Ringers Melissa (Fiver) and Rebecca (Niofiel) have now sent us days 1 - 3 of their report on Mythic Journeys. Read about their adventures with Alan Lee, Brian Froud & more fine artists [Here]

TORn Staffer Turgon writes: The new hardcover Tolkien Studies: An Annual Scholarly Review ($60.00 ISBN 0937058874) is now out, and it looks very interesting. Edited by Douglas A. Anderson, Michael D. C. Drout, and Verlyn Flieger, it includes seven major essays (the lead one by Tom Shippey), Tolkien's own edition (in Middle English) of the poem Sir Orfeo, two shorter notes, and two bibliographies. It's available for ordering at Amazon.com or through the publisher, West Virginia University Press. For more details see the webpage: [More] Order via Amazon.com [More]

Ringer Rosie sent us an excellent review of the Mythic Journeys conference: "A dear friend and I attended the Mythic Journeys conference for the specific reason of seeing Alan Lee. Saturday we attended his workshop, and it was everything I could have wanted..." [More]

Ringer Carissa sent a link to this article about Sean Astin's involvement in a Points of Light Foundation event: "Sean Astin, star of hit movies such as 'Rudy,' 'The Goonies,' and 'The Lord of the Rings,' and member of the President's Council on Service and Civic Participation, presented the 2004 National Family Volunteer Award on behalf of the Points of Light Foundation & Volunteer Center National Network today at the Kansas City Convention Center in Kansas City, Missouri." [More]

SF Ringer Sara writes: I am in the early stages of organizing a pot-luck LOTR picnic in San Francisco, California. I'm shooting for Saturday, September 18th, somewhere in Golden Gate Park. Anyone interested may e-mail me at this address: [Email]

Ringer Tamara writes: "This is an invitation from co-leaders Tamara and Mariella of the TORn Boston Line Party. Since the Oscar Party, we have been making plans to organize a Ringers Moot over Labor Day weekend, including a group visit to the Boston Museum of Science..." [More]

Many of you have been asking for more information about the ROTK Extended Edition DVD. Ringer Tolkienesque sent us a link to an interview with Mike Mulvihill of New Line with a bit more explication about the process behind making the various DVDs: [More]
However, a better source of information is still our interview from April 29 with New Line's Matt Lasorsa: [More]

Ringer Frodo-esque wrote a review of Atlanta's TORnsib Moot - including a few familar names! [More]

Dixie writes: There was a quick Tolkien reference at the French Open (tennis competition) Sunday, during the men's finals between Gaston Gaudio and Guillermo Coria. In the fifth and deciding set of what was undoutedly the strangest Grand Slam final I've ever seen, the commentators declared that the match had seen so much drama and reversals that it had become a triolgy; and they wondered if even Tolkien could have imagined such a fantastic series of events.

Nikki writes: ROTK has been nominated for several Teen Choice Awards. They are:

Best Movie, Drama
Best Actor in a Drama - Elijah Wood for ROTK
Best Actress in a Drama - Liv Tyler
Male Hottie - Orlando Bloom

The show airs August 11, 2004, 8pm/7c on FOX. You can vote here (but you can only vote once): [More]

Today is Karl Urban's birthday! Urban was born Karl-Heinz Urban on 7 June 1972 in Wellington, NZ. That makes him 32 today! Happy Birthday Karl!

Turgon checks in with not one but two new columns.

The first is an addenda to his book, The Tolkien Fan's Medieval Reader, presenting a few medieval poems from The Poetic Edda. For reasons of space they didn't appear in the book, so look here to see the original source where Tolkien got his dwarf-names! [More]
The second column is a roundup of some recent books on Tolkien, including the new unauthorized biography of Peter Jackson, a parody of The Hobbit, and several others. [More]

And if you missed the announcement last week, there are two new Special Guest columns, "Hearing the Horns of Rohan" by Edie Head, and "The Eternal Conflict in Middle-earth: from Literature to Film" by Michael Posa. Both are fine essays, one a personal look at Tolkien in one woman's life [More], the other, a studied look at certain differing aspects between the presentation of good and evil in Tolkien's books and Jackson's films [More]. Enjoy!

Lomadia writes: According to Box Office Mojo, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban grossed $40,800,000 on its opening day (Friday, June 4). This beats out Spiderman, giving it the most successful opening day ever, and dropping The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King into fourth place.

Hobbitangel writes: Orlando Bloom has been told to wear a chest wig to look 'more manly' for his new film. Movie bosses want the screen hearthrob to cover up with the hairy rug for his new lead role in the Crusades epic Kindom of Heaven. [More]

Izzy attended the Saturday evening performance of Howard Shore's Lord of the Rings Symphony in Atlanta. He tells us that a very special guest dropped by to the delight of the audience! [More]

Unawen writes: sean-astin.net has pictures from the MTV Movie Awards; Sean Astin and Dom Monaghan accepted the LOTR awards. [More]

Yahoo! News has the list of winners from the 2004 MTV Movie Awards, taped Saturday night in Culver City, California. The show will air on MTV (and MuchMusic in Canada) on Thursday, June 10th. [More]

