[Ads-l] Further Antedating of "Mad Scientist"

[Jonathan Lighter]

The larger issue for me and perhaps millions of others is not when the
collocation "mad scientist" appeared, but when the Mad Scientist as a
cultural figure developed from the mad scientist as a harmless
eccentric or highly misguided weirdo.

I would guess that Viktor Frankenstein was the first Mad Scientist.
Does anyone know when or if he was so described? (Creators of medieval
golems were not scientists.)

BTW, the Mad Scientists on _Mystery Science Theater 2000_ were always
referred to as "the Mads."

JL

On Sun, Aug 2, 2026 at 10:32 PM ADSGarson O'Toole
<00001aa1be50b751-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
>
> The citation below was published after the excellent citation Fred
> found. I think the "mad scientist" is depicted as "dangerous and evil"
> but not "insane".
>
> [Begin HDSF definition]
> mad scientist n.
> a scientist who is insane or eccentric, esp. so as to be dangerous or
> evil: a stock figure of melodramatic horror stories
> [End HDSF definition]
>
> Date: May 15, 1875
> Newspaper: Lewiston Evening Journal
> Newspaper Location: Lewiston, Maine
> Article: City and County
> Quote Page 3, Column 2
> Database: GenealogyBank
>
> [Bein excerpt]
> The orioles have come and the taxidermists are after them. Can't
> science let these beautiful birds alone—at least those that make their
> homes in the gardens of the city? Some mad scientist attempted to
> shoot an oriole under the chamber window of one of our citizens, early
> Saturday morning. The citizens expostulated, and the man of science
> withdrew.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Sun, Aug 2, 2026 at 3:45 PM Jonathan Lighter
> <00001aad181a2549-dmarc-request at listserv.uga.edu> wrote:
> >
> > Not "mad" in the later nuance of "malevolently and dangerously insane."
> >
> > JL
> >
> > On Sun, Aug 2, 2026 at 3:30 PM Jesse Sheidlower <jester at panix.com> wrote:
> > >
> > > Thanks, Fred. Now added to HDSF.
> > >
> > > I note that the 1883 citation that had been the earliest in HDSF was also submitted by one Fred Shapiro.
> > >
> > > Jesse Sheidlower
> > >
> > > On Sun, Aug 02, 2026 at 05:31:04PM +0000, Shapiro, Fred wrote:
> > > > mad scientist (OED 1893, Historical Dictionary of Science Fiction 1883)
> > > >
> > > > 1871 Daily Patriot (Washington, DC) 21 Aug. 2/3 (Newspapers.com)
> > > >
> > > > We find twenty mad scientists airing their crotchets of differential expansion, strength in weakness, and the like.  This is not testimony of experts at all, but vagary of eccentrics.
> > > >
> > > > Fred Shapiro
> > > >
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> > >
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> >
> >
> >
> > --
> > "If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."
> >
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-- 
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

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