The stars are aligned for today’s *live* webcast TORn TUESDAY, where viewers can be part of the show and ask questions directly to our celebrity guests! Today we are joined by the creative team behind the wildly popular “FELLOWSHIP! The Musical” — an award winning stage production that rips on the first book of Tolkien’s trilogy! I’ve seen it a few times and it’s hysterically good (check out TORn’s previous podcast interview here). Our special guests today include Comedy Central’s RENO 911! star CEDRIC YARBROUGH (who plays Gandalf) and composer ALLEN SIMPSON! There will be mischief aplenty as we also turn our attention to WETA Costume Contest winner NICOLE ROBERTS, who recently completed her trip to New Zealand and has great stories and surprise photos to share. Tune into our show TORn TUESDAY, hosted by Clifford Broadway (Quickbeam), by clicking to our Live Event page. As always, you can participate starting at 5:00pm PDT — There’s a built-in Barliman’s chat room or come in via Skype in TheOneRing.net’s Stickam page. Check out our LIVE Event section right here every week! [LIVE Event Area] (See All Times)
Flight of the Conchords’ Bret McKenzie, better known here as Figwit, is offering the chance to meet him for a Fair Trade coffee and a chat in this auction run by Oxfam. The winning bidder gets to have coffee with McKenzie and will receive a guitar signed by McKenzie and his Conchords partner Jemaine Clement. Read More
It’s been more than a decade since the first of the films in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy was released, and although fans are now eagerly anticipating a return to Middle-earth with his upcoming Hobbit films, well, one does NOT simply walk away from where it all began.
Today, we feature an article written for TheOneRing.net by guest author Leslie Martinka, Marketing Manager at Hark.com, the world’s largest platform for pop culture quotes and images, on the phenomenon that is Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings, and the top 20 quotes from Peter Jackson’s films:
“My Precious“, says Gollum through missing rotted teeth. His emaciated body is evidence of his life in Middle-earth as a slave to the One Ring. For the past 60 years, people have devoured the pages of The Lord of the Rings reading about characters such as Gollum, Frodo and Gandalf. Fans of the trilogy have made it one of the most beloved literary works of all time.
From our own message boards comes this excellent report of Ian McKellen’s one-man show that is raising money for a theater damaged by the devastating earthquake in Christchurch. The actor is (of course) in New Zealand for filming of both parts of “The Hobbit,” a Peter Jackson adaptation of J.R.R. Tolkien’s book. Thanks to del girl for sharing her experience on our boards and sending it to our Spymaster@TheOneRing.net adress. She also provided links to another report of the show.
“I have just come back from seeing the first one-man show in Sir Ian’s tour of New Zealand, which is a fundraiser for repairing the earthquake-damaged Isaac Theatre Royal in Christchurch (were he last played Waiting for Godot).
How do I sum up more than two hours of Sir Ian on stage?
Tonight, the artisans from Weta released the latest statue in their mini-statue line. The character chosen to join the line-up, accompanying Gollum and Gandalf the Grey, is none other than the future King of Gondor, Strider. This adaptation of the character, features Strider as we first see him in Bree. This is the first time we’ve seen Strider captured in this pose and looks to be a must own The Lord of the Rings collectible. This statue will cost $75 and will be shipping sometime in September/October.
In the wake of THE HOBBIT 10-minute presentation at CinemaCon last week, fans’ excitement/ nerves/ energy level has grown apace! On top of that, a remarkable team of Hollywood talent has created a parody film of the LOTR Trilogy, to satisfy one of the longest-running “friendly rivalries” in the history of anime (a somewhat related field of fandom). Ringers just recently got their first look at the mini-epic “The Todd of the Rings,” available exclusively on YouTube. We are quite thrilled to be joined *live* by voiceover star VIC MIGNOGNA (“Fullmetal Alchemist” & “Naruto”) to discuss the creation of his special parody on today’s webcast TORn TUESDAY, hosted by Clifford Broadway (Quickbeam). The role of Gandalf was coincidentally played by your humble host, and many award-winning costumes were donated by Tolkien fans from across the country for the making of this comedic tour-de-force! Come join our live chat show and be part of the fun, Vic is eager to answer fans’ questions. As always, you can participate starting at 5:00pm PDT — There’s a built-in Barliman’s chat room or come in via Skype in TheOneRing.net’s Stickam page. Check out our LIVE Event section right here every week! [LIVE Event Area] (See All Times)
Anime fans are already in-the-know, but now Ringer fans have gotten their first look at a funny, impressively detailed parody of The Lord of the Rings Trilogy! Animation voiceover star Vic Mignogna, familiar from shows like FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST, DRAGON BALL Z, BLEACH and NARUTO, has been playfully embroiled in a video tribute challenge with fellow voice actor and friend Todd Haberkorn. The resulting comedy videos between them have become progressively more detailed and complex (and hysterical). This newly forged “Rings” parody looks amazing; and features a familiar personality from TheOneRing.net. Our very own Clifford Broadway (Quickbeam), host of the weekly webcast TORn TUESDAY, plays Gandalf the Grey! This playful mini-epic was presented at Anime Central just a few days ago in Chicago, and showcases some epic talent both in front of and behind the camera! Ringer friend Nicole Roberts (recent WETA contest winner) helped secure a bevy of prize-winning costumes for this parody ‘Fellowship.’ What was the genesis of this remarkable 23-minute parody? Mignogna states: “What started out as a simple tribute video rivalry among friends, has ultimately culminated in this epic production.” Filled with anime in-jokes and high end production value, this “Todd of the Rings” is the send-up to rule them all. View it exclusively on YouTube here.
Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!
“Who now has the strength to stand against the armies of Isengard and Mordor? To stand against the might of Sauron and Saruman and the union of the Two Towers?”
– Saruman to Sauron during The Two Towers
At Comic-Con 2011 the folks at Weta announced and displayed the newest environment to land in our collections. Then on July 31st 2011 this amazing collectible went up for pre-order to those wishing to purchase this collectible. If you were one of the first 400 people to order Orthanc, you would end up with a numbered addition, and a special gold-plated Eye of Sauron pin commemorating the day of sale. Originally, this collectible was named Orthanc Pre-Ruin but Weta and TheOneRing.net teamed up to give it an even cooler name. The winning name chosen by Weta was Orthanc – Black Tower of Isengard. This version of Orthanc shows this place as we see it when Gandalf the Grey arrives to talk with Saruman upon realizing that The One Ring has been found. This memorable moment has been amazingly captured by Weta. Follow after the break for my complete review.
Welcome to our collection of TORn’s hottest topics for the past week. If you’ve fallen behind on what’s happening on the Message Boards, here’s a great way to catch the highlights. Or if you’re new to TORn and want to enjoy some great conversations, just follow the links to some of our most popular discussions. Watch this space as every weekend we will spotlight the most popular buzz on TORn’s Message Boards. Everyone is welcome, so come on in and join in the fun!
It seems since the official The Lord of the Rings store at WBShop.com had a redesign, we’ve been getting non-stop deals for Tolkien fans. The offers continue today as we learn of a new Earth Day promotion. WBShop.com is offering 20% LOTR items including Middle-earth canvases, Arwen’s Pendant, framed film cells, etc, etc. If you were looking for an excuse to build your collection, now’s the time! [WBShop.com Earth Day Promo] [LOTR Shirts] [Official Hobbit Shirt]
As we know Sir Ian McKellen is doing his wizardry around New Zealand doing what he does best, here’s an interview with him aired on TV3 telling us alittle about what to expect
