Leonard McCoy

For the mirror universe counterpart, see Leonard McCoy (mirror).

For the counterpart in the timeline created by Nero's incursion, see Leonard McCoy (alternate reality).

Leonard Horatio McCoy, MD, was the storied chief medical officer of the USS Enterprise and USS Enterprise-A during the late 23rd century.

He was born in 2227 in the "Old South" region of North America on Earth, the son of David and Eleanora McCoy. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock; Star Trek III: The Search for Spock novelization; TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint") He had at least one sister, Donna. (TOS novel: Crisis on Centaurus)

Star Trek II Biographies describes Leonard as the second of five children.

Leonard McCoy was an infant during an interstellar conference, between the Klingons and the Federation, held on Earth. His grandfather, Dr. T.J. McCoy, a physician at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, helped a Klingon officer with regenerating a limb. (TOS novel: The Final Reflection)

This incident is anomalous to the Primeverse, as McCoy is ostensibly three Earth years older than Spock, yet Spock is somewhere between 7 and 10 here.

His first meeting with future shipmates and friends Spock and Montgomery Scott was in a spaceport waiting lounge in 2232, though Spock was then a toddler with his parents -- Sarek and Amanda Grayson -- and McCoy (age 5) and Scott (10) didn't tell each other their names. (Arc of the Wolf: Distant Horizons: "Wait")

McCoy attended the University of Mississippi during the mid-2240s, where he met Emony Dax, who was visiting Earth to judge a gymnastics competition. (DS9: "Trials and Tribble-ations"; DS9 anthology: The Lives of Dax: "Old Souls")

The episode suggests he had not yet decided to study medicine.

During one semester of his undergraduate years, McCoy was an exchange student at St. George's, University of London. (Star Trek: Excelsior novel: Forged in Fire)

Early career

In 2251, McCoy was placed in charge of a massive inoculation program on Dramia II. (TAS: "Albatross")

The novelization of this episode, in TAS novel: Star Trek Log Six, refers to McCoy as an advanced intern, which would place the mission a year or so after his graduation from medical school.

Two years later, he would develop a revolutionary neurosurgical procedure. (VOY: "Lifesigns")

Sometime prior to McCoy's service on Enterprise, he spent a year doing "pure research" at Cornell University's medical facility in New York City. (TOS novel: Doctor's Orders)

He was later part of a Starfleet mission to Capella IV. Knowledge gained from this short visit would become useful. (TOS: "Friday's Child")

McCoy is wearing a uniform with an Enterprise assignment patch, so this mission may have been anytime between the events of TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before" -- in which McCoy is not present and in which the older-style uniforms are still in use -- and TOS: "The Man Trap".

Marriage

McCoy was married to Jocelyn (aka "Honey") McCoy (TOS novels Planet of Judgement, Enterprise: The First Adventure, and Shadows on the Sun), with whom he had a daughter, Joanna. (TAS: "The Survivor")

They were divorced by the time McCoy had become chief medical officer on Enterprise.

Different continuities chronicle the initial separation and later divorce, as being at different times in McCoy's life. The reasons for the breakup differ as well.

The five-year mission

McCoy would join the crew of the USS Enterprise in 2266 early in James T. Kirk's first five-year mission, replacing Dr. Mark Piper as chief medical officer.

In the adaptation of TOS: "Where No Man Has Gone Before" in Star Trek 8, Dr. Piper was a fill-in for McCoy, who was said to be away on a "study leave".

He was the first xenophysician to treat a Horta by applying a bandage of thermoconcrete to the silicon-based lifeform. (TOS: "The Devil in the Dark")

In 2273, McCoy successfully performed open-heart surgery on Ambassador Sarek of Vulcan, despite the Enterprise being under attack and reluctance from Sarek's son Spock to donate blood. (TOS: "Journey to Babel")

The joining of McCoy and Natira

In 2268, McCoy was diagnosed with xenopolycythemia and given one year to live. Shortly thereafter, the Enterprise encountered the Fabrini asteroid-ship Yonada where he met their high priestess, Natira. McCoy fell in love with Natira and consented to implanting an instrument of obedience in his head so that he could stay with her. He later changed his mind and decided to return to Enterprise. A cure for xenopolycythemia was found in the Fabrini databanks. (TOS: "For the World is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky")

