Bill Nye the Science Guy

Bill Nye the Science Guy is an American half-hour live action science program produced by KCTS Seattle and McKenna/Gottlieb Producers. It was substantially financed by the National Science Foundation. After the producers entered a distribution agreement with Buena Vista Television,[1] the show aired in syndication from September 10, 1993, to December 21, 1994, and on PBS from January 5, 1995 to June 20, 1998, with reruns airing until September 3, 1999.[2] The show, hosted by Bill Nye, aired for 100 half-hour episodes spanning five seasons. Known for its quirky humor and rapid-fire MTV-style pacing, the show won critical acclaim and was nominated for 23 Emmy Awards, winning nineteen.[3] Studies also found that people that viewed Bill Nye regularly were better able to generate explanations and extensions of scientific ideas than non-viewers.[4]

This article is about the TV show. For the host with the same nickname, see Bill Nye. For the 2017 documentary, see Bill Nye: Science Guy.

Bill Nye the Science Guy
Created byBill Nye
James McKenna
Erren Gottlieb
Presented byBill Nye
StarringMichaela Leslie-Rule
Chais Dean
Suzanne Mikawa
Ivyann Schwan
Jaffar Smith
Narrated byPat Cashman
Theme music composerMike Greene
Opening theme"Bill Nye the Science Guy"
No. of seasons5
No. of episodes100
Production
Executive producersElizabeth Brock
Erren Gottlieb
James McKenna
ProducerSimon Griffith
Running time30 minutes
Production companiesKCTS Seattle
McKenna/Gottlieb Producers, Inc.
Rabbit Ears Productions
Walt Disney Television
DistributorBuena Vista Television
Release
Original networkSyndicated (1993–1994)
PBS (1995–1998)
Picture format480i SDTV
Audio formatDolby Surround
Original releaseSeptember 10, 1993 (1993-09-10) –
June 20, 1998 (1998-06-20)

Format

Nye portrays a hyper-kinetic tall and slender scientist wearing a blue lab coat and a bow-tie.[5] He combines the serious science of everyday things with fast-paced action and humor. Each half-hour show begins with a cold open, where Nye introduces the episode's theme, which leads into an opening credit sequence, and featuring Nye in a computer animated scientific world, along with his head spinning, radio frequencies, and plastic toy dinosaurs flying. In later seasons, the theme song was cut short by a static screen. After the opening credits, announcer Pat Cashman would say "Brought to you by...", in which a product name was related to the episode's theme, followed by Nye walking onto the set, which is called "Nye Laboratories", filled with scientific visuals including many "of science" contraptions announced dramatically, relevant to the theme of the episode. Science-related TV and movie parodies configure the facts of the episode's theme, along with parodies of TV commercials. The show has featured many guest appearances, such as Christopher Walken, Samuel L. Jackson, Harrison Schmitt, Jenna von Oÿ, Robin Leach, John Ratzenberger, Ross Shafer, Graham Kerr, Gene Siskel, Roger Ebert, Bob Ross, Willard Scott, Richard Karn, Soundgarden, Kenny G, Pat Sajak, Vanna White, Cirque Du Soleil, Suzanne Somers, The Flying Karamazov Brothers, John Keister, Candace Cameron, Alfonso Ribeiro, Sinbad, Edgar Martínez, Nate McMillan, Mudhoney, Drew Barrymore, and Taran Noah Smith. Each episode featured Nye visiting many places relating to the episode's theme, showing interviews of people talking about their work and other contributions.

Segments

  • Way Cool Scientist: An expert discusses the fact of the episode's theme.
  • Consider the Following: Nye discussed a certain aspect of the episode's theme.
  • Nifty Home Experiment: A viewer shows you how to do a simple home experiment relating to the episode's theme.
  • Try This: A viewer shows you how to try a simple demonstration relating to the episode's theme.
  • Hey! Look at This: An expert gives a closer look by relating to the episode's theme.
  • Check it Out: A viewer shows you how to affect their environmental issues.
  • Clever Science Trick: A viewer shows you how to do a simple science trick relating to the episode's theme.
  • The Jackie Smazz Show: Filmed in black-and-white, and featuring Pat Cashman portraying Jackie Smazz. He performs an act relating to the episode's theme.
  • Great Moments in Science: Cashman narrates a dateline relating to the episode's theme.
  • Pet Rock Theater: Animated pet rocks perform an act relating to the episode's theme.
  • Better Eating Through Kitchen Chemistry: Bill Nye portrays Vivian Cupcake, who demonstrates scientific recipes.
  • Richie, Eat Your Crust: Nye and the Family Crust perform an act relating to the episode's theme, as Richie eats his crust.
  • Did You Know That...: An interesting factoid related to the episode's theme was presented.
  • Luna Van Dyke, Private Eye: Private eye Luna Van Dyke focuses on a story related to the episode's theme.
  • Soundtrack of Science: A scientific roundup of the lyrics to a song parody. This is the last segment of each episode.

