Sagan with a model of the Viking lander in Cosmos: A Personal Voyage. (Photo via NASA)
Forgive us if we seem overeager to browse the Library of Congress’ newest acquisition, but it’s really cool. And we’re even willing to overlook the method by which it was obtained.
Today, the library announced that it will take possession of the personal writings of Carl Sagan, the scientist, astronomer and emissary of the wonders of space. And, the Associated Press reports, it’s thanks to Seth MacFarlane, the creator of the Fox animated sitcoms Family Guy, American Dad! and The Cleveland Show.
MacFarlane, whatever you might think about his cartoons—Spoiler alert: They’re all terrible—is an unabashed fan of Sagan and his landmark 1980 public television series Cosmos: A Personal Voyage, the 13-part journey through the universe in which Sagan brought science to the masses. (The whole series streams on Hulu, if you’re looking for a reason to procrastinate or just be enchanted by how cool space is.) Given his love for the series, the AP reports, MacFarlane financed the move of Sagan’s papers to the Library of Congress:
The Library of Congress announced Wednesday that, thanks to MacFarlane’s generosity, it has acquired the personal papers of the late scientist and astronomer, who spoke to mass audiences about the mysteries of the universe and the origins of life. While MacFarlane never owned Sagan’s papers, he covered the undisclosed costs of donating them to the library.
“All I did was write a check, but it’s something that was, to me, worth every penny,” MacFarlane told The Associated Press by phone from Los Angeles. “He’s a man whose life’s work should be accessible to everybody.”
The Sagan collection includes more than 800 file-cabinet drawers full of documents, including his academic work, letters between him and other scientists and even a few early drafts of the screenplay for Contact, the 1997 film based on his novel of the same name.
MacFarlane is also producing a modern-day version of Cosmos, to be hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space in New York. Whatever our misgivings about MacFarlane’s other work might be, Tyson is as perfect a casting choice as anyone for a series that will aim to deliver the marvels of the universe to a large audience. Sagan was Tyson’s mentor, and in a 2004 interview, Tyson said of his teacher, “Dr. Sagan was as great as the universe, an effective mentor.”
