me to tell you all about it…I will. A friend of a friend worked for Paramount (the exact date escapes me, but it had to have been in the late eighties), which had just released a collection of “Star Trek” episodes on the latest technology, the VCR. For you young 'uns, this was a platic box the size of a small-city phone book which could be played on your TV. Anyway, the studio embarked on a marketing blitz, part of which required a promotional tour by Mr. Doohan to Boston. Said friend of a friend, who worked in Paramount’s marketing department, was seconded to accompany Mr. Doohan to his appointed rounds and keep him company. Evidently, Scotty…, er… Mr. Doohan had a bit of a repuation of being somewhat lecherous, so “Suzy” (not her real name) asked my friend if he would pose as her ‘fiance’ when they came to town. My buddy couldn’t so it, so he nominated me, knowing what a lifeless trekkie dork I am. I mean, was. Was. Bottom line, after their promotional affair, we all met up for dinner in the North End. Mr. Doohan was a very nice man, a yeoman actor without any pretensions of who he was or what he was doing. He was a long-time Angelino who spoke with nary a burr or a brogue. We were joined by a pair of local sycophants who kept up a non-stop blur of star-trek-related comments, observations and bad jokes. I kept my mouth shut and drank wine and ate …I forget, exactly, but it was Italian, and it was delicious. Thanks for asking. ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/35 "2005-07-22T01:13:20Z")
Scotty dead? I’m almost as bummed as when Kermit died of pneumonia. At least we still have Spock. Seriously (well as serious as I can manage with my eyes rolled all the way back in their sockets :rolleyes: ) - the OP’s ridiculous. If it weren’t for “Scotty” few people would know or care that James Doohan, age 85, died somewhere in CA the other day. It’s like saying when an ex-President dies, we’re not supposed to focus on his presidency, we’re supposed to think about what a great Dad he was. It’s silliness. And by the way I think (unlike Spock) Scotty actually \*liked \* being seen as Scotty. He wouldn’t mind. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/36 "2005-07-22T02:02:39Z")
> [@bizzwire](#): > > I mean, was. Was. Hey, we are all ‘former’ Star Trek Geeks. That is the reason we care about his passing. > [@uglybeech](#): > > If it weren’t for “Scotty” few people would know or care that James Doohan, age 85, died somewhere in CA the other day. > And by the way I think (unlike Spock) Scotty actually \*liked \* being seen as Scotty. He wouldn’t mind. First he was living in Washington state - not a big deal, just a minor nit pick. Second, I think that at this point everybody associated with ST:TOS has made their peace with its legacy and its effect on them as actors. ---
**Author:** ![uglybeech](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/82dd89/32.png) [@uglybeech](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/uglybeech)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/37 "2005-07-22T02:05:15Z")
> [@adam yax](#): > > Second, I think that at this point everybody associated with ST:TOS has made their peace with its legacy and its effect on them as actors. Peace, maybe. But I bet Spock still doesn’t like it. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/38 "2005-07-22T03:03:45Z")
“Scotty didn’t die; James Doohan did.” You know, I like this. You’re right- Scotty will live with us forever. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Good\_Egg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/96bed5/32.png) [@Good\_Egg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Good_Egg)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 3:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/39 "2005-07-22T03:58:11Z")
Its a tribute **Nemo** , but not as you know it. ---
**Author:** ![infamousmom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/d6d6ee/32.png) [@infamousmom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/infamousmom)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2005, 7:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441/40 "2005-07-22T07:24:50Z")
I seem to be the only one who’s noticed that James Doohan died on the _36th anniversary of the first landing on the moon._ Maybe he did beam up, after all. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/scotty-didnt-die-james-doohan-did/313441.md?page=3)