Eileen from SFTrilogy writes: Exciting New Developments for SF Trilogy Screening of the LOTR movies benefiting C.A.N. (Cure Autism Now). Alan Lee is lending a helping hand to the SF Trilogy Screening of the LOTR movies. Lee has made an exclusive T-shirt design for this event. Anyone who buys a VIP ticket will get the Limited Edition Event Shirt FREE. There will be raffles, door prizes and a costume contest. For those who would like to make a donation to this worthy cause, but cannot attend, "there is still hope". We will have a special raffle prize JUST for those who make a donation by buying a ticket but not attending. For those who buy a VIP ticket, but are unable to attend, you will still receive the exclusive Alan Lee Event T-shirt. Proceeds for this event will go to the nonprofit organization of C.A.N.. Seating is limited, so for more information and to buy your ticket to this FANtastic event, go to sftrilogy.org

The "boom and bust" stemming from New Zealand's Lord of the Rings film trilogy has spelled doom and gloom for a global maker and seller of fantasy figures for battle games, Games Workshop. The company's chief executive Tom Kirby told the Scotsman newspaper in Edinburgh: "For the last two years we have been concerned that, for Games Workshop, the Lord of the Rings business might create a bubble effect which might not be sustainable. "We have to confess we underestimated the impact which this would have on our sales and profits in the last quarter of this financial year," he said. [More]

Sean Astin is a dad, again! Kim, along with a TON of other Ringers, sent this in today: I found this report about Sean Astin's wife giving birth to their third daughter, Isabella Louise. [More]

TORONTO (AP) — Tales starring Cate Blanchett, Christian Bale, Nick Nolte and Robin Wright Penn are among the movies looking to grab Hollywood's attention at North America's biggest film festival. Nine additional movies were announced Tuesday for the Toronto International Film Festival, which runs Sept. 8-17. All the films will be seeking distributors at the festival, a prime spot for studios to acquire movies as well as show off key fall releases and Academy Award contenders. Blanchett stars with Sam Neill and Hugo Weaving in Little Fish, about a woman who becomes involved in a menacing drug deal while trying to raise money to open an Internet cafe. [More]

VALPARAISO "You can't pull this off," Andrew Jones said to Zachary Gibson, when Gibson asked him to take part in a movie version of J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Hobbit." Jones, a huge Tolkien fan, told Gibson, "You can't make those costumes. You can't film this. You don't have the money." With a video camera he got for his 16th birthday and $2,000 of his own money, Gibson proved Jones wrong. It took him two years, but the 18-year-old managed to bring Tolkien's classic to the big screen -- or rather to DVD. [More]

Ringer Celebriel just returned from an LOTR locations tour in New Zealand, this is her Day Twelve and final report: Rivendell is my very favorite location in both books and film, so I couldn’t leave Middle Earth without seeing it. It is on the Red Carpet Tour agenda, but the day we went to Stansborough, Fernside, Martinborough, Harcourt Park, and Winstone Aggregates’ Dry Creek Quarry, I think we were running behind schedule and had to get to the airport for our flight to Christchurch. Not a problem, I went there on my own after returning to Wellington from Queenstown. [More]

Carlene Cordova, director of 'Ringers: Lord of the Fans' writes: Now that we're a part of the official SONY family we'll be getting a brand new website! The site should go live shortly before the release of the RINGERS DVD in November 2005. You'll love the DVD! We're including lots of deleted scenes, a short behind the scenes piece on how we made RINGERS, and much, much more! Please visit the new SONY teaser RINGERS Teaser site! Sign up for the newsletter while you're there. Because it's a new system you will need to re-register for the newsletter and the new message boards when they're available. Last chance to buy RINGERS merchandise from the Cafe Press store. We'll be closing it soon and opening a new and improved RINGERS online store with all new merchandise soon! [Sony's 'Ringers' Site] ['Ringers' Store]

Some names you know and some you don't. But if the publicists and the stars have their way, it won't stay that way for long. Mirvish Productions unveiled the cast of its much vaunted and tremendously complicated upcoming play 'The Lord of the Rings' on Monday. The show will incorporate not only singers, dancers and actors, but acrobats and magicians as well, all trying to bring J.R.R. Tolkien's work to the stage. Those who've been lucky enough to make the grade are sure they can make you a true believer. [More]

