James Doohan, R.I.P.

July 20, 2005 9:11 AM

James Doohan passes away at 85.The cause of death was pneumonia and Alzheimer's. He was best known for his role as Star Trek's Engineer Montgomery Scott.
posted by mrbill (126 comments total)

damn ...
posted by pyramid termite at 9:11 AM on July 20, 2005

It's a sad day. Relics, despite the gimmickiness, was one of my favorite TNG episodes. Godspeed, sir.
posted by Plutor at 9:15 AM on July 20, 2005

sucks that my first MeFi post (never did before, scared of criticism) had to be something like this 8-(
posted by mrbill at 9:17 AM on July 20, 2005

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Finally beamed up himself, he is.
posted by goodnewsfortheinsane at 9:18 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by tonelesscereal at 9:18 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by peacay at 9:18 AM on July 20, 2005

Poop. I've been a fan ever since he did Arthur Hailey's "Flight into Danger" as a CBC radio play.

Mr Doohan was a very classy guy and a man who was acutely conscious of how lucky he was to have landed a role that brought him so much (albeit typecast) fame. It was something he never fought. His memories of the influence he had on some youngsters' decisions to pursue careers in engineering were especially touching.

I think I'll watch STIV -- The Voyage Home tonight.
posted by Mike D at 9:20 AM on July 20, 2005

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Flags will be flying at half-mast in Sarnia...
posted by The Card Cheat at 9:20 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by eustacescrubb at 9:24 AM on July 20, 2005

"It's a hearse, Jim, you can't push it any faster....!"
posted by jonmc at 9:24 AM on July 20, 2005

It took eight comments. Keep trying people.
posted by Pretty_Generic at 9:25 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by TBoneMcCool at 9:25 AM on July 20, 2005

Heh, before I even loaded this article, I thought: "Let the . flood commence!"

Sarcasm aside, I'm truly saddened by the news. Doohan's Scotty was a guy it seems everyone could admire and appreciate, whether or not they were Star Trek fans.

Obligatory .
posted by Floach at 9:26 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by ursus_comiter at 9:26 AM on July 20, 2005

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God will take him home in a special wessel for sure.
posted by drezdn at 9:27 AM on July 20, 2005

But he gave it all he's got, Cap'n!
posted by klangklangston at 9:28 AM on July 20, 2005

oops.
posted by drezdn at 9:29 AM on July 20, 2005

Re: Poop. I've been a fan ever since he did Arthur Hailey's "Flight into Danger" as a CBC radio play.

A quick run via Google shows this to have been a televison production, not radio.

You know you're getting old when you recall black-and-white TV as radio.
posted by Mike D at 9:29 AM on July 20, 2005

There's a nice little scene in Trekkies where Doohan describes having met a fan who's suicidally depressed, so they chat, and he firmly insists on seeing him/her again at the next con, and again, and again... until the fan stops coming. And fearing the worst, he's sad, until he finds out years later that the fan had gotten his/her shit together, and not committed suicide. The touching bit was how obviously misty-eyed proud he was not of having been a star, not of having made a bunch of cash, but of helping out some sad schmoe he didn't really know from Adam's housecat.

Godspeed, and say hi to DeForest.
posted by ROU_Xenophobe at 9:29 AM on July 20, 2005

If I remember right, Doohan stormed the beach at Normandy before going on to TV fame. Interesting life.
posted by COBRA! at 9:29 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by briank at 9:32 AM on July 20, 2005

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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." (article w/ brief bio)



*sniff*
posted by sarahmelah at 9:35 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by purephase at 9:36 AM on July 20, 2005

If I remember right, Doohan stormed the beach at Normandy before going on to TV fame. Interesting life.

D-Day, Juno Beach, to be specific.

"At 11:30 that night, he was machine-gunned, taking six hits: one that took off his middle right finger (he managed to hide the missing finger on the screen), four in his leg and one in the chest. Fortunately the chest bullet was stopped by his silver cigarette case."

posted by Civil_Disobedient at 9:38 AM on July 20, 2005

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Open sky, Jimmy D... The order is given. Warp speed.

*sad* Scotty was my favorite of the crew when I was a kid.
posted by zoogleplex at 9:40 AM on July 20, 2005

He always seemed like a genuinely good man.

I guess his engine couldn't take any more.

