Bill Nye collapses on stage

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 17 (UPI) -- Bill Nye, known on TV as "the Science Guy," collapsed onstage during an appearance at the University of California, witnesses said.

Nye, 54, got back up quickly and resumed his presentation, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

USC senior Tristan Camacho said Nye was striding toward the podium Tuesday night when he went down in mid-sentence.

"Then after about 10 seconds, he popped back up with much gusto and asked everybody how long he was out for and went on with a story about how a similar thing happened to him that morning," she said.

Camacho said Nye's speech was slurred and he stumbled against his laptop computer as he tried to forge ahead, sipping water from a bottle. He eventually left the stage, the Times said.

"Nobody went to his aid at the very beginning when he first collapsed -- that just perplexed me beyond reason," USC senior Alastair Fairbanks said. "Instead, I saw students texting and updating their Twitter statuses. It was just all a very bizarre evening."

The newspaper said paramedics were summoned but it was unclear whether Nye was treated or transported elsewhere.