Bill Nye The Science Guy Gets An Assist From Disney

Bill Nye the Science Guy has sprouted mouse ears.

The Walt Disney Studios announced earlier this week that it will produce and distribute 26 episodes of Nye's entertaining new TV series for kids, "Bill Nye the Science Guy," the pilot of which made its debut last week on KCTS, Channel 9. It plays again on KCTS at 4:30 p.m. Friday and 9:30 a.m. Sunday.

The rest of the country will get to see the pilot, which is all about water, starting this week. PBS stations throughout the country will air it between tomorrow and May 31.

Disney isn't the only big corporate name associated with Nye's impressive new program. Last Sunday, newspaper readers across America received a flier in a Target stores advertising supplement that was all about Nye's PBS TV special. Target was the corporate sponsor of the pilot, along with the National Science Foundation and the U.S. Department of Energy. The flier also features teen heartthrob Joey Lawrence, star of "Blossom" and a budding rock singer, who makes a guest appearance in the pilot.

The show is virtually MTV meets Science. Aimed at 9- to 11-year olds, it's fast-paced and funny, with state-of-the-art graphics and a beat you can dance to.

Nye is an engaging, likable presence who makes science, in his own favorite words, "way cool." Wearing a blue lab coat and flashy bow tie, he's like the wonderful teacher all of us wish we had for every class. He's excited about science and imparts that excitement

to a multi-cultural gang of bright kids at his fictional, futuristic Nye Laboratories.

But much of the action in the pilot takes place outside the lab, as Nye and his young lab partners demonstrate evaporation, condensation and precipitation at a water park, on a glacier, at Snoqualmie Falls and on Lake Washington. The basic ideas are presented over and over, so even the youngest viewer should be able to absorb them, but they're never monotonous. They're delivered through music, sketches, graphics and experiments, and the information is delivered entertainingly.

The show includes a target emphasis on girls and children of color, two groups that research shows are most inclined to drop out of science at an early age, according to KCTS.

While the pilot is being shown on PBS, future shows will be distributed to commercial television through Buena Vista Television, Disney's TV and syndication division.

Congress' and the Federal Communications Commission's renewed interest in educational children's television probably was a factor in Disney's decision to invest in Nye's program.

With shows such as "The Flintstones," "The Jetsons" and "Batman" no longer being accepted as "educational" by the FCC, stations are going to be looking for educational TV that will not be a turnoff for children. "Bill Nye the Science Guy" is so colorful and fun, it should be able to fit right in with Saturday morning and weekday afternoon kids' programs.

A major group of TV stations, LIN Television Corp., which operates stations in seven U.S. markets, has already entered in a partnership with Buena Vista to present the series.

The series will be produced at KCTS and will continue to be shown on the station.

Nye, who holds a B.S. in mechanical engineering from Cornell University, studied astronomy under Carl Sagan and once was a mechanical engineer at Boeing, has been doing his "Science Guy" character here for years. He incorporated the character into his stand-up comedy act, and continued to do him as a longtime member of the "Almost Live!" comedy crew. He has left that show to concentrate on his new series.

GETTING FROM A TO B

KING-TV, Channel 5, devotes two hours tonight to a discussion of the region's growing transportation problem.

"Trouble Down the Line?," airing from 9 to 11 p.m. and hosted by Jim Compton, will include a panel of government officials and transit experts and a 150-member studio audience from King, Pierce and Snohomish counties. The audience will respond immediately to the information through an electronic polling system.

One of the issues discussed will be the proposed $9.3 billion regional transit plan, which may be on the ballot this fall.

The program was taped Sunday at KING's studios.