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On Preview: C_D, wow, that is truly amazing. Now I want to go and watch some old episodes and see if I can see the missing finger.
posted by fenriq at 9:40 AM on July 20, 2005

Thank you, Mr Doohan.

I did not realize that Alzheimer's could be a cause of death.
posted by jaronson at 9:41 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by piratebowling at 9:41 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by valis at 9:42 AM on July 20, 2005

Engage warp drive. Take us out of here, Mr. Scott.

*sniff, I'm getting misty*
posted by warbaby at 9:44 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by nightchrome at 9:44 AM on July 20, 2005

Interesting how he's "Canadian-born" to CNN, even though he was Canadian well into adulthood (unlike Saul Bellow, who was just "Canadian born"). Of course, CNN points out that he was involved in D-Day, while quietly omitting the fact that that wasn't for the States, at Normandy, but for Canada, at Juno Beach.

I want to find some episodes of CBC's Space Command!
posted by djfiander at 9:47 AM on July 20, 2005

My favorite Scotty moment, as told by modern drunkard magazine:

"Lad, you're gonna need something to wash that down with,” Scotty says, strolling over to where the alien Tomar eats. “Have you ever tried any Saurian brandy?" Tomar shakes his head no and they repair to Scotty’s quarters for an interspecies drink-off. They drink every bottle of brandy Scotty has on hand, which is saying something because Scotty was apparently stocked up for a very long drought. Tomar is hanging in there like an Irish uncle and Scotty decides it’s time to go for the big guns, dragging out his treasured bottle of Ganymede Scotch. Talk about self-sacrifice. Tomar inquires, "What is it?" All Scotty can squeeze out is, “Well, it's . . . um . . . it's green."

They tuck into the scotch and just before they polish it off Tomar takes a dive. Scotty, his job done, takes a little nap himself seconds later.

Humans: 1 Super Aliens: 0

Here's hoping there's was a bottle waiting for him on the other side.
posted by three blind mice at 9:47 AM on July 20, 2005

One of my first Internet memories, in 1994, was reading a rumor on Usenet saying that Doohan had passed away. I'm glad he outlived the rumor by more than ten years, and even managed to have a son, who is now five years old.
posted by zsazsa at 9:47 AM on July 20, 2005

My favorite scene with Scotty: "....but captain, they compared the Enterprise to a garbage scow!"

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posted by mach at 9:49 AM on July 20, 2005

I have to admit, Civil_Disobedient's post about this was better than mine.
posted by mrbill at 9:49 AM on July 20, 2005

TBM, that's my favorite Scotty moment too. The next favorite is:

"Mr. Scott?"

"Aye, sir?"

"Have you always multiplied your repair estimates by three?"

"Aye, sir." (broad grin)
posted by zoogleplex at 9:51 AM on July 20, 2005

Scotty quotes.
posted by brain_drain at 9:52 AM on July 20, 2005

One of my favorite characters ever. Godspeed, Mr. Doohan.
posted by Joey Michaels at 9:53 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by sciurus at 9:54 AM on July 20, 2005

Oddly, his only other TV series besides "Star Trek" was another space adventure, "Space Command," in 1953

Well, there was Homeboys in Outer Space, but the less said about that, the better.

My money's on Nimoy to be next.
posted by solid-one-love at 9:55 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by LeeJay at 9:56 AM on July 20, 2005

The order is given.

I met him at an L.A. Lazers soccer game when I was a kid. I was too shy to say anything, but I shook his hand and didn't notice the missing finger.
posted by inksyndicate at 9:57 AM on July 20, 2005

Thanks for the quotes brain_drain. I'll think I'll buy a round of scotches tonight in Scotty's memory.
posted by jasper411 at 9:59 AM on July 20, 2005

Screenshots of the missing finger.

May he now reach the control panel.

posted by brownpau at 10:01 AM on July 20, 2005

Wow, zsaza, I had to double check to believe it, but Doohan did have another child at 80. What a beast. From my googling though, he had a daughter, who was preceded some years earlier by a son who is now old enough to have been interviewed by many of the media outlets publishing articles on Doohan's alzheimer's and now his passing.
posted by Derive the Hamiltonian of... at 10:01 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by bshort at 10:02 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by soyjoy at 10:07 AM on July 20, 2005

/weepy.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 10:10 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by dial-tone at 10:16 AM on July 20, 2005

I don't think they make actors like this anymore.
:-/
posted by hototogisu at 10:28 AM on July 20, 2005

Just heard this from my brother, and was going to post it. Figures someone would beat me to it.