At the end of the show, Nye thanks the viewers for watching, before he explained in a clever description of a theme's activity, followed by him saying "See ya!" afterwards. After that, a female announcer says "Produced in association with the National Science Foundation", and "Produced in association with Walt Disney Television" in the PBS version. The credits rolled over bloopers from the episode.

In a study that evaluated the pacing of 87 popular children's programs, Bill Nye the Science Guy was found to be the fastest-paced show on television, with a pacing score of 56.90.[6]

History

Origins and creation

While performing in a sketch comedy television show in Seattle called Almost Live! during the 1980s, Nye cultivated a science-explaining TV persona. One famous incident on the show led to his stage name. He corrected another host, John Keister, on his pronunciation of the word "gigawatt", and the nickname was born when Keister responded, "Who do you think you are—Bill Nye the Science Guy?"[7] In 1993, he developed a Bill Nye the Science Guy pilot for PBS member station KCTS-TV in Seattle. Nye collaborated with James McKenna, Erren Gottlieb and Elizabeth Brock to plan and create the show for KCTS.[8] The group pitched the show as Watch Mr. Wizard meets Pee-wee's Playhouse.[9] He successfully obtained underwriting from the National Science Foundation and the US Department of Energy. Nye's program became part of a package of syndicated series that local stations could schedule to fulfill Children's Television Act requirements.[10] Because of this, Bill Nye the Science Guy became the first program to run concurrently on both public and commercial stations.[10]

Production

The show was created in 1992 by Bill Nye, James McKenna and Erren Gottlieb, produced by McKenna/Gottlieb Producers, Inc, in partnership with KCTS in Seattle. The following year, the production companies entered a distribution agreement with Buena Vista Television, a subsidiary of Disney.[1] As part of the agreement, the profits of the show were split between Disney and the production team, with Disney owning full distribution rights across broadcasting, home video, and digital streaming. McKenna and Gottlieb all met while McKenna was a producer on Almost Live!, a Seattle-based comedy show.[11]

The announcer for the program was Pat Cashman, whom Nye knew from his time on Almost Live!.

Before his show launched, Nye had previously worked alongside Christopher Lloyd in Back to the Future: The Animated Series, where he played Doc Brown's assistant and demonstrated several experiments.

The show has been likened to the next-generation version of Watch Mr. Wizard.[12][13] The show ran about the same time as and covered similar topics to Beakman's World, in fact sharing one crew member, editor/writer/director Michael Gross.

The show was primarily funded by the National Science Foundation, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and the annual financial support from the viewers/stations of the PBS network. Other funding sponsors included Ore Ida, The Boeing Company (which Nye worked for until 1986, Boeing was also based in Seattle until 2001 when it relocated its corporate headquarters to Chicago, Illinois), and Intel.

Despite Disney's association and ownership with the show, it has never aired on any network owned by Walt Disney Television in the US (such as Disney Channel or the American Broadcasting Company, known as simply ABC, which Disney did not acquire until 1996, three years after the show premiered.)

Theme song

The Bill Nye the Science Guy theme song was written by math teacher turned songwriter Mike Greene.[14] It was inspired by Danny Elfman and Oingo Boingo, when composing the theme, and used his voice for singing the "Bill Nye the Science Guy" refrain. It consisted of Pat Cashman saying the show's title in a distorted male voice, and the word "Bill" is repeated throughout as a percussive shout. An electric guitar was used during the theme song, followed by Bill saying "Science rules!", "Inertia is a property of matter", and "T-minus seven seconds".

