# William Shatner and DeForest Kelley - The Straight Dope? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 3, 2008, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677 "2008-06-03T20:15:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/21 "2008-06-04T01:33:18Z")
He was cremated when he died (it would have been rude to cremate him earlier) and often said when he was alive that he’d already prepaid the package because otherwise he absolutely knew his headstone would read “He’s Dead, Jim!” (I know that some Roddenberry and Doohan ashes were shot into space; don’t know about Kelley’s.) ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 1:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/22 "2008-06-04T01:39:56Z")
[QUOTE=The Scrivener] Westerns, and also a certain [cult B-horror flick](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=459827&highlight=Lepus). \*\*The Devil’s Rain \*\* [starring Shatner] and \*\*The Night of the Lepus \*\* [featuring Kelley]. [/QUOTE] Don’t forget Nimoy in [Them](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047573/fullcredits#cast) or [Zombies of the Stratosphere,](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0045352/) in which his character is green. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![vivalostwages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/d07c76/32.png) [@vivalostwages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vivalostwages)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/23 "2008-06-04T03:32:25Z")
I saw Kelley at a Trek convention years ago and he seemed very kindly and gracious. Nimoy and Shatner joined him onstage and they all appeared genuinely warm with each other. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 7:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/24 "2008-06-04T07:02:48Z")
[QUOTE=Surbey] No, he was right when he says [hobbit](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XC73PHdQX04) And you call yourself a trek fan… [/QUOTE] Fascinating. ---
**Author:** ![cochrane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cochrane/32/10441_2.png) [@cochrane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cochrane)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/25 "2008-06-04T07:20:05Z")
On a related note, Robert H. Justman, who served as associate producer, technical consultant, and co-producer on both Star Trek:TOS and Star Trek:TNG, has [passed away.](http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117986810.html?categoryid=14&cs=1) His death came within days of those of [Joseph Pevney,](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0678928/filmoseries#tt0060028) who directed 14 episodes of the original series, and [Alexander Courage](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0006021/) who composed the original series’ theme. ---
**Author:** ![DMark](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@DMark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DMark)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/26 "2008-06-04T07:34:49Z")
Just a quick footnote on Shatner and Nimoy: When I was working at the theater, both were there in the audience one night with their wives. They had gone there to see a mutual friend in a play and were simply audience members. Fans came up and asked them both for autographs while they were in the lobby before the show, during intermission and after the show. Nimoy graciously signed autographs. Shatner didn’t sign a single autograph and turned his back and ignored anybody who spoke to him. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 8:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/27 "2008-06-04T08:09:29Z")
[QUOTE=The Scrivener] You want an interesting evening? Invite your Trekker friends over for a double feature consisting of \*\*The Devil’s Rain \*\* [starring Shatner] and \*\*The Night of the Lepus \*\* [featuring Kelley]. For that finishing touch, leave a copy of an early volume of Leonard Nimoy’s romantic poems and photographs in a prominent spot on the coffee table. Depending on their sensibility and degree of Trek orthodoxy, they’ll either love it or hate it… [/QUOTE] And don’t forget to play that album of Shatner singing that came out a few years ago, as background music. ---
**Author:** ![Olive\_The\_Other\_Reindeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/f9ae1b/32.png) [@Olive\_The\_Other\_Reindeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Olive_The_Other_Reindeer)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/28 "2008-06-04T12:50:25Z")
Yes, Kelly was a mainstay in many westerns. IIRC, the “Dammit, I’m a doctor, not a \_\_\_\_\_” was an homage to one of his western roles where he uttered those same, immortal words. ---
**Author:** ![JThunder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e95f7d/32.png) [@JThunder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JThunder)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 12:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/29 "2008-06-04T12:50:36Z")
[QUOTE=cochrane] Fascinating. [/QUOTE] Indeed. ---
**Author:** ![Hypno-Toad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b2d939/32.png) [@Hypno-Toad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypno-Toad)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/30 "2008-06-04T14:42:09Z")
[QUOTE=JThunder] Indeed. [/QUOTE] But not logical. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/31 "2008-06-04T14:58:39Z")
[QUOTE=Olive, The Other Reindeer] Yes, Kelly was a mainstay in many westerns. IIRC, the “Dammit, I’m a doctor, not a \_\_\_\_\_” was an homage to one of his western roles where he uttered those same, immortal words. [/QUOTE] I never knew that, do you know which one? * * * Hey, on Shatner, I met him once and he was a nice guy. Of course it was at a convention, so maybe he was on his best behavior. I asked him a non-Star Trek question and so got a longer answer than the rest of us geeks. It was about his comedic turn in “Airplane II” and that he was the best part of the movie. I also asked about his less famous Twilight Zone: “Nick of Time” with the fortune telling mechanical Devil in the Diner. I only went to one convention and he was the main speaker. He was extremely funny and personable on stage. This was in San Diego around 1986 or 1987 and they also showed some clips from Roger Rabbit & the opening short. It was an unexpected bonus and the movie looked interesting and actually lived up to expectation and then some when it came out. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/32 "2008-06-04T15:28:17Z")
I’m a distant relative of DeForest Kelley. Does this make me minor Trek royalty? The Duke of Doc? ---