Ditto on "Relics".
GEORDI: I told him I'd have that analysis done in an hour.
SCOTT (conspiratorially): And how long will it really take you?
GEORDI (puzzled): An hour.
SCOTT (shocked): Ye didna tell him how long it was really going to take you?
GEORDI (irritated): Of course I did.
SCOTT: Oh... Laddie. You've got a lot to learn if you want them to think of you as a miracle worker.

Sad. RIP Mr. Doohan.
posted by ObscureReferenceMan at 10:36 AM on July 20, 2005

It's become an enduring habit of mine to belt out "Ye Bloody Saracens!" when confronted by any sort of perceived enemy (bad drivers, bill collectors, deadlines, etc.). Scotty was a really wonderful character, a hard drinker & brawler who was also smart, brave, and always, always positive. Doohan gave him so much life and made an occasionally, um, stiff television show fun to watch. RIP.
posted by dragstroke at 10:43 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by alumshubby at 10:44 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by jabberwock at 10:47 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by jazon at 10:48 AM on July 20, 2005

I had the pleasure of meeting James Doohan once. It was at a Star Trek convention, of course. A friend insisted I go and at the time I was a fan of NextGen but that was about it. Doohan did the usual convention chatter and autograph signing and I shook his hand.

I forget how the subject came up, but John de Lancie (Q) was there as well and somehow the four of us got to talking about books. It won't go down in history as one of the most enlightening conversations ever, but it's one of the highpoints of my teenage years.
posted by Servo5678 at 10:51 AM on July 20, 2005

I've always wondered whether the character of Sandy Sinclair, the chief engineer on the Imperial cruiser INS MacArthur in Jerry Pournelle and Larry Niven's novel The Mote in God's Eye, was a homage to Doohan's portrayal of Scotty.
posted by alumshubby at 10:55 AM on July 20, 2005

Beam me up, Yahweh.

and the D-Day stuff... just... wow.
posted by gwint at 10:57 AM on July 20, 2005

I remember meeting him when I was about eight. My mother and I had gone to the airport to pick up my grandmother. We're standing there, at the terminal, and my grandmother walks out talking to Mr. Doohan. I was absolutely amazed, and ran up to him yelling "SCOTTY?!!?!!?"

He picked me up, and talked to me as Scotty for about 20 minutes. Definitely one of the higher points of my childhood.

That meeting is one of the big reasons I got into computers as a kid.
posted by junyatwin at 11:06 AM on July 20, 2005

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sigh
posted by paddbear at 11:11 AM on July 20, 2005

It's sad news - althought Scotty hadn't really been right since he was stored in that transporter thingie for all those decades....
posted by wfrgms at 11:11 AM on July 20, 2005

Nine kids, three wives, and timeless entertainment. If Texas wasn't so damn hot and humid I would spend the rest of the day wearing black.
posted by buzzman at 11:13 AM on July 20, 2005

:(

Best blog post I've seen so far has been a short one:

"Note to God:
What do You need with a warp drive, anyway?"
posted by zarq at 11:17 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by KerPow at 11:23 AM on July 20, 2005

"Aye, laddie-- warp speed."

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(so sad)
posted by nkyad at 11:23 AM on July 20, 2005

I hope Welshie is alright.
posted by The Dryyyyy Cracker at 11:29 AM on July 20, 2005

Is this what we were waiting for?

He's DEAD, Jim
</obvious>
posted by spock at 11:31 AM on July 20, 2005

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When I was in college, one of our teachers would always give us "Scotties". They were short, five minute quizes at the beginning of class. He called them Scotties because you have to solve some really hard problem in a short amount of time. And when time was almost up he'd give us crap about the Klingons about to attack and whatnot. It was fun (he was an electrical engineering professor, so yea, we were all nerds).
posted by SirOmega at 11:35 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by Snyder at 11:41 AM on July 20, 2005

I met him once, at a Star Trek convention that I had happened onto by accident. He was charming and friendly.

I've always thought of Scotty as the patron saint of all engineers.

