The DeForest Kelley papers span the years 1929 to 1999 and encompass 12.7 linear feet. The collection consists of production files, television files, subject files, and scrapbooks. Much of the collection concerns Kelley’s work as Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy on the original STAR TREK television series (1966-1969) and the ensuing film series.

The bulk of the production files comprise material from the first six films in the STAR TREK franchise: STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE (1979), STAR TREK II: THE WRATH OF KAHN (1982), STAR TREK III: THE SEARCH FOR SPOCK (1984), STAR TREK IV: THE VOYAGE HOME (1986), STAR TREK V: THE FINAL FRONTIER (1989), and STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY (1991). There are scripts and contracts for each film, as well as miscellaneous production material. There is also a script for STAR TREK GENERATIONS (1994). Of interest is a script for STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE which was originally intended as the pilot to a new STAR TREK television series. The remainder of the production files cover only nine of Kelley’s films, all preceding the STAR TREK television series, though he made nearly 30 film appearances over the course of his five-decade career. The files on these films consist primarily of clippings, pay stubs, and programs. There are clippings for his first two feature length films, FEAR IN THE NIGHT (1947) and VARIETY GIRL (1947). His prolific work in the Western genre is represented by a novelization of APACHE UPRISING (1966), clippings for GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL (1957), clippings and a program for THE LAW AND JACK WADE (1958), and call sheets, clippings, and a novel signed by the cast and crew for WARLOCK (1957).

The television files similarly contain material mainly related to Kelley’s work on the STAR TREK series, though he appeared on over seven dozen other television series, often for multiple episodes. There are contracts, publicity, photocopies of sketches, and makeup documentation for the original STAR TREK series. There is also an inscribed, published script for the episode “The City on the Edge of Forever,” written by Harlan Ellison. Of particular interest is a letter from Gene Roddenberry to William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and Kelley, written in 1967. There is also production material and a script for “Encounter at Farpoint,” the pilot episode of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION (1987-1994), on which Kelley made a cameo appearance. Apart from the STAR TREK material, there is a script, clippings, and correspondence regarding “333 Montgomery,” an episode of ALCOA THEATRE which starred Kelley and was notably written by Roddenberry. There are also call sheets for “Runaway,” an episode of THE LITTLEST HOBO (1979-1985), which was Kelley’s penultimate television appearance.

The subject files include clippings, correspondence, financial documents, legal documents, and miscellaneous personal papers. Much of the material in the subject files concerns STAR TREK, its fan base, and its place in Kelley’s life. There are several convention programs, fanzines, and STAR TREK memorabilia, some created by fans. Of interest is a script by Peyton Reed for “Star Trek Adventure,” a live action performance attraction at Universal Studios, Florida which included filmed sequences with much of the original STAR TREK cast, including Kelley, and was one of Reed’s earliest directing jobs. The script is signed by James Doohan, Walter Koenig, Nichelle Nichols, and George Takei. Especially notable are drafts of poems written by Kelley about the STAR TREK phenomenon. Apart from the STAR TREK-related files, there is material concerning Kelley’s wife, actress Carolyn Dowling, including radio scripts as well as employment documents regarding Dowling’s work with the California Shipbuilding Corporation during World War II. There is also a file on the Long Beach Playhouse where Kelley first met Dowling and began his acting career. There is nothing related to Kelley’s early career singing for local radio stations in Atlanta, Georgia. Of particular interest are other poems written by Kelley, mostly concerning mortality.

The scrapbook series comprises ten scrapbooks containing clippings, correspondence, photographs, and other ephemera collected by Kelley and Dowling between 1929 and 1991. The earliest scrapbooks document Dowling’s life before she met and married Kelley, including her work as an usherette in Seattle. Of interest is the scrapbook from the 1980s featuring sketches by Kelley. There is also a scrapbook covering when Kelley received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1991, which includes a letter from William Shatner.

DeForest Kelley was born Jackson DeForest Kelley in Toccoa, Georgia in 1920. Kelley’s father was a Baptist minister, and as a child Kelley would often sing for his father’s congregation. This led to several engagements performing on radio station WSB AM in Atlanta, which he did throughout his childhood and teen years. He graduated from Decatur Boys High School at 16 and soon after travelled to Long Beach, California to visit his uncle. The trip inspired him to pursue an acting career, and he officially relocated to Long Beach in 1939, where he joined the Long Beach Playhouse, then known as the Long Beach Theatre Group. For the next few years, he balanced odd jobs with occasional radio appearances and theater work through the Long Beach Playhouse. In 1941 he came close to being cast in THIS GUN FOR HIRE, but the part went to Alan Ladd instead. Kelley served in the United States Army Air Force beginning in 1943, first in Roswell, New Mexico, then in the First Motion Picture Unit in Culver City, California in 1945. His appearance in the Navy training film TIME TO KILL (1945) brought him to the attention of a Paramount talent scout and he soon signed with the studio. That same year he married Carolyn Dowling, an actress whom he had met when both appeared together in a production of “The Innocent Young Man” at the Long Beach Playhouse in 1942.

Kelley’s first film for Paramount was FEAR IN THE NIGHT (1947). While he played the lead in this film, Kelley’s screen work for the next two decades was often in smaller supporting roles. He was regularly featured in Westerns, including TENSION AT TABLE ROCK (1956), GUNFIGHT AT THE O.K. CORRAL (1957), THE LAW AND JAKE WADE (1958), BLACK SPURS (1965), TOWN TAMER (1965), and APACHE UPRISING (1966). He also made several uncredited appearances in notable films such as THE MEN (1950), HOUSE OF BAMBOO (1955), and THE MAN IN THE GRAY FLANNEL SUIT (1956). He was especially prolific in the early years of television and, as with his film career, found frequent work in television Westerns, such as THE LONE RANGER, GUNSMOKE, DICK POWELL’S ZANE GREY THEATRE, WANTED: DEAD OR ALIVE, RAWHIDE, BONANZA, and THE VIRGINIAN, among many others. He also acted in several anthology drama series, such as STUDIO ONE, THE PEPSI-COLA PLAYHOUSE, THE LORETTA YOUNG SHOW, PLAYHOUSE 90, and ALCOA THEATRE. His second appearance on ALCOA THEATRE was a starring role in the episode “333 MONTGOMERY,” which was written by Gene Rodenberry.

Kelley later appeared in POLICE STORY (1967), a failed pilot broadcast as a television movie, which was also scripted by Rodenberry. Around the same time, Rodenberry approached him about STAR TREK (1966-1969), the science-fiction series he was developing. The series would come to define the remainder of Kelley’s career. He was cast as Dr. Leonard “Bones” McCoy, one of the central characters of the series, which ran for three seasons before being cancelled in 1969. Despite its relatively brief run, STAR TREK had developed a devoted fan base, and the show’s characters and their stories were brought back in other projects over the next two decades. First was STAR TREK: THE ANIMATED SERIES (1973-1974), in which Kelley and much of the original cast reprised their roles. STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE (1979) marked the first of six films, released between 1979 and 1991, which featured the original cast of the series. He also made a cameo in the pilot episode of STAR TREK: THE NEXT GENERATION (1987). Apart from his STAR TREK related work, Kelley acted very little following the cancellation of the original series. In the 1970s he appeared in the horror film NIGHT OF THE LEPUS (1972) and made guest appearances on television shows such as IRONSIDE and THE COWBOYS. The sequels to STAR TREK: THE MOTION PICTURE dominated his career in the 1980s. Apart from occasional voice work, Kelley retired from acting following STAR TREK VI: THE UNDISCOVERED COUNTRY (1991). He died in 1999.