"I used my voice for the first demo to send to the producers, Jim and Erren," he said. "After they approved it, I hired singers because I wanted to make it better. I hired a guy to sing it who sounded pretty cool. He had like a rock‑and‑roll kind of voice, so it sounded pretty slick. Then as another option, I hired a girl to sing it to give it a bit more R&B kind of sound. Then I sent those versions to Jim and Erren, and they said, 'Why have you got them on it? We want your voice. It’s funnier.' I thought, 'My voice is funnier??? Good thing I’m not touchy about my singing!' So we kept my voice on there."[14]

Set to a house beat, Greene enlisted rappers to repeat the word "Bill!" as a percussive shout. "I can’t name them, because it was against their contract to do outside things without permission from their record company," Greene noted. "It was kinda funny, because they were in my studio one day to record a song. I was working on the Nye theme as they walked in and I told them, 'Hey, do me a favor and go in the booth and chant ‘Bill, Bill, Bill’ over and over again.' They had no idea what it was for, but they're cool, so they did. It sounded great, so that's the version we kept. The show didn't air until a year later, so it wasn't until then that they understood what this was really for."[14]

Noggin shorts
Nye in one of Noggin's original shorts

In September 1999, Bill Nye signed a multi-year deal to develop and star in original programs for Noggin,[15] a cable channel co-owned by Nickelodeon and the Children's Television Workshop. In addition to producing the new content, Noggin acquired all 100 episodes of Bill Nye the Science Guy; this made it the first-ever program acquisition by the channel.[16] Noggin and Nye chose not to develop new episodes of the show, and instead created original shorts featuring Nye, in character and costume from Bill Nye the Science Guy. In the shorts, Nye's "Science Guy" persona worked as the "head sparkologist" of Noggin,[17] and he tried to find out what topics sparked viewers' imaginations. Bill Nye told Multichannel News that he was interested in creating multiple original shows for Noggin, including a math-based series and one "showing kids how to exercise good judgment."[16]

Impact

In conjunction with the production of Bill Nye the Science Guy, KCTS-TV conducted several research studies that evaluated how effective the program was as an educational tool. In one study, it was found that viewers of the program made more observations and sophisticated classifications than non-viewers.[4] In surveys of elementary students who watched the program, most children concluded that Nye made “kids like science more.” When surveyed whether Nye was a scientist or actor and comedian, most students asserted he was a scientist, though many said both. Students also described Nye almost equally as both “funny” and “smart,” and believed he was a "source of good information."[18]

Series overview
SeasonEpisodesOriginally aired
First airedLast aired
120September 10, 1993 (1993-09-10)February 11, 1994 (1994-02-11)
220February 18, 1994 (1994-02-18)January 7, 1995 (1995-01-07)
320January 14, 1995 (1995-01-14)October 27, 1995 (1995-10-27)
420November 3, 1995 (1995-11-03)September 12, 1997 (1997-09-12)
520September 19, 1997 (1997-09-19)June 20, 1998 (1998-06-20)

Episodes

100 half-hour episodes were produced.

Season 1 (1993–94)
  • Season 1 of Bill Nye the Science Guy consisted of 20 episodes.
No.
overall		No. in
season		TitleOriginal air date
11"Flight"September 10, 1993 (1993-09-10) (syndication)
October 10, 1994 (PBS)[19]
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Nyevana – "Smells Like Air Pressure" - Parody of "Smells Like Teen Spirit" by Nirvana
22"Earth's Crust"September 17, 1993 (1993-09-17) (syndication)
October 11, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Magmadonna – "Crust" - Parody of "Vogue" by Madonna
33"Dinosaurs"September 24, 1993 (1993-09-24) (syndication)
October 12, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: J.C. – "Mr. Dino" - Parody of "Mr. Wendal" by Arrested Development
44"Skin"October 1, 1993 (1993-10-01) (syndication)
October 13, 1994 (PBS)
55"Buoyancy"October 8, 1993 (1993-10-08) (syndication)
October 14, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Sure Floats-a lot – "Bill's Got Boat" - Parody of "Baby Got Back" by Sir Mix-a-Lot
66"Gravity"October 15, 1993 (1993-10-15) (syndication)
October 17, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Attraction Action – "G-R-A-V-I-T-Y" - Parody of "Twilight Zone" by 2 Unlimited
77"Digestion"October 22, 1993 (1993-10-22) (syndication)
October 18, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Dy Gestion – "Can't Eat This" - Parody of "Can't Truss It" by Public Enemy
88"Phases of Matter"October 29, 1993 (1993-10-29) (syndication)
October 19, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Phaze Change – "Solid Liquid Gas" - Parody of "Rebirth of Slick (Cool Like Dat)" by Digable Planets
99"Biodiversity"November 5, 1993 (1993-11-05) (syndication)
October 20, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Bio Di Versity – "We're all Connected" - Parody of "Connected" by Stereo MC's
1010"Simple Machines"November 12, 1993 (1993-11-12) (syndication)
October 21, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: The Pulley Ramp Five – "ABC's of Machinery" - Parody of "ABC" by The Jackson 5
1111"The Moon"November 19, 1993 (1993-11-19) (syndication)
October 24, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: The Lunatics – "Moon Cycle" - Parody of "Bicycle Race" by Queen
1212"Sound"November 26, 1993 (1993-11-26) (syndication)
October 25, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Gloria Wavelength and the Vibrations – "Sound is a VIBE" - Parody of "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor
1313"Garbage"December 3, 1993 (1993-12-03) (syndication)
October 26, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Trash E. Trash – "R.E.C.Y.C.L.E." - Parody of "Respect" by Aretha Franklin; artist name is a parody of Doug E. Fresh
1414"Structure"December 10, 1993 (1993-12-10) (syndication)
October 27, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Stress N' Tension – "Let's Talk About Stress" - Parody of "Let's Talk About Sex" by Salt-n-Pepa
1515"Seasons"December 17, 1993 (1993-12-17) (syndication)
October 28, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: A Tilted Development – "Rhyme and Season"; artist name is a parody of Arrested Development
1616"Light and Color"December 24, 1993 (1993-12-24) (syndication)
October 31, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: The Bent Wavelengths – "Light and Colour" - Parody of "Sweating Bullets" by Megadeth
1717"Cells"January 21, 1994 (1994-01-21) (syndication)
November 1, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Mighty Chondria – "Cellular Haze" - Parody of "Purple Haze" by Jimi Hendrix
1818"Electricity"January 28, 1994 (1994-01-28) (syndication)
November 2, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Billy Ray Cyrcuits – "AC/DC Charge" - Parody of "Achy Breaky Heart" by Billy Ray Cyrus
1919"Outer Space"February 4, 1994 (1994-02-04) (syndication)
November 3, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song: Elvi Centuri – "Celestial Hotel" - Parody of "Heartbreak Hotel" by Elvis Presley
2020"Eyeball"February 11, 1994 (1994-02-11) (syndication)
November 4, 1994 (PBS)
"Soundtrack of Science" Parody song:The Eye Doctors – "Two Eyes" - Parody of "Two Princes" by The Spin Doctors

