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Doctor (Star Trek)
Encyclopedia
The Doctor, an Emergency Medical Hologram Mark I (or EMH for short), is a fictional character from the television series Star Trek: Voyager
, played by actor Robert Picardo
. The character also appeared in the now-closed Star Trek: The Experience
Borg 4-D Adventure at the Las Vegas Hilton.
ship's sickbay. The EMH is for use should the ship's doctor be incapacitated. In the series' first episode, Voyagers Chief Medical Officer, along with his Vulcan
nurse, were killed, necessitating extended use of the EMH. The EMH eventually developed his own personality, although he generally maintained his acerbic wit. Since he was originally intended as a temporary medical backup system, not as an artificial life
form, considerable strains were placed on the Doctor's program during the early parts of the journey. He gained assistance from Kes and Paris, both of whom functioned as nurses.
Attempting to develop a realistic personality, the Doctor not only manufactured a holographic family, he had an increasing number of other 'human' experiences. This resulted in the Doctor's program evolving to become more lifelike, with emotions and ambitions. He developed meaningful and complex relationships
with many members of the ship's crew. The Doctor also developed talents as a playwright
, artist, and photographer, and even became a connoisseur
of the opera
.
A recurring theme was the ethical aspects of an artificial, yet apparently sentient, being. In Episode 511 "Latent Image" triaging two patients with an equal chance of survival, with only enough time to treat one, the Doctor chose Harry Kim, a friend. The other patient, Ensign Jetal, died. The Doctor was overwhelmed with guilt, believing that his friendship influenced his choice. When the stress nearly led to his program breaking down, Captain Janeway had his memories of these events deleted. When the Doctor later discovered clues as to what had happened, Captain Janeway was convinced by him and others that he had a right to learn to come to grips with the guilt in the manner of any other sentient being rather than be treated merely as a defective piece of equipment.
The Doctor submitted a holo-novel titled Photons Be Free to a publisher on Earth, detailing the manner in which holograms were sometimes treated by Starfleet. His characters were closely based on Voyagers crew, but exaggerated to appear more intense and vicious, creating fears among the crew their reputations would be ruined. Tom Paris
convinced the Doctor to make adjustments without sacrificing his theme. The Doctor lacked legal rights as Starfleet did not classify him as a "sentient being". Thus he was forbidden to make any subsequent holonovel changes. Captain Janeway's efforts resulted in the Doctor being accorded the status of 'artist', (though not a "person"). This permitted him to rewrite the novel. Four months later, it was known throughout the Alpha Quadrant as a very thought-provoking piece of work. Several other EMHs, now relegated to mining duty, experienced the novel.
The Doctor's standard greeting was "Please state the nature of the medical emergency" when activated, though later modified to say whatever he chose. He was later given the ability to activate and deactivate himself.
The Doctor later acquired a mobile holographic emitter from the 29th Century. Although he had previously been confined to Sickbay or the Holodeck
, the mobile emitter allowed the Doctor to move about freely, making him ideal for missions where the environment would be harmful or otherwise fatal to the crew.
The Doctor's programming evolved to the point where he fell in love with Seven of Nine
, though she did not reciprocate. In an alternate future episode, "Endgame
", the Doctor adopts the name 'Joe', and marries a human female, named Lana (played by Amy Lindsay
).
. In these grandiose daydreams, the Doctor adds routines which allow him to take command of Voyager in the event that the command crew were disabled. A dramatic morph transformation occurs changing his uniform from science blue to command red, his rank pips subsequently appearing. The daydreams are picked up by a Hierarchy vessel in a nearby nebula
and believed to be real events. Once the crew discover that the Doctor is daydreaming they use the holodeck to view his dreams. This includes the one expressing his desire to be an Emergency Command Hologram. Captain Janeway
promises to consider his proposal. The Doctor soon gets the opportunity to live out his daydreams as, with the assistance of the crew, he pretends to be in charge to neutralize a war fleet.
The ECH made its debut the following season in "Workforce
". After an incident with a subspace mine that releases a great amount of tetryon radiation, the crew is forced to abandon ship. To keep the ship moving the Doctor takes over the command functions.
In the episode "Renaissance Man
", against the wishes of the crew, the Doctor uses his ECH program to eject the Warp core.
