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Grant Imahara said science TV shows like “Mythbusters” are helping to debunk myths of geeks.
By Nalea J. Ko, Reporter
Published January 27, 2010
Electronics ace Grant Imahara said he does not just play a geek on TV, he is a geek.
Imahara is part of the cast on the Discovery Channel’s “Mythbusters,” which uses science and math to test prevailing myths. Shows like “Mythbusters” are, Imahara said, helping to change the perception of nerds from geeky to hip.
“When you go into engineering inevitably there’ll be a number of geeks there. I think I pretty much found my niche earlier on,” Imahara said in a phone call to the Pacific Citizen from Los Angeles, Calif. “Being someone who is good at math and science, interested in engineering, robots and science fiction, that’s not a totally uncool thing. And I think that’s really neat.”
The self-proclaimed geek has found an outlet on “Mythbusters” to use his engineering bachelor’s degree and experience working with electronics at Industrial Light and Magic (ILM), a visual effects company.
Filming of season 8 began Jan. 19, said Imahara. New episodes are set to air in March. And this season promises to be as explosive as past seasons, literally. Imahara said viewers could expect to see an episode where the cast members bulletproof a car with phone books.
Whether the Yonsei is examining myths about bulletproof phonebooks or hangovers, Imahara said he is aware and proud of being a role model for Japanese Americans.
“I think for me it’s about visibility. It’s about showing the community that I do care about my image and I do appreciate that I am Asian Pacific American,” he said.
“I know where I came from and really celebrate that fact by being involved [in the community].”
Engineering a Dream
Growing up in Southern California Imahara experienced racism firsthand in elementary school. On Pearl Harbor day he recalled being chased on the playground because of his ethnicity. One thing Imahara said he was not teased about was being a geek.
When Imahara was 4 years old his parents bought him Legos, igniting his passion for engineering. All things mechanical fascinated Imahara, who had a knack for taking apart household items.
“My sort of operating technique was to sort of go through the house and find anything that I could pry apart: the remote control, grandfather’s watch, my toy cars and anything,” he explained, adding that certain items were off-limits.
“I would try to take it apart to see how it worked inside. It’s been an obsession of mine for a long, long time.”
It was an obsession that would lead Imahara to study engineering at the University of Southern California. But after two years of attending college he began to question his choice of major.
Screenwriting at the famed USC School of Cinematic Arts was more appealing to him. However as an engineering student Imahara was barred from the class. Instead a counselor told Imahara to see production sound professor Tomlinson Holman, who created the THX sound system.
“So I ended up working for Tom for a year as his research assistant and after that I ended up going back to engineering, rediscovering my love of electronics and going back to complete my degree,” Imahara said, who also archived the Pacific Citizen as a part of his work-study program with USC’s Asian Pacific American Students Services.
From college Imahara would land a job at ILM, working in the special effects model shop. There Imahara lived out a childhood dream when George Lucas started working on the “Star Wars” prequels.
“So, one day they pretty much came in and said, ‘Look we’re going to need to update the R2-D2 fleet. And do you think you could get on that right away?’” Imahara said excitedly. “And for me I grew up in the 70s. This was my era. I had the ‘Star Wars’ bed sheets. I had all the action figures and all the toys. Really it was a dream come true to be able to work on the R2-D2.”
At ILM he also worked on films like “The Lost World: Jurassic Park,” “Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, “Van Helsing,” and others. But explaining his job to his mother was sometimes difficult to explain.
“She couldn’t tell her friends exactly what I did. All she could say was, ‘Well he works in the movies.’ Now when she explains what I do all she has to say is, ‘Oh yes he’s on Mythbusters on the Discovery Channel,’” Imahara said about his mother who lives in Hawaii.
The Mythbuster
Imahara’s robotics and engineering background came in handy again when he joined the cast of “Mythbusters.”
In the name of science Imahara has tested myths like the beer-before-liquor theory, a belief that if people drink beer before liquor they will get even sicker. The “Mythbusters” team constructed bedrooms in the workshop for Imahara and Tory Belleci, another cast member. Then the experiment began.
“The idea is that we are drinking alcohol for science, for our show, which sounds like a good idea in theory,” Imahara explained. “But in practice you realize the whole point is to get a hangover and to test how bad the hangover is if you drink beer only or mix your liquors.”
Other myths tested on the show include an episode where Imahara dropped into a room from the ceiling in his underwear. The stunt was conducted to test under what conditions someone could enter a room undetected by an infrared heat sensor. Imahara ended up twisting his ankle on a safety net below.
Aside from that incident, Imahara said there have been no major injuries incurred by the cast despite dangerous gadgets used on set. When he is not setting off explosions on TV Imahara enjoys relaxing at home.
“After a day of blowing stuff up I just want to come home and eat, maybe watch a little TV and go to sleep,” Imahara said, mentioning that he films yearlong.
His busy filming schedule makes it difficult to travel to Hawaii to see his mother, which is something they have learned to work around.
“So, I only get to see her maybe once or twice a year. But in between times she can turn on the Discovery Channel and it’s like having me there,” Imahara said. “She actually turns on Discovery Channel and inevitably there’ll be some marathon, or they will show an episode some time in the day. And she can hear my voice and it’s like I’m at home.”
Although his production schedule keeps him busy, Imahara said it is important for him to stay connected to the APA community and not lose sight of trailblazers before him.
“But the great thing is that I’m not the first one [role model]. When I was growing up I was a huge ‘Star Trek’ fan,” Imahara said.
“And George Takei, a Japanese American, was on that show. … So, it was great for me as a kid to see an Asian American face on TV doing something cool. It’s great for me to be able to carry on that tradition.”
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