Season 2 (1994–95)
  • Season 2 of Bill Nye the Science Guy consisted of 20 episodes.
Series No. No. Title "Soundtrack of Science" Parody song Original Airdate
21 1 Magnetism N.S. Kool J. – "Opposites Attract"

Parody of "Jump" by Kriss Kross; artist name is a parody of LL Cool J

 February 18, 1994 (syndication)
November 7, 1994 (PBS)
22 2 Wind Wind Dee – "Wind Is In Your Hair"

Parody of "Groove Is in the Heart" by Deee-Lite

 February 25, 1994 (syndication)
November 8, 1994 (PBS)
23 3 Blood and Circulation AB+ – "Blood Stream"

Parody of "Love Shack" by The B-52's

 March 4, 1994 (syndication)
November 9, 1994 (PBS)
24 4 Chemical Reactions Chemical Reactions – "Don't Try This at Home"

Parody of "State of Attraction" by Paula Abdul

 March 11, 1994 (syndication)
November 10, 1994 (PBS)
25 5 Static Electricity The Sticky Socks – "Static Electricity"

Parody of "Turning Japanese" by The Vapors

 March 18, 1994 (syndication)
November 11, 1994 (PBS)
26 6 Food Web Food Webby Web – "(It's The) Food Web"

Parody of "Who Am I (What's My Name)?" by Snoop Dogg

 March 25, 1994 (syndication)
November 14, 1994 (PBS)
27 7 Light Optics Queen Lighteefa – "B.E.N.T."

Parody of "U.N.I.T.Y." by Queen Latifah

 September 10, 1994 (syndication)
December 5, 1994 (PBS)
28 8 Bones and Muscles Steppenbone – "Bones In My Body"

Parody of "Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf

 September 17, 1994 (syndication)
December 6, 1994 (PBS)
29 9 Oceanography Gulfstream Girls – "Deep Ocean Currents"

Parody of "California Girls" by The Beach Boys

 September 24, 1994 (syndication)
December 7, 1994 (PBS)
30 10 Heat LeHot – "LeHeat"

Parody of "Le Freak" by Chic

 October 1, 1994 (syndication)
December 8, 1994 (PBS)
31 11 Insects UB Buggy – "Jah Mon, Insects Rule"

Style Parody of UB40

 October 8, 1994 (syndication)
December 9, 1994 (PBS)
32 12 Balance Torquer – "Balance This"

Parody of "Get Off This" by Cracker

 October 15, 1994 (syndication)
December 12, 1994 (PBS)
33 13 The Sun Deep Yellow – "My Favorite Star"

Parody of "Highway Star" by Deep Purple

 October 22, 1994 (syndication)
December 13, 1994 (PBS)
34 14 Brain En Lobe – "Whatta Brain"

Parody of "Whatta Man" by En Vogue with Salt-n-Pepa

 October 29, 1994 (syndication)
December 14, 1994 (PBS)
35 15 Forests John Cougar Loggincamp – "Second Growth"

Style Parody of John Mellencamp

 November 5, 1994 (syndication)
December 15, 1994 (PBS)
36 16 Communication Mary Chapin Communicator – "How Can We Communicate?"

