Polite Dissent

Rest in peace, James Doohan.

Scotty was always my favorite Star Trek character, in part because he was shared the same name (more or less, it was his last name and my first name). I was raised in a Star Trek house. My father loved the show and passed the love on the show on to me. It was fuuny that we’d each remember the show differently. I’d remember the episodes by the title and plot, while he was more knowledgable about the guest stars. I’d mention “Metamorphosis”, and he’d give me a puzzled look. Then I’d describe the plot and he’s say “Wasn’t that the one with Glenn Corbett?”

One thing we both agreed on that Scotty was our favorite character. When my father was teaching at Virginia Tech (around 1978 or 1979), Doohan came to the university to give a lecture. My father took the whole family and it was great. Doohan spoke for two hours or so about everything — he talked about Scotty and other roles, he talked about Canada, and he talked about his time in the military. Then they showed 3 Star Trek episodes (remember, this was before 100+ channel TV and DVD, so seeing an episode was a big deal). I was delighted that “The Trouble With Tribbles” was one of the episodes, because that was my favorite at that point. I wish that I remembered more of Doohan’s lecture, but two parts in particular stick in my mind:
1. He told a great story about flying slalom between telephone poles in his plane while in the military.
2. His comment to the crowd about the (then) recently released Star Trek Enterprise Blueprints. “Some of you may have noticed that there were no bathrooms on the blueprints. Just remember, we did have our phasers…”

When we moved to the St. Louis area in the 1980s, St. Louis still had an excellent annual Star Trek convention. My father and I went almost every year, and everytime we went, Doohan was there. My father has always had great skill at talking to celebrities. He would mention how much he liked them in some of their lesser know roles, and then they would spend the next fifteen or so minutes reminsicing about bad movies and TV shows. It was always great to watch and would love to develop that easy going charm my father has. I’m sure Doohan remembered my father, because each time we went, they’d spend longer and longer talking. Sadly, in the mid-80s, the convention closed down and we never got another chance to meet James Doohan in person.

So this is my long-winded way of saying James Doohan, requiescat in pace.