PRESS RELEASES
April 19, 2012

BBC Future Presents Paleofuturist Matt Novak’s First-ever Exhibit “the Future That Never Was” In Partnership With With Atlas Obscura

Ray guns, and spaceships and robots! Oh, my!

New York, NY — BBC Future presents the first-ever exhibit of their paleo future columnist, Matt Novak, “The Future That Never Was.” The exhibit, presented in partnership with Atlas Obscura‘s third annual Obscura Day, will showcase Novak’s unparalleled private collection of ephemera, vintage advertisements and miscellaneous retro-future objects that capture the ghosts of future visions past.

From ray guns to vintage video phones, original animation art from The Jetsons to apocalyptic Cold War survival supplies, Novak’s unmatched zeal for preserving past futures will make the first public exhibition of his collection a truly unique experience. The exhibit will take place in conjunction with Atlas Obscura’s third-annual international day of unusual local explorations “Obscura Day,” on April 28th from 6-8pm at the iconic ArcLight Theatre in Hollywood, CA. Tickets are available via ObscuraDay.com– admission is free, limited space available.

“After building my archive and writing about it for the past five years, I’m excited to bring my passion for history and futurism into a physical space for my fellow Angelenos to enjoy, with both BBC Future and Atlas Obscura,” said Novak. “By exploring past visions of the future we get a front row seat to each generation’s greatest hopes and deepest fears.”

“Matt’s passion for telling the paleofuture story and his unique catalog of artifacts will make the exhibit a one-of-a-kind experience,” added Jonathan Fildes, Editor of BBC Future. “We’re thrilled to be a part of his story.”

Joining Novak for the occasion will be Virginia PostrelBloomberg View Columnist, and Brad Fidler, Director of UCLA’s Kleinrock Internet History Center. Together the three will discuss highlights from the collection, and what we can learn from past visions of the future that didn’t come to fruition.

About Matt Novak: Matt Novak writes the The Paleofuturist column for BBC.com/Future and the Paleofuture blog for Smithsonianmag.com. He has written for SlateGOODThe DailyWall Street JournalThe Atlanticio9, and is the editor ofPaleofuture Magazine@paleofuture

Event details:

  • RSVP link:       http://bit.ly/HavKfn
  • Day/time:        Saturday, April 28th 5-7pm
  • Location:         ArcLight Cinema Hollywood
    6360 W. Sunset Blvd.
    Los Angeles, California, 90028

*Parking available