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 25, 2005--Electronic Arts (Nasdaq:ERTS - News) today announced that it has been granted the rights to develop games based on J.R.R. Tolkien's epic literary fiction, The Lord of the Rings. Since 2001, EA has developed games based exclusively on New Line's Academy Award winning theatrical productions of The Lord of the Rings, as depicted by Peter Jackson. The expansion of the rights allows EA to introduce players to depths of the fiction never before explored in an EA game. The company also revealed today the first details of two new games in the blockbuster The Lord of the Rings series; The Lord of the Rings(TM), The Battle for Middle-earth(TM) II and The Lord of the Rings(TM) Tactics (working title). With the new games, fans will be able to step into a world that looks like the films, but experience characters, environments and battles that have been inspired by the books. [More]

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The critics love "Lost." ABC's thriller-chiller took two Television Critics Assn. honors Saturday during the TV scribes' 21st annual ceremony at the Beverly Hilton. "Lost," the freshman sensation that helped turn around ABC's fortunes last season, got the TCA nod for new program and achievement. J.J. Abrams, co-creator and executive producer of "Lost," thanked the crowd effusively in accepting the trophies. "The support you have given 'Lost,' we can't really quantify," he said. "It's unbelievable." [More]

Pre-Order 'Lost - The Complete First Season' on Amazon.com today!

A pub immortalised by Charles Dickens as a centre of hard-drinking iniquity in his novel Our Mutual Friend is at the centre of a row over late-night opening. Police and residents who live near The Grapes, in east London's Limehouse district, are opposing an application for the pub to stay open until 2am because of fears that it will fuel crime. The dispute, which is before the local authority, has been given added impetus by the pub's literary credentials and by the number of celebrities who live on its street. [More]

Ringer Celebriel just returned from an LOTR locations tour in New Zealand, this is her Day Eleven report: Today was a free day in Queenstown. This allowed us to try a variety of local excursions on our own. Queenstown is a totally unique place. It has a population of about 11,000, a small town really, but it is the adventure capital of New Zealand. The streets are filled day and night with young people, and it seems like every shop in downtown is a place to book an adventure trip of some kind or to buy outdoor clothing or gear, if it’s not a restaurant or café. A new Starbucks was under construction. [More]

FredO writes: I’ve attached some photos from the post-concert reception at Heinz Hall from last night’s Lord Of The Rings concert. I am the person standing next to Billy as someone to his left is holding a tee-shirt I gave him. My wife, Sue is the woman in the next picture with Billy. The first photo is of Tom who is holding a copy of “Regional Cookbook For Middle Earth.” Standing next to Tom is the author of the cookbook, Stephanie Simmons. Stephanie worked very hard with the Pittsburgh Symphony to provide a pre-concert benefit dinner. The other photo is of a local Ringer named Bonnie in her Gladriel outfit. She is accompanied by Joe and Jen. [More]

Houston, TX -- July 23, 2005 -- Tolkien expert Michael Martinez will give a special presentation at the Houston Museum of Natural Science on Tuesday, July 26 as part of their Distinguished Lecturer series. "Being Middle-earth: How Fantasy Shapes the Living World" looks at the experience of creating a modern motion picture in a world where millions of fans watch and sometimes participate in the process. The lecture is sponsored by KUHF, 88.7 FM (http://www.kuhf.org/), Houston Public Radio. [More]

Who's got the most "precious" gig in Canadian show business? Michael Therriault, that's who. The Star has learned that the 32-year-old actor will be playing the wily, obsessive Gollum in the highly anticipated stage version of The Lord of the Rings, scheduled to open in Toronto next March. But that's just the beginning. Even though an official announcement of who's appearing in what roles is not expected until a news conference at the Canon Theatre on Monday morning, reliable sources within the theatre community have revealed some of the major casting choices. Producer Kevin Wallace and spokespeople for the Mirvish organization refused to confirm or deny these reports. [More]

Robin writes: Today Infuze Magazine published an exclusive Q&A with Lord of the Rings Online Executive Producer, Jeffrey Steefel, under its Infuze Games channel. Topics covered include: locations within the game, characters from the books, the significance of the title Shadows of Angmar, player customization options, accessibility for newbies versus experienced MMO players, and whether or not players will get to follow in the footsteps of the Fellowship. [More]

Ringer Celebriel just returned from an LOTR locations tour in New Zealand, this is her Day Ten report: This morning we drove from Te Anau back to Arrowtown, an old gold mining town well worth a visit. We visited a site on the river, where the Ringwraiths on horseback gathering at the Ford of Brunien (the Arrow River) were filmed You can recognize it from the shoreline and the river’s pathway. Our visit was in the morning, after an overnight frost. All the trees were covered with ice, making the setting look like a vision from the witch’s kingdom in The Chronicles of Narnia. [More]