Summary
- "Beam me up, Scotty" is a phrase associated with Star Trek, despite not being said by any character. It signifies the landing party wanting to return to the ship.
- The phrase has become popular outside of Star Trek and is used to express a desire to escape or remove oneself from a situation, or to describe encountering advanced technology.
- Captain Kirk never actually says the exact phrase, although he comes close in a few instances. The phrase has become deeply ingrained in popular culture and is iconic.
"Beam me up, Scotty" has become one of the most popular phrases associated with Star Trek, despite the fact that this exact phrase is never actually said by any Star Trek character. On Star Trek: The Original Series, Lt. Commander Montgomery Scott (James Doohan) was the Chief Engineer of the USS Enterprise under the command of Captain James T. Kirk (William Shatner). Referred to simply as Scotty by all of his crew mates, he became known as a miracle worker who could fix almost any engineering problem. As the Chief Engineer, Scotty sometimes controlled the transporter when landing parties were beamed back and forth to the ship.
Transporters became one of Star Trek's most important pieces of technology, and the transporter saved more than a few lives over the course of the series. When leading away missions, Captain Kirk would often request for the landing party to be beamed back to the ship, either because their mission was complete or because they ran into trouble. Typically, Kirk would be asking for the entire landing party to beam up and only rarely made the request for just himself. Although Kirk had several similar variations of this request, he never actually phrased it as "beam me up, Scotty." At various points throughout the series, Kirk says, "Scotty, beam us up," "Beam me up," and "Mr. Scott, beam us up."
Why “Beam Me Up, Scotty” Became Star Trek’s Most Famous Catchphrase
Although many quotes from the Star Trek universe have found their way into popular culture, none have quite achieved the fame of "Beam me up, Scotty." When associated with Star Trek, the phrase means that the landing party is ready for the transporter chief, in this case Scotty, to beam them back to the ship. But the phrase has taken on a life of its own beyond Star Trek, and has come to be used when someone wishes to escape or remove themselves from a particular situation. The phrase can also be used when someone confronts something futuristic or very technologically advanced.
Though it's unclear exactly when or why this particular phrase gained such popularity, a journal from the Royal Aeronautical Society used it as early as 1975. Since then, the phrase has been used in numerous television shows, movies, video games, songs, and speeches. A longer version of this phrase, "Beam me up, Scotty, there's no intelligent life on this planet" became a popular quote for both Trekkies and non-Trekkies to display on bumper stickers and t-shirts. Other popular Star Trek quotes, such as "Live long and prosper" and "Resistance is futile" simply have not had the same cultural impact as "Beam me up, Scotty."
No One In Star Trek Ever Said “Beam Me Up, Scotty”
Captain Kirk does come very close to saying "Beam me up, Scotty" on a few occasions, but the exact phrase was never said in any Star Trek show or movie. In Star Trek: The Animated Series, Kirk says "Beam us up, Scotty," which is the closest he ever comes to uttering the famous saying. Kirk says "Scotty, beam me up" in Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, another time he comes incredibly close to using the more popular phrasing. William Shatner did manage to eventually deliver the iconic phrase in the audio adaptation of his book Star Trek: The Ashes of Eden, but this book is not considered part of Star Trek canon. Still, the phrase has become so ingrained in popular culture that James Doohan even used it for the title of his autobiography: Beam Me Up, Scotty: Star Trek's "Scotty" In His Own Words.
In Star Trek: The Original Series and its subsequent films, Scotty does not even man the transporter station that often. As Chief Engineer, he often has more important things to do than stand around waiting for a landing party to ask for a beam out. Oftentimes, Captain Kirk will simply say, "Three to beam up," directed at the unnamed officer who is currently operating the transporter. However, if the transport seems particularly difficult, due to interference from the planet for example, then Scotty himself would likely perform the transport. Now that Lt. Montgomery Scott (Martin Quinn) has joined the cast of Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, the door is open for a Star Trek character to finally utter that famous phrase: "Beam me up, Scotty."