In 2270, McCoy was present for the first contact between the Federation and the Bajorans at Pillagra. During the encounter he had to develop a cure for banta fever after Captain Kirk contracted the disease. (TOS novel: Allegiance in Exile; Bait and Switch: "A Changed World")

Soon after the end of the Enterprise's first five-year mission under James T. Kirk, McCoy would leave Starfleet. (Star Trek: The Original Series comic: Leonard McCoy, Frontier Doctor; Star Trek: The Motion Picture)

Later career

Commander, circa 2272

On stardate 7210, McCoy was "drafted" back into Starfleet by Admiral James Kirk, using a "little-known, seldom-used reserve activation clause" and was placed back into duty as chief medical officer during the V'Ger encounter. He would continue to serve aboard the Enterprise upon the conclusion of the mission. (Star Trek: The Motion Picture)

Per the novelization of Star Trek: The Motion Picture, much of the diagnostic instrumentation on the refit Enterprise was based on McCoy's and Spock's translations of ancient Fabrini texts.

By stardate 8130.3, Dr. McCoy would serve as a Starfleet Academy instructor aboard the Enterprise under Captain Spock. He also suggested that his friend Admiral Kirk should not have accepted a 'desk job'. McCoy was present in main engineering following an attack by Khan Noonien Singh when Captain Spock entered the radioactive dilithium chamber and saved the Enterprise. McCoy objected, but Spock performed a Vulcan nerve pinch and a mind meld to imprint his katra onto McCoy. (Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan)

McCoy would later become a part of a plot to steal Enterprise and return to Genesis to recover Spock's body. Although Enterprise was self-destructed by Admiral Kirk to prevent being taken by rogue Klingons, the crew commandeered the attacking bird of prey to transport McCoy and the rejuvenated Spock to Vulcan. Spock's katra was restored via an ancient Vulcan technique known as the fal-tor-pan. (Star Trek III: The Search for Spock).

McCoy later participated in a plan to time travel back to 20th-century San Francisco to recover a pair of Humpback Whales. As a token of appreciation for saving the Earth, all charges against McCoy were dismissed, and he was assigned to the newly commissioned USS Enterprise-A. (Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home)

Shortly after stardate 9522, Enterprise was sent to escort Klingon Chancellor Gorkon to Earth for peace talks. When the Enterprise appeared to fire on Kronos One, Dr. McCoy beamed aboard with Captain Kirk to assist with casualties. McCoy attempted to save the life of Gorkon but failed. Kirk and McCoy were arrested, tried, and given a life sentence on the asteroid Rura Penthe. McCoy and Kirk were able to escape and were rescued by Spock. They soon discovered a second conspiracy and were able to disrupt a second assassination attempt. McCoy assisted Spock in performing "surgery" on a photon torpedo so that it would home in on the plasma trail of Klingon General Chang's cloaked ship. (Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country)

After the apparent death of James T. Kirk (Star Trek Generations), and the disappearance of Montgomery Scott (TNG: "Relics"), McCoy served as chief medical officer to Captain Spock on the Oberth-class USS Intrepid II, beginning in 2294. (TOS novel: Vulcan's Forge)

In 2297 and 2298, Captain Leonard McCoy supported the recommendation to allow Kiran and Arianna Maldonado to be raised aboard the USS Avenger as part of an experiment to study the effects of a family unit on the gestalt of a starship. (Star Trek: Avenger: "Genetics, That's What Little Boys and Girls are Made of")

By mid-2299, McCoy was an outspoken proponent of the relaxation of the regulations that previously forced flag officers to accept desk jobs or compelled experienced personnel to reject promotions to flag rank to remain active in the field. (Star Trek: Avenger: "The Road Goes Ever On")

24th century

Admiral McCoy touring the USS Enterprise-D with Data in 2364

In 2360, McCoy assisted Nyota Uhura, now an admiral and head of Starfleet Intelligence, and a Starfleet medical team in the identification and treatment of a disease that manifested symptoms resembling both an ancient Romulan illness, the Gnawing, and Rigelian fever. (The Lost Era novel: Catalyst of Sorrows)

On stardate 41153.7, the 137-year-old Admiral McCoy inspected the medical facilities of the USS Enterprise-D. He commented on the significance of the ship's name to Lieutenant Commander Data while also comparing the android to a Vulcan. (TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint")

By 2376, McCoy would fall gravely ill. Spock came to Earth to spend the last few months of the Doctor's life at his side. (USS Baldwin: "Good Will") He would later be buried atop a mountain on Veridian III, alongside his friend, James T. Kirk. (USS Baldwin: "Home")}}

Alternate continuities

Absolute Horizon

McCoy met his wife Jocelyn via her older brother, John Leland, in Atlanta, when McCoy was in medical school and both Lelands were studying law.

