Editing Leonard McCoy (section)

==Development==
Kelley had worked with ''Star Trek'' creator [[Gene Roddenberry]] on previous [[television pilot]]s,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/library/cast/bio/69074.html|title=DeForest Kelley profile at Startrek.com|access-date=2009-01-25|archive-date=July 8, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100708062933/http://www.startrek.com/startrek/view/library/cast/bio/69074.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> and he was Roddenberry's first choice to play the doctor aboard the [[USS Enterprise (NCC-1701)|USS ''Enterprise'']].<ref name="insidestartrek152">{{cite book|last1=Solow|first1=Herbert|author-link1=Herbert Franklin Solow|first2=Robert|last2=Justman|author-link2=Robert H. Justman|title=Inside Star Trek The Real Story|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|date=June 1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/152 152]|isbn=978-0-671-00974-8|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/152}}</ref> However, for the rejected pilot "[[The Cage (Star Trek: The Original Series)|The Cage]]" (1964), Roddenberry went with [[television director|director]] [[Robert Butler (director)|Robert Butler]]'s choice of [[John Hoyt]] to play Dr. Philip Boyce.<ref name="insidestartrek37">{{cite book|last1=Solow|first1=Herbert|author-link1=Herbert Franklin Solow|first2=Robert|last2=Justman|author-link2=Robert H. Justman|title=Inside Star Trek The Real Story|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|date=June 1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/37 37]|isbn=978-0-671-00974-8|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/37}}</ref> For the second pilot, "[[Where No Man Has Gone Before]]" (1966), Roddenberry accepted director [[James Goldstone]]'s decision to have [[Paul Fix]] play Dr. Mark Piper.<ref name="insidestartrek75">{{cite book|last1=Solow|first1=Herbert|author-link1=Herbert Franklin Solow|first2=Robert|last2=Justman|author-link2=Robert H. Justman|title=Inside Star Trek The Real Story|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|date=June 1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/75 75]|isbn=978-0-671-00974-8|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/75}}</ref> Although Roddenberry wanted Kelley to play the character of ship's doctor, he did not put Kelley's name forward to [[NBC]]; the network never "rejected" the actor, as Roddenberry sometimes suggested.<ref name="insidestartrek152" />

Kelley's first broadcast appearance as Doctor Leonard McCoy was in "[[The Man Trap]]" (1966). Despite his character's prominence, Kelley's contract granted him only a "featuring" credit; he was not given "starring" credit until the second season, at the urging of producer [[Robert H. Justman|Robert Justman]].<ref name="Inside Star Trek pg 240">{{cite book|last1=Solow|first1=Herbert|author-link1=Herbert Franklin Solow|first2=Robert|last2=Justman|author-link2=Robert H. Justman|title=Inside Star Trek The Real Story|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|date=June 1997|page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/240 240]|isbn=978-0-671-00974-8|url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780671896287/page/240}}</ref> Kelley was apprehensive about ''Star Trek''{{'}}s future, telling Roddenberry that the show was "going to be the biggest hit or the biggest miss God ever made".<ref name="rioux2005">{{cite book|title=From Sawdust to Stardust: The Biography of DeForest Kelley, Star Trek's Dr. McCoy|first=Terry Lee|last=Rioux|isbn=978-0-7434-5762-0|publisher=[[Simon & Schuster]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fHqtNdfIdi8C&q=rioux+kelley|date=2005-02-28|access-date=October 18, 2020|archive-date=April 17, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417190445/https://books.google.com/books?id=fHqtNdfIdi8C&q=rioux+kelley|url-status=live}}</ref>{{rp|146}} Kelley portrayed McCoy throughout the original ''Star Trek'' series, and voiced the character in the animated ''Star Trek''.<ref name="compendium" />

Kelley, who in his youth wanted to become a doctor like his uncle, but whose family could not pay for a medical education,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/367110.stm|title=Star Trek's Dr McCoy dies|publisher=BBC|access-date=2009-01-26|date=1999-06-11|archive-date=December 6, 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081206134739/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/367110.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> in part drew upon his real-life experiences in creating McCoy, a doctor's "matter-of-fact" delivery of news of Kelley's mother's terminal cancer was the "abrasive sand" Kelley used in creating McCoy's demeanor.{{r|rioux2005}}{{rp|145}} ''Star Trek'' writer [[D. C. Fontana]] said that while Roddenberry created the series, Kelley essentially created McCoy; everything done with the character was done with Kelley's input.{{r|rioux2005}}{{rp|156}}

"Exquisite chemistry" among Kelley, [[William Shatner]], and [[Leonard Nimoy]] manifested itself in their performances as McCoy, Captain [[James T. Kirk]], and Science Officer Spock, respectively. [[Nichelle Nichols]], who played [[Uhura]], referred to Kelley as her "sassy gentleman friend"; the friendship between the [[African American|African-American]] Nichols and [[Southern United States|Southern]] Kelley was a real-life demonstration of the message Roddenberry hoped to convey through ''Star Trek''.{{r|rioux2005}}{{rp|154}}

For the 2009 ''Star Trek'' film, writers [[Roberto Orci]] and [[Alex Kurtzman]] saw McCoy as an "arbiter" in Kirk and Spock's relationship. While Spock represented "extreme logic, extreme science" and Kirk symbolized "extreme emotion and intuition", McCoy's role as "a very colorful doctor, essentially a very [[Humanism|humanistic]] scientist", represented the "two extremes that often served as the glue that held the trio together". They chose to reveal that McCoy befriended Kirk first, explaining the "bias" in their friendship and why he would often be a "little dismissive" of Spock.<ref name="scifiwireinterview">{{cite news|url=http://scifiwire.com/2009/03/orci-kurtzman-how-star-tr.php|title=Orci & Kurtzman: How Star Trek deals with Kirk, Spock and McCoy|work=[[Sci Fi Wire]]|date=2009-03-25|access-date=2009-05-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090427202732/http://scifiwire.com/2009/03/orci-kurtzman-how-star-tr.php|archive-date=April 27, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> Urban said the script was "very faithful" to the original character, including the "great compassion for humanity and that sense of irascibility" with which Kelley imbued the character. New Zealand-born Urban trained with a dialect coach to create McCoy's accent<ref name="urbanvideo">{{cite web|url=http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=522|title=Karl Urban|access-date=2009-01-26|date=2008-01-17|publisher=IESB.net|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090317071342/http://www.iesb.net/index.php?option=com_seyret&Itemid=227&task=videodirectlink&id=522|archive-date=March 17, 2009|df=mdy-all}}</ref> and reprised the role in its sequels ''[[Star Trek Into Darkness]]''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.celebuzz.com/2012-09-22/dredd-3d-star-karl-urban-star-trek-into-darkness-will-be-epic-emotional-exclusive-video/ |title='Dredd 3D' Star Karl Urban: 'Star Trek Into Darkness' Will Be 'Epic', 'Emotional' (EXCLUSIVE VIDEO) |publisher=Celebuzz |date=2012-09-22 |access-date=2013-05-25 |archive-date=March 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220313125002/https://www.celebuzz.com/2012-09-22/dredd-3d-star-karl-urban-star-trek-into-darkness-will-be-epic-emotional-exclusive-video/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and ''[[Star Trek Beyond]]''.