Parody of "He Thinks He'll Keep Her" by Mary Chapin Carpenter

 November 12, 1994 (syndication)
December 16, 1994 (PBS)
37 17 Momentum Momentisey – "The Faster You Push Me"

Parody of "The More You Ignore Me, the Closer I Get" by Morrissey

 November 19, 1994 (syndication)
December 19, 1994 (PBS)
38 18 Reptiles No music video – the commercial-free PBS version of the episode, however, had a brief spoof entitled "Cold Blooded".

Parody of "Hot Blooded" by Foreigner

 November 26, 1994 (syndication)
December 20, 1994 (PBS)
39 19 Atmosphere Warm -n- Wetta – "Fresh Aire"; artist name is a parody of Salt N Pepa December 2, 1994 (syndication)
December 21, 1994 (PBS)
40 20 Respiration Ali Veoli – "What A Pair"

Style Parody of Tatyana Ali

 January 7, 1995

Season 3 (1995)
  • Season 3 of Bill Nye the Science Guy consisted of 20 episodes.
Series No. No. Title "Soundtrack of Science" Parody song Original Airdate
41 1 The Planets No music video January 14, 1995
42 2 Pressure PSI Garden – "Pressure"

Parody of "Spoonman" by Soundgarden

 January 21, 1995
43 3 Plants Rhoda Dendron – "Cross Pollination"

Parody of "Human Behaviour" by Björk

 January 28, 1995
44 4 Rocks and Soil Sedimentary Fools – "Rocks Rock Harder"

Parody of "Basket Case" by Green Day

 February 3, 1995
45 5 Energy The ERG's – "N-R-G"

Parody of "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys

 February 10, 1995
46 6 Evolution Evolver – "Survival"

Style parody of Seether by Veruca Salt

 February 17, 1995
47 7 Water Cycle J.A.C. – "Water Cycle Jump"

Parody of "Jump" by Kris Kross

 March 24, 1995
48 8 Friction Grace Slip – "Friction Happens"; artist name is a parody of Grace Slick March 31, 1995
49 9 Germs Dose of Soap – "Just Wash Your Hands"

Parody of "Don't Turn Around" by Ace of Base

 April 7, 1995
50 10 Climates Climate Report – "Whether the Weather"

Parody of "Lucas with the Lid Off" by Lucas Secon

 April 14, 1995
51 11 Waves Big Amplitude – "Baby I Love Your Wave"

Parody of "Baby, I Love Your Way" by Big Mountain (originally by Peter Frampton)

 April 21, 1995
52 12 Ocean Life James Baleen – "Power To The Plankton"

Style Parody of James Brown

 April 28, 1995
53 13 Mammals Fake Fur – "Jennifer's A Mammal"

Parody of "Institutionalized" by Suicidal Tendencies

 September 8, 1995
54 14 Spinning Things House of Spin – "Spin Around"

Parody of "Jump Around" by House of Pain

 September 15, 1995
55 15 Fish Salmon Dave – "I'm a Sole Man"

Parody of "Soul Man" by Sam & Dave

 September 22, 1995
56 16 Human Transportation Carpoolio – "Move Groove"

Parody of "Fantastic Voyage" by Coolio

 September 29, 1995
57 17 Wetlands Maria and the Mudflats – "Where the Land is Wet" October 6, 1995
58 18 Birds LL Bloo J. – "Talkin' Bout Birds"; artist name is a parody of LL Cool J October 13, 1995
59 19 Populations Shirell Crow – "All We Need To Do"

Parody of "All I Wanna Do" by Sheryl Crow

 October 20, 1995
60 20 Animal Locomotion Bjorn Turun – "Loco Motion"

Parody of "Everything Zen" by Bush

 October 27, 1995

Season 4 (1995–97)
  • Season 4 of Bill Nye the Science Guy consisted of 20 episodes.
Series No. No. Title "Soundtrack of Science" Parody song Original Airdate
61 1 Rivers and Streams Talking Headwaters – "Take Me to the River"

