DeForest Kelley (January 20, 1920 – June 11, 1999)

An Actor, Not a Doctor

DeForest Kelley, known to many as the great Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy, was many things.  In his lifetime, he served as a singer, an soldier, and (most notably) an actor and science fiction icon.  It has been 12 years since we lost the man responsible for my personal favorite STAR TREK character and, in his honor, here are the things the noted doctor was, indeed, not.

(These are lines actually spoken by Mr. Kelley as opposed to others who played various roles in later TREKs.)

“What am I, a doctor or a moon-shuttle conductor?”
“I’m a doctor, not a bricklayer.”
“I’m a surgeon, not a psychiatrist.”
“I’m not a scientist or a physicist, Mr. Spock…”
“Look, I’m a doctor, not an escalator.”
“I’m a doctor, not a mechanic.”
“I’m a doctor, not an engineer.”
“I will not peddle flesh!  I’m a physician.”
“I’m not a magician, Spock, just an old country doctor.”
“I’m a doctor, not a coal miner.”

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[youtube=http://youtu.be/bVhcB9ucmdg]

Video compilation by Mollie.

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Bonus Round!

Dr. McCoy in Avenger

“I’m a doctor, not an interior designer.”
“I’m a doctor, not a sideshow.”

Star Trek Online
“I’m a doctor, not an engineer!”

Karl Urban as Dr. McCoy
(I include this one as it was a direct tribute to DeForest Kelley.  Karl Urban studied Deforest Kelley’s performance in the original series to make his Bones as spot-on and true to form as possible.)

“Damn it man, I’m a doctor, not a physicist!”

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Although sadly, Mr. Kelley remained typecast for the rest of his life, the man embraced his iconic status. In real life he even uttered the phrase “I’m an actor, not a doctor.”  What an amazing trooper.  We miss you.

“Every life comes to an end when time demands it. Loss of life is to be mourned, but only if the life was wasted.”

(Special thanks to Memory Alpha for their awesome existing list.  Visit there for more uses of the classic line.)