Mark, both observant and wise, writes in with a nugget about Ian McKellen in New Zealand and his comment on a possible Jackson "The Hobbit" movie. No news, but as Mark commented, "I'm just hoping this is more of "things are progressing behind the scenes but we can't talk about it" and that the apparent thaw in relations is continuing. Not a bad read on how things might be going, especially when combined with other similar signs. Read the full story here.