Humanity owes many of its scientific advances to history’s greatest minds; Nikola Tesla, Isaac Newton, and of course, Stephen Hawking. But we already know how big of a name Stephen’s is in the world of scientific endeavor. That conversation is in itself a long one, and this isn’t a scientific journal. Stephen’s story has been told many times through books, documentaries, and biopics where they showed the different subplots of Stephen’s life–romance, his health, his academic journey–they’ve talked about it all. Except for Stephen’s affinity for pop culture.
It was obvious Stephen enjoyed his cameos. For someone battling amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and a mountain of work he surely always had to be on top of, Stephen spent a lot of time in mainstream media appearances.
The Star Trek franchise (all of them) has arguably been one of the longest lasting names in the sci-fi fandom. It transcended generations and mediums with long-standing series runs and a movie franchise to be proud of. And Stephen Hawking’s 1993 cameo where he played poker with Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, and Data was one for the nerds, for sure.
For the 90’s kids, his 2005 appearance in The Fairly Oddparents might have been their first contact with the name Stephen Hawking where Stephen played himself on a rocket-powered wheelchair and proved that 2 + 2, is, in fact, equal to 5. He roasted Mr. Crocker and it was the perfect revenge for every kid watching.
The Simpsons is no stranger to real-people cameos portrayed by themselves in true Simpsons comedic fashion. Stephen appeared a total of four times as himself over his life in the acclaimed cartoon and every appearance was sweet. It pains us to know we won’t be seeing him in it for a 5th time, at least not voiced by himself.
He, of course, also made a canon existence for himself in the comic book world through Atomic Robo issue 004. His plotline included helping Dr. Carl Sagan with a mission for Mars, where Hawking’s name was immortalized after having his name written on the surface of the planet.
Sitcom’s most famous annoying nerd, Sheldon Cooper idolized Stephen Hawking from childhood. He’s Kobe Bryant’s Michael Jordan. The quirky character that is Sheldon Cooper’s short interaction with his childhood hero, The Hawk himself, made for some of TV’s cutest comedy. Meeting our heroes, we can all relate to it somehow.
It’s Futurama. Even if we tried explaining this one to you, you wouldn’t understand it. Just download the app and see for yourself.
Stephen Hawking lived a long, fruitful life, defying odds and kicking-ass both in science and through his cameo career. The world won’t be the same without Mr. Hawking. His legacy will inspire many young minds for generations to come.
In loving memory of Stephen Hawking.