Parody of "Take Me to the River" by Talking Heads

 November 3, 1995
62 2 Nutrition Knute Trishan – "Good Food"

Style Parody of Nine Inch Nails/Trent Reznor

 November 10, 1995
63 3 Marine Mammals Marina Cesealia – "Breathe Like Me"

Parody of "I Know" by Dionne Farris

 November 17, 1995
64 4 Earthquakes Mistah Richter – "Earthquake Rumble"

Parody of "Insane in the Brain" by Cypress Hill

 November 24, 1995
65 5 NTV Top 11 Countdown Mudhoney – "Bill Nye The Science Guy Theme" December 1, 1995
66 6 Spiders Foo Spighters – "This is A Spiders Life"

Parody of "This Is a Call" by Foo Fighters

 January 5, 1996
67 7 Pollution Solutions No music video January 12, 1996
68 8 Probability Steven Odd – "50 Fifty"

Parody of "Loser" by Beck

 January 19, 1996
69 9 Pseudoscience Dare L. Pseudo – "Pure Proof"

Parody of "100% Pure Love" by Crystal Waters

 January 26, 1996
70 10 Flowers Daisy Birdsenbees – "So Many Flowers" February 2, 1996
71 11 Archaeology Mob Barley – "Diggin'"

Parody of "Jamming" by Bob Marley

 February 9, 1996
72 12 Deserts Deserette – "Always Dry"

Parody of "You Oughta Know" by Alanis Morissette

 February 16, 1996
73 13 Amphibians P-Swamp All Stars with DJ Hoppy – "The Amphidelic Mothership Metamorphisis"

Style Parody of George Clinton the P-Funk All Stars

 February 23, 1996
74 14 Volcanoes Volcanique – "Lavaflows"

Parody of "Waterfalls" by TLC

 January 31, 1997
75 15 Invertebrates S. Khar Go – "Crawl Away"

Parody of "Runaway" by Janet Jackson

 February 7, 1997
76 16 Heart Vinny Vein and the Pumpers – "Gimme Back My Heart" February 14, 1997
77 17 Inventions En Vent and the Process – "It's An 'ing Thing" February 21, 1997
78 18 Computers La Binary – "One Zero 001"

Parody of "Be My Lover" by La Bouche

 April 25, 1997
79 19 Fossils Etchton Stone – "Fossil Man"

Parody of "Rocket Man" by Elton John

 September 5, 1997
80 20 Time The Tim E. Zone Experience – "Time Time Time Time Time..."

Parody of "Time Has Come Today" by The Chambers Brothers

 September 12, 1997

Season 5 (1997–98)
  • Season 5 of Bill Nye the Science Guy consisted of 20 episodes.
Series No. No. Title "Soundtrack of Science" Parody song Original Airdate
81 1 Forensics Krime Seen – "We Will Find You"

Parody of "We Will Rock You/We Are the Champions" by Queen

 September 19, 1997
82 2 Space Exploration The Space Princess of Galactic Grooviness – "Planets All"

Parody of "Set U Free" by Planet Soul

 September 26, 1997
83 3 Genes Alice in Genes – "It's Called Genetics"

Parody of "Killing in the Name" by Rage Against the Machine'; artist name is a parody of Alice In Chains

 October 17, 1997
84 4 Architecture The Artist Formerly Known as Archie T. – "Makin' Plans"

Parody of "All Mixed Up" by 311; artist name is a parody of The Artist Formerly Known As Prince

 October 24, 1997
85 5 Farming Chris Ballew – "Farm Food"

Parody of "Peaches" by The Presidents of the United States of America, of which Ballew himself is a member

 October 31, 1997
86 6 Life Cycles Roberta Fungi – "Everything Has A Life Cycle"

Parody of "Killing Me Softly" by Roberta Flack

 November 14, 1997
87 7 Do-It-Yourself Science Nye & The Family Crust – "Do It Yourself Science"

Parody of "Hell" by Squirrel Nut Zippers; artist name is a parody of Sly and the Family Stone

 November 21, 1997
88 8 Atoms Third Nye Blind – "Atoms in My Life"

Parody of "Semi Charmed Life" by Third Eye Blind

 November 28, 1997
89 9 Ocean Exploration The Posies – "Voyage of the Aquanauts"

A parody of their 1993 song "Flavor of the Month". The Posies are an alternative rock group from Bellingham, Washington.

