5 Brilliant Far Side Comics Starring Albert Einstein

The Far Side didn't have continuity, but it did have recurring characters, including its fair share of real historical and cultural figures who popped up repeatedly during the cartoon's run. One of those was Albert Einstein, the famous scientist, who starred in several unquestionably iconic Far Side panels.

It makes sense. Gary Larson was obsessed with science and pop culture, and Einstein represented arguably the greatest intersection of the two. The most recognizable scientist of the 20th century, and one of the most consequential minds in human history. Einstein was a serious figure who did serious work, which made him the perfect target to be lightly, lovingly lampooned by The Far Side.

Technically speaking, this should be "4 1/2 Far Side Comics Starring Einstein," because as you'll see, one of the cartoons below was never actually published as a Far Side cartoon. Call it "The Far Side That Never Was," or "The Far Side That Could Have Been." It is a Gary Larson joke only the most hardcore fans will know about, and looking at it alongside his published Einstein cartoons speaks volumes about the making of The Far Side.

5 Einstein Formulates The Hard Truth Of Modern Life

First Published: January 8, 1985

This cartoon is arguably tied for "most beloved," or "most memorable," when it comes to Albert Einstein's guest appearances in The Far Side. It is classic Gary Larson. Wordplay with a visual element. The cartoon features a caricature of Einstein, or at least his backside, standing with his hands on his hips, not wanting to accept the mathematical truth the formula on the chalkboard is telling him. (This was a recurring Far Side bit, which Einstein got caught up in several times.)

Or, as the caption puts it: "Einstein discovers that time is actually money." It's the kind of Far Side where it really seems possible to trace the steps of the creative process that led to it. It's likely Larson started with the "Einstein at the chalkboard" visual, then asked "what would it be funny for him to discover?"

The answer? That old capitalist axiom, which this punchline converts into a universal truth, one Einstein certainly doesn't appear to be thrilled by.

First Published: January 14, 1985

Here Einstein is again at the chalkboard, about to have an epiphany. This time, he's trying to figure out his latest formula: E = mc....something. The scribbles on the chalkboard show Albert has tried the third, fourth, fifth, and seventh powers, and looped back to the third, circling around the answer but just not getting it.

That is, until by hilarious happenstance his cleaning lady comes in and starts talking to herself as she organizes his desk. "Everything's squared away," she says, "yessir, squaaaaaared away." Einstein's head whips around, eyes bulging out of his head. The Far Side has completely rewritten the history of Einstein's discovery of mass-energy equivalence.

What's notably about this Far Side Einstein cartoon is that it came within a week of the previous entry, and both clearly sprang from the same rough sketch. This feels like a revision of the "time actually is money" cartoon. Larson's version of Einstein is slightly refined, a second character has been added, and the punchline has evolved into more of a scene. It's a testament to just how much revision any given Far Side cartoon tended to be the product of. (As are the following two entries, in their own way.)

3 Einstein Gets On The Court In This Classic Far Side "What If?"

First Published: January 21, 1987

Okay, this is the other fan-favorite Far Side Einstein cartoon. It is up for debate if it is the funniest, but it is almost certainly the silliest. Which is what makes it among Gary Larson's most memorable references to real-life individuals in The Far Side. The panel strikes a chord with readers by taking the famous scientist out of his familiar milieu, the laboratory, or classroom, and putting him in an unexpected position: star on the basketball court.

The caption explains that "Einstein started down the road of professional basketball before an ankle injury diverted him into science," with a corresponding image of an Einstein caricature going hard in the paint, driving toward the net on his way to make a sick layup. This is what The Far Side at its most blissfully goofy looks like.

"B-ball Einstein" is a certified classic Far Side, which is why it will surprise fans to learn that it is actually a compromised version of the joke Gary Larson originally started out with. Larson's vigorous revision process produced this cartoon, but as the next entry shows, The Far Side's creator later admitted he "preferred" an earlier version that didn't make the cut.

2 The Far Side Einstein Joke Gary Larson Rejected, Explained

First Published: The Prehistory Of The Far Side

Here's a fascinating insight into Gary Larson's creative process. The author/artist shared this rough draft in The Prehistory of The Far Side, released in 1989 just ahead of the ten-year anniversary of the comic, after The Far Side had exploded as a cultural phenomenon over the preceding few years of the middle and late '80s. This is the sketch that eventually became "B-ball Einstein," and except for the kernel of an idea, it is completely different than the end result that was eventually published.

In the sketch, an adult Einstein hands his young son a basketball and tells him, "learn to dribble this thing," because "no kid of [his]" is going to endure the same "hell" of an intellectual life like he did. Larson didn't elaborate on why he rewrote the joke wholesale in The Prehistory, but it is possible to speculate why. The sketch's punchline is about being too smart for one's own good, something Gary Larson's surely related to, but in the process it implies athletes aren't smart.

This was a dig that Larson perhaps opted to avoid. From there, the evolution from "Einstein forces his son to play basketball" to "Einstein plays basketball" feels natural. It's just funnier. It goes from a bit about bad parenting to a full-fledged fantasy scenario about the last power forward you'd ever expect to bring it on the court.

1 An Einstein Cameo Helps Make This A Perfect Far Side Panel

First Published: June 18, 1990

Albert Einstein isn't the subject of this Far Side cartoon; his appearance is more like a cameo. But he's the perfect choice for the panel, because his presence helps sell the punchline. Here, a contestant on Jeopardy! named "Jones" is sitting a -100 on the scoreboard, while his opponents have both racked up over $50,000. Jones raises his hand to complain that, "just for the record, [he doesn't] think [his] buzzer is working properly."

The choice of the other two players is critical to making the joke work: it's Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison, two of the smartest people of the past two centuries. This makes it very, very clear to Far Side readers that Jones' buzzer is working just fine. He's getting absolutely dominated by Edison and Einstein, which is exactly what anyone in their right mind would expect if they found themselves on a gameshow with two of history's most famous geniuses. And that is precisely what elevates this Far Side joke from good to great.

The scenario is funny enough in its own right, but the hubris of the "Jones" character is hysterical. His complete lack of self-awareness in this moment, after having played nearly a full game of Jeopardy! against Einstein and Edison, is astounding. It's a 10/10 perfect choice on Gary Larson's part, which makes this a low-key perfect Far Side comic, as good as they come. And a sleeper pick for best Einstein appearance.