A ton of interesting new films are out on DVD this week. Take an early look on our 'DVD Tuesday' feature...every Monday! Check out some animated goodies like the 'Invincible Iron Man:', 'Marvel Animated Features Gift Set' & 'Solty Rei, Vol. 1'. The big releases of the week are 'Saw III' & 'The Guardian'. Personally I'm interested in 'Iron Man' & 'Yojimbo & Sanjuro'! Check out the whole list here! [More]

Amy H. Sturgis sends this along: Tolkien/Rowling Lecture Free and Open to the Public ("Evening with the Author" Series): J.K. Rowling draws fire from cultural critics and laypersons alike: her works rank among the most challenged books of the last decade due to their supposedly mature content, and yet highly visible reviewers consistently poke fun at their allegedly juvenile nature. A question emerges from these disparate but repeated lines of attack: if children cannot handle dark and serious issues such as death, and adults should not enjoy such childish and light pleasures as fantasy stories, who if anyone is the proper audience for the Harry Potter series? According to J.R.R. Tolkien, the solution to this dilemma lies not in discovering a new category of readers, but rather in dismissing the false assumptions about childhood, adulthood, and the nature of fantasy that inform the question. [More]

LORD OF The Rings star Billy Boyd is ready to launch a new career -as a club DJ. The actor has been taking secret lessons from top music producer David Forbes to prepare for his role as a DJ in the film of Irvine Welsh's Ecstasy. But Billy admits he has got hooked and now hopes to launch his own dance night - with guest spots from his fellow Hobbits, who are also keen amateur DJs. Billy, 38, who lives in Glasgow, revealed his secret mixology lessons yesterday adding: "I really enjoy it, which surprised me. [More]

A recent sky survey has turned up eight new members in our Local Group of galaxies, including a new class of ultra-faint "hobbit" galaxies and what might be the smallest galaxy ever discovered. The Local Group is a collection of about 40 galaxies, of which the Milky Way and Andromeda are the dominant members. The rest of the galaxies are mostly small satellites known as "dwarf galaxies" that are gravitationally bound to these two galaxies. The Large and Small Magellanic Clouds are two of the Milky Way's better known dwarf galaxies. [More]

Be sure to check out our weekly Sideshow Collectibles update! Each week we provide an update on your favorite Sideshow goodies, from busts to premium figures and more! Take a look! [More]

Edana's Angel writes: I just wanted to report that Sean Astin will be guest-starring on "Monk" on January 26 at 9:00 p.m. eastern standard time on the USA network.

Aelinil writes: This headline caught my eye as I was perusing Yahoo’s entertainment section and I thought I would share. The American Film Institute is making some changes to its “100 Years 100 Movies” for the 10th anniversary and the previously ineligible LOTR will be added to this year’s list! Here is the link to the article from Eonline. [More]

In a fascinating interview, Chief Counsel Michael Stailey sits down with LORD OF THE RINGS and KING KONG producer Michael Pellerin, who shares his thoughts on the pleasure of collaborating with Peter Jackson, redefining the value of DVD special editions, the potential future of THE HOBBIT, and the passion and dedication needed to be a successful filmmaker. [More]

For more than half a century, the iconography of J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” was rooted in the power of the word. Or rather, in the tens of thousands of words that made up his 1937 fantasy “The Hobbit” and the subsequent expansion of that tale into the “Rings” epic. Then came director Peter Jackson’s film adaptations, and what had been the province of written language was transformed, translated and transmuted into visual imagery, revealing Tolkien’s universe to a audiences who might be disinclined to wade through the dense pages of his very large novels. Add to this the imagery of sound – Howard Shore’s film scores – and the sensory reorientation was complete. [More]

Creation Entertainment and TheOneRing.net are proud to announce two sensational superstars to headline ORC: THE ONE RING CELEBRATION coming to BURBANK, CALIFORNIA on MARCH 9 to 11, 2007.

ANDY SERKIS is the most requested guest we've had in recent times and after years of trying Andy's always packed working schedule finally meshes with our events! What a talent he is, of course as GOLLUM/SMEAGOL but more recently in KING KONG.

DAVID WENHAM is the very popular star who portrayed FARAMIR and will soon be seen in Frank Miller's "300" which we can't wait to be in the audience for! David has been in VAN HELSING and MOULIN ROUGE, amongst many other credits. This is his first convention appearance for us!

Other guests will be announced shortly. Visit our site to grab WIZARD CIRCLE WEEKEND PACKAGES, the absolute best way to attend the convention. Other ticket packages will be on sale soon. PHOTO OPS with David and Andy (as well as autograph tickets) are now on sale at the site now. [More]

TheHutt writes: During their TotalHD press conference at CES, Warner announced that New Line was working on the Lord of the Rings trilogy for both HD DVD and Blu-ray. While they did confirm that the titles were in the works, no details were given. A source close to the matter gave us a few details of the upcoming release, these include:

• Main feature will be a single DL disc on both HD DVD and Blu-ray. (no word if it will be a TotalHD disc (TotalDVD is a double-sided combination of HD-DVD and Blu-Ray)
  
• The movies will be the Theatrical Versions of each film.
  
