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You might not have heard of Back to the Future Part 3‘s sequel, but you’ve definitely heard of the star it helped produce. Back in 1991, just a year after the final Back to the Future movie premiered, CBS came out with Back to the Future: The Animated Series. It was relatively short-lived, but that doesn’t mean it didn’t leave an impact.
According to Bob Gale, Back to the Future: The Animated Series existed in an alternate timeline from Back to the Future Part 3. In this version of the story, Doc Brown repaired the DeLorean time machine and settled in with his family on a farm in Hill Valley. From here, Doc, his wife Clara, and their two sons had a variety of adventures, sometimes joined by Marty McFly.
Christopher Lloyd was the only returning actor from the Back to the Future movies, though he didn’t voice the animated version of Doc Brown. Instead, he appeared in or narrated short live-action segments. It was during these scenes that we first saw Bill Nye on a national broadcast TV show.
Bill Nye Played Doc Brown’s Assistant In Back To The Future: The Animated Series
Back to the Future: The Animated Series‘ greatest legacy was the birth of Bill Nye the Science Guy. The beloved science communicator and TV personality was the face of the cartoon’s live-action segments, during which he would do a variety of science experiments while Lloyd’s Doc Brown narrated.
Nye never spoke in Back to the Future: The Animated Series, and, since the show only lasted two seasons, this wasn’t a prominent feature in the man’s career. Still, he left a mark. Nye was silly and engaging, with a quirky bow tie and a lab coat to boot. It’s evident when watching these 1990s episodes that this was an early version of the Science Guy that many children grew up with.
How Back To The Future: The Animated Series Birthed Bill Nye The Science Guy
Nye had already been doing on-screen science experiments before Back to the Future, though on a much smaller scale. After working for Boeing as a mechanical engineer, Nye entered a career as a comedy writer for a local Seattle sketch program, Almost Live!. On several occasions, Nye would fill slots on this show doing comedic science demonstrations. This ultimately led to his casting in Back to the Future.
After Back to the Future: The Animated Series was cancelled in 1992, Nye pitched Bill Nye the Science Guy. He carried over that charming bow tie, adopted the blue lab coat, and a science hero was born—all thanks to Back to the Future.
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Bill Nye the Science Guy
- Release Date
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1993 – 1998-00-00
- Network
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PBS
- Writers
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Bill Nye, Darrel Suto, Erren Gottlieb, Ian G. Saunders, Kit Boss, Lynn Brunelle, Michael Gross, Adam Gross, Seth Gross, Simon Griffith, Scott Schaefer
