How does a bookish 77-year-old detective remain popular, sexy and relevant today?
It’s a mystery.
But for Nancy Drew, whose movie opens this weekend, that age-old appeal might be evidence of a certain truth already proven by the likes of Ugly Betty, Napoleon Dynamite and, well, let’s face it, anyone from the cast of “Heroes”: Nerds are cool.
“Geekdom is front and center, celebrated rather than mocked,” said Michael Slezak, senior writer for Entertainment Weekly’s Web site, ew.com. “There’s something appealing about characters getting ahead through their smarts, sense of humor and passion for things they like that aren’t necessarily cool.”
Trekkies and techies have stumbled onto TV and movie screens as central characters and romantic leads. Whip-smart Cristina Yang of “Grey’s Anatomy,” dweeby Dwight Schrute of “The Office” and “30 Rock’s” bespectacled brainiac Liz Lemon have emerged as breakout prime-time stars.
The upcoming network lineup includes even more social misfits and smarty-pants, with CBS’ “The Big Bang Theory,” about a pair of “A Beautiful Mind”-style geniuses; ABC’s “Miss/Guided,” starring a former outcast returning to high school as a guidance counselor; and NBC’s “The IT Crowd,” featuring a group of computer tech nerds.
And the box office recently has been rocked by a couple of unlikely idols: Tobey Maguire as the unsuave Peter Parker in “Spider-Man 3” and goofball Seth Rogen in “Knocked Up.”
“It’s interesting to look at their rise from second fiddle to center stage,” Slezak said. “Maybe audiences weren’t afraid of them all along. It just took time for the studios to see it.”
Take Ugly Betty. Her biggest transformation at the end of the show’s first season was adding hot pink bands to her braces.
“In a certain regard, there’s a freedom in being, ‘I’m so comfortable with myself that I don’t care if you know I’m excited about the new Fantastic Four movie coming out,'” said Kevin Dilmore, a Prairie Village, Kan., nerd who co-authored six Star Trek fiction books. “The closer you are to embracing your inner geek, the more comfortable people are with you.”
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Great geeks in history
Being a geek doesn’t mean you can’t be popular. Look at how much these celebrity dorks have achieved.
George Lucas
Geek claim to fame: Wrote and directed the “Star Wars” trilogy.
Dork factor: Ewoks.
Lovability factor: Who can despise the man who invented the light saber?
Quentin Tarantino
Geek claim to fame: Wrote and directed “Pulp Fiction.”
Dork factor: Gangly, misunderstood artist loves Kung Fu movies.
Lovability factor: Uma Thurman’s endorsement.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin
Geek claim to fame: Founded google.com, the world’s most popular search engine.
Dork factor: Spent hours in a garage playing with computers.
Lovability factor: Cute little guys enabled casual stalking.
Bill Gates
Geek claim to fame: Computer-nerd-turned-richest-man-in-the-world rules Microsoft Corp.
Dork factor: Shuns Armani in favor of grandpa sweaters and dweeby glasses despite his bling.
Lovability factor: Everyone wants to be him.
Albert Einstein
Geek claim to fame: Discovered E=mc2
Dork factor: Really, really liked math.
Lovability factor: Throwback geek paved the way for future frizzy-haired mad scientist types.
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TV/FILM NERDS WE LOVE
Nancy Drew
Played by: Emma Roberts
Ugly Betty
Played by: America Ferrera
Cristina Yang
Played by: Sandra Oh
Veronica Mars
Played by: Kristen Bell
Dwight Schrute
Played by: Rainn Wilson
Peter Parker
Played by: Tobey Maguire
Hiro Nakamura
Played by: Masi Oka
Harry Potter
Played by: Daniel Radcliffe
