Jackson DeForest Kelley was delivered at home in Atlanta, Georgia, by his uncle, a prominent local physician. The son of Clara Casey Kelley and Rev. Ernest D. Kelley, a Baptist minister, DeForest lived all over the South.
After singing in the church choir, DeForest discovered that he enjoyed singing and was good at it. Eventually this led to solos and later performing on radio station WSB in Atlanta. As a result of his radio appearances, he won an engagement with Lew Forbes and his orchestra at the Paramount Theater. It was DeForest's first taste of being an entertainer, and he liked it.
DeForest moved to Long Beach, California to live with his Uncle Casey. He saved money working as an usher in a local theater until he had enough for the move. DeForest found that he loved the sun, surf and excitement of Long Beach and told his parents he was going to stay and get a job. Mopping floors soon gave way to operating an elevator in a hotel near the ocean.
One day, DeForest was sitting in a restaurant when Rohn Hawke, who was doing local theater, came over and asked if he had any acting experience. Hawke worked with him to smooth out his Georgia accent, wanting DeForest to appear in a play he was directing. He auditioned and won the part. During the run of the play, a talent scout caught his performance and felt he had a future in acting. In the evenings, he continued to appear with the Long Beach Theater Group to gain experience, while operating an elevator and 'roughnecking' for Richfield Oil during the day. Sometime later, DeForest and some friends from the group started writing and staging plays at a local radio station. This led to other radio work for him.
He was tested for the baby-faced killer in This Gun for Hire and was assured, after 13 takes, that he had the role. Unfortunately, it ultimately went to Alan Ladd and DeForest went back to the Theater Group.
In 1942, DeForest appeared as a beach bum in "The Innocent Young Man" with the Long Beach Theater Group. His co-star was a blonde, blue-eyed beauty named Carolyn Dowling. Toward the end of the play, Carolyn was to hand him a five dollar bill and say, "Here, Bill, take this money and buy yourself a drink." Carolyn used her own five dollars, with DeForest giving it back at the end of each performance. When the play closed, DeForest "forgot" to return the money and called her from the bar where he was having a drink. "I've got your five dollars, so you'd better come down here and help me spend it, or it's all going to be gone."
Their budding romance was interrupted by war and DeForest went into the Army Air Corps in New Mexico, where Carolyn visited often. Finally he was transferred to Culver City to act in a Navy training film. That was when the couple decided to get married. They found a judge that married servicemen free of charge, bought two Indian rings for 25 cents and were married on September 7, 1945.
A Paramount talent scout spotted DeForest in the Navy film and it led to a three year contract. His first film was a starring role in "Fear in the Night." It was a low-budge project, but it caught the attention of the public and became a box-office sleeper -- a real hit -- and DeForest was established as a respected actor. Shortly after that he made "Variety Girl" and he was on his way.
A couple of years later the Kelleys decided to try their luck on the New York stage. While DeForest sought work, Carolyn got a job in the main office of Warner Brothers. While DeForest did find work on stage and live television, after three years they returned to Hollywood. He landed a part in a You Are There episode. That part led to another and another. His exceptional performance as Ike Clanton in the episode, "Last Gunfight at OK Corral" was his first role as a heavy and it brought him three movie offers.
For nine years DeForest primarily played heavies and found them interesting and challenging. He built up an impressive list of credits, alternating between television and motion pictures. Afraid of being type-cast, DeForest broke out of that mold by doing "Where Love Has Gone" and a television pilot called "333 Montgomery." The latter was written by an ex-cop named Gene Roddenberry. A few years later, DeForest would appear in another Roddenberry pilot, "Police Story." That didn't sell either, but it led to Star Trek and the unforgettable role of Dr. Leonard McCoy.
After Star Trek ended production, DeForest took a long, well-deserved vacation. He made a few movies and did some television, but primarily went into retirement. He says that nowadays, "Acting has become my hobby and my home has become my heart." DeForest enjoys his garden, where he tends 50+ rosebushes, reads biographies and works around the house. He also does some painting and writes poetry; his poem, "The Big Bird's Dream" is a favorite with his fans and its sequel, "The Dream Goes One" is destined for the same fame.
DeForest and Carolyn share their home with Myrtle, an octogenarian turtle.
