Did Captain Kirk Ever Actually Say “Beam Me Up, Scotty” in ‘Star Trek’?

Way back in 1964, when writer Gene Roddenberry penned his first draft for a new television science fiction series, he could not have imagined the success it would eventually have, nor that, over 60 years later, the Star Trek franchise would still be going strong.

Born in 1921 in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry served as pilot first in the military, then for Pan American, before pursuing a career in the LAPD, and, ultimately, switching to a full-time writing career. Following two pilot episodes, Star Trek was officially unveiled to the public on Thursday September 8, 1966 via NBC. Although the first season received mixed reviews and ratings declined over the weeks, overwhelming support from fans prevailed, and over time Star Trek has become one of the most famous science fiction franchises in television history.

The Very Popular Mandela Effect in Star Trek

As with many such successful shows, quotes and references from Star Trek have crossed over into wider popular culture. Funny enough, probably the show's most well-known quote, "Beam me up, Scotty," is one that has never been spoken in any episode.

This quote has been widely used as a comical way of reacting to a bad situation, meaning, “Get me out of here, quick!” and refers to Star Trek's famous teleporter, which could beam a person to and from the ship more or less instantly. In the show, the teleporter was operated by Chief Engineer, Montgomery “Scotty” Scott (James Doohan), hence, “Beam me up, Scotty.” It’s widely believed that these words were spoken over the crew's iconic communicators. Except that they never were—at least, not precisely.

Where the Line Likely Came From

Star Trek fans have trawled through every episode of the original series and have found some near misses. In two episodes, “The Gamesters of Triskelion” and “The Savage Curtain,” Captain Kirk (William Shanter) speaks the words, "Scotty, beam us up." In “The Cloud Minders,” Kirk uses the variation, "Mr Scott, beam us up," whilst in “This Side of Paradise,” he says, "beam me up."

We get much closer with the 1986 film Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, in which Kirk speaks the words, "Scotty, beam me up," but that is as near as the script ever comes to "Beam me up, Scotty." 

Where exactly did the fake phrase originate? In this instance, we simply can't track down a single source. At some point, the saying was used outside of the show and it stuck. Repeated over time, "Beam me up, Scotty" became ingrained in the public consciousness, despite never have been used in the show.

In a neat full circle moment, James Doohan titled his 1996 autobiography Beam Me Up, Scotty: Star Trek's "Scotty"-In His Own Words.