Scotty (Star Trek)

Montgomery Scott

James Doohan in Star Trek (1966)
Species Human
Affiliation
Posting
Rank
  • Lieutenant commander
  • Commander
  • Captain
Portrayed by
First appearance "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (TOS)

Montgomery "Scotty" Scott is a fictional character in the science fiction franchise Star Trek.[1] First portrayed by James Doohan in the original Star Trek series, Scotty also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "Relics", and in numerous books, comics, and video games.[2][3]

Simon Pegg has assumed the character and appeared in both the 2009 film Star Trek[3] and its sequels, Star Trek Into Darkness and Star Trek Beyond.

Development and portrayals

Doohan was cast as the Enterprise engineer for the second Star Trek pilot, "Where No Man Has Gone Before" (1966) on the recommendation of that episode's director, James Goldstone, who had worked with him before.[4] The character almost did not make it to the show after series creator Gene Roddenberry sent Doohan a letter informing him, "We don't think we need an engineer in the series". Only through the intervention of Doohan's agent did the character remain.[4]

Doohan tried a variety of accents for the part and decided to use a Scottish accent on the basis that he thought Scottish people make the best engineers.[5] Doohan himself chose Scotty's first name of Montgomery in honor of his maternal grandfather, James Montgomery.[6] In a third-season production memo, Roddenberry said Doohan "is capable of handling anything we throw at him" and that the "dour Scot" works better when being protective of the ship's engines.[7]

Doohan depiction

Scotty spent part of his life in Aberdeen, Scotland, on March 3, 2222.[8] Doohan claimed to have based Scotty's accent on an Aberdeen accent he once heard.[5] During the events of Star Trek, Scotty holds the rank of lieutenant commander and serves as the Enterprise's second officer and "miracle worker" chief engineer.[2] Scotty's technical knowledge and skill allow him to devise unconventional and effective last-minute solutions to dire problems.[1] Scotty's identity is strongly connected to the Enterprise itself, and the character often takes a paternal attitude toward the ship.[1] He is frequently the liaison between Captain James T. Kirk's (William Shatner) ambitious tactical plans and what is technically feasible in the realm of the starship's capabilities. As second officer, he commands the Enterprise when both Captain Kirk and first officer Spock (Leonard Nimoy) are off the ship, but Scotty asserts in the TNG episode "Relics" that he "never wanted to be anything else but an engineer".[9]

Scotty oversaw the Enterprise's refit prior to the events of Star Trek: The Motion Picture (1979), and is part of the crew when the Enterprise confronts Khan Noonien Singh (Ricardo Montalbán) in Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982).[2] Although not stated when this occurred in the original release of the film, Peter Preston, who was mortally wounded during the attack on the Enterprise by the USS Reliant, dies with Scotty at his bedside, was Scotty's nephew. After Scotty was promoted to captain of engineering of the USS Excelsior in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock (1984), he sabotages the new ship and helps Kirk steal the Enterprise to rescue Spock.[2] Scotty joins Kirk's crew aboard the USS Enterprise-A at the end of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986). In Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, he helps Kirk, Spock and Dr. Leonard McCoy (DeForest Kelley) escape the brig and retake the hijacked Enterprise.[2] Scotty kills Colonel West (René Auberjonois) before the latter can assassinate the Federation president (Kurtwood Smith) in Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country (1991).[2] Scotty joins Kirk and Pavel Chekov (Walter Koenig) for the USS Enterprise-B's maiden voyage in Star Trek Generations (1994), saving the ship through technical wizardry.[10]

Scotty was aboard a transport shuttle en route to a retirement colony when it crashed into a Dyson sphere; stranded, he set the transporter to cycle indefinitely and "stored" himself in the buffer for decades before being recovered by the USS Enterprise-D crew in "Relics".[2] A "relic" no longer able to serve effectively as an engineer and struggling to acclimate to 24th-century life, Scotty nevertheless manages to help save the Enterprise-D through technical know-how and chicanery.[10]

Pegg depiction

Simon Pegg (2008)