Filmography:
"Apache Uprising"
"Beyond our Own" (religious film)
"Black Spurs"
"Canon City"
"Duke of Chicago"
"Fear in the Night"
"Gunfight at Comanche Creek"
"Gunfight at the OK Corral"
"House of Bamboo"
"House of Fear" (English title for "House of Bamboo")
"Illegal"
"Johnny Reno"
"Law and Jake Wade"
"Man in the Grey Flannel Suit"
"Marriage on the Rocks"
"Men"
"Night of the Lepus"
"Raintree County"
"Star Trek The Motion Picture"
"Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan"
"Star Trek III: The Search for Spock"
"Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home"
"Star Trek V: The Final Frontier"
"Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country"
"Taxi"
"Tension at Table Rock"
"Time to Kill" (Navy Training Film)
"Town Tamer"
"Two Faces West"
"Variety Girl"
"View from Pompeii's Head"
"Waco"
"Warlock"
"Where Love Has Gone"
Television (Series and episode title, where available)
77 Sunset Strip -- "88 Bars"
ABC Matinee Today -- "I Never Said Goodbye"
Alcoa Theater -- "333 Montgomery" & "Johnny Risk"
Armstrong Circle Theater
Arrest and Trial
Assignment: Underwater -- "Affair in Tokyo"
Bat Masterson -- "No Amnesty for Death"
Black Saddle -- "Apache Trail"
Bob Hope Chrysler -- "Theater"
Bold Ones (Doctors) -- "Giants Never Kneel"
Bonanza -- "Decision," "Honor of Cochise," and "Ride the Wind" (2 hr)
Cavalcade of America --"Medal for Miss Walker"
Code Three -- "Oil Well Incident"
Coronado 9 --"Loser's Circle"
Cowboys -- "Dave Done it"
Crime Syndicated
Dakotas -- "Reformation at Big Nose Butte"
Danger Death Valley Days -- "Breaking Point," "Devil's Gate," and "Lady of the Plains"
Deputy Donna Reed --"Uncle Jeff Needs You"
FBI
Frontier Justice -- "Shadow of a Dead Man"
Fugitive -- "Three Cheers for a Little Boy Blue"
Gallant Men -- "Taste of Peace"
Gallery of Mme Liu-Tsong Gunsmoke -- "Indian Scout"
Have Gun, Will Travel -- "Treasure"
Ironside -- "Warrior's Return"
Johnny Midnight -- "Inner Eye"
Laramie -- "Gun Duel" and "Unvanquished"
Laredo -- "Sound of Terror"
Lawman -- "Squatters" and "Thimbleringger"
Line-Up - "Chloroform Murder Case"
Littlest Hobo Lone Ranger -- "Death in the Forest" and "Gold Train" & "Legion of Old Timers"
M-Squad - "Diamond Hard," "Hideout," and "Pete Loves Mary"
Man Called Shenandoah -- "Riley Brand"
Markham -- "Counterpoint"
Matinee Theater -- "Beyond a Reasonable Doubt"
Mickey Spillane's Mike Hammer -- "Bride and Doom"
Millionaire -- "Millionaire: Iris Millar"
Navy Log Northwest Passage -- "Death Rides the Wind"
O, Henry Playhouse -- "Hiding of Black Bill"
Owen Marshall -- "Make No Mistake"
Perry Mason -- "The Case of the Unwelcome Bridge"
Plainclothesman Playhouse 90 Police Story Rawhide -- "Incident at Barker Springs"
Richard Diamond -- "Adjuster," "Fine Art of Murder," and one untitled episode
Riverboat -- "Listen to the Nightingale"
Room 222 -- "Suitable for Framing"
Rough Riders -- "Night Binders"
Route 66 -- "1800 Days to Justice" & "Clover Throne"
Schlitz Playhouse of Stars
Science Fiction Theater -- "Long Day," "Survival in Box Canyon," and "Y.O.R.D."
Silent Force -- "Judge"
Silent Service -- "Archerfish Spits Straight," "Gar Story," and "Spearfish Delivers"
Slattery's People -- "Question: Which One has the Privilege"
Stagecoach West -- "Image of a Man"
Star Trek -- 79 episodes and 6 films
Studio 57 -- "Storm Signal"
Studio One
Tales of Wells Fargo -- "Capt. Scoville"
Trackdown -- "Dooley Boys", "End of an Outlaw," "Hard Lines," and "Jailbreak"
Two Faces West -- "Fallen Gun"
Virginian -- "Duel at Shiloh" and "Man of Violence"
Walt Disney Presents: Elfago Baca -- "Mustang Man, Mustang Maid"
Wanted: Dead or Alive -- "Hostage & Secret Ballot" & two other episodes
Web
You Are There -- 13 episodes
Your Favorite Story -- "Inside Out" and "Man Who Sold His Shadow"
Your Jeweler's Showcase -- "Hand of St. Pierre"
Zane Grey Theater -- "Shadow"