Thursday, 22 October, marks one of the most important yet unpopular days -- Smart is Cool Day. As the name suggests, the day is celebrated to remind young people that being smart is a great thing and that they shouldn't be afraid of being typecast by it.
For decades, mainstream media tried to show fashionable cheerleaders and muscular jocks are cool, but the trend is slowly changing. In fact, here are some TV show characters that prove that being Smart is Cool:
- Walden Schmidt from "Two and a Half Men" (Ashton Kutcher)
Although he only appeared in the fourth season of CBS's "Two and a Half Men", Kutcher's Walden Schmidt had a huge impact on the viewers, mostly because of the debacle with Charlie Sheen. The character proved that being smart is what leads him to be as rich as he is and be considered a catch by almost every single woman on the show. He even redecorated the beach house using solar and wind poser, and got it to be voice-activated.
- Josh Kaminski from "Young & Hungry" (Honathan Sadowski)
Much Like Walden Schmidt, Josh is also a man that became rich purely because of his intellect. On top of that, he is suave and can charm anyone he meets. Josh is also shown as easy-going, non-judgemental and kind-hearted, all in all, an embodiment of cool dude.
- Leslie Knope from "Parks and Recreation" (Amy Peohler)
Leslie Knope, the dedicated politician of the fictional town of Pawnee, is one of the smartest women ever to have appeared on TV screens. She graduated top 5% of her class, while also managing to be Co-Vice President of the Student Body and a member of Model United Nations, Key Club, Debate Club, Mock Trial, Young Republicans, Young Democrats, Young Independents (founding member), Drama Club, Historical Society, Orchestra, Color Guard, and junior varsity field hockey. But being this busy with academic and co-curricular did not stop Leslie from getting friends. In fact, she was deeply loved and respected by her friends at the Parks department.
- Farkle Minkus from "Girl Meets World" (Corey Fodelmanis)
Farkle, one of the main character's Dinsney's brilliant show "Girl Meets World", is a genius and one of the best students of Mr Mathews' classes; even getting "Farkle Time" to teach his peers during class hours. Although it would have been easy to typecast Farkle as a geeky nerd, "GMW" has portrayed him to be a loved member of Riley's gang, who offers valuable advice and unconditional love to all his friends.
- Sheldon Cooper from "The Big Bang Theory" (Jim Parsons)
Although Sheldon Cooper is your quintessential TV genius, this character more or less heralded the era of smart guys in television. His personality traits seem consistent with Asperger's syndrome, obsessive–compulsive personality disorder and asexuality, but despite all that, he seems to have touched a chord with the viewers. Sheldon is the most beloved character from "TBBT" and even got Parsons four Primetime Emmy Awards, a Golden Globe Award, a TCA Award, and two Critics' Choice Television Awards.