In September 2007, Paul McGillion auditioned for the Scotty role in the 2009 Star Trek movie and received James Doohan's son Chris' endorsement.[11] However, Simon Pegg's casting was announced on October 12, 2007. Pegg's portrayal in the 2009 Star Trek film has Scotty stuck working at an isolated outpost as punishment for beaming Admiral Jonathan Archer's[12] prized beagle from one planet to the next — and having no idea where it ended up. With assistance from Spock Prime and James Kirk, he joins the Enterprise crew and becomes the ship's chief engineer. Slate.com called Pegg's performance of Scotty in the 2009 Star Trek film "juicily comic".[3]

Birthplace dispute

Following Doohan's death, several Scottish towns campaigned to be named Scotty's "official birthplace". Scripts, production materials and Doohan's family support Linlithgow's claim to being Scotty's birthplace.[13] However, Scotty says in "Wolf in the Fold" (1967) that he is "an old Aberdeen pub crawler", and Aberdeen city leaders proposed plans to erect a monument to the actor and character.[14]

In popular culture

Scotty's operation of the Enterprise transporter system inspired the catchphrase "Beam me up, Scotty", which gained currency in popular culture beyond Star Trek fans, even though the exact phrase is not spoken in that way in the original series, although it is used frequently in the animated series. In Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, Kirk says, "Scotty, beam me up."

Doohan himself briefly reprised the role for a gag cameo in the action comedy Loaded Weapon 1, as well as being Scotty in the movie Knight Rider 2000, while parodies of Scotty or his accent appear in such media as World of Warcraft (2004), Spaceballs (1987), Goof Troop, Ace Ventura: Pet Detective, Beavis and Butt-head, and All That. Rap artists D4L have a song "Scotty" that uses his character and Star Trek, as do Relient K in their song "Beaming." Scotty also appeared in a Far Side comic, where he was in Hell.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Asherman, Alan (1993-05-01). The Star Trek Compendium. ISBN 978-0-671-79612-9.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Okuda, Michael; Okuda, Denise; Mirek, Debbie (1999). The Star Trek Encyclopedia. Pocket Books. ISBN 0-671-53609-5.
  3. 1 2 3 Stevens, Dana (2009-05-06). "Go See Star Trek". Slate. Retrieved 2009-05-07.
  4. 1 2 Solow, Herbert; Justman, Robert (June 1997). Inside Star Trek The Real Story. Simon & Schuster. p. 152. ISBN 0-671-00974-5.
  5. 1 2 Hayward, Anthony (2005-07-22). "Obituary: James Doohan". The Independent. Retrieved 2008-08-14.
  6. ↑ "James Doohan (Obituary)". TimesOnline. 2005-07-21. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
  7. ↑ Roddenberry, Gene (April 18, 1968). "Kirk, Spock and Other Continuing STAR TREK Characters" (memo){{inconsistent citations}}
  8. ↑ Mandel, Geoffrey (1980). USS Enterprise Officer's Manual. 201W 18th St. Apt 20A, New York, NY. 10011: Interstellar Associates. p. 23.
  9. ↑ "Relics". Star Trek: The Next Generation. 1992-10-12. Oh, I may be captain by rank... but I never wanted to be anything else but an engineer.
  10. 1 2 Nemeck, Larry (2003). Star Trek: The Next Generation Companion. Pocket Books. ISBN 0-7434-5798-6.
  11. ↑ Read, David (2007-10-01). "McGillion up for 'Star Trek' role". GateWorld. Retrieved 2009-05-08.
  12. ↑ "Orci and Kurtzman Reveal Star Trek Details In TrekMovie Fan Q&A". TrekMovie.com. 2009-05-22. Retrieved 2009-06-18. 'Admiral Archer' is a reference to the Archer we all know and love
  13. ↑ "'Scotty' beamed back to Scotland". BBC. 2005-07-21. Retrieved 2009-05-08.
  14. ↑ "Richard Arnold: Scotty Will Be Born In Aberdeen". TrekToday. 2005-08-08.

External links

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