Bill Nye Once Won a Steve Martin Look-Alike Contest Before Becoming the 'Science Guy'

The origins of the man who explains Earth's origins.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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Before Neil deGrasse Tyson took over Cosmos and became the talk of pop culture, Bill Nye was entertaining kids in classrooms across America as "Bill Nye the Science Guy.”

Yet, before then, Nye was another eccentric guy looking for a way to merge both of his passions: science and comedy. As a young engineer, Nye once won a Steve Martin look-alike contest, then started writing comedy soon after. While doing stand-up, he started fine tuning his “Science Guy” character, and worked on how to incorporate humor with things like tectonic plates and the solar system. Just like deGrasse Tyson, Nye was influenced by the famous Carl Sagan, who explained to concentrate on “pure science” when dealing with young people.

Check out this short video on the origins of Bill Nye from NOVA’s Secret Life of Scientists.

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[via The Verge]

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