Alan Lee will be traveling across the United States in the next few weeks promoting his latest book; 'The Lord of the Rings Sketchbook'. He has decided to keep a blog of his travels exclusively with us at TheOneRing.net! Follow this link to read his latest entry and be sure to bookmark it! Alan will be updating as often as he can! [Blog] [Tour Dates and Stops]

After the third great battle between the elves and Morgoth (Dagor Aglareb), Beleriand settled into a watchful peace and the elves -- both Sindar and Noldorin -- established the boundaries of their kingdoms. This is all recorded in Of Beleriand and its Realms -- the 14th chapter of the Silmarillion.

We wonder, though, who is telling the tale? From what era? Could it be a Sindar elf, a Noldor lord? Or even a hobbit, perhaps?

Descriptions of the slag and ash-heaps of Thangorodrim, for example, are remniscent of the fields outside Mordor's gate. With smoke constantly issuing from its lofty peaks, Thangorodrim itself feels like a forerunner of Mt Doom. [More]

It's time to open the nominations for the One Ring Awards, to be held at The One Ring Celebration in Pasadena, CA on January 21, 2006. Like last year, most of the Awards will be voted on by you, the best LOTR fans on the net. Please send all nomination submissions to: OneRingAwards@theonering.net using the format asked for, thank you. Entries will be accepted until the end of November 2005. [More]

Today is Viggo Mortensen's Birthday! Viggo was born on October 20th, 1958 in Manhattan, New York. That makes him 47 years old today! Happy Birthday Viggo!

The awesome folks at Ubisoft are about to launch a contest to get your knees shaking, your heart a-pumping and your mouth drooling! Pick up 'Peter Jackson's King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie' and you could win an all expense paid trip to Wellington to visit WETA WORKSHOP!! That's right! You heard it here first folks! Swing on over to kingkonggame.com for full contest rules and details.

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Zebraham writes: I am sending along a telephone interview with Viggo Mortensen by the Second Public Channel (ZDF) in Germany. The interview is part of the "German Dream Project" where artists, actors and reporters from all over the world are interviewed about their view on and vision for Germany for the future. Viggo Mortensen reflects on his own history and origin, and one of the advices he gives to Germans: "Be as Chinese as possible!". (5.8MB MP3) [More]

Although obsessive fans of the three Lord of the Rings movies are the ones who will travel over a hundred miles and take off work to catch Lord of the Rings — The Exhibition at the Indiana State Museum — one of only a few stops that included the likes of Boston, London, Sydney and Singapore; Indianapolis is its last — casual movie-watchers and lovers of movie-making in general will find something to be fascinated by. The exhibit is a combination of traditional art, movie-making art and movie-making technology. Costuming of hand-woven silk from Indonesia, prints and hand-made artwork depicting scenes from the movie and props, props and more props fill two galleries at the ISM. [More]

'Lost', featuring Dominic Monaghan, is on ABC tonight at 9PM EST. [abc.go.com]

Dana Jongewaard from 1up.com writes: Lord of the Rings director Peter Jackson recently took time from his busy schedule to answer a few questions on his latest cinematic opus, King Kong. And, of course, to talk about Ubisoft's upcoming video game version, which has all the earmarks of being one of those rare and wonderful games based on a movie that stands on its own merits. [More]

Ioreth writes: Erik Andersson, the person having now completed the new translation of LOTR into swedish, is going to talk a bit about the book this thursday (20/10), at Science-Fiction-Bokhandeln in Göteborg at 18:00. The Tolkien Society in Göteborg, Mithlond, will be there too, from about 17:00. [sfbok.se]

DG writes: Check out this new "Big Ad" campaign for an Australian brewery Carlton Draught. Looks like it was shot in the same Dart Valley (Isengard) and features men on horseback and choreographed "cast of thousands." It's pretty over-the-top, but looks spectacular -- is it just me or do you feel a LOTR vibe? [More]