• Both discs will be encoded using VC1
  
• These will be the first titles to use Dolby TrueHD 7.1 Audio
  
• Due to bandwidth constraints, as of now there will be no IME ("In Movie Experience") like features.

Susan writes: Yesterday, Elijah Wood and Sandra Oh announced the SAG Nominations. Elijah has been nominated as part of the ensemble cast for "Bobby." Cate Blanchett has been nominated as supporting actress for "Notes on a Scandal."

Sean writes: I just thought that readers of The One Ring may be interested to know that Christopher Lee, who portrayed Sauruman, will be doing a special signing on Saturday 20th January at the Radisson Edwardian Hotel, Heathrow, London. It will run from 12noon until 5pm. [More]

New York, Jan 17: Actor Viggo Mortensen is looking so convincing in his new role as a Russian gangster, that when he dropped in for a bowl of soup at a Russian-owned counter, he had people actually believing that he was a real-life bad guy. Mortensen is teaming up with director David Cronenberg once again to star as a cold-blooded gangster in new crime drama "Easter Promises", a role that required Oscar-winning make-up artist Stephan apply authentic Russian-mafia tattoos on the star. A source revealed that the 'Lord of the Rings' star got a taste of the kind of fear the mafia generated when he popped in at a Russian-owned soup counter near the movie's London set. [More]

Sir Ian McKellen is to be a guest speaker at the launch of LGBT History Month in London next month, it was announced last night. “Sir Ian is already a major figure in LGBT history and we’re honoured that he can join us at the launch of History Month,” said Paul Patrick, co-chair of Schools Out. LGBT History Month, which runs through February, was launched three years ago by Schools Out. And this year’s launch will form part of the group’s annual conference. [More]

Judy writes: We just got an email over at AlleyCatScratch.com from someone in Germany that the travelling exhibit will be on the move again in early '07! Apparently it is going to Berlin, Germany from Feb 1 - April 29. Check out Filmspark Babelsberg or phone 0331 - 721 2800

Dominic Monaghan while promoting the next portion of this season of ABC’s hit series LOST, stopped to comment to iF on the state of affairs with THE HOBBIT movie (prequel to the LORD OF THE RINGS trilogy) which is locked in a battle between New Line Cinema and director Peter Jackson. When asked point blank what he thought of the bitter war over the rights to the Tolkien story, the actor very wisely stated, “ This is a very iffy subject that you have to be careful with professionally as an actor because I’ve worked with New Line Cinema and I’ve worked with Pete Jackson and I have good relationships with both of them. My personal feeling as a fan is I think it’s a real shame that New Line and Pete Jackson don’t seem to be able to work out what’s going to happen with THE HOBBIT. I think fans of that franchise would like to see New Line Studios attached with Pete Jackson directing." [More]

Laura Michelle Kelly, who won an Oliver Award playing the title role in Mary Poppins, will play the powerful elf queen Galadriel. Shakespearean actor Malcolm Storry will take the role of magician Gandalf. The £13m musical, which premiered to mixed reviews in Toronto, Canada, is due to open at the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane on 19 June. [More]

It was just over three years ago that "The Lord of the Rings" Symphony had its premiere with a performance in Wellington, New Zealand. Organizers hoped that Howard Shore's extensive reworking of music from a trio of "Lord of the Rings" films would enjoy a respectable life on the concert stage. They may not have been prepared for how respectable that international response became. Indeed, Shore's extended musical gloss on J.R.R. Tolkien's mythic universe has become something of an international phenomenon.

Louisville audiences will be able to see and hear just what all the fuss is all about Friday and Saturday. The Louisville Orchestra, joined by a bevy of adult and children's choirs, will perform the complete "Lord of the Rings" Symphony in the Kentucky Center's Whitney Hall. It will be conducted by Charles Floyd, a well-regarded pianist and conductor who studied with celebrated pianist Lee Luvisi at the University of Louisville School of Music. [More]

A ton of interesting new films are out on DVD this week. Take an early look on our 'DVD Tuesday' feature...every Monday! Check out some TV goodies like the '24: Season 6 Premiere', 'The Animation Show' & 'Doctor Who: Complete Second Series'. The big releases of the week are 'Gridiron Gang' & 'The Texas Chainsaw Massacre - The Beginning'. Personally I'm interested in 'Doctor Who' & 'The Protector'! Check out the whole list here! [More]