Uneasy Rhetoric

Scotty was always my favorite character on Star Trek. Once upon a time I used to have this vision of myself as a kind of Mr. Scott - nerdy, more comfortable working than anything else, something of a social misfit.

Turns out I was romanticizing myself. Scotty was a specialist, I specialize in nothing. Unlike Scotty, I find work to be a chore. If it were me climbing in the Jeffries tube, I’d probably be sleeping.

Scotty was more of an ideal. Here was a man for whom work was the ultimate pleasure. He was so good at what he did because what he did was exactly who he was. Sure, he could drink a wee bit of scotch now and then, but mostly he was just an engineer. Get him out of his element and he gets accused of murder.

James Doohan, like most of the other members of the Star Trek cast, didn’t have much of a career outside of the show. That didn’t seem to matter much, given how much of a life the show had and continues to have:

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.”
(from CNN)

James Doohan’s passing today closes yet another door in the Star Trek hall.

Update: Startrek.com has a nice video tribute here.