COLLEGE STATION - Texas A&M University is famous for traditions - mostly involving athletics and the military. But decades before Johnny Football ever riled up Aggie fans, a different breed of enthusiasts convened in College Station for AggieCon, one of the largest gatherings of science fiction and fantasy fans in the state.

That tradition bound to the university another, less likely cult figure: George R.R. Martin, the author of "A Game of Thrones," whose works have been housed in a campus library for more than two decades - even before he wrote the book that spawned a burgeoning cultural phenomenon. The debut of the fourth season of HBO's TV adaptation last Sunday drew 6.6 million viewers.