De's Biography
Kelley was born in Toccoa, Georgia the son of Clora and Ernest David Kelley, who was a baptist minister. Kelley was delivered in their home by his uncle, a prominent local physician. As a child, he sang in the church choir, where he discovered that he enjoyed singing and was good at it. Eventually this led to solos and an appearance on radio station WSB in Atlanta. As a result of his radio work, he won an engagement with Lew Forbes and his orchestra at the Paramount Theater. He was a 1938 graduate of Toccoa High in Toccoa, Georgia. Later he graduated from Toccoa Falls College in Toccoa, Georgia. In one of the Star Trek comic books it was stated that Dr. McCoy's father had been a Baptist preacher, an idea that apparently came from Kelley's own life as the son of a Baptist minister. Kelley had an older brother, Ernest Casey Kelley.
Kelley served in the Second World War as an enlisted member of the Army Air Forces between March 10, 1943 and January 28th, 1946. After an extended stay at Long Beach, California, he decided to pursue an acting career and relocate to the state, living for a time with his uncle, Casey. He worked as an usher in a local theater in order to earn enough money for the move. Kelley received encouragement from his mother about this life change, but his father disliked the idea. While in California, Kelley was spotted by a Paramount scout while doing a Navy training film.
He died of stomach cancer on June 11th, 1999, in Woodland Hills, California, at the age of 79. He wasn't included in the Memorium Montage at the following year's Academy Awards, which angered many Trek fans. He was survived by his wife, Carolyn, who died in October 2004.