 December 5, 1997
90 10 Lakes and Ponds The Froggy Boyz – "Fond of Lakes and Ponds"

Parody of "Tha Crossroads" by Bone Thugs-n-Harmony

 February 21, 1998
91 11 Smell Turbinator Two – "Come On Use Your Brain (Smell This)"

Parody of "C'mon N' Ride It (The Train)" by Quad City DJ's

 February 28, 1998
92 12 Caves Batilda & Guano – "Cave Thing"

Parody of "Shake Your Groove Thing" by Peaches & Herb

 April 25, 1998
93 13 Fluids Weflo – "Drip it"

Parody of "Whip It" by Devo

 May 2, 1998
94 14 Erosion Earth, Wind & Ice – "Causing the Erosion"

Style Parody of No Doubt; artist name is a parody of Earth, Wind & Fire

 May 9, 1998
95 15 Comets and Meteors Halley Comet – "Got Me Looking"

Parody of "Shadowboxer" by Fiona Apple

 May 16, 1998
96 16 Storms Mighty Mighty Thundertones – "Stormin"

Style Parody of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones

 May 23, 1998
97 17 Measurement The Meter Men – "Every Measurement You Make"

Parody of "Every Breath You Take" by The Police

 May 30, 1998
98 18 Patterns Downward Spiral – "Patterns of Joy"

Parody of "Breathe" by The Prodigy; artist name reference to Nine Inch Nails.

 June 6, 1998
99 19 Music "There's Science In Music"

Melodic Style Similar To That Of "The Time Warp" by Richard O'Brien

 June 13, 1998
100 20 Motion (series finale) Slow Moe – "All in Motion"

Parody of "Hot for Teacher" by Van Halen

 June 20, 1998

Awards

During its run, Bill Nye the Science Guy was nominated for 23 Emmy Awards, winning nineteen.[3]

Daytime Emmy Awards

  • 1996 – Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series – Erren Gottlieb, Bill Nye, James McKenna, Scott Schaefer, Adam Gross and Seth Gross
  • 1996 – Outstanding Sound Editing – Michael McAuliffe, Sony Felberg, Vince Werner, Dave Howe, Ella Brackett, Thomas McGurk and Jim Wilson
  • 1997 – Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series – Kit Boss, Erren Gottlieb, Michael Gross, James McKenna, Bill Nye, Ian G. Saunders, Scott Schaefer, William Sleeth and Darrell Suto
  • 1997 – Outstanding Directing in a Children's Series – Darrell Suto, Michael Gross, Erren Gottlieb and James McKenna
  • 1997 – Outstanding Single Camera Editing – Darrell Suto, Michael Gross, Felicity Oram and John Reul
  • 1997 – Outstanding Sound Editing – Thomas McGurk, Michael McAuliffe, Sony Felberg, Vince Werner, and Dave Howe
  • 1998 – Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series – Erren Gottlieb, James McKenna, Bill Nye, Michael Gross, Darrell Suto, Scott Schaefer, Kit Boss, Lynn Brunelle, Michael Palleschi, Ian G. Saunders and Simon Griffith (Tied with Sesame Street)
  • 1998 – Outstanding Performer in a Children's Series – Bill Nye
  • 1998 – Outstanding Single Camera Editing – Darrell Suto, Michael Gross, Felicity Oram and John Reul
  • 1998 – Outstanding Sound Editing – Dave Howe, Thomas McGurk and Michael McAuliffe
  • 1998 – Outstanding Sound Mixing – Dave Howe, Thomas McGurk, Michael McAuliffe, Bob O'Hern, Resti Bagcal and Marion Smith
  • 1999 – Outstanding Children's Series – Erren Gottlieb, James McKenna, Elizabeth Brock, Jamie Hammond, Hamilton McCulloch and Bill Nye
  • 1999 – Outstanding Directing in a Children's Series – Michael Gross and Darrell Suto
  • 1999 – Outstanding Single Camera Editing – Felicity Oram, John Reul, Michael Gross and Darrell Suto
  • 1999 – Outstanding Sound Editing – Dave Howe, Thomas McGurk and Michael McAuliffe
  • 2000 – Outstanding Writing in a Children's Series – Bill Nye, Michael Gross, Darrell Suto, Ian G. Saunders, Michael Palleschi, Lynn Brunelle and Mike Greene
  • 2000 – Outstanding Children's Series – James McKenna, Erren Gottlieb, Elizabeth Brock, Jamie Hammond and Bill Nye
  • 2000 – Outstanding Sound Editing – Dave Howe, Michael McAuliffe and Thomas McGurk
  • 2000 – Outstanding Sound Mixing – Dave Howe, Michael McAuliffe, Thomas McGurk, Myron Partman and Resti Bagcal (Tied with Honey, I Shrunk the Kids: The TV Show and Bear in the Big Blue House)