" depicts a future in which a backup copy does exist.
patient), 'Schweitzer' (after Albert Schweitzer
), 'Van Gogh', 'Kenneth', 'Jones', and several others. The captioned dialog of early episodes, and early promotional material for the series' premiere, referred to him as 'Dr. Zimmerman', after his creator, Lewis Zimmerman. In the series finale
, a future is shown where he has chosen the name "Joe."
Depending on the amount of hologram patterns he has and capacity of his pattern buffers, The Doctor sometimes has the ability to shapeshift.
The Doctor is also able to download his program and personality subroutines into a humanoid with Borg implants, thus possessing the functions and abilities of that individual. Such is the case when he was forced to hide within the body of Seven of Nine
.
ships, but they are there only to supplement the living medical crew, not replace it. Programmed with all current Starfleet medical knowledge, the Doctor and all Mark Is are equipped with the knowledge and mannerisms of historic Federation doctors, as well as the physical appearance of their programmer, Dr. Lewis Zimmerman.
There has been only one update to the Mark I seen on screen, the Mark II played by Andy Dick
in the episode "Message in a Bottle
", which supposedly had a "better" bedside manner than the Mark I, as well as possibly some updated medical information. However, later episodes mention that further versions of the EMH exist.
in the movie Star Trek: First Contact
, where he played the emergency medical hologram of the USS Enterprise-E
. Doctor Beverly Crusher
activates him as a means of distracting the Borg, while they escape. He replies, "I'm a doctor, not a doorstop", a homage to Doctor McCoy's
famous line "I'm a doctor, not a..." (The Doctor also made this reference several other times, on Voyager.) Nevertheless, when the Borg do break in he does attempt to distract them, by noting that Borg implants can cause skin irritation and offering to prescribe an analgesic
cream.
. Despite Ethan Phillips
getting the part, Picardo was asked by the producers to come back and audition for the Doctor—something that shocked him, because usually actors would be passed over completely. During his audition for the role of the Doctor, Robert Picardo was asked only to say, "Somebody forgot to terminate my program." However, he then ad-libbed, "I'm a doctor, not a nightlight!" (Picardo was initially afraid that he may have ruined his chances—ad-libbing, he explained, was something that one just 'did not do' in an audition.)
Star Trek: Voyager
Star Trek: Voyager is a science fiction television series set in the Star Trek universe. Set in the 24th century from the year 2371 through 2378, the series follows the adventures of the Starfleet vessel USS Voyager, which becomes stranded in the Delta Quadrant 70,000 light-years from Earth while...
, played by actor Robert Picardo
Robert Picardo
Robert Picardo is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayals of Dr. Dick Richards on ABC's China Beach, the Emergency Medical Hologram , also known as The Doctor, on UPN's Star Trek: Voyager, The Cowboy in Innerspace, Coach Cutlip on The Wonder Years , Ben Wheeler in Wagons East, and as...
. The character also appeared in the now-closed Star Trek: The Experience
Star Trek: The Experience
Star Trek: The Experience was a themed attraction at the Las Vegas Hilton in Las Vegas, Nevada, USA, based on the Star Trek entertainment franchise. It opened in January 1998, closed in September 2008, and was scheduled to reopen in the Neonopolis Mall on May 8, 2009 in time for the premiere of the...
Borg 4-D Adventure at the Las Vegas Hilton.
Fictional character biography
The character of the Doctor began his service on the USS Voyager as the standard Emergency Medical Hologram built into almost every newer StarfleetStarfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
ship's sickbay. The EMH is for use should the ship's doctor be incapacitated. In the series' first episode, Voyagers Chief Medical Officer, along with his Vulcan
Vulcan (Star Trek)
Vulcans, or sometimes Vulcanians, are an extraterrestrial humanoid species in the Star Trek universe who evolved on the planet Vulcan, and are noted for their attempt to live by reason and logic with no interference from emotion. They were the first extraterrestrial species in the Star Trek...
nurse, were killed, necessitating extended use of the EMH. The EMH eventually developed his own personality, although he generally maintained his acerbic wit. Since he was originally intended as a temporary medical backup system, not as an artificial life
Artificial life
Artificial life is a field of study and an associated art form which examine systems related to life, its processes, and its evolution through simulations using computer models, robotics, and biochemistry. The discipline was named by Christopher Langton, an American computer scientist, in 1986...
form, considerable strains were placed on the Doctor's program during the early parts of the journey. He gained assistance from Kes and Paris, both of whom functioned as nurses.
