Stephen Hawking, the brilliant and most beloved astrophysicist of our time, who slipped the surly bonds of Earth and transported perhaps to an alternate Universe, appeared in many works of popular culture, perhaps more than any other scientist. See en.wikipedia.org/… for the long list of his appearances in television, film, music and print.
He was a favorite on shows such the Simpsons, the Big Bang Show, Star Trek and Futurama. His appearances on popular TV shows allowed him to share his world of complex theory and equations with a much wider audience and use his wit and humor to bring physics, black holes and quantum physics to the family room.
Here are a few delightful samples. Enjoy.
The Simpsons — “Your theory of a donut-shaped universe is intriguing, Homer. I may have to steal it”.
"I wanted to see your utopia. But now I see it is more of a fruitopia."
A few clips from The Simpsons with Stephen Hawking -
Sheldon, on Big Bang Theory, finally gets to meet Hawking -
Stephen Hawking phones Sheldon and makes fun of Sheldon for losing -
Pink Floyd — Talkin’ Hawkin —
Star Trek episode in which Lieutenant Commander Data is playing Poker with the most famous Physics Scientists of our times - Stephen Hawking, Albert Einstein and Isaac Newton.
Stephen Hawking sings Monty Python’s Galaxy Song, and runs down fellow physicist Brian Cox . Out-of-this-world.
Here is a hilarious short film made in collaboration with Caltech's Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM), where “cubic rube” Paul Rudd beats Hawking in a game of quantum chess and changes the future of humanity.
A few tributes from the shows that loved him -
Stephen Hawking once famously said — “Life would be tragic if it weren’t funny.” To Hawkings we say “Thanks for all the laughs. And the Physics”.