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posted by bitmage at 11:43 AM on July 20, 2005

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posted by Kellydamnit at 11:47 AM on July 20, 2005

Hunter: You ever watch Star Trek?
Vossler: St- yeah, Star...
Hunter: Star Trek! The USS Enterprise? All right, now you remember when the Klingons were gonna blow up the Enterprise and Captain Kirk calls down to Scotty he says "Scotty, I gotta have more power-"
Vossler: He needs more, more warp speed, yeah.
Hunter: Warp speed, exactly. Now I'm Captain Kirk, you're Scotty, I need more power. I'm telling you if you do not get this radio up, a billion people are gonna die; now it's all up to you, I know it's a shitty deal but you got it, can you handle it?
Vossler: [Silent]
Hunter: Scotty?
Vossler: Aye, Captain.

Crimson Tide wasn't a particuarly good movie, (especially the ending,) but making Denzel Washington's character a big nerd and using Scotty as inspiring example always tickled me.
posted by Snyder at 11:49 AM on July 20, 2005

There's a couple of nice pieces over at WebSnark too.
posted by Rev. Syung Myung Me at 11:49 AM on July 20, 2005

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Rest in peace, Jimmy. Thanks for the memories.
posted by keswick at 11:57 AM on July 20, 2005

Snyder:

Did you really just use the phrase "nig nerd?" Is there something I am missing here?
posted by Chasuk at 12:04 PM on July 20, 2005

Too bad, probably my favorite of the lot.



"nig nerd?" that is totally a typo or something, right?
posted by Divine_Wino at 12:15 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by 김치 at 12:24 PM on July 20, 2005 [1 favorite]

Note that 'n' and 'b' are right next to each other on a keyboard, so I'd give the benefit of the doubt here.

(but ow!)
posted by bitmage at 12:24 PM on July 20, 2005

Denzel Washington's character a nig nerd

I must be mistaken; surely someone didn't just use that term here. Hopefully it was the n-vs-b typo...
posted by mrbill at 12:27 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by moonbird at 12:35 PM on July 20, 2005

Or maybe it was meant to be "MiG nerd". I never saw Crimson Tide, but was the Washington character perhaps overly preoccupied with an inbound flight of attacking Soviet jets?

(And does Scotty's passing mean that the formula for transparent aluminum is up for grabs, he asked in a desperate but futile attempt to keep this thread on topic?)
posted by Mike D at 12:44 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by john_son at 1:06 PM on July 20, 2005

You all ever notice whenever they showed "Scotty" using the transporter that those pairs of hands just didn't seem to fit him? Or you wondered why the strange camera shot to show someone working the controls (just the pair of hands)...I guess its hard when you're missing a digit. I wonder if a missing finger makes it easier to do that Vulcan peace sign thingy.
posted by Ron at 1:06 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by Smart Dalek at 1:14 PM on July 20, 2005

Nice, ??.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 1:14 PM on July 20, 2005

Oh Jesus. Oops. No, that was suppossed to be "big nerd." That was simply a slip of the finger that I didn't catch on preview and didn't see until just now. Maybe Matt or Jessamyn could fix that please if they get the chance? How embarrassing.
posted by Snyder at 1:15 PM on July 20, 2005

Whoops. I meant to say,

Nice, 김치.
posted by Civil_Disobedient at 1:15 PM on July 20, 2005

He hath boldly gone......

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posted by Numenorian at 1:19 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by bluedaniel at 1:25 PM on July 20, 2005

God needed an Engineer (not a miracle worker).
posted by drezdn at 1:48 PM on July 20, 2005

"In addition to his cast mates and stars from the various trek series among those paying tribute to Jimmy was Neil Armstrong who after being introduced by Nichelle Nichols ('Uhura') said that although he had "ridden on thirteen different missions, and I had the privilege of commanding three, none of them had warp drive. I'm hoping for my next command to be given a Federation starship, and I would like to have a crew like Captain Kirk had." Doing his best "Scotty" impersonation Mr. Armstrong concluded his tribute by adding, "I have a confession to make... I am an engineer. From one old engineer to another, thanks Scotty."
posted by redneck_zionist at 1:57 PM on July 20, 2005 [1 favorite]

Numenorian: "He hath boldly gone......"

... where only Bones has gone before.
posted by zoogleplex at 2:06 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by PurplePorpoise at 2:14 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by kalimac at 3:11 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by aenea at 3:24 PM on July 20, 2005

Not a huge fan, but he was always a cool character on the show.

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posted by TheDonF at 3:28 PM on July 20, 2005

Come on! He was 85! 85 years old! That's not sad-- good for him!

