Bob Newhart's Big Bang Theory Role Was Based On A TV Host Only Some Fans Remember
Veteran comedic performer Bob Newhart became a part of "The Big Bang Theory" when he debuted as a character named Arthur Jeffries — who hosts an educational children's TV show under the alter ego Professor Proton — in an episode of Season 6 in 2013. He continued to show up on "The Big Bang Theory" sporadically through it's final season, and even reprised his character for three episodes of "Young Sheldon." While Professor Proton may remind some viewers of educational children's TV legend Bill Nye and his show "Bill Nye the Science Guy," it was actually an older TV host that served as his primary source of inspiration.
In a Hollywood Reporter interview about joining the "Big Bang Theory" cast, Newhart revealed that he based Professor Proton on a TV personality named Mr. Wizard, performed by an actor named Don Herbert. "In my era, it was Don Herbert — he was Mr. Wizard and he did all these experiments for kids with common things around the house," Newhart said.
Mr. Wizard's first TV show, originally titled "Watch Mr. Wizard," premiered in 1951. By that point Newhart would have already been 21, so he didn't exactly watch the show as a child himself. Nevertheless, he apparently saw enough of Mr. Wizard's televised science experiments to pull inspiration from them during his time on "The Big Bang Theory" as a similar, fictional character.
Mr. Wizard was a fixture of children's TV for decades
"Watch Mr. Wizard" aired through 1964, running for approximately 550 episodes over the course of 13 years. The show was a big hit during that time, amassing viewership in the millions each week and even inspiring thousands of dedicated fan clubs. Don Herbert reprised his Mr. Wizard character periodically over the course of the '70s, and even guested on the pilot episode of "The Late Show with David Letterman" in 1982. The following year, he brought back his iconic character full-time for a show titled "Mr. Wizard's World" on Nickelodeon.
While new episodes of "Mr. Wizard's World" ran for just six years, Nickelodeon aired reruns for about another decade. Unsurprisingly, future hosts of scientific TV shows have cited Mr. Wizard as one of their main sources of inspiration. For example, in an interview with entertainment website Above the Line, Bill Nye described watching Mr. Wizard on TV as a child before meeting the man in his adulthood. "His wife told me that Don was very happy to have someone to whom he could pass the torch," Nye said.
Meanwhile, "MythBusters" dedicated an episode of Season 5 to Mr. Wizard following his death in 2007. So, while his name may not ring a bell to plenty of "Big Bang Theory" fans, Mr. Wizard is likely the very first point of comparison for older viewers watching Bob Newhart's performance as Professor Proton throughout the show.