In the time that I was offline, I was saddened by the news of the passing of James Doohan, "Scotty" of "Star Trek" fame. He was 85, and is the second of the "Original Series" crew to pass away. The first was DeForest Kelley, Dr. Leonard H. "Bones" McCoy, in 1999.
Scotty was always my favorite Trek character, for many reasons, but mainly because he always seemed so "real" to me.
Unlike the more noble and perhaps more sophisticated "big three" characters of Kirk, Spock and McCoy, Scotty was more like people I knew; he got into bar fights (with the Klingons, over the honor of his beloved Enterprise), he drank his scotch and liked to see pretty, scantily-clad women. He was, to coin a phrase, an average Joe.
More than any of the others, Doohan’s portrayal of the excitable yet extremely competent Chief Engineer inspired others to study and work in that particular field. People from astronauts to NASA spacecraft designers to chemical, computer and mechanical engineers have given their props to Scotty.
I find it fitting that he was one of the last of the "old" crew to be featured in a Trek movie (the opening sequence of "Generations", with Kirk and Chekov, touring the Enterprise-B for her maiden voyage). He spoke the last line for them, as well (after Kirk’s "death", answering Chekov’s question of whether anyone had been in the area when the hull was breached. He sadly answered "Aye". The scene then faded into "78 years later", and the NexGen crew’s era).
I have my own Doohan story, actually.
As a lifelong Trek fan, I was glad to have the opportunity to meet Mr. Doohan when he appeared for an autograph-signing session at Starbase Columbus, a sci-fi store that used to be (though it may still be, I have no idea) in Westerville, OH, a suburb of Columbus. I waited in line for two hours to get to the table, and purchased a photo for him to sign (which is hanging on the wall behind me at the moment), a copy of "Mr. Scott’s Guide to the Enterprise", which he also signed, and paid a somewhat princely sum (in my opinion, at least) of 13.00 for a polaroid shot with him.
He was very nice, and when I asked him if his hand was getting tired yet, he cheerfully replied that he'd "been doing this for so many years" that he "could probably crush (my) windpipe with one hand". Not a happy quote perhaps, but taken in context and with his tone at the time, it was pretty funny. He was very nice.
I’ve not had the opportunity to meet any of the others, but I understand that they treat their fans with extreme kindness and respect. Our friend Jessica tells a story about going to a Trek convention with her husband’s uncle, a Klingon guy (he’s "commander" of their club, and he and the others dress up in the leather, armor and the foreheads and all that), and meeting George Takei, Sulu on the series.
Jessica and her husband are "Simpsons" fans, and she took with her a copy of a book they had, on the cover of which was a character voiced by Takei, to be autographed by him. When she got to the table and presented the book for him to sign, he was so pleased to see something other than his usual Trek-related stuff that he actually came around the table and gave her a big hug and a kiss on the cheek. He then talked at length with her, the uncle and his "crew".
You know, the Trek stars see the most utterly extreme examples of fan devotion and have learned to take it in stride, unlike so many other celebrities out there. That’s class, if you ask me.
Farewell, Mr. Doohan…..you and your character gave so many of us so much fun, enjoyment and even inspiration. Thank you…..Godspeed and God Bless.