He was “the rock upon which much of 'Star Trek' stands,” Leonard Nimoy said in 1991. DeForest Kelley was well loved by his costars and professional friends. Here is a full account his entire life, including "Star Trek." Why he was so beloved is made apparent by the life story of the man himself.

Jackson DeForest Kelley was born in Atlanta, January 20, 1920. DeForest had wanted to be a doctor, but the Depression prevented any further schooling and his father, a Baptist minister, frowned on wishful thinking. An uncle sent for him and he visited Long Beach, California in 1938—by 1939 he had settled in California to stay—as an actor. 

Kelley’s life included decades of professional struggle, personal trial and dispensing of wisdom that his beloved friends and costars still find marvelous. He was a rare and funny man. His story is also a love affair of over fifty-five years with his wife, Carolyn. He once declared, “I make the living and she makes the living worth while.” 

From Georgia to California, to a radio tower in Roswell, New Mexico, to Hollywood and eventually to the bridge of the ENTERPRISE, DeForest Kelley was Everyman, and an extraordinary man. "Star Trek" fan or no, you will want to know this American story.