The TV Sidekick Blogathon: Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy of "Star Trek"

Welcome to our (first) contribution to The TV Sidekick Blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe!  You can check out all the other terrific posts on a collection of wonderful TV blogs in this fun event by clicking here.  Naturally we gravitated to our favorite TV series ever for our inspiration.

Honestly maybe Dr. McCoy isn't exactly a sidekick in the traditional sense at all, though in the world of series TV it's surprising how many sidekicks to the main star ended up very much standing right alongside him or her in fan devotion and importance.  We'd certainly put Dr. McCoy, played so memorably by the late DeForest Kelley, into this category.  He may have served under Capt. James T. Kirk ( the charismatic William Shatner) but soon it was obvious that both Dr. McCoy and the pointed-eared Vulcan Mr. Spock -- a portrayal that catapulted Leonard Nimoy into history -- had become Kirk's friends, confidants and part of an equal trio that has kept Star Trek alive as it approaches its 50th anniversary later this year.

Most appealingly, McCoy personified the humanity of the Starship Enterprise.  With Kirk as its energy and Spock as its intellect, the ship needed McCoy to bring the heart into the equation.  Naturally as the ship's doctor he had a professional role and healing presence but McCoy's personality as concocted by the writers and as performed by Kelley captured a special blend of competence and compassion.

McCoy became Kirk's confidante, his sounding board when command decisions required more than Mr. Spock's logic or Kirk's own impulses to action.  Whether on the bridge or over a sip of Saurian brandy, Kirk allowed McCoy to question him in a way that Spock wouldn't and no one else would presume to.  Kirk had the good fortune to have a Medical Officer as McCoy, a man as wise as he was proficient.

In fact sometimes super-proficient, such as the time McCoy repaired the silicon creature the Horta using improvised cement instead of sutures.  McCoy was adaptable.

He also became Spock's if not confidante then at least a reminder of his human half which the Vulcan tried to disavow.  McCoy sensed a vulnerability in Spock that usually manifested in testy banter or humorous bickering but sometimes also in sage observations that, deny it though Spock may have tried, hit the mark.  Their scenes together are often the highlights of any episode and prove that sometimes sidekicks band together to create greatness uniquely their own.

McCoy was also courageous -- such as when he tests the Miri cure on himself -- innovative (as exampled above) and otherwise invaluable to the Enterprise crew and particularly Kirk and Spock. He also was frequently put in peril -- contracting the Miri virus in the first place, getting an overdose of cordrazine, and being tortured by the Vians, among other indignities -- and we felt even worse about it because it was McCoy.  

Not that he didn't also get to exercise some of that McCoy charisma on the ladies.  We got to meet one of his old flames Nancy Crater (though that didn't work out too well), we saw McCoy flirting with Yeoman Barrows et all on Shore Leave and we also saw McCoy through his doomed romance with High Priestess Natira on that hollow world.  

It was impossible not to be drawn to Dr. Leonard "Bones" McCoy.  Whether serious or silly or sage or sarcastic, McCoy was irresistible because he was all of us.  He was a down-to-Earth man who found himself in outer space.  The Universe couldn't have known how lucky it was, but Star Trek fans certainly did.

As we mentioned before, be sure to visit all the other blogs sharing their thoughts of TV sidekicks in this blogathon hosted by the Classic Film & TV Cafe; click here for links to everything!

We'll be here Tuesday with our second Sidekick entry, this time someone completely different but similarly lovable -- Ralph Malph from Happy Days!  Join us back here for that!

Summer Nose-talgia #10: The Fourth of July -- Happy Birthday, America!

Today's look-back is a variety of clips about several all-American historical subjects:  The Pledge of Allegiance, The Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, not all from TV but most of them!  (The only caution I give is that if you view these directly on YouTube and read the comments, you'd think that some of the U.S. population is made up of a bunch of racist, intolerant flag-wavers without a sense of history or modicum of respect...and I guess you night be right.)

Let's look at the Pledge of Allegiance.  Actor Red Skelton was famous for delivering a tribute to the Pledge on his TV show and at other venues.  It's a remembrance of one of his schoolteachers who explains the Pledge.  You can't deny Red's sincerity in this charming monologue:




Here's a different clip from 1976 where Red talks directly to a bunch of little kids about the Pledge:




This audio is from a record John Wayne made celebrating his idea of America:




A short clip from the Why We Fight informational short subject motion picture series made in 1945:




Here's a short segment from the 1949 movie The Red Pony, with Peter Miles as the boy and Margaret Hamilton -- The Wicked Witch of the West -- as the schoolteacher.




This clip is from the movie The Great Man Votes from 1939, starring John Barrymore.




Here's another Pledge movie clip, this time from The Bells of St. Mary's starring Bing Crosby and Ingrid Bergman, from 1945:




How about a little Declaration of Independence now, with this clip from the wonderful HBO miniseries John Adams starring Paul Giamatti in the title role:




I didn't grow up during the Schoolhouse Rock era but it's fondly remembered and here's their take on The Constitution:




How about a bunch of Hollywood celebrities reading the Declaration of Independence?




