The room blocks for ORC at the Pasadena hotels has expired and reservations must now be made directly with the individual properties. So if you are planning on attending ORC in Pasadena and need a room, call these numbers! [Get your ORC Tickets Today!]

SHERATON: (626) 449-4000
HILTON: (626) 577-1000
WESTIN: (626) 792-2727
PASADENA INN: (626) 795-8401

Helen writes: A magazine I was reading recently had a one line mention of the LOTR exhibition coming back for another showing at Te Papa, Wellington NZ, next year. I hadn't heard about that happening so I emailed Te Papa and asked for confirmation. I thought some of your readers might be interested in their reply - the relevant parts are below: "Thank you for your e mail requesting information about the Lord of the Rings exhibition. I am pleased to advise you that the Lord of the Rings exhibition will open at Te Papa on Good Friday 14th April and closes on 20th August 2006..." [More]

The voting booth is open, and a large number of ballots have already been received! Make sure not to miss your chance to vote for the best of 2005's Lord of the Rings creative and scholarly writing, and acting. Winners will be announced at the official One Ring Award Ceremony, taking place during the ORC weekend of January 20th-22nd 2006 from The One Ring Celebration in Pasadena CA. Don't delay, award those people that have made a difference in the world of Tolkien this past year! [VOTE]

Well, we woke up this Christmas morning to a HUGE announcement from Sideshow Collectibles. Sideshow has announced they are now going to be producing 12-inch figures for The Lord of the Rings. This means, for those people who didn't have the money to collect polystone, you can now get your hands on some kick-butt figures! If you are familiar with Sideshow's 12-inch figure line-up, then you know why we are so excited about this announcement! For complete details, follow the link - and Happy Holidays! [Click Here]

Allison writes: On December 29th, at 10:00 (Pacific time) 'Bravo' will air the 1978 'Lord of the Rings' animated film, followed by "The Legacy of The Lord Of The Rings,an in-depth look at the book, the film, and the creator of the Middle Earth universe."

The Utah Film Critics Awards were announced today and Andy Serkis was named Best Supporting Actor for his work on King Kong, just beating out Paul Giamatti for Cinderella Man, impressive! [More]

Joe writes: I just wanted to let you know that Oak Street Cinema in Minneapolis (mnfilmarts.org) is playing the LOTR trilogy Dec. 26th - Jan. 5th. Tickets are only $5 for the first film and $3 for each additional film no matter how many you go to. They are encouraging people to come in costume, of course, and it seems like a really great time. Also, based on the showtimes, I DON'T think these are the extended versions. Hope to see you guys there. thanks! [More]

Isabel writes: We are auctioning a King Kong Director's Chair signed by no other than Peter Jackson himself on eBay. 100% of the proceeds are going to support Variety - The Children's Charity of Southern California. It is a great charity that gives help to Los Angeles children who need it. Could you please pass along the info to your website visitors? You would be helping a great cause and we would really appreciate it! We are going to list another chair at the end of the week. This chair will also be signed by Peter Jackson but will have a different color logo. [More]

Andy Serkis was given a special citation for his work on King Kong by the Toronto film critics this week. Congrats Andy!

From The Tolkien Society: At 9pm (local times) on January 3rd fans around the world are invited to raise a glass and toast J.R.R. Tolkien’s Birthday. The Tolkien Society has a webpage where fans across the globe can let other fans know where they’ll be celebrating if they’re hosting a party, or just what particular tipple they’ll be raising. Fans will be able to check the webpage and see who is celebrating where and if they wish to get in touch and join in. [More]

From DarkHorzons: 20th Century Fox will release theatrically a director's cut of Ridley Scott's Crusades epic "Kingdom of Heaven" today says The Hollywood Reporter. The film, which centers on a young Frenchman (Orlando Bloom) who discovers his destiny as a knight amid the clash between Muslims and Christians over the Holy Land a millennium ago, will unspool exclusively at the Laemmle Fairfax Theatre in Los Angeles. [More]

Sideshow Collectibles has posted a teaser of their upcoming Premium Format Lurtz. Unlike the past products from the company, the premium format line is made of a mixture of metals, cloth, leather, etc and usually stand about 18-inches for standard sized figures. We imagine the Lurtz will be bigger than that! Pre-orders begin next week to registered newsletter members. Check out the details! [Click Here]

Meghan, Online Community Manager for The Lord of the Rings Online writes: This week we've updated our Playable Classes page with more information on the Guardian class. We'll continue to update the classes each week through the end of January. Let me take this opportunity to wish everyone Happy Holidays, and best wishes on the coming New Year! 2005 brought a lot of changes to LOTRO and our community, and we expect 2006 to be an exciting time for everyone as we begin to roll out more information and move closer to launching the game. [More]

The cast of `Lost,' ABC's hit drama of air crash survivors marooned on a mysterious island, have won one battle - they beat a 40-year-old virgin and King Kong's girlfriend for the title of 'Entertainer of the Year." Entertainment Weekly named what it called a group of `treasured islanders,' the cast of `Lost,' as its Entertainer of the Year, calling the show one of the "biggest cult breakouts since The X-Files." [More]

Happy Holidays to all, and plans are going great for the upcoming 'ONE RING CELEBRATION' coming to PASADENA, CALIFORNIA on Fri., Sat. & Sun. January 20-22. 2006. We wanted to let fans know that some of our PHOTO OPs are almost sold out! The sample PHOTO OPS pictured here were taken at our ELF Convention, held in Orlando Florida this past summer. We think they came out awesomely and fans really loved the friendly atmosphere provided during the shoot by professional photographer Christopher Schmelke. We're flying Christopher out to ORC to take all the PHOTO OPS there and wanted to give you this info as well as show you the samples of his fine work. Really, this is the souvenir that is to be treasured forever! [More]

A long awaited announcement is coming for collectors. Ever since Sideshow Collectibles picked up the Premium Format LOTR license, we've all been wondering which character will be produced first! In less than 24 hours, we'll know - And of course, we'll post as soon as we get the announcement. [Click Here]

A few months ago we saw Viggo Mortensen sporting the most impressive moustache in film history. Now the first trailer for his Spanish language film Alatriste features 'The Stash' in its full glory! [More]