Attempting to develop a realistic personality, the Doctor not only manufactured a holographic family, he had an increasing number of other 'human' experiences. This resulted in the Doctor's program evolving to become more lifelike, with emotions and ambitions. He developed meaningful and complex relationships
Interpersonal relationship
An interpersonal relationship is an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring. This association may be based on limerence, love, solidarity, regular business interactions, or some other type of social commitment. Interpersonal relationships are formed in the...
with many members of the ship's crew. The Doctor also developed talents as a playwright
Playwright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
, artist, and photographer, and even became a connoisseur
Connoisseur
A connoisseur is a person who has a great deal of knowledge about the fine arts, cuisines, or an expert judge in matters of taste.Modern connoisseurship must be seen along with museums, art galleries and "the cult of originality"...
of the opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
.
A recurring theme was the ethical aspects of an artificial, yet apparently sentient, being. In Episode 511 "Latent Image" triaging two patients with an equal chance of survival, with only enough time to treat one, the Doctor chose Harry Kim, a friend. The other patient, Ensign Jetal, died. The Doctor was overwhelmed with guilt, believing that his friendship influenced his choice. When the stress nearly led to his program breaking down, Captain Janeway had his memories of these events deleted. When the Doctor later discovered clues as to what had happened, Captain Janeway was convinced by him and others that he had a right to learn to come to grips with the guilt in the manner of any other sentient being rather than be treated merely as a defective piece of equipment.
The Doctor submitted a holo-novel titled Photons Be Free to a publisher on Earth, detailing the manner in which holograms were sometimes treated by Starfleet. His characters were closely based on Voyagers crew, but exaggerated to appear more intense and vicious, creating fears among the crew their reputations would be ruined. Tom Paris
Tom Paris
Thomas Eugene "Tom" Paris, played by Robert Duncan McNeill, is a character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. Paris serves as the chief helmsman and an auxiliary medic aboard the USS Voyager...
convinced the Doctor to make adjustments without sacrificing his theme. The Doctor lacked legal rights as Starfleet did not classify him as a "sentient being". Thus he was forbidden to make any subsequent holonovel changes. Captain Janeway's efforts resulted in the Doctor being accorded the status of 'artist', (though not a "person"). This permitted him to rewrite the novel. Four months later, it was known throughout the Alpha Quadrant as a very thought-provoking piece of work. Several other EMHs, now relegated to mining duty, experienced the novel.
The Doctor's standard greeting was "Please state the nature of the medical emergency" when activated, though later modified to say whatever he chose. He was later given the ability to activate and deactivate himself.
The Doctor later acquired a mobile holographic emitter from the 29th Century. Although he had previously been confined to Sickbay or the Holodeck
Holodeck
A holodeck, in the fictional Star Trek universe, is a simulated reality facility located on starships and starbases. The first use of a "holodeck" by that name in the Star Trek universe was in the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, "Encounter at Farpoint", although a conceptually...
, the mobile emitter allowed the Doctor to move about freely, making him ideal for missions where the environment would be harmful or otherwise fatal to the crew.
The Doctor's programming evolved to the point where he fell in love with Seven of Nine
Seven of Nine
Seven of Nine is a fictional character on Star Trek: Voyager, portrayed by actress Jeri Ryan. Born human, she was assimilated by the Borg at the age of six. Eighteen years later, Voyager left Borg space with Seven on board, after attempts to negotiate passage through Borg space proved only...
, though she did not reciprocate. In an alternate future episode, "Endgame
Endgame (Voyager episode)
"Endgame" is the title of the series finale of the Star Trek spinoff series, Star Trek: Voyager. Originally shown as a double-length episode and presented as such in DVD collections, it is shown in repeat broadcasts as two linked episodes.-Plot:...
", the Doctor adopts the name 'Joe', and marries a human female, named Lana (played by Amy Lindsay
Amy Lindsay
Amy Lindsay is an American actress.Amy graduated from The University of Texas at Austin, where she grew up, with a degree in Journalism and a minor in Drama. After working in public relations and marketing, which she disliked, she decided to become an actress and moved from Texas to Los Angeles in...
).