Karl Urban is ready and waiting for a pummeling. His face is a painstakingly bruised and bloody mess with just the right amounts of sweat and grime applied by the make up department. Working for several years in New Zealand, Urban was one of a small horde of actor's from down under who broke onto the Hollywood radar with "Lord of the Rings". [More]

From djdeathskiss (via Dark Horizons): Viggo Mortensen is in negotiations to join the cast of Spanish language flick "Teresa" reports Production Weekly. Novelist Ray Loriga is helming the "near psychedelic vision of the raptures and writings of a towering figure, 16th century Spain proto-feminist mystic saint Teresa of Avila. Paz Vega ("Spanglish") will play Teresa, Mortensen will play a cleric. Victoria Abril and Leonor Watling are also cast. Mortensen worked with Loriga before on 1997's "My Brother's Gun". Shooting begins November 21st in Spain.
UPDATE: Elfstone writes: Viggo was in Spain two days ago promoting A History of Violence in the Sitges Terror Film Festival. He said that he declined the offer of playing in Teresa because he couldn´t have enough time to prepare for the role since he was doing the "A History of Violence" promotion.

Post-trilogy careers vary from Sandler comedies to B-movie horror flicks. As members of a close-knit fellowship venturing into unknown territory on a mission that could leave them wealthy and powerful — or just as easily destroy them — the stars of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy are seeing how life can imitate art. In the two years since fans shed tears and said goodbye along with the "Rings" cast at the conclusion of "Return of the King," stars Orlando Bloom (Legolas), Viggo Mortensen (Aragorn), Sean Astin (Sam), Elijah Wood (Frodo) and John Rhys-Davies (Gimli) have seen their careers head off in decidedly different directions. While some projects have succeeded on various levels, others have fallen faster than the "one ring" into the fires of Mount Doom. [More]

Today is Howard Shore's Birthday! Howard was born on October 18th, 1946 in Toronto, Ontario. That makes him 59 today! Happy Birthday Howard!

Dan Deevy, Executive Producer for TheCinemaSource.com writes: We have an exclusive interview with Orlando Bloom currently posted on our site and would love it if you could link us to your homepage. I'm sure your visitors would love the opportunity to read a great interview recently conducted for the release of Elizabethtown and be treated to 10 amazing images of the man himself! [More]

Irascian writes: Brian Sibley’s web site has just been updated and reveals the news that his biography on Peter Jackson (“Peter Jackson – A Film-Maker’s Journey”) is going to be published by HarperCollins in April 2006. More information at [briansibley.com]

Doreen writes: Viggo Mortensen was a guest at the Flanders International Film Festival in Ghent, Belgium on October the 14th. He was there together with David Cronenberg to promote his new movie 'A History of Violence'. He walked the red carpet and took time to hand out signatures (luckily I had my copy of 'The horse is good' with me). It was great to meet Viggo at our local film festival. [More]

Linuxelf writes: John Rhys-Davies makes a welcome return to New Zealand as a special guest. all three days of the upcoming tenth anniversary expo. Currently best known for his role as GIMLI THE DWARF in the hit trilogy of Lord of the Rings, John studied at London's Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts and in addition to his distinguished theatre work - Othello, Macbeth and Falstaff - has taken leading roles in many movies among them Victor/Victoria, The Living Daylights, King Solomon's Mines and the 1992 remake of Conan Doyle's The Lost World in which he starred as Professor Challenger. [More]

Tinuvielas writes: Here are the Pro's (many) and Con's (some) about RingCon 2005, to be followed by a Summary & Quotes of the John Noble and (part of) the Billy Boyd panel. October, 9th, 2005. "I'm sittin' in a railway-station, gotta ticket for my destination… hmm-mmm…" – anyone remember that song? Anyone relate to that melancholy feeling of being cast out of Middle-Earth and re-emerging into the bleak reality of a crowded train-ride home, so familiar after three day's worth of RingCon? Three days of coming-together (which is of course what "con-venire" actually means), of singing – it was a very musical Con, this time, dubbed a "Sing-Con" by some, but more of this later – of laughing and having FUN! [More]