Leonard and Jocelyn were ill-suited from the beginning of their marriage. Joanna was born five months after they were married. About 2255, war had broken out on two Federation fronts -- against the Kzin and the Klingon Empire -- and McCoy undertook training at Starfleet Academy to become an officer, rather than a field medic, on the front lines. Shortly before the two-year course was to end, a peace treaty was signed with the Kzin and a cease fire with the Klingons, obviating the need for McCoy to serve.

Despite this, McCoy felt honor-bound to fulfill his obligations to Starfleet, to which his wife objected. She left, taking Joanna (then about five years old) with her.

One of the reasons McCoy left Starfleet at the end of James T. Kirk's first five-year mission as captain of the USS Enterprise was because he had written a scathing message criticizing the admiral in charge of Starfleet Medical's budget for not allocating the funds necessary to improve education about treating the Federation's non-human members.

TOS novel: My Brother's Keeper trilogy

Leonard McCoy joined Starfleet at age 26 (i.e., 2253) and had set foot on many extrasolar worlds. However, he asked for an assignment on Earth after his father, David McCoy, had acquired a debilitating disease. For many years, he worked at Starfleet Medical under the then surgeon general, Harris Eggleston.

McCoy was not assigned to a particular starship when he visited Capella IV in 2265. After returning from Capella, he succeeded Mark Piper, who had decided to retire after about fifty years in Starfleet service. (My Brother's Keeper: Constitution)

Orion Press

Ca. 2257, Leonard McCoy was a medical officer assigned to the Hermes-class scout USS Pegasus. He met James Kirk around this time, when the USS Farragut came to rescue survivors from an attack. ("The Difference")

In addition to Joanna, McCoy had two sons via Princess Teresa of Serenidad, David "Davey" II (b. 2289) and James "Jimmy" (b. 2291), who were both killed by assassins in 2294. (Bloodlines)

Technically, this David McCoy would have been David McCoy, III, since McCoy also had a cousin by that name, who had died in 2234. (TOS novel: Ice Trap) However, the cousin and the son might not both exist in many continuities.

After the deaths of his second wife and sons and the disappearances of Montgomery Scott and James Kirk, McCoy rejoined Starfleet. M'Benga was ready to retire from the post of Starfleet Surgeon General, so McCoy succeeded him. He was promoted to vice admiral. (Chekov's Enterprise)

A great-granddaughter of Leonard McCoy's was Katherine Pulaski. She conveyed to him the news of Montgomery Scott's recovery after 75 years. ("Eulogy")

McCoy perished from an incurable viral lung infection in 2384. He spent his last few weeks on Vulcan at Spock's family estate, his old friend by his side. McCoy was buried in the family vault in Atlanta. His daughter Joanna inherited all of his possessions. (Until the End of Time)

In Until the End of Time, Joanna is said to be still alive and Katherine Pulaski is McCoy's granddaughter, which contradicts "Eulogy".

Bring Back Kirk

Admiral McCoy is depicted as still being alive following the Battle of the Bassen Rift in 2379. At the age of at least 152, McCoy is informed by Spock of his intentions to retrieve James T. Kirk from the Nexus. After taking command of the refitted Enterprise-A with shipmates Spock and Montgomery Scott, Kirk, in honor of the retired doctor, changes the form of the Emergency Medical Holographic program from the Lewis Zimmerman model to that of McCoy in his prime.

Service jacket

Assignment History

	Lieutenant Commander	2266-69	Chief Medical Officer, USS Enterprise	TOS: "The Man Trap"
	Commander	2270
		2272-86		Star Trek: The Motion Picture
		2286-93	Chief Medical Officer, USS Enterprise-A	Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home
	Rear Admiral	2366	Starfleet Medical, retired	TNG: "Encounter at Farpoint"

Background

The Death of McCoy in USS Baldwin is meant to parallel the real-life death of DeForest Kelley, who passed away soon after the conclusion of Deep Space Nine.

External links

• Leonard McCoy article at Memory Alpha, the canon Star Trek wiki.
• Leonard McCoy article at Memory Beta, the non-canon Star Trek wiki.