James Doohan's Convention Farewell

[LordOfTheBorg 1]

(From www.startrek.com )

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James Doohan's Convention Farewell

On August 28-30, 2004, Planet Xpo will pay tribute to the man behind one of the most beloved characters in all of Star Trek — James Doohan — in a convention called "Beam Me Up Scotty ... One Last Time." This unique, licensed event will take place all weekend at the Renaissance Hollywood Hotel. According to the organizers, this is without a doubt the last time you will be able to see Doohan on stage.

 

As an added bonus, almost the entire remaining cast from the Original Series will all be on stage that Sunday afternoon. Confirmed guests, besides Doohan, include William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Nichelle Nichols, Walter Koenig, Majel Barrett Roddenberry, and Grace Lee Whitney, plus dozens of guest stars from the classic Trek series and movies.

 

 

The portrayal of ever-reliable Scottish engineer Montgomery Scott seemed to come naturally to the Canadian actor who made a career of specializing in voices and dialects. Doohan, always a fan favorite at conventions and public engagements [he was the first Star Trek personality seen in person by this writer] has provided entertaining recounts of his years with the franchise for thousands of people. Between answering fan questions, taking pictures and showing blooper reels, Doohan has always been great to see live. Although now at 84 years old he is not as nimble as he once was, he's still able to generate his trademark warmth and love for fans as ever before.

 

The "Beam Me Up Scotty ... One Last Time" convention promises to be different in several ways. Not only is it Doohan's last time on a convention stage, the organizers have arranged numerous other events for the weekend. Among them:

 

Special guests wil include astronauts who have walked on the Moon and flown in the space shuttle, space travel engineers, CEOs of some of the largest tech corporations in the world, major Hollywood stars, top sci-fi artists, and many, many more.

 

A deluxe banquet and roast on Saturday night. Dozens of Trek stars be present, along with many other celebrities from Hollywood and the scientific community to pay tribute to Doohan. A special Jimmy Doohan retrospective film will be shown with never-before-seen footage from home movies, "lost" interviews, little known performances, and his final taped interview.

 

Scotty's Star Party will take place the night prior to the convention (Friday, Aug. 27), celebrating the unveiling of James Montgomery Doohan's new star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Although this has not yet been officially announced, the party will take place regardless. The funding for the star has been met by fans and a generous corporation, according to organizers. This is an exclusive event requiring the purchase of a separate ticket. Most of the celebrity guests are expected to attend.

 

On Monday, the 30th, a tour of the Hollywood Entertainment Museum is planned, where guests can have photo ops with Doohan and other stars on an authentic replica of the original U.S.S. Enterprise Bridge set. An additional event for Monday is in the planning stages.

The actual unveiling of Doohan's star on the Walk of Fame will take place Tuesday, the 31st, contingent upon a final vote by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.

 

Between now and the convention in August, we will periodically be posting some fan stories relating to their experiences with Doohan. The first one is from John B. of Gainesville, Florida:

 

In the early 1980s my mom and I went to our first Star Trek convention. I had always been a fan since the start of the 1972 reruns on TV and hoped to one day attend a convention. We were living in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and very surprised to find a Star Trek convention was going to be held in town. We found out that both James Doohan and George Takei were going to be special guests. The first day of the convention was like a dream come true. There were hundreds of Star Trek fans walking around just as excited as I was. My mother and I wanted to enjoy the whole convention. We went to every activity that was planned. When it came time for Mr. Doohan and Mr. Takei to speak in front of a packed convention room, it was amazing. Here in real life were two heroes of mine ... two playmates of mine as I was growing up. We listened to all of their stories and enjoyed the whole time.

 

The second day of the convention had an auction. There was so much Star Trek stuff up for auction, I wanted it all! We bid for many things ... won some and lost some. When it came down to one of the final bids, someone in the audience asked if both Mr. Doohan and Mr. Takei would be willing to sell a kiss for the local charity. Needless to say, my mom won the bid! She walked up to the front of the stage and in front of everybody, she received two "powerful" kisses. She was the envy of all the women at the convention. A few years later, my mom and I attended another Star Trek convention in a different city and found out that Mr. Doohan was there. During the autograph signing session, my mom asked Mr. Doohan if he remembered the auction and the kiss. He laughed out loud and said that he remembered her and the kiss. He quickly stood up and said, "Let's see if we can match that kiss." Once again, my mom was the envy of the entire convention. The next person in line asked Mr. Doohan about kissing her. He replied, "No, that lassie is the only one."

 

My mom and I will never forget how much Mr. Doohan has done for the fans ...

 

Live Long and Prosper ...

 

Beam me up!

 

EDIT:

Sorry If This Is Old!!!!!!!

Edited July 15, 2004 by LordOfTheBorg

[WEAREBORG4102 0]

Too bad I can't go...

Never met him or Deforrest Kelley.....