Karl Urban and Rosamund Pike, who play the brother-and-sister monster-hunting team of John and Samantha Grimm in the upcoming SF movie Doom, are signed for sequels, though producer John Wells said that no such sequel is yet in the works. "It would be nice if there was a sequel, but we have nothing planned," Wells said in an interview. But, he added, "we certainly did sit in Prague [where the movie was shot] a few times and talk about the possibility of it." [More]

There are many ways to see New Zealand, but travelling on horse back has got to go down as one of the more unconventional. Yet this is exactly what hundreds of participants in The Great New Zealand Trek will be doing in March next year. Starting from Cape Reinga at the very top of the North Island, trekkers will cover the ground to Kohukohu in Northland in seven days. The second stage of the trek will begin a year later from Hokianga, and will continue until participants reach Bluff in Southland in 2018. [More]

Greetings -- Quickbeam here. Are you interested in attending a premiere screening and charity event for RINGERS in Los Angeles? If so write to: info@planetbb.com. ONLY YOU can help us convince SONY that the fans should have a wonderful premiere party for RINGERS: LORD OF THE FANS before it comes out on DVD November 22!! [http://www.sonypictures.com/ringers] We are sending out this EMERGENCY call to action for Southern California Tolkien fans -- because YOU showing interest in the event will help make it our break it! The movie you've heard so much about, our award-winning documentary RINGERS: LORD OF THE FANS, needs your help! If you guys respond over the weekend by writing to us, and tell your local friends to join in, we might succeed in creating another party of special magnificence! [Learn More...]

The latest newsletter is ready to go! Do you want to receive our free weekly newsletter? Packed with tons of info to keep you up to date on the latest? Plus filled with exclusives from time to time! Join the crowd of over 18 100 mailing list members! Sign up now! [More]

With just a little over 3 months to go before ORC 2006, TheOneRing.net and Creation Entertainment are proud to make a few guest announcements, including Sean Astin and John Noble! [Learn More...]

Were Legolas, Gimli, Merry and Pippin essential to the quest? This is the question we will be posing in the Hall of Fire this weekend.

Gimli, the stought-hearted dwarf of Erebor. What is the sum of his contribution to the quest? Is it any more than being Legolas's passenger on the back of Hasufel and helping Gandalf thread a path through the dark depths of Moria?

Then there's Legolas, the fleet-footed archer of Mirkwood. Did he do any more than ease the passage through Lothlorien and bring down a Nazgul at Sarn Gebir? [More]

The Grand Rapids Symphony will be performing the LOTR Score at the DeVoss Hall in Grand Rapids, Michigan tonight (October 14th). Sadly the event is sold out, but follow this link for more cities and showtimes! [More]

Sean Bean also has a movie out this weekend, the critically acclaimed movie 'North Country'. Take a look at the Yahoo! listing for theatres and showtimes. [Showtimes USA] [Showtimes CAN]

The film we seem to have been speaking out for months has finally hit the big screen today, Orlando Bloom's "Elizabethtown". Click here for showtimes. [Showtimes USA] [Showtimes CAN]

Reports are coming in that Howard Shore has been replaced by James Newton Howard to score the King Kong film. From Soundtrack.net: Sources in the film music industry have indicated to SoundtrackNet that Howard Shore's score to Peter Jackson's King Kong has been dropped. Hired to replace him is composer James Newton Howard. Due out on December 14, the film requires over two hours of music, which must now be written over the next few weeks.

There is no indication currently as to why Shore's score has been replaced, and all indications are that most - if not all - of the score has already been recorded in New Zealand. The replacement score will be recorded in Los Angeles. More details to come as we get them.

UPDATE: Sadly it seems the story is true as the PRNewswire confirmed the story in a press release by Universal. [More]