UCTV Prime YouTube Series Unveils Treasures Inside the World's Largest Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection

LA JOLLA, Calif., July 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- As comic book and science fiction fans convene in San Diego for Comic-Con, a new series from UCTV Prime, the University of California's YouTube original channel, takes viewers inside UC Riverside's Eaton Collection, the world's largest, publicly accessible collection of science fiction, fantasy, horror and utopian fiction. "It Came from Riverside: Inside the World's Largest Collection of Science Fiction and Fantasy" reveals some of the archive's most treasured possessions, illuminates the genre's evolution in popular culture, and demonstrates its growing acceptance within literary and academic circles. Two episodes are now available at http://www.youtube.com/uctvprime, along with bonus blog content at http://www.uctv.tv/science-fiction. The third installment premieres July 13, with additional episodes later this summer.

"It Came from Riverside," an Original YouTube Series from UCTV Prime

"Ep. 1: Inside the World's Largest Collection of Science Fiction and Fantasy"

Venture inside UC Riverside's Eaton Collection for a peek at some of its science fiction and fantasy treasures - including fanzines, manuscripts, first editions, posters and more - and an assessment of the collection's significance within popular culture and academia.

"Ep. 2: The Evolution of Science Fiction"

The expansive Eaton Collection reflects the history and evolution of science fiction, with particular emphasis on its shift from hopeful, utopian themes that demonstrate society's inherent faith in technology, to a bleaker, dystopian view in the wake of World War II and the dawn of the Atomic Age.

"Ep. 3: Science Fiction Goes to School" (Coming July 13)

It wasn't very long ago that science fiction literature was dismissed as frivolous. This episode outlines the growing respectability of SF and fantasy, their emergence as literature worthy of preservation and study, and the many ways in which the Eaton Collection services this growing scholarly demand.

The Eaton Collection is the largest publicly accessible collection of science fiction and fantasy literature in the world, consisting of over 300,000 items. The collection begins with the 1517 edition of Thomas More's Utopia and includes first editions of many seminal works including Mary Shelley's Frankenstein (1818), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1897) and H.G. Wells' The Time Machine (1895). The collection also includes more than 50,000 science fiction-themed comic books as well as the most expansive collection of scholarly studies on science fiction and fantasy in the United States.

UCTV Prime is the first university-run channel to be included among YouTube's new production partnerships with recognizable brands like The Wall Street Journal, Deepak Chopra and TED. With documentary mini-series, interviews, commentaries and video shorts each week, UCTV Prime draws on the tremendous knowledge resources of the University of California's ten campuses, five medical schools, three national labs and other affiliated institutions.

UCTV is available worldwide via live stream, video archives and podcasting at http://www.uctv.tv, on YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/uctv and http://www.youtube.com/uctvprime, on iTunesU in the Beyond Campus section, and on cable in select cities throughout California. For a complete list of UCTV's outlets, visit http://www.uctv.tv/wheretowatch.

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SOURCE UCTV Prime