Bill Nye
American science educator, comedian, television host, actor, writer, scientist and mechanical engineer · United States · On the map · Educators · Born 1955 · age 70
He made a generation of kids chant "science rules!" in the mid-1990s, and never stopped. The bow tie, the lab coat, the manic energy - a mechanical engineer turned comedian who became the face of science literacy for anyone who grew up with a TV.
Bill Nye is read about 1,707 times a day, in 43 languages.
A typical day, 30 days to 10 November 2026
The middle day of the days counted, so one week of news cannot move it. The line under it is the last 400 days, one point a day.
Something wrong?A life in dates
People around Bill
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Photos 10
Nye as a senior at Sidwell Friends School in 1973
Bill Nye the Science Guy, wearing his trademark blue lab coat and bowtie, 2010
Nye with Senator Chris Van Hollen in 2017
Nye at the March for Science in Washington, D.C., on April 22, 2017
Nye orating in October 2010
The Bill Nye Climate Lab at the Chabot Space & Science Center in 2013
Nye with the Chief of Naval Research Rear Admiral Nevin Carr following the presentation of a "Powered by Naval Research" pocket protector during the Navy Office of General Counsel Spring 2011 ConferenceIn their own words 6
, Good science makes a clean environment.
Everything you can touch and depend on in our society goes back to science.
We want to get young people excited about inventing so they'll be future inventors, and change the world.
Awards
About this person
William Sanford Nye was born November 27, 1955, in Washington, D.C., and started as a mechanical engineer at Boeing in Seattle, where he invented a hydraulic resonance suppressor tube used on 747 airplanes. In 1986, he left Boeing for comedy, writing and performing wacky scientific experiments on the local sketch show Almost Live! Aspiring to become the next Mr. Wizard, he pitched Bill Nye the Science Guy to Seattle public television station KCTS-TV, and the show ran in national syndication from 1993 to 1998 - high-energy, MTV-paced, critically acclaimed, nominated for 23 Emmys and winning 19, including Outstanding Performer in Children's Programming. He became CEO of The Planetary Society, wrote two bestselling books (Undeniable in 2014, Unstoppable in 2015), appeared on Dancing with the Stars and The Big Bang Theory, starred in a 2017 documentary that premiered at South by Southwest and was named a NYT Critic's Pick, then launched Bill Nye Saves the World on Netflix (2017-2018) and The End Is Nye on Peacock and Syfy in August 2022. The bow tie still works.