Of course I have to get my favorite President Abraham Lincoln in here, so let's take a look at robot Lincoln doing his speech from Disney's Hall of President from a few years back:




Now we get the best for last, perhaps.  First, an adorable clip from the Warner Bros. cartoon "Old Glory" with Porky Pig reciting the Pledge of Allegiance.  To view the entire cartoon -- and it's an exciting rotoscoped ride through U.S. history -- click here.




How could we not end with this sequence from Star Trek episode "The Omega Glory" where William Shatner as Captain James T. Kirk magnificently explains the meaning of the words from the Constitution. Kirk, Spock and McCoy meet up with inhabitants of a distant planet who have been mis-reciting a version of it left by another Starship visit, and it's up to Kirk to set them straight.  Classic Shatner!  (You might also like to see a lovely homage to this by Kirk fan Darren Dochterman on his Kirk's Korner, here.)



It doesn't get any better than heartfelt Captain Kirk!  (I used to dislike this episode, not necessarily because it wasn't a good one but because the Viewmaster folks had chosen THIS episode for their incredible 3-D treatment, and there were so many others more colorful, fun, whatever they should have picked!)

Happy Fourth of July everybody!

Star Trek The Movie: They Had Me At Hello

If you've read anything on the Flaming Nose over the past few months you're aware that our eager anticipation for the new J.J. Abrams Star Trek movie was just this side of borderline psychotic . I am pleased to announce that the movie opened wide on 5.08.09 and did not disappoint. Would it be too over the top to use the word "Love"? No it would not. I would like to write a love letter to Mr. Abrams, because if anything, Star Trek surpassed even my OTG (Original Trek Geek) expectations.

At its core, the original Star Trek television series was about hope, friendship and the pioneer spirit...enduring themes that have always contributed to its immense popularity around the world. Who wouldn't want a future where humans (and quite a few extraterrestrials) of every race and origin, live and work in harmony? Star Trek was a program that featured a young
Japanese Navigator (Sulu) as a central character, only twenty years after World War II ended. While the American south was still riddled with
"Whites Only" signs, Star Trek dared to display an interracial kiss between Kirk and Uhura. The movie kicks it up a few notches with an "inter species" moment between Spock and Uhura that is hotter than Antares. I'm not going to spoil it for those who have not seen the picture yet, so all I will say is, "oh my". Ladies, feel free to explore your inner cougar inclinations with this one.

Star Trek appeals on every level, whether you grew up loving the Shatner-Nimoy opus or cut your teeth on the last three Star Wars movies. I saw it yesterday with my teenage son and two of his friends. They were just as engaged as this die-hard Trekkie and didn't seem to mind at all when I repeatedly gave the Vulcan hand salute to the screen.

Star Trek is a summer blockbuster in every sense of the word. It moves at a breathless, lightning pace and the special effects are astounding. There are harrowing, edge of the seat fight scenes and a fantastic torch-like atmospheric drill the evil Romulans use to threaten Earth. You want a little humor with your action flick? Star Trek was packed with genuine laughs and surprises, many coming from Simon Pegg who played the Enterprise loving chief engineer Scotty. For traditionalists, Leonard Nimoy's appearance as Spock Prime was touching, and (not a word generally used for Vulcans) emotional.

But nothing in Star Trek is as compelling as the developing friendship between the young Spock (Zachary Quinto) and Kirk (Chris Pine) who meet at Star Fleet Academy and take an instant dislike to each other. That's called "meeting cute" in the movies, and it usually means that a lifelong buddy bond is on the way. Quinto's young Spock was fascinating and very sexy; his struggle to be Vulcan and subjugate his emotions conveyed by a slight flash of the eyes or a barely perceptible tightening in his face. This is a very explosive, angry Spock. Whatever you do, don't say anything bad about his mother. Chris Pine is amazing as the brilliant "bad boy" Kirk, a car jacker and party animal until he gains focus and joins the Star Fleet. Like many young men who turn to the military, he soon discovers it's a lot more fun to fight bad guys at warp speed than punch wise guys in a bar brall. I loved it when he assumed the familiar lion-like slouch in the Captain's chair on the Enterprise. A new super-hero, refreshingly human, was born.

The USS Enterprise, a cultural icon so huge that NASA named the first Space Shuttle after this fictional ship, functioned like a main character in the movie. Sleek, gleaming and surreal, when the silver bird with its aviation mark NCC-1701 first appeared on screen I got a lump in my throat and had to reach for my popcorn napkin. Seeing Scotty's love-at-first-sight appreciation for the beautiful ship was also a delight.

As I write this report, the LA Times has announced that Star Trek the Movie is on track to surpass estimates and may reach $80 million at the box office this weekend. I certainly hope it will. And please let there be a sequel to this prequel. The incredible chemistry of this cast is too good for just one movie. We want to boldly go see another one, as soon as we finish seeing this one about 6 or 7 more times.

Thank you J.J. Abrams. From the opening battle scenes to the final credits (and dedication to Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry), this movie was a wonder. Flaming Nose fans, if you have not done so already....go see it now.