Take a quick peek at the Twitter feed from George Takei — the actor famous for his Star Trek and advocacy roles, and the star of the new documentary To Be Takei — and it’s immediately clear that he has a catchphrase.
He uses it in a sentence:
From a fan. Oh Myyy. Let's tiptoe through these tulips. pic.twitter.com/z0qb2OTthJ
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) July 31, 2014
He uses it as a hashtag:
In case you missed it: These @StarTrek memes are sure to make you Shatner yourself #OhMyy http://t.co/dnIvCzYY7X
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) July 31, 2014
He even has his own link shortener, which churns out catchphrase-inspired short URLs for him to tweet:
These hilariously reinterpreted "selfies" on @CollegeHumor made me giggle. You must see: http://t.co/0P3dzbdz4B pic.twitter.com/rHmpIzbrtv
— George Takei (@GeorgeTakei) July 30, 2014
But how did “Oh my!” come to be his catchphrase? Here, Takei tells TIME.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Welcome to the Noah Lyles Olympics
- Melinda French Gates Is Going It Alone
- What to Do if You Can’t Afford Your Medications
- How to Buy Groceries Without Breaking the Bank
- Sienna Miller Is the Reason to Watch Horizon
- Why So Many Bitcoin Mining Companies Are Pivoting to AI
- The 15 Best Movies to Watch on a Plane
- Want Weekly Recs on What to Watch, Read, and More? Sign Up for Worth Your Time
Write to Diane Tsai at diane.tsai@time.com and Lily Rothman at lily.rothman@time.com