Emergency Command Hologram
The "Emergency Command Hologram", aka "ECH", is first coined by the Doctor in the episode, "Tinker, Tenor, Doctor, Spy", in which he creates a program that allows him to daydreamDaydream
A daydream is a visionary fantasy, especially one of happy, pleasant thoughts, hopes or ambitions, imagined as coming to pass, and experienced while awake. There are many types of daydreams, and there is no consistent definition amongst psychologists. The general public also uses the term for a...
. In these grandiose daydreams, the Doctor adds routines which allow him to take command of Voyager in the event that the command crew were disabled. A dramatic morph transformation occurs changing his uniform from science blue to command red, his rank pips subsequently appearing. The daydreams are picked up by a Hierarchy vessel in a nearby nebula
Nebula
A nebula is an interstellar cloud of dust, hydrogen gas, helium gas and other ionized gases...
and believed to be real events. Once the crew discover that the Doctor is daydreaming they use the holodeck to view his dreams. This includes the one expressing his desire to be an Emergency Command Hologram. Captain Janeway
Kathryn Janeway
Kathryn Janeway, played by Kate Mulgrew, is a fictional character in the Star Trek franchise. As the captain of the Starfleet starship USS Voyager, she was the lead character on the television series Star Trek: Voyager, and later, a Starfleet admiral, as seen in the 2002 feature film Star Trek...
promises to consider his proposal. The Doctor soon gets the opportunity to live out his daydreams as, with the assistance of the crew, he pretends to be in charge to neutralize a war fleet.
The ECH made its debut the following season in "Workforce
Workforce (Voyager episode)
Workforce is a two-part episode from the seventh and final season of the TV series Star Trek: Voyager. Part one was directed by Allan Kroeker, and part two by Roxann Dawson.-Part I:...
". After an incident with a subspace mine that releases a great amount of tetryon radiation, the crew is forced to abandon ship. To keep the ship moving the Doctor takes over the command functions.
In the episode "Renaissance Man
Renaissance Man (Voyager episode)
"Renaissance Man" is an episode of Star Trek: Voyager, and the last standard-length episode of the series. The succeeding episode, "Endgame", is a double-length episode and the series finale.- Plot :...
", against the wishes of the crew, the Doctor uses his ECH program to eject the Warp core.
Backup copies
Unlike most computer programs, the Doctor's program was never copied or backed up. Voyager has a limited memory capacity; the Doctor's entire program uses 50 million gigaquads ("Lifesigns"). This limitation was also mentioned in "The Swarm." However, "Living WitnessLiving Witness (Voyager episode)
"Living Witness" is an episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the 23rd episode of the fourth season. It has an average fan rating of 4.2/5 on the official Star Trek website as of September 2009....
" depicts a future in which a backup copy does exist.
Name
One recurring theme in the Doctor's life was his lack of a name. Starfleet did not assign a name and initially the Doctor maintained that he did not want one. Later, he adopted such names as 'Schmullus' (by a VidiianVidiian
The Vidiians are a fictional race in the science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager, located in the Delta Quadrant. The Vidiians suffer from a necrotizing plague called "the Phage"...
patient), 'Schweitzer' (after Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer OM was a German theologian, organist, philosopher, physician, and medical missionary. He was born in Kaysersberg in the province of Alsace-Lorraine, at that time part of the German Empire...
), 'Van Gogh', 'Kenneth', 'Jones', and several others. The captioned dialog of early episodes, and early promotional material for the series' premiere, referred to him as 'Dr. Zimmerman', after his creator, Lewis Zimmerman. In the series finale
Endgame (Voyager episode)
"Endgame" is the title of the series finale of the Star Trek spinoff series, Star Trek: Voyager. Originally shown as a double-length episode and presented as such in DVD collections, it is shown in repeat broadcasts as two linked episodes.-Plot:...
, a future is shown where he has chosen the name "Joe."
Characteristics
Before the arrival of the mobile emitter, The Doctor's holo-program was confined only to the Sickbay and the holodecks.Depending on the amount of hologram patterns he has and capacity of his pattern buffers, The Doctor sometimes has the ability to shapeshift.
The Doctor is also able to download his program and personality subroutines into a humanoid with Borg implants, thus possessing the functions and abilities of that individual. Such is the case when he was forced to hide within the body of Seven of Nine
Seven of Nine
Seven of Nine is a fictional character on Star Trek: Voyager, portrayed by actress Jeri Ryan. Born human, she was assimilated by the Borg at the age of six. Eighteen years later, Voyager left Borg space with Seven on board, after attempts to negotiate passage through Borg space proved only...
