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TV's "Mr. Wizard," Don Herbert, Dies At 89
XorNand writes "Television's Mr. Wizard, Don Herbert, died today at 89. He introduced generations of young viewers to the joys of science. Herbert, who had bone cancer, died at his suburban Bell Canyon home near Los Angeles."
Wow, that's sad. I loved that show...
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Just where are the reruns and DVDs of his work?
I sent him an email about a year ago thanking him for a great show. I learned a ton about science from that show, even stuff that helped me with high school and college physics. I'm very sad to hear about this.
What a loss. He turned on an entire generation of kids to science. Surely I'm not the only one who used to wake up before school at 6 AM to watch Mr. Wizard on Nickelodeon before school? I know I wouldn't be where I am today (M.D.) without Mr. Wizard, and for that, I am eternally grateful.
I remember this one episode, he had this huge pulley system. And he lifted some heavier-than-if-trying-without-pulleys load that went up. And this other episode, he got this kid up on like a 10 story building, with this super long straw, and had him try to suck up the plum juice. There was so much space, human lungs can't create a large enough vacuum. So then he had him hook up a vacuum pump, and up the plum juice went.
R.I.P. Mr. Wizard. I will never forget you.
I distinctly remember watching an episode of Mr. Wizard when I was about 5 years old. He was showing the power of centripetal force; took a bucket full of water and made a quick vertical circle with it. All the water stayed in the bucket of course. To my 5 year old mind, that totally blew me away. Ever since then I was hooked on science. Thanks for showing me the light Mr. Wizard.
"0101100101? It's just jibberish. *looks in mirror, gasps* 1010011010@!? AHHHHHH!!"
This is shitty news. I used to watch Mr. Wizard on Nickelodeon as a kid. My dad watched him as a kid in the 1950s.
Of course, we had Carl Sagan on TV too.
I don't really watch too much TV, but someone please tell me that there are others like him that promoted reason and experimentation. Is it Bill Nye? Is there someone else? Where do gets get their appreciation of critical thinking and the scientific method? Who are the media-friendly scientist role models of today?
Ahh, the guy who caused me to "forget" how to swallow, just in time for a visit with my super-cook aunt :)
:) However, I still have trouble swallowing pills, or chugging a beer, because I re-learned the swallow reflex in a way that prevented too much food going down at once.
:-)
I watched an episode where he demonstrated that swallowing is more sophisticated than just throwing food down your throat. I subsequently tried to "observe" my own swallow reflex; but, being a true reflex action, conscious observation disrupted the whole process. Then I started to get scared that I might swallow wrong and choke myself; from there, the self-consciousness made it impossible to swallow properly, and I could only (literally) choke down a few swallows of food in a sitting.
Everyone wondered why I wasn't chowing down as usual, but it wasn't until the end of the trip that I admitted what was going on. Eventually, of course, I got over it, and I can now shovel food down my throat with the best of them
Nonetheless, I think Mr. Wizard's departure is well worth noting. A toast to Mr Wizard!
Thank you very much. I used to watch your show religiously as a kid.
He turned on an entire generation of kids to science. Surely I'm not the only one who used to wake up before school at 6 AM to watch Mr. Wizard on Nickelodeon before school?
That was his second show.
His first one turned on many (including me) in my generation (now becoming eligible for Senior Citizen Discounts).
Bantam Dominique roosters crow a four-note song. Once you've heard it as "Happy BIRTHday" you can't NOT hear it that way
He wouldn't want us to mourn but rather to celebrate and learn. After all, life and death are, as he would say, "based on scientific principles". :)
Godspeed, Mr. Wizard, and thanks for the memories!
The Overrated mod is for reversing inappropriate, positive mods, not for voicing disagreement with a post.
Interesting to see who knows who he is and who doesn't. He was on from 50s to mid 60s, a brief stint in the early 70s and then throughout the eighties to early 90s. So as a child of the 80s, I share something in common with the boomers, my parents, but not with my older cousins. If you were born in the 60s or early 70s you probably missed out on something great. My condolences to all of you.
It's also worth mentioning that he not only reached kids through his tv shows, thousands of teachers and later science shows learned from his example as well. So even if you don't know who he is, it's likely your science teachers did. Having influenced millions over the last 50 years, it becomes hard to comprehend just how much of our technological society we owe to Mr. Wizard.
I'm in my mid/late 30s, too. I used to watch him all of the time on Nickelodeon ("Mr. Wizard's World") in the mid-80s. He had a very basic approach to science but tried lots of different things, even the science behind pyrotechnics.