("I'm a hundred and twenty!")
posted by Mayor Curley at 3:53 PM on July 20, 2005

He was a wonderful man, and a fine actor.

.

I remember once seeing some sort of comedy sketch in which the host meets Jimmy Doohan, and then goes into a whole fantasy montage about being his best friend, as Doohan plays ball with him, cooks dinner for him, and other such ridiculous things. Does this ring a bell for anyone else?
posted by Faint of Butt at 4:01 PM on July 20, 2005

How weird. Last night I was watching the episode of Futurama where the cast of Star Trek is assembled by an energy cloud named Melvar who also happens to be a fanatical Star Trek fan. James Doohan didn't appear in it, with his place instead being taken up by a red shrt the cast mates called 'Welshy.' Just last night I was wondering what James Doohan was doing with himself these days. I guess now I know.

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posted by Effigy2000 at 4:30 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by ParisParamus at 4:43 PM on July 20, 2005

I used to go to 'cons when I was younger, and I had the pleasure of having dinner with Doohan and one or two others... He was down-to-earth, had a great sense of humor, and told amazing stories. He affected the brogue for a few irish jokes, and I, never one to get excited about celebrities, left with a sense of how normal they can be.

(Harlan Ellison was also with us, and he was funny too, acted like a jerk, but he's kind of known for that.)

Jimmy, we'll miss you.
posted by exlotuseater at 5:04 PM on July 20, 2005

Ditto
posted by bjgeiger at 5:16 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by voltairemodern at 5:17 PM on July 20, 2005

I was going to post this before Mrbill did, but I'd heard he was still clinging on...

Sorry.

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posted by tapeguy at 5:42 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by nj_subgenius at 5:51 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by kuujjuarapik at 7:43 PM on July 20, 2005

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I really want his last words to have been "Ye canna change the laws of physics!"
posted by ssmith at 7:43 PM on July 20, 2005

Now Scotty really can beam up the others when it's their time. He and Bones are probably fitting out the heavenly Enterprise even as we speak. Hey, wouldn't it be cool if we could rename a constellation for the Enterprise? Maybe that old one, the "Ship," in the Southern Hemisphere? And the stars could be renamed for the Enterprise cast members....
posted by Lynsey at 7:49 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by Jerub at 8:56 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by geekyguy at 9:11 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by dreamsign at 9:33 PM on July 20, 2005

Awww Man!!

I thought you said James Dobson.

Ling live the memory of the best damn stereotyped accent of a Scottish person up till Braveheart.

Thanks, Scotty!
posted by Balisong at 10:17 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by maledictory at 10:31 PM on July 20, 2005

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posted by lundman at 10:32 PM on July 20, 2005

Here's how TrekToday, which bills itself as the first and only daily updated Star Trek site, is reporting the passing of Mr. Doohan.

And here's a link to the TrekBBS thread, where fans are remembering and discussing the event.
posted by Effigy2000 at 10:56 PM on July 20, 2005

Godspeed Jimmy.
posted by squeak at 1:01 AM on July 21, 2005

FaintofButt, that was a sketch on The Ben stller show in the early 90's. He was the guest that week.

What can I say about Scotty that hasn't been said? He was great. When I was a kid and I went to see the first Star Trek movie, Scotty got the loudest cheers from the audience out of all the cast members.

It's the curse of the damn red shirt I tell you :-\
posted by Devils Slide at 4:14 AM on July 21, 2005

Stiller
posted by Devils Slide at 4:15 AM on July 21, 2005

["Maybe Matt or Jessamyn could fix that please if they get the chance? How embarrassing." got it.]
posted by jessamyn at 5:47 AM on July 21, 2005

I saw that Ben Stiller episode the other day. This is very sad. He was ace.

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posted by Bdave at 8:03 AM on July 21, 2005

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posted by Mitheral at 10:08 AM on July 21, 2005

Wow, I never knew he saw action (not to mention 6 bullets) on D-Day. Plutor, Relics was one of my faves, too.

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posted by blendor at 10:37 AM on July 21, 2005

Relics was one of the best. I liked when he was standing on the empty bridge of the Enterprise in the holosuite.



...Here's to ya lad.
*hoists bottle of...something green*
posted by Smedleyman at 11:02 AM on July 21, 2005

Just unbelievable that he was able to hide a missing finger.
posted by Mitheral at 1:19 PM on July 21, 2005

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posted by edgeways at 4:14 PM on July 21, 2005