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RIP Mister Wizard

He was one of the good guys. I watched his show as a child (yes, the original series, not the 80's one) and I had a chemistry set in the basement. Fortunately, my parents only had to call the fire department twice.
 
Unknown trivia about Don Herbert: After Mr. Wizard went off the air, he went into finance and worked for years for Enron Corporation, under his real name, Kenneth Lay:

65955.46Obit-Herbert.sff.jpg


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He actually died in July, 2006, as well as June 2007.

Mister Wizard taught me the joys of mixing vinegar and baking soda. My parents got me a set of Mister Wizard hobby kits, so you could do his experiments at home, too. I thought he was so cool, for a grownup.
 
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He certainly fascinated me when I was young.

Caused my parents no little hardship also ;)

As Shemp said, he was one of the good guys.
 
Don't knwo anything about Mr Wiz, but I did learn that scrubbing cat pee from the basement floor with bleach is not a really good idea. My lungs still burn!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bleach

Another hazard is the formation of acrid chloramine fumes when hypochlorite bleach comes into contact with ammonia or urine or hydrogen poroxide, which, though not nearly as dangerous as chlorine, can cause severe respiratory distress.
Click to expand...

Lurker
 
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Damn. I watched his show every single day when I was a kid during the 1980's. It was he who got me interested in science, and I credit him directly with the fact that I'm a professional scientist today.
 
Yeah, I'm old enough to remember the original show, and thought they were wonderful.
He was always fond of making things blow up, as I recall; a distant ancestor of Mythbusters, mayhap?
 
When I was in college, I called Mr Wizard to invite him for a seminar. He never came, but it is was huge thrill for me to talk to him.

Found his number in the phone book, I did, and called his house.
 
Oh wow, I am sad now. I too grew up with Don Herbert back in the 80's. He will be very much missed, and now I am off to buy his shows on DVD.
 
Bummer. I remember his show growing up. He caused my parents to frequently ask "what are you doing with those matches?"
 
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