SAN DIEGO - Major media outlets from the L.A. Times to USA Today and Entertainment Weekly have converged on the San Diego Convention Center to explain the phenomenon of 150,000 popular culture enthusiasts spending a week together catching the flavor of what it means to be “geek”.
From Garfeimao: The first Cruise to Middle earth was first announced at San Diego Comic Con last year, albeit with little fanfare, so it’s only fair that the second Cruise to Middle earth, also known as The Sequel, be announced there too. But I think I’ll give you a little hint here, just so you know to look for it at the convention. Oh, and comic con will be the last chance to get on to this year’s Cruise to Middle earth before the prices go up.
There are lots of reasons to attend Comic-Con or even follow along at home as the San Diego Comic-Con becomes the very center of the popular-culture universe including a good dose of Tolkien-related material. The 2008 SDCC has a “Hobbit-centric” flavor and kicks off today (Wednesday) has plenty to keep the Middle-earth enthusiast busy including TORn’s very own sneak-peek of the forthcoming pair of movies centered around “The Hobbit.” Read on for everything you need to know about SDCC 08!
Kristin Thompson is going to be available to sign her book “The Frodo Franchise” during Comic-Con. “I’ve come up with three one-hour time-slots when I’ll be at the booth to sign your copies of The Frodo Franchise. (If you’ve got others of my books you want signed, feel free to bring ‘em along.) I imagine I’ll have time to chat, too, if you just want to drop by. And don’t forget to buy one or two of the T-shirts designed by Weta Workshop’s Daniel Falconer. All profits from the shirts and books go to support TORN, so it’s all in a good cause. Here are the times when I’ll be at the booth:
Thursday 1:30 to 2:30
Friday 11:30 to 12:30 (That’s shortly after the TORN panel)
Sunday 1:00 to 2:00.”
Copies of “The Frodo Franchise” will be available for purchase at the Slave Boy booth (booth #5424) where TORn will be located. If you’re going to Comic-Con, be sure and take this opportunity to visit with Kristin and have your copy of “The Frodo Franchise” signed! Read More
From our friend Kristin Thompson at The Frodo Franchise: “I’ve just posted a little history of Lord of the Rings and Peter Jackson decorations at the Wellington International Airport. There was more than just the rooftop Gollum! Fans who went through that airport in search of Middle-earth might have some pleasant memories revived by the pictures.” Pleasant memories indeed, Kristin. Read More
July 22nd, 2008 by Compa_Mighty
| Source: Empire
| Discuss
Forummer diedye posted this piece of news from Empire:
Speaking at a special screening of The Dark Knight at London’s Imax cinema on Monday night, he [Ian McKellen] said: “Well, I haven’t had the contract yet but it’s everyone’s intention that I play Gandalf so yes, I will be returning to the role. Although it’s not until 2010, I’m very much excited about returning.
When asked about del Toro and the look of the movie, Sir Ian answered:
Well, if you’re not going to have Peter Jackson, who else can handle the job? To get an international film-maker of his standing who adores the original trilogy, well I don’t think you could possibly find a better replacement, I think the look will be very much as it was, Weta is still involved, it’s still the same workshops, the same designers, I’ll be there, Andy Serkis (now confirmed to return as Gollum) will be there and Peter Jackson will still be around - not that he’ll interfere too much - so it’ll seem like the old family is getting back together again.
So there you go, further confirmation of several things: no one has been officially cast yet (nothing is signed), Sir Ian and Andy Serkis are to return, everyone’s on board with Guillermo del Toro and the look of the movie is expected to be relatively similar to that of the trilogy. [Empire]
July 21st, 2008 by DiveTwin
| Source: USAToday.com
With Academy Award buzz circulating around Health Ledger’s frightening portrayal of The Joker as well as for the movie itself, The Dark Knight is generating all sorts of Oscar talk. A recent USA Today article reviews those topics and happens to credit another genre film that gives The Dark Knight a reason to hope. A section noted:
But through the years, as studios focused on big-budget films, “the Hollywood establishment began turning its nose up to quality movies that happened to have action,” says Steve Mason, columnist for Hollywood.com. “The sentiment became that if it’s fun or funny or escapist entertainment, it can’t be that good. Recognizing Dark Knight would be a significant step to correct that.”
It’s not impossible. In 2004, the academy finally presented a best-picture Oscar to a fantasy film, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.
“I had a glimmer of hope when Return of the King won; it felt like a victory for our kinds of films,” says Kevin Feige, president of Marvel Studios, which plans its own Oscar campaign for Iron Man and star Robert Downey Jr.
Thanks again to Voronwe_the_Faithful for posting another update on the Tolkien vs. New Line Lawsuit on our message boards: The plaintiffs filed a First Amended Complaint last Monday (which I believe was the last day for them to do so). They have dropped the fiduciary duty cause of action (as expected), but they have asserted new allegations to support the fraud cause of action. They added more specific claims as to how they contend that New Line misrepresented the amount of expenses that it had in order to avoid paying the royalties due. And they somewhat clarified their contention as to how they relied on these misrepresentations to their detriment. Undoubtedly New Line will again file a demurrer to the fraud cause of action. I would say it is about a 50/50 chance that the judge will sustain it this time. Meanwhile, the likelihood of a settlement continues to slip away.
From Maxim and World Entertainment News: Guillermo Del Toro has promised Lord Of The Rings fans his franchise prequel The Hobbit will be very different from his directing predecessor Peter Jackson. Jackson directed the three original films, but has given up his director’s chair for Del Toro. But Del Toro has refused to follow in Jackson’s footsteps, vowing to give movie fans something new. He tells Maxim magazine, “If I thought it was about following (Jackson), I wouldn’t be doing it this way. “It’s a matter of raising on it. I think The Hobbit has a peculiar sprit in relation to not only the trilogy, but also to Tolkein’s work. “It’ll have respect for what’s been done, but also its own individuality.”
We reported earlier this week that we would be featuring a brand new TORn and Weta t-shirt at Comic-Con. [Comic-Con Shirt] It should be noted however, that the Comic-Con shirt was not the only design TORn has been working on the last few months. So without further delay, we are proud to premiere our ‘Lake Town Volunteer Fire Department‘ shirt! The shirt, pictured on the right, is deep red with the TORn logo on the front and the LTFD logo on the back. We only have a limited amount of these shirts printed at this time, so if the demand is there, we will print another run in various sizes and styles. In fact, if you want a specific style, please email me directly at calisuri@theonering.net and I will keep a running list. While I wont’ be able to reply to all emails, I will keep them handy when deciding on our next printing. In the meantime, check out our latest shirt! [Lake Town Fire Department Shirt] [Comic-Con Shirt]
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