| Beam me up, Scotty | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Character | James T. Kirk |
| Actor | William Shatner |
| First used in | Star Trek: The Original Series, though not verbatim |
"Beam me up, Scotty" is a catchphrase and misquotation that made its way into popular culture from the science fiction television series Star Trek: The Original Series. It comes from the command Captain Kirk gives his chief engineer, Montgomery "Scotty" Scott, when he needs to be "transported" back to the Starship Enterprise.
Though it has become irrevocably associated with the series and films, the exact phrase was never actually spoken in any Star Trek television episode or film. Despite this, the quote has become a phrase of its own over time. It can be used to describe one's desire to be elsewhere, technology such as teleportation, slang for certain drugs, or as a phrase to show appreciation and association with the television show.
The misquotation's influence led to James Doohan, the actor who played Scotty, to be misrepresented in his own obituary, where he is referenced as the character who "responded to the command, 'Beam me up, Scotty.'"[1] Doohan himself chose to use the phrase as the title of his 1996 autobiography.[2][3]
- ^ [1] Archived March 31, 2018, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Elizabeth Webber, Mike Feinsilber: Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Allusion. Merriam-Webster 1999, ISBN 0877796289, S. 47–48 (Auszug, p. 47, at Google Books)
- ^ Thomas, Bob (July 20, 2005). "'Star Trek's' Doohan dies, immortalized for 'Beam me up, Scotty'". Associated Press. Archived from the original on June 10, 2014. Retrieved December 27, 2013. (subscription required)