(Pictured: Bill Nye, aka The Science Guy, has gone from civil engineer to TV personality).
Bill Nye. Scientist, celebrity, television star, author, and The Science Guy.
And now, because of his connection to the Pacific Northwest, he’s the subject of an exhibit at the Museum of History and Industry in Seattle.
Nye has donated artifacts from his TV stardom on the Seattle-based sketch comedy show “Almost Live!” and his own, subsequent show, “Bill Nye the Science Guy.” Also on display are workplace items (vintage shop coats, desk gadgets, memorabilia) from his days working as an engineer for Boeing and other Puget Sound-area companies, and documents chronicling a Seattle team he helped organize in the sport of Ultimate Frisbee. In other words, the Complete Bill Nye. Or, as museum (MOHAI) officials note, the exhibit that opened Aug. 31 and will continue until Feb. 23 next year is “a rare glimpse into the life and work of a beloved local personality.” It’s also, they said, in line with the museum’s effort to “care for and store important local stories.”
Nye’s connection to the Northwest began in the late 1970s when he moved here to pursue his fascination with airplanes and flight at Boeing. By 1986, he had a night job as a comedy writer and performer on “Almost Live!”, which aired for 15 years on KING 5-TV. He went on to develop his Science Guy personna, which gained him national notoriety and a place in the Smithsonian National Museum of
American History for the original lab coat he wore on “Bill Nye the Science Guy.”
In addition to science demonstrations, Nye played a variety of characters on “Almost Live!”, including a farcical superhero named “Speed Walker” who overtook criminals with his goofy yet surprisingly speedy gait. A Speed Walker costumes is in the MOHAI display.
Nye heads The Planetary Society, a non-profit advocacy organization for space exploration. While earning a degree in mechanical engineering as a student at Cornell University, he was introduced to astronomy in a class taught by legendary professor and universe guru Carl Sagan.