College Course to Discuss Harry Potter

My alma mater will be offering a course on Harry Potter this fall. Knowing this professor and the school, it promises to be fun and rigorous for the twelve to fourteen (I’m guessing) lucky students.

My favorite quote:
Kern has never demanded over four thousand pages of text as a prerequisite for a course before, and he can’t imagine other circumstances that would allow him to do so again. “I’m not going to assign Rowling’s books. I’m simply going to assume that my students have a copious knowledge of them,” he said.

Sci-Fi Do-Good Entry for the Week

Sci-fi fans are a generous lot, most likely born out of the great morality tales we’ve come to enjoy.

So it is that we bring you the next chance to “do good.” And the added bonus of this one is you get some geeky goodies at the same time!

BC Women’s Hospital and Healthcare Foundation is auctioning off autographed teddy bears from locally-based actors; most of whom have done sci-fi shows. New ones will be added every week.

This week’s sci-fi-themed offerings include Jewel Staite, Jared Padelecki, Jensen Ackles, Callum Keith Rennie, Annette O’Toole, and Kate Vernon. Many more intriguing folks from Smallville, Firefly and BSG are included.

Go give them your support!

Joseph Campbell on DVD

DVD Talk reviews Joseph Campbell – The Hero’s Journey, a documentary on the man known for his work in comparative mythology and (in fandom) his influence on George Lucas and Star Wars. The documentary dates from 1997 but will be out on DVD in February. Poking around amazon.com also reveals Bill Moyer’s Joseph Campbell and the Power of Myth, which I thought was out of print, but apparently not… In any case, it includes an interview with Lucas. (Who, in the Amazon listing, gets listed above Moyers – for a 14 minute interview!)