It was really great because all of his helpers were fellow teens or pre-teens who actually did the experiments. He just directed them, except for the really dangerous experiments, of course. So, it really helped to get kids involved because you watched other kids doing things that you would have thought only adults would do, and he would do things with basic, household items, like jars. I remember once when he used a muffin baking pan to demonstrate how fire would have different colors based on the chemical composition. In fact, if I remember, one of his "lab sets" was a kitchen.
Really cool stuff. Lots of good memories -- even the cheesy-by-today's-standards, computer-generated cutscenes.
Damn. Now I'm all nostalgic for You Can't Do That On Television as well.
The Overrated mod is for reversing inappropriate, positive mods, not for voicing disagreement with a post.
Mr. Wizard had a huge impact on me as well. I remember watching him, 3-2-1 Contact, and later Bill Nye and Beakman's World. There was an episode where he had some hydrophobic sand that he'd poured into a fishtank. It floated on the surface and when he plunged his hand into the water, it coated it like a glove. Pulled his hand out, it wasn't wet.
However many years later, and I am doing after-school science programming for a company called Mad Science. We have a kit with the sand in it, and I get to do the same experiment myself, and pass it on to another generation. It brings me back.
He will be missed.
Volunteer on science days at your local schools, such as space day. I still remember watching Mr. Wizard as a kid in the 80s and I have no doubt my interest in science was heavily influenced by his show on Nick. We need to continue his legacy of fostering an interest in science and technology in the next generation.
Damn. Now I'm all nostalgic for You Can't Do That On Television as well.
:P
I *heard* that...
Everything I need to know I learned by killing smart people and eating their brains.
Nice!! :D
Well, then I guess that we'll still be able to see Mr. Wizard if we go to Barth's Diner. After all, who do you think's in the burgers?
(Note to moderators: if you don't understand it, then you missed some good Nickelodeon shows in the mid-1980s.)
The Overrated mod is for reversing inappropriate, positive mods, not for voicing disagreement with a post.
baking soda and aluminum foil, when heated in water, can remove tarnish from silver
how to cut a piece of paper so it makes a hole big enough to jump through
how to crush a metal box without using your hands, only hot and cold water
a bucket of water can stop a bullet
After all, who do you think's in the burgers?
:P
I don't know...
Everything I need to know I learned by killing smart people and eating their brains.
Some guys remember that special gym teacher, who taught them to act like big lugnuts.
Others remember screaming drill sergeants.
A few even remember the crazy wino who would buy them a six pack of beer in exchange for one of the cans.
Lots of people have made men out of boys.
But it was Mr. Wizard who made us nerds.
He is sorely missed.
(Mentally crosses over to the alternative fuels story and pictures North Carolina being invaded by people on Eggmobiles performing strange chemical experiments in mayonnaise jars. Me, normal? No, but thanks for asking.)
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
I think we're gonna need another Mr. Wizard!
...but is it art?
I was searching for "Mr. Wizard" on Google Video for some cool clips and even episodes, and stumbled this interview that you people might be interested:
... all and radio before turning to television where he created the classic children's science series "Watch Mr. Wizard". He details his hosting of the show, as well as working with his young assistants. He talked about his simultaneous work as "G.E. Theatre's" "progress reporter," hosting a different three-minute commercial segment for each episode through the majority of run. He talks about the later incarnations of the "Mr. Wizard" franchise. He also mentions his appearances on morning and late-night television talk shows."
"In his four-part (each part is posted separately) oral history interview, host Don Herbert describes his early years as an actor on stage
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Ant(Dude) @ Quality Foraged Links (AQFL.net) & The Ant Farm (antfarm.ma.cx / antfarm.home.dhs.org).
You probably remember watching Mr. Wizard's World in the '80s. I remember watching Watch Mr. Wizard in the '50s. He inspired not one, but two generations, and that's something to be proud of!
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Perfect Tommy: Emilio Lizardo. Wasn't he on TV once?
Buckaroo Banzai: You're thinking of Mr. Wizard.
Reno: Emilio Lizardo is a top scientist, dummkopf.
Perfect Tommy: So was Mr. Wizard.
One reason for the longevity and quality of his program was, paradoxically, that it did not have to make money. It was considered public affairs programming.
Broadcasters used to have to meet certain minimum public interest service requirements as a condition of their license. This meant that they had to provide a certain quantity public affairs and educational programming, and they had to broadcast opposing views on controversial topics.
In the 1980s, the Reagan administration appointees on the FCC abolished the Fairness Doctrine, arguing that it had a chilling effect on public affairs programming, reducing both the quantity and quality produced.
In the post-Fairness era, certainly more public affairs programming has been produced (e.g. Fox News). It's arguable whether the programming is better.
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