**Author:** ![carnivorousplant](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnivorousplant/32/3563_2.png) [@carnivorousplant](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/carnivorousplant)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/33 "2008-06-04T15:42:47Z")
[QUOTE=Evil Captor] Does this make me minor Trek royalty? [/QUOTE] Only if you can identify in which Western he said, “I’m a doctor, not a whatchamacallit.” 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Ceejaytee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ceejaytee/32/2956_2.png) [@Ceejaytee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ceejaytee)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/34 "2008-06-04T16:10:26Z")
I’ve got absolutely nothing to add to this but what the hell, I never get the chance to say it: To me, DeForest Kelley was the best thing about TOS. Bones was warm, funny, and wonderfully sarcastic, could insult Spock better than anyone (although, shockingly, no one else really wanted to insult Spock), and felt everything very very deeply, and he could really yell when he needed to. Plus I thought he was really really cute. There. I have admitted my TOS crush. Next up, Michael Dorn and Avery Brooks. But not necessarily at the same time. ---
**Author:** ![Jodi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/7feea3/32.png) [@Jodi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jodi)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/35 "2008-06-04T16:47:55Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] IHey, on Shatner, I met him once and he was a nice guy. Of course it was at a convention, so maybe he was on his best behavior. [/QUOTE] What I have heard, though I have no cites, is that Shatner has really mellowed in his old(er) age. Apparently he really was quite the screen hogging dick during the original _Star Trek_, being insecure about his career and territorial of his position as The Star. And, like Nimoy, for a long time he didn’t really respect the work he did on _Star Trek_ or the fans, because he didn’t understand what a cultural juggernaut it would become. But the people who work with him on _Boston Legal_ seem to really like him, and he and James Spader are apparently very fond of each other. He had to mend a lot of fences with the _Star Trek_ gang, although to his credit he seems to have really tried to do so. I think realizing that _TOS_ was going to be the centerpiece of his professional life whether he liked it or not may have contributed to his attitude adjustment toward his _Trek_ costars and fans. I like the new and improved Shatner a lot – the goofy “Denny Crane” guy, the Priceline guy, the guy who is not afraid to poke fun at himself. I didn’t care for the old pompous “I’m An Actor” Shatner at all. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/36 "2008-06-04T16:55:17Z")
[QUOTE=Ceejaytee] I’ve got absolutely nothing to add to this but what the hell, I never get the chance to say it: To me, DeForest Kelley was the best thing about TOS. Bones was warm, funny, and wonderfully sarcastic, could insult Spock better than anyone (although, shockingly, no one else really wanted to insult Spock), and felt everything very very deeply, and he could really yell when he needed to. Plus I thought he was really really cute. [/QUOTE] He was a needed anchor to the 20th century, proof that man won’t lose his humanity as he reaches for the stars. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/37 "2008-06-04T18:16:09Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] . . .I feel the urge to yell “Damn fool! What are you gonna do if that sitcom doesn’t get picked up and you have a $30,000 house payment and 12 employees!” [/quote] It happens to [older out of work actors](http://www.reuters.com/article/mergersNews/idUSN0445722620080604), too. I realize he hasn’t been able to work for a while because of poor health, but still. . . ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/38 "2008-06-04T18:24:45Z")
[QUOTE=Jodi] What I have heard, though I have no cites, is that Shatner has really mellowed in his old(er) age. Apparently he really was quite the screen hogging dick during the original _Star Trek_, being insecure about his career and territorial of his position as The Star. And, like Nimoy, for a long time he didn’t really respect the work he did on _Star Trek_ or the fans, because he didn’t understand what a cultural juggernaut it would become. But the people who work with him on _Boston Legal_ seem to really like him, and he and James Spader are apparently very fond of each other. He had to mend a lot of fences with the _Star Trek_ gang, although to his credit he seems to have really tried to do so. I think realizing that _TOS_ was going to be the centerpiece of his professional life whether he liked it or not may have contributed to his attitude adjustment toward his _Trek_ costars and fans. I like the new and improved Shatner a lot – the goofy “Denny Crane” guy, the Priceline guy, the guy who is not afraid to poke fun at himself. I didn’t care for the old pompous “I’m An Actor” Shatner at all. [/QUOTE] This all rings true to me, but in my brief meeting and his 45 minute Q&A back in 86 or 87 he seemed just as friendly and warm back then. Now this was 20 years after Star Trek went on, but still 20 years ago. So if he mellowed I think it might have happened a long time ago. That Airplane II role was actually his first self-parody I think. That was in 1982. ---
**Author:** ![Fir\_na\_tine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a587f6/32.png) [@Fir\_na\_tine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fir_na_tine)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 6:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/39 "2008-06-04T18:31:44Z")
[QUOTE=Sampiro] He was cremated when he died (it would have been rude to cremate him earlier) [/QUOTE] Damn you Sampiro (shaking fist and wiping soda off desk simultaneously). I’m laughing and choking so hard all my cubicle mates in this funny farm are convinced I’ve finally gone completely around the bend. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2008, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677/40 "2008-06-04T19:57:00Z")
[QUOTE=What Exit?] Hey, on Shatner, I met him once and he was a nice guy. Of course it was at a convention, so maybe he was on his best behavior. [/QUOTE] I gues it wasn’t [THIS convention.](http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6228148405262710055&q=SNL+shatner+get+a+life&total=3&start=0&num=10&so=0&type=search&plindex=2) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/william-shatner-and-deforest-kelley-the-straight-dope/451677.md?page=3)