Hear Ye, Hear Ye
By Order of Proclamation from The Hall of Fire, it is hereby decreed that The Fellowship of the Ring will be discussed in depth chapter by chapter, to commence the weekend of February 17 and 18!
Pretty exciting stuff!! Join us as we venture together through Tolkien’s own Lord of the Rings, beginning with the Fellowship. Every other weekend we will discuss a chapter of the story, right up until the first film comes out in December. The agenda for discussions is wide open, and first time chatters as well as first time readers of Tolkien are welcome to attend. In between chats there is time for reading each chapter, and folks are welcome to jump in at any time throughout the year.
These book discussions will not conflict with our currently scheduled debates, which will continue on their twice monthly cycle. That makes Hall of Fire active every weekend, so you’re sure to find a burning Tolkien discussion in a time zone near you every Saturday and Sunday for a long time to come here at TheOneRing.net.
Comments? Questions? Email ’em right in.
Saturday Chat: 7:00 pm ET (19:00) [also midnight Saturday (24:00) GMT and 10:00 am Sunday (10:00) in Australia]
Sunday Chat: 7:00 pm (19:00) in Australia [also 9:00 am (09:00) GMT and 4:00 am (04:00) ET]
Sunday Chat: 6:00 pm (18:00) GMT [also 1:00 pm (13:00) ET and 4:00 am (04:00) Monday morning in Australia’s]
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IMDB’s “Studio Report” has expanded on last week’s “Dominion” article on what the NZ Army was paid for taking part in LOTR – that story is on Stuff and a quick read between the lines shows that it’s an attempt by a marginal political party to topple the NZ Government by discrediting them. It’s a valiant effort but so far nobody’s taken to the streets in protest at the Govt’s shocking mismanagement of the armed forces. I have yet to meet anyone that gives a toss, quite frankly.
The Australian papers took up the story because it is sort of funny – after all, what kind of wussy country is it that allows its military personnel to dress up in funny costumes and run round with outdated weapons? Don’t worry, we’re used to it.
By the time IMBD got hold of the story it read like this:
“Rings Producers Bought Soldiers For $8.83 Per Day.
Controversy has erupted in New Zealand following the revelation that the country’s Defense Force, the combined army, navy and air force, was paid only $91,000 for the use of 15-250 men, mostly as extras, each day during the filming of Lord of the Rings. The figure breaks down to $8.83 per man per day. A spokesman for the political party New Zealand First, which has been pushing for an increase in pay for military personnel, told the NZPA news service, “If we are going to insist the Defense Force operate in a business-like manner … then pay it what (the personnel) are worth. … I’d now ask the Prime Minister to transfer funds from allocations to the film industry to compensate the army for the loss of its resources and its time.”
I like that ‘Controversy has erupted’ line. Perhaps it’s erupting away quietly under our tightly-buttoned stiff upper lips or something. Anyhow, I’ve failed to notice it. There’s another story going on behind this one, though, which relates to Hollywood’s alarm at the number of ‘runaway’ productions that are made in cheaper locations such as Canada, Mexico, Australia and now NZ., which hosted both LOTR and ‘Vertical Limit.’ Quickbeam, a film industry insider working in LA commented:
“I’m quite sure the intention of having this story on IMDb today was to have Hollywood-ites be grateful they have a Union to protect them from the evils of foreign film productions. And of course to bring embarrassment to New Line for even taking this project out of Los Angeles in the first place. The climate here regarding Canada, New Zealand, and Australia stealing productions from L.A. is incredibly sour. This is a non-event to you & I, but any story that reinforces the impact of “runaway productions” is press-worthy to an industry nervous about its future.”
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From the amazing mind of Bill Amend (how are you Bill) check out the latest ‘Foxtrot’:
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From: Boris
Here’s the official press release from Games Workshop, regarding their upcoming Lot game (check out the cool picture of Saruman!).
This was handed out at Games Workshop’s stand at this year’s Nürnberg toy fair in Germany. [More]
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From: Jebus
I found this on the popcorn website (popcorn.co.uk). Sean Astin (Sam) talks about the LOTR films, and his time in New Zealand.
One of the stars of the three ‘Lord Of The Rings’ movies has been speaking exclusively to Popcorn about the upcoming trilogy, saying he hopes it “lives up the the hype”.
American actor Sean Astin plays gardener Samwise Gamgee in all three films, and he’s full of praise for director Peter Jackson’s epic vision. “It was really hard work but it was really good, important work,” the 29-year-old son of John Astin (aka Gomez in ‘The Addams Family’) says. “What Peter Jackson has tried to accomplish – and what he has accomplished – is so massive that it’s staggering.”
While Astin admits that life as a hobbit was gruelling, he says the delights of New Zealand were a major compensation. “New Zealand is one of the last unspoiled splendours on the face of the Earth, so we were working in Middle Earth – with the green lush forests and the rolling hills and the fjords and the snow-capped [Southern] Alps.”
“It was amazing,” Astin adds, “helicopting to the top of these mountains or working on an active volcano for six weeks – it was pretty spectacular.”
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From: Alun
Monday morning (5th Feb 2001), the LotR trailer was shown in full on Channel 4’s ‘The Big Breakfast’ in the UK.
The presenters added a few remarks on the fact that it was expected to break all box office records and a joke that the public should be careful, because the films may be, “hobbit forming!”
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