James Montgomery Doohan

[Glenn]

Aka Scotty from Star Trek has passed. He was 85.

While I understand this is a Warbird site...I do have a WW2 related story.

I met Doohan twenty two years ago...Shaking hands with him I noted two things missing.

First, he was devoid of his moniker Scottish Accent (A Canadian I soon learned).

Second, as I shook hands with him he saw some consternation on my young face as I looked at his right hand while shaking it. There were only four fingers on his right hand. Middle digit was missing. James looked down at me and with a quick start kicked in his Scottish accent and said "No worries laddy there's no pain, I lost it on a beach". I discovered soon after of his story of Serving with the Royal Canadian Artillery and how he lost it on D-Day.

A hero on many facets, he will always be Mr. Scott to me!

God's Speed to a great Canadian.

[Ontario-Warbird]

Great story, Thanks for sharing. He will be missed

Dave C

[mrhenniger]

I heard this an hour ago, and I have been going around the office informing the trekies. Wow this is a big loss. He played one of my fictional heros (I am an engineer), and from what I understand he was a great person in real life. It feels like the end of an era.

Mike

P.S. Apparently Mr. Doohan was not the only person with a WWII connection. The creator of Star Trek, Gene Roddenberry, was a B-17 navigator I believe.

[TimAPNY]

Bones made propaganda Flicks for the War Department, if I recall correctly

[Glenn]

Lt. James Doohan successfully led his Canadian troops onto the beach (Juno) and pushed inland to establish the best possible gun position (along the way Doohan shot two German snipers, never knowing whether he killed them). A field was secured and command posts were established, but not all Germans between the beach and their position had been captured. That night about 11:30, Doohan and another officer were walking between command posts when machine gun fire broke out. Doohan was hit; he fell into a shell hole, looked at his hand and saw blood. Three bullets struck the one finger. Never losing consciousness, he actually walked to the regimental aid post, unaware he also took four bullets in the leg.

There was an eighth bullet, and it was nothing less than a miracle that he's still with us today. It hit his chest, four inches from his heart. But it ricocheted off the sterling silver cigarette case in his pocket, the one his brother had given him for being best man at his wedding. It's like a trite plot twist, he acknowledges — his brother saved his life from thousands of miles away. Jimmy pushed the dent out of the cigarette case and continued using it until he quit smoking years later. He stayed in the military, learned to fly and came to be known as the "craziest pilot in the Canadian Air Forces."

[TimAPNY]

maybe I'll pull a Cigar out in His honor tonight! Which I had a bottle of Single Malt to go with it.

[Michel Lemieux]

Damage Scotty ?????

No thank you sir........

Got plenty already........

Tks for the story & godspeed Scotty.

Most WW2 warbirds MUST be Treckies right ?