James Doohan
This Canadian actor was most famous for his role as Montgomery Scott (Scotty), the chief engineer of the Starship Enterprise in the television and film series “Star Trek.” He did appear in other TV shows and movies, but was limited due to being typecast. James Doohan in real life was with a Canadian infantry division that landed at Juno Beach on D-Day. He was accidentally hit by six rounds of fire from the gun of a Canadian sentry. A bullet to his chest was stopped by a cigarette case given to him by his brother. One bullet hit his right middle finger, which had to be amputated. He would conceal that hand in the movies, sometimes using a flesh-colored glove. Doohan was part of a radio group, “The Neighborhood Playhouse” which included Leslie Nielsen and Tony Randall. Did James use an accent when he played Scotty? He’ll answer that question. Because of the engineer character he played on “Star Trek,” many students pursued careers in engineering. The Milwaukee School of Engineering presented Doohan with an honorary degree in engineering.