.
Emergency Medical Hologram
The EMH is a holographic computer program designed to treat patients during emergency situations, or when the regular medical staff is unavailable or incapacitated. EMHs are now a standard feature onboard all StarfleetStarfleet
In the fictional universe of Star Trek, Starfleet or the Federation Starfleet is the deep-space exploratory, peacekeeping and military service maintained by the United Federation of Planets . It is the principal means by which the Federation conducts its exploration, defense, diplomacy and research...
ships, but they are there only to supplement the living medical crew, not replace it. Programmed with all current Starfleet medical knowledge, the Doctor and all Mark Is are equipped with the knowledge and mannerisms of historic Federation doctors, as well as the physical appearance of their programmer, Dr. Lewis Zimmerman.
There has been only one update to the Mark I seen on screen, the Mark II played by Andy Dick
Andy Dick
Andrew R. "Andy" Dick is an American comedian, actor, musician and television/film producer. His first regular television role was on the short-lived but highly influential Ben Stiller Show. In the mid-1990s, he had a long-running stint on NBC's NewsRadio...
in the episode "Message in a Bottle
Message in a Bottle (Star Trek: Voyager)
"Message in a Bottle" is a popular episode of Star Trek: Voyager, the fourteenth episode of the fourth season, which premiered January 21, 1998...
", which supposedly had a "better" bedside manner than the Mark I, as well as possibly some updated medical information. However, later episodes mention that further versions of the EMH exist.
Enterprise-E EMH
Robert Picardo also had a cameoCameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in the movie Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek: First Contact
Star Trek: First Contact is the eighth feature film in the Star Trek science fiction franchise, released in November 1996, by Paramount Pictures. First Contact is the first film in the franchise to feature no cast members from the original Star Trek television series of the 1960s...
, where he played the emergency medical hologram of the USS Enterprise-E
USS Enterprise (NCC-1701-E)
The USS Enterprise is a Sovereign-class starship in the Star Trek franchise. It serves as the primary setting of the films Star Trek: First Contact, Star Trek: Insurrection, and Star Trek Nemesis...
. Doctor Beverly Crusher
Beverly Crusher
Commander Beverly Crusher, M.D. , played by actress Gates McFadden, is a fictional character on the television series Star Trek: The Next Generation and its subsequent spinoff films...
activates him as a means of distracting the Borg, while they escape. He replies, "I'm a doctor, not a doorstop", a homage to Doctor McCoy's
Leonard McCoy
Leonard "Bones" McCoy is a character in the Star Trek media franchise. First portrayed by DeForest Kelley in the original Star Trek series, McCoy also appears in the animated Star Trek series, seven Star Trek movies, the pilot episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and in numerous books,...
famous line "I'm a doctor, not a..." (The Doctor also made this reference several other times, on Voyager.) Nevertheless, when the Borg do break in he does attempt to distract them, by noting that Borg implants can cause skin irritation and offering to prescribe an analgesic
Analgesic
An analgesic is any member of the group of drugs used to relieve pain . The word analgesic derives from Greek an- and algos ....
cream.
Casting
Robert Picardo initially auditioned for NeelixNeelix
Mr. Neelix is a fictional character in the television series Star Trek: Voyager. He is played by actor Ethan Phillips.-Fictional Biography:Mr. Neelix is a Talaxian originally from Rinax, a moon of the planet Talax, in the Delta quadrant, although his great-grandfather was Mylean. His entire family...
. Despite Ethan Phillips
Ethan Phillips
Ethan Phillips is an American actor, playwright and author. He is known for television roles such as Star Trek: Voyager's Neelix and Benson's Pete Downey.-Personal life:...
getting the part, Picardo was asked by the producers to come back and audition for the Doctor—something that shocked him, because usually actors would be passed over completely. During his audition for the role of the Doctor, Robert Picardo was asked only to say, "Somebody forgot to terminate my program." However, he then ad-libbed, "I'm a doctor, not a nightlight!" (Picardo was initially afraid that he may have ruined his chances—ad-libbing, he explained, was something that one just 'did not do' in an audition.)
External links
- Official biography at StarTrek.com