Home media

Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment released the series in its entirety on DVD, as part of the series' 20th anniversary.[20] In the United Kingdom, it was distributed on VHS by ViewTech, Bristol. In 1994 and 1995, Walt Disney Home Video released five volumes of Bill Nye the Science Guy, such as "The Human Body: The Inside Scoop", "Powerful Forces: All Pumped Up", "Dinosaurs: Those Big Boneheads", "Reptiles & Insects: Leapin' Lizards", and "Outer Space: Way Out There". All five volumes were released on VHS, containing two episodes. As of May 2017, the 1996 episode "Probability" is edited from its original airing, with a segment removed featuring a cast member saying there are only two genders. Netflix denied allegations they edited it (their new series Bill Nye Saves the World features Nye stating gender is on a spectrum) saying "It was delivered to us that way by Buena Vista TV."[21] A set of 31 episodes is also available for purchase on the iTunes Store, though they have been split into two separate volumes; one containing 14 episodes[22] and the other containing 17 episodes.[23]

Video game

A computer game based on the series, titled Bill Nye: The Science Guy - Stop the Rock!, was released in 1996 for Windows and Macintosh by Pacific Interactive.[24]

See also

References
  1. Maddus, Gene (August 25, 2017). "Bill Nye Claims Disney Withheld $28 Million in 'Science Guy' Profits". Variety. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
  2. . September 3, 1999 https://web.archive.org/web/20010209092909/http://www.ket.org/visions/sep99/vl990903.html. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  3. Bill Nye, the Science Guy, September 10, 1993, retrieved April 12, 2016
  4. Bell, Phillip (2009). Learning Science in Informal Environments: People, Places, and Pursuits. National Academies Press. p. 253.
  5. Boss, Kit (December 18, 1994). "The Bill Nye Effect". The Seattle Times.
  6. McCollum, James F., Jr.; Bryant, Jennings. "Pacing in Children's Television Programming". Education Resources Information Center (ERIC). p. 39. Archived from the original on December 31, 2015.
  7. "Almost Live!: What Seattle Sketch Comedy Gave to Us". Splitsider. September 27, 2011. Archived from the original on May 6, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  8. "HISTORICAL BACKGROUND FOR KCTS". Seattle Television History. University of Washington. Archived from the original on April 24, 2017. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  9. "Bill Nye Is Still the Nuttiest Professor". Seattle Metropolitan. September 3, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  10. Chotkowski LaFollette, Marcel (2012). Science on American Television: A History. University of Chicago Press.
  11. "Bill Nye, The Science Guy | Archive of American Television". Emmytvlegends.org. Retrieved February 9, 2014.
  12. Heppner, Frank (2007). Teaching the Large College Class: A Guidebook for Instructors with Multitudes. John Wiley & Sons. p. 11. ISBN 9780470180846.
  13. Kundanis, Rose M. (2003). Children, Teens, Families, and Mass Media: The Millennial Generation. Taylor & Francis. p. 37. ISBN 9780805845631.
  14. "Who Wrote The Bill Nye Theme Music?". ScienceBob.com. June 6, 2014. Retrieved May 5, 2017.
  15. "Nye tries sparkling stint on new cable channel". Associated Press. September 24, 1999.
  16. Moss, Linda (September 27, 1999). "Noggin Corrals Nye, The Science Guy". Multichannel News.
  17. "Bill Nye, The Science Guy". CBS News. January 7, 2000.
  18. Rockman; et al. "A Study of Bill Nye the Science Guy Outreach and Image Executive Summary". Seattle Television History, University of Washington. Archived from the original on June 11, 2017. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
  19. Bedford, Karen Everhart (May 9, 1994). "Bill Nye the Science Guy to run on PBS simultaneously with commercial syndication". Current. Retrieved October 11, 2019.
  20. "Disney Educational Productions". dep.disney.go.com. Disney.go.com. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016. Retrieved August 26, 2016.
  21. Adams, Becket (May 5, 2017). "Netflix: We didn't edit that Bill Nye episode". Washington Examiner. Retrieved September 18, 2017.
  22. "Bill Nye the Science Guy, Vol. 1 on iTunes". iTunes. September 10, 1993. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  23. "Bill Nye the Science Guy, Vol. 2 on iTunes". iTunes. September 10, 1993. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  24. "Software can help kids weather summer doldrums". Deseret News. April 21, 1997. Retrieved September 4, 2019.
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