When he’s not a “science man,” Bill Nye is saving NASA.
He just met with members of Congress in Washington, D.C., for just a few days to fund space management amid a call to cut budgets.
“This will end so many missions,” he says. “This is insanity and not in the US’s greatest interests. But there are people in the administration who are essentially working hard to shut down NASA.
Nye doesn’t cut his “science guy” bowtie (who wears a white dress shirt as he speaks from DC), but his political advocacy makes his time “more than half.” He works almost full-time as CEO of the Planet Society, a nonprofit co-founded by Carl Sagan, but he has not lost his sharp humor and love for science education in obsidian. As we speak, he waxes about relativity and wins a contest like Steve Martin’s look during his stand-up days. On September 22nd, he will win the Hollywood Walk of Fame Star.
His early comedy career and an infinite supply of knowledge made him hosted the staple of elementary school classes in the 90s and 2000s, “Bill Nyza Science Guy.” After filling out Seattle’s sketch show “Most Live,” Nye gave a fun story about the home use of liquid nitrogen under the “Man of Science” moniker. From there, he quit his job at Sundstrand Data Control and hosted a nature show called “Fabulous Wetlands” in Washington. It landed him a pilot order from Disney, and his eccentric experimentation and fast-paced gags gave birth to “Bill Ny the Science Guy.”
“There’s an old proverb: “You can pretend to be serious, but you can’t pretend to be funny,” he says. “I have a huge advantage. It’s a big first step because I’m watching. I’m energetic and enthusiastic about hilarious jokes.”
After “Science Guy” ended, Nye returned to the streaming era with Netflix’s “Bill Nye Saves the World” and Peacock’s “The End Is Nye.” In addition to his scientific advocacy, he is working on a new show, but he reveals that there is a politically charged episode of “The End is Nye” that was not aired.
“The seventh show we are not allowed to produce,” explains Nye. “We discouraged the script from completing it, but we did, but the company refused or decided not to produce it. It was about authoritarianism. What we missed in our version is how quickly it happens. Now, seeing what’s going on in the US, we didn’t expect things to be destroyed and the government was being dismantled.”
As its dark title suggests, “The End Is Nye” kills the host midway through each episode to explain phenomena such as volcanoes, solar flares, and drought.
“I’m drowned, buried, bumped into Tektite, crushed by an asteroid, electrocuted. But the authoritarian show, I was going to be shot for firing a squad,” he explains.
Despite the state of the country and lack of funding for science programs, NYE is pioneering the bright side.
“You have to be optimistic,” he says. “You can’t go to the game thinking you’re going to lose. We have to sit down, stick together and produce the product people want. My colleagues and I are working on it.
