April 2004 -- The first institution of its kind in the world, the Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame (SFM), today announced it will open to the public on June 18, 2004. The museum - with an advisory board that includes the world's top science fiction authors, filmmakers and designers such as Greg Bear, Octavia Butler, James Cameron, Arthur C. Clarke, George Lucas, and Steven Spielberg among others - will explore how science fiction reflects and comments on the human condition, promotes critical thinking about culture and society, and invites us to ponder the universe's infinite possibilities. A 501(c)(3) nonprofit institution, SFM is co-located with Experience Music Project at Seattle Center, and was founded by investor and philanthropist Paul G. Allen.

One of the most influential and appreciated artistic genres of modern times, science fiction reflects society's hopes and fears, and provides insight into the culture of the times of its creators. Freed from the constraints and limitations of other more conventional art forms, science fiction explores important and relevant social issues with unbounded clarity, from politics, culture and art, to architecture, transportation and technology. The museum's exhibits and activities will demonstrate how this dynamic and diverse genre touches all forms of human expression, giving us new insights into ourselves and the world around us.

The Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame will involve the leading practitioners of the genre -- writers, illustrators, publishers, and filmmakers. These artists will be honored in a "Hall of Fame," which will be showcased within the museum and will serve as a locus for national annual awards, special events, and publications.

An artist rendering of the museum's THEM! Exhibit, an exploration of alients, humans and how perceive ourselves in others, as expressed in science fiction.

Exhibit and Artifact Highlights:

• Science Fiction Timeline - an epic collage of ideas, historical milestones, seminal events and key personalities set against a changing background of historical and cultural context.
• Not So Weird Science - the implications of new technology as explored in science fiction, and the incredible new scientific advances that will inspire the science fiction of tomorrow.
• Spacedock - the greatest spaceships from the annals of science fiction movies, television, books and games are gathered together for the first time in an orbital spacedock. Linked to a visitor-activated database, you'll view stats on the crews, missions, and engineering of great ships from SF, including Star Trek's Enterprise, Alien's Nostromo, and Silent Running's Valley Forge.
• The Tools and Technology of SF - verse yourself in the complex technology and hardware that will guide you across the cosmos - the laser blasters, transporters, phasers, tricorders, and other imaginary tools that blend with serious science and make those journeys possible.
• Alternate Modes of Travel - not all journeys require vehicles. Science fiction staples such as wormholes, teleportation, space, time and dimensional travel, and travel within our own minds, are some examples. These alternate modes of travel often cause us to examine ourselves and our world from many different points of view not conceivable through conventional means.
• Amazing Places - explore the fantastic worlds and mind-boggling environments as envisioned in classics of science fiction art and literature.
• Cities of Tomorrow - view stunning computer-generated vistas of some of the most famous SF cityscapes of past and present futures - The Matrix, Blade Runner, and The Jetsons - and the stories of those who call them home.
• Big Brother - here you weigh the perceived need for security against the cost to personal freedom, and see how governments, and the values they embrace, can result in utopias or dystopias for their people.
• The Intergalactic Lounge - a gathering place of the most famous and infamous extraterrestrials. Your fellow travelers in the Interplanetary Lounge may look frighteningly foreign, but if you take the time to listen to their stories, you might discover the deep similarities between you.
• Metal or Mortal - a lineup of robots, androids and assorted artificial beings, all of whom have a story to tell and are programmed to tell it through entertaining dialog with visitors.
• Make Contact - allows visitors to continue their museum visit beyond Science Fiction Museum and Hall of Fame. Through interactive computer stations, you can tap into resources that connect you to science fiction events, discussion groups, games, programs, guest appearances, movie premiers, author readings, and other related happenings... around the block, or around the world.