Four New Zealanders who came home covered in honours after Oscar night have added to their gloryboards. Ngila Dickson, costume designer for Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, was made an officer of the NZ Order of Merit. Screenwriter Philippa Boyens, designer Grant Major and editor Jamie Selkirk are made members of the NZ Order of Merit. [More]

Erin writes: LOTR is going to be playing at the Fox Theatre in Atlanta. But this time they are showing all three movies on different nights. Box office and the theatre doors are open 1 hour and 15 minutes prior to the film's scheduled start time, and individual tickets are $7.00. [More]

Rasputin the Evil Balrog writes: Get Fuzzy probably couldn't get any geekier, but you've got to know that todays Maori Haka had to have been LOTR inspired. I wonder how Sala, Bruce, & co. would feel about it. [More]

Ostadan writes: Fantasy Flight Games is now listing The War of the Ring, a 'grand strategic simulation' of Tolkien's world, as available in July. It bears a hefty price tag of $60, though online game retailers can reduce the damage a bit. [fantasyflightgames.com] [boardgamegeek.com]

Jayne x writes: SFX Magazine is running an Event this weekend in London - and Billy Boyd will be making an appearance! He'll be signing autographs, posing for pics and talking onstage. He'll also be attending our 2004 SFX Reader Awards on Sunday night - and ROTK could be winning a prize or two! For more details go to: www.sfx.co.uk

Rosie writes: I saw the Chronicles of Riddick last night at Universal City walk in LA. I wish I had some pictures to send. Karl Urban is amazing in this film. If he and Judy Dench weren't in this movie, this movie wouldn't be worth much. [More]

Elijah Wood is hoping that the making of another Tolkein epic 'The Hobbit' will go ahead now the Lord of the Rings trilogy has finished. He reckons Tolkein fans will be getting withdrawal symptoms by Christmas when there's no new Lord of the Rings movie being released. [More]

The enigmatic P sends along these names, dates and loctations where you can find Brad Dourif and many others this summer. [More]

Rhapsody keyboardist Alex Staropoli recently spoke to Holland's Lords of Metal about the group's upcoming full-length effort, "Symphony Of Enchanted Lands Part 2 - The Dark Secret". [More]

Harriet McClelland, Mandan, has won the National Spirit Of Service Award. She was selected from 500,000 RSVP volunteers in the nation. McClelland is a team member of "Alternatives to Violence" program at the North Dakota State Penitentiary. McClelland and Loretta Lord, RSVP director, will be at the National Leadership Conference in Kansas City, Mo., where Elijah Wood, star of the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy, will present the award Sunday. [More]

Roheryn writes: Nestled among all the Harry Potter hype in this week's issue of Entertainment Weekly was this fun face-off between two well-known wizards! [More]

After capturing Thorin, the Wood-elves capture the rest of the Company and save them from starvation. Luckily for the Company, Bilbo evades them with help from his new ring and follows the elves in secret as they take the dwarves to their underground kingdom. [More]

Ringer Katrina writes: I got this emailed to me, in light of the Calgary Flames being in the finals for the Stanley cup, someone (no idea who) made this "Gollum and the precious" graphic, very well done! [More]

Ringers Fiver and Niofiel are writing daily reviews of the Mythic Journeys Con. Here is (a bit out of order) their report on Day Two, featuring Dr. Verlyn Flieger, Alan Lee, and Dr. Ari Berk. Day One will be along shortly. [More]

Ringers Wee Little Elf and Katherine wrote reviews of Howard Shore conducting the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. [More]

Penthe writes: There is an article on Tolkien fan communities and the production of the LOTR films in the new edition of Continuum: Journal of Media and Cultural Studies. TORn is mentioned on page 12 at some length. [Order here]

Bruce Hopkins has updated his website with some news about upcoming plans and Operation Read: "Gidday You Lot, (by “you lot” I mean anyone who turns up at this here site. By being here it means you have a commonality with anyone else who has ever visited this site, so welcome to the “you lot” whanau (in Maori, wahanu can mean an extended family)." [More]

Ringer Spy Eruanno chimed in with the following: I noticed this offhand reference to LotR from the NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory director. He was commenting on the Cassini spacecraft mission to Saturn: "The objective of the Cassini-Huygens (mission) is very simple: It's to allow us to rewrite the story of the lord of the rings." You can find the article using this link; third paragraph.

Ringer Spy Farrah pointed out that today's Big Nate-comic has a huge 'Lord of the Rings-influence'. Check it out here!

Wish kid Rebecca, a 13-year-old from Illinois, is a huge fan of the popular “Lord of the Rings” trilogy. She is mesmerized by the fascinating storylines featuring Hobbits, elves, dwarves, and other characters from Middle Earth. When wish granters from the Make-A-Wish Foundation® of Illinois asked Rebecca about her one true wish, she chose to meet Billy Boyd. [More] Kudos to kelly for the link!

Ringer Spy lilcritter writes: On VH1 they are doing "The 100 most Metal Moments." Number 45 was about a band called Gorgoroth which, they said, "got their name from JRR Tolkien's the Lord of the Rings." The band got into trouble for having slaughtered sheep on stage, but I don't know if they actually slaughtered them up there. I never knew Tolkien would reach into heavy metal mayhem.

Ringer Spy Bsue writes: I just received this in my inbox and thought it may be of interest to TORn readers! [More]

Brisbane residents are in a flap after a series of attacks on people by the city's best-known bird. Managers of the high-rise apartment building where the peregrine falcon named Frodo has nested each winter for the past four years have had requests from residents to get rid of the taloned terror. [More]

Christopher Lee has slagged off young Hollywood, saying today's "20-year-old actors" don't deserve top roles as they don't have the experience to do them justice. "Actors are much too young these days," the 82-year-old told German magazine Bunte. [More]

Isilme writes: The annual NIH charities Film Festival is featuring ROTK this summer in Rockville, MD. For those who remember last year's showing of FOTR, let's hope the thunder and lightening keep it quiet this year (until that scene with Mt. Doom, of course)! [More]

Now that the excitement of the RotK theatrical DVD release is abating, you may wonder how you’re going to feed your fix until the Extended Edition comes out. Wonder no more! Join Green Books for two exciting Special Guest columns!

Think over the puzzles of good and evil in Middle-earth with guest author Michael Posa. [More]
Ponder the soothing and inspiring influence of Tolkien in a world gone mad with guest author Edie Head. [More]

Enjoy, and check back throughout June for more summertime Green Books!

-- Greenbooks Staffer Anwyn

Boue69 writes: The small boat in which Smeagol and Deagol are fishing in the first scene appears to be a coracle, which is a boat used by the Irish going back to Neolithic times. It was still in use into the 20th century. Coracles are generally made out of branches and animal skins. The choice of a coracle would make sense, since ancient Irish culture closely resembled many aspects of cultures presented in LoTR. Moreover, it is easy to picture ancient Irish fisherman living in much the same way the Stoors did. For more information, I recommend In Search of Ancient Ireland by Carmel McCaffrey and Leo Eaton. [More]

AND! Verifying something that Peter Jackson let slip at TORn's Oscar Party, lots of sharp-eyed Ringers pointed out that in one of the extras, (spoiler follows) Gimli appears to try to talk Legolas into a drinking game at Edoras..

Ringer IA writes: As many have been doing, I've also been watching the ROTK DVD. However, I really missed the Easterlings. Thinking that Jackson must have removed their scenes, I carefully watched the battle progress to look for some clues regarding their whereabouts. Interestingly, I found some excellent evidence of their involvement once Grond breaks down the gate. Here are four images, showing them in action during the siege. [More]

Kate Day writes: I work for a children's hospice in Oxford, England and we held a benefit evening on May 23rd which was an amazing event starring amongst others Jeremy Irons, Hugh Laurie, Griff Rhys Jones, Bill Nighy and Radiohead. An auction on the evening of film memorabilia raised £9,000, but we kept some items which we thought should reach a wider audience, including a signed poster from Lord of the Rings kindly donated to us by Sir Ian McKellan.

The auction runs until Sunday so there is still time to help us raise much needed funds. Thank you in advance for your support! [More]

Rufino sent us a link to this story: "Best picture Oscar winner The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King reigned supreme during its first week on home video, selling more than 6.3 million combined DVD and VHS units to consumers and video rental stores nationwide, according to industry observers." [More]

Achila writes: ROTK won three SyFy Genre Awards. "On the movie side, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King took home three awards with Elijah Wood winning Best Young Actor, Liv Tyler taking Best Actress/Movie, and for Best Film." [More]

TORn Staffer MrCere points out that Peter Jackson wasted a TON of money on special effects. [More]

Nikki Nalani & britestcrayon write: Billy Boyd is in a commercial for a new reality show by Bravo, called Blow Out. It appears that he is a customer in the salon where the LA show takes place. [More]

Gnostic writes: Thought you might want to post this chat coming up with Professor Drout regarding the future of Tolkien scholarship. As most Ringers might know there is a new journal founded: Tolkien Studies, and Drout is one of the founding scholars. Chat starts Thursday, June 3, Noon ET. [More]

Sherlock sent us this link about Cate Blanchett reprising her role in Elizabeth: " IT was the film that made Hollywood pay attention to Cate Blanchett and now, six years later, director Shekhar Kapur is working on a sequel to his hit Elizabeth." [More]

Cubit13 writes: Tickets are already available for the Lord of the Rings Symphony at the Hollywood Bowl (with John Mauceri conducting the Hollywood Bowl Orchestra). [More]

Delyth writes: Hi, I don't know if you've seen this, but it looks like the Embassy Theater is showing ALL THREE FILMS on Sunday 6 June, starting 2pm. Yay! Looks like it's the TE's. [More]

From Cold Spring Press: Dragons of Fantasy by Anne Petty. Tolkien scholar Anne Petty (Tolkien in the Land of Heroes and One Ring to Bind Them All) returns with her analytical expertise focused on one of fantasy literature's most enduring creatures – dragons. Petty takes readers on an adventurous ride over the hills and far away into realms populated by the likes of Smaug, Ramoth, Norbert, and Orm Embar